Fireman Dad (6 page)

It’d be easier if Liz had spilled the proverbial beans, but he couldn’t let that happen. Marissa deserved the truth from him. After all, he was the one who let things move as far as they had in their relationship, risking a professional relationship for something more. It was his fault it couldn’t happen now, and therefore his responsibility to explain.

One thing was certain, though—ignoring the obvious wasn’t going to be an option anymore. Not with the way Jacob’s heart pounded in Marissa’s presence and her smile wreaked havoc on his stomach. He’d hoped he’d be able to keep a professional distance today as he would have with any other party planner, but the minute she’d stepped out of the car, he realized that wasn’t going to happen.

If they had any chance of working together on the fundraiser and the party for his niece, they were going to have to talk. Awkward as it might be, it would be worse to let things remain unexplained and Marissa wrongfully assume he was no longer interested in her.

Jacob drew a deep breath, certain he could still smell the lingering aroma of Marissa’s lilac perfume.

No, interest was not the problem.

“I
’ve got four volunteers to manage the ticket booth for the festival.” Liz hung up the office phone and made a bold check mark beside an item on the list Marissa had given her earlier that day. “They said they’ll alternate shifts.”

Marissa made her own check mark in her planner. “Wow, that’s great. I haven’t been able to find anyone willing to do the grunt work yet.” She grinned. “Where have you been all my life?”

Liz laughed, the sound contagious and uplifting like the rest of Liz’s personality. “Raising a kid?”

“I hear you on that one.” Marissa stood from her desk chair and stretched. They’d been making calls for the fundraiser for nearly two hours straight. Judging by the accomplishments on Marissa’s list, the effort had been well worth it.

At least staying busy had been a distraction from the disappointment of seeing Jacob yesterday. It’d been hard not to quiz Liz about her brother-in-law in between their long talks about family and children throughout the day. Maybe Liz would have some insight into Jacob’s sudden mood swing. But it didn’t feel right to ask. Marissa had
no claim on Jacob, despite her heart insisting otherwise. She’d only look foolish.

“Need some water?” Marissa opened the dorm fridge beside her desk and removed two cold bottles.

“Sounds good.” Liz caught the bottle Marissa tossed and unscrewed the cap. “It’s already almost three-thirty. The kids should be here soon.”

Both women had arranged for a joint carpool to drop Olivia and Owen at the shop today so they could continue making progress on the festival for as long as possible. Marissa glanced at her watch. “You’re right. Today sure has gone by fast. I’m really glad you came in.”

“I told you I would.” Liz took a sip of her water. “I’m good at convincing people to do things they don’t normally want to do.” She winked.

“Aren’t all mothers?” Marissa laughed.

“Seriously, though, my church has been great about volunteering, and I knew they would be. They needed to become more aware of the need, that’s all.” Liz lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “They’re nice people—some more stubborn than others.”

Marissa nodded as the dots slowly connected. “So you go to the same church as Jacob?”

Liz hesitated with her bottle halfway to her lips. “Did I just imply my brother-in-law is stubborn?”

“You actually said as much yesterday when you first came to my store.” At the time, the statement from Liz had brought a smile and a feeling of bonding as Marissa had begun getting to know Jacob as well. Now it made Marissa feel like an outsider to a family joke—a family she obviously wouldn’t get to become close to, other than perhaps through her new friendship with Liz.

“As I recall, you didn’t really seem all that surprised.” Liz smirked.

“No—well, not now anyway. Although, I’m not sure if stubborn is the right word.” Marissa screwed the lid back on her water bottle and set it on her desk. It was probably her fault. She’d been out of the dating world longer than most, and there was still the chance she had misunderstood Jacob’s intentions. But why else would he have asked her on a date? Something changed between Friday night, when she left the Boardwalk, and Monday afternoon, when she arrived at his house. The question remained—what? They’d had zero contact over the weekend. How could she have offended him if they hadn’t spoken?

“I don’t have any pennies, but I can offer you a peppermint for your thoughts.” With a grin, Liz reached into the pocket of her denim capri pants. “Olivia’s favorite.”

“It’s … nothing.” Unfortunately nothing, which was the whole point. Marissa had allowed herself to hope, and all she’d gotten was disappointment.

One would think she’d be used to that by now.

“It’s something, girl. Anyone can see that. The question is do you want to talk about it? If not, I’ll keep my candy to myself.” Liz dangled the peppermint between two fingers.

Marissa stared at the striped candy, unsure if it would cross a line to talk to Jacob’s family about him—he was her client, after all. But how else would she ever find out what happened if she didn’t ask? Maybe Jacob’s sudden rejection was somehow a misunderstanding.

Marissa took a deep breath, her decision made. “Jacob and I went out last Friday night.”

Liz’s eyebrows jerked and she tossed the candy to Marissa. “Go on.”

“Not on a date. We met at the Boardwalk and made
some plans for the festival and for Olivia’s party, and had dinner on the riverfront. Very casual.”

“Sounds nice.”

“It was.” Marissa sighed. “That’s the problem. I really had a good time, and I thought Jacob did, too. He asked me out at the end of the evening—for a real date.”

“He said that?”

Marissa squinted, trying to remember his exact words. “He said he’d like to do this again sometime, but more officially. Something like that.”

“That’s a date.” Liz nodded her confirmation. “Especially from him.”

The words fell like a warning bell on Marissa’s ears, but she pushed them aside to process after she finished her story. “I thought things were fine. But yesterday when I went to check out his property to see how the festival would be set up, he was weird.”

“Weird?”

“Distant. Very standoffish.” Humiliation swarmed Marissa’s chest like a thousand tiny bee stings. “I thought he was just having a bad day, so I made some sort of reference to his asking me out.”

Liz leaned forward in her chair. “And?”

The flush intensified and Marissa pressed her cold water bottle against her neck. “And he said he couldn’t.”

Liz’s brow furrowed. “Couldn’t? Not wouldn’t?”

“I don’t remember exactly. I wasn’t in the mood to read between the lines at that point.” Marissa snorted. “Although, he did seem sad when he said it—almost disappointed.”

“That is strange. There’s got to be something else to it.”

“But nothing that you would know of?” Her last hope of explanation died with Liz’s small shake of her head.
Not that she expected Liz to have all the answers—but one or two would have been nice.

Marissa inhaled. “Obviously he changed his mind. I guess I need to put it out of my head and move on. He’s my client, and we’re working together for Olivia and for the festival, and that’s what matters.” The declaration sounded unconvincing, even to her own ears, and Liz’s knowing gaze suggested she sensed the same.

Just then, the front door burst open and Owen and Olivia rushed inside. “Hey, buddy!” Marissa sneaked a quick hug out of Owen before waving to the carpool driver from the open door. “How was your day?”

“Great! Do you have any snacks?” Owen rushed to her desk and began rummaging through the bottom drawer, where she’d been known to keep a few stashes of candy.

Olivia, a petite little thing with long brown hair and big brown eyes, greeted her mom with a quieter hello. Liz gave her a hug, then urged her toward Marissa. “Olivia, this is the lady who is planning your party.”

Marissa squatted down to her level and grinned. “It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Olivia smiled back. “Will there be a pony?”

Marissa’s eyes widened and she looked at Liz over the top of the girl’s head. Liz hid a laugh behind her hand, the sound coming out more like a cough. “Um, probably not a real one, but we can play pin the tail on the horse. Would that be okay?”

Olivia nodded with exuberance.

“Do you want a snack, too? I think Owen found my emergency can of Pringles.”

Marissa looked over her shoulder at her son, who offered a sheepish grin as he removed the tin from her cabinet. “Learning’s hard work, Mom.”

“A woman who labels chips as an emergency—I’m assuming that means there’s chocolate somewhere else in your desk?” Liz stood up to join the hunt.

Marissa laughed. “You guys help yourselves. Try the bottom right drawer.” She reached over to their assistance, when the bell on the door announced a new visitor. She turned to see Jacob filling the door frame, his navy T-shirt a stark contrast to the afternoon light behind him. Her pulse thudded in her ears and she cleared her throat. Had he come to see her? Was he going to ask her out again? Anticipation and dismay fought for full bidding in her stomach. She opened her mouth, unsure what to say, when Owen fairly squealed in excitement.

“Mom! That’s the fireman who pulled a quarter from my ear at school!” Owen ran past Marissa, nearly bumping into her legs, and skidded to a stop in front of Jacob, chips spilling from the open container of Pringles still in his hand.

“Hey, little man.” Jacob seemed surprised at the discovery, but crouched down and offered a high five to an excited Owen, then met Marissa’s gaze.

Shock flooded Marissa’s veins with every heartbeat. Jacob—a fireman?
The
unknown fireman who’d borne the brunt of her anger this past week? She searched his eyes for an explanation, fury simmering in an explosive pot in her stomach. How? Why?

Owen continued to babble on about the school safety presentation, but the words blurred together, nearly lost in the roar filling Marissa’s ears.

She shook her head, willing back the sudden onslaught of angry tears threatening her vision. She couldn’t lose it, not here. Not in front of her son.

Before her, Owen grinned at Jacob like a long-lost hero. “I’m going to be a fireman one day, too.”

That was it. A vise clenched Marissa’s heart in an unyielding grasp, and she couldn’t help the daggers she bore into the side of Jacob’s profile.

He must have felt her visual warning, for he slowly stood and met her gaze. “We need to talk.”

She nodded once and led him to the front door, frustrated tears biting her eyes. He was right about that.

Jacob followed Marissa outside, her back a straight, rigid line in front of him. She’d wasted no time in asking Liz to keep an eye on the kids and hightailing it to the front door. Following her felt similar to what he imagined a guillotine walk would resemble. But he owed her.

He joined her outside, shutting the door firmly behind him. From the fire in Marissa’s eyes, this wouldn’t be a conversation the kids needed to hear. He waited for the first verbal punch, deserving that and probably more.

“You lied to me.” Marissa’s words, sharp with betrayal, cut a ragged hole in Jacob’s emotions. But the hurt in her eyes filled the hole with regret, and was nearly his undoing.

“I didn’t lie.” The wind lifted Marissa’s hair from her shoulders, and Jacob wanted to touch her—tuck that unruly strand of blond behind her ear, or press his fingers against her cheek—anything to convince her he was telling the truth. He knew this day was coming, knew he needed to beat Liz to revealing his career, but he never imagined it would have happened like this. He’d come over to the shop to apologize for his behavior yesterday and try to find a way to tell Marissa why he couldn’t follow through with their date after all.

But Owen’s involvement in the revelation of his secret
wiped away any chances of keeping a friendship with Marissa—and possibly even a civil working relationship. He hadn’t realized Owen was Marissa’s son until a moment ago. At the elementary school when they performed the safety demonstration, he’d been focused on Olivia—he never recognized Owen from the picture on Marissa’s desk, even after their classroom game with the quarter. Now, though, it seemed impossible that he couldn’t have—or at least that’s how it would look to Marissa. She wouldn’t understand that at school, the dozens of faces tended to blur.

Now it looked like he’d been keeping secrets with her son. He didn’t have to be a parent to know that was unacceptable—especially in the undefined, fledging state of their current relationship.

Marissa shifted her weight, her arms crossed tightly across her chest. “You said you owned a lawn business. Is that even true?”

“Of course—it’s my side job. Most firemen have side jobs.”

Her eyes narrowed. “Trust me, I know what firemen do.”

That’s right. Her father. Was that where all this anger was stemming from? Jacob let out a deep sigh. “My career is firefighting. I’ve been doing that for years alongside my lawn service.” He shrugged. “It’s what I do. Who I am.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Her whispered words, no longer angry but carrying a definite tinge of bitterness, were nearly swallowed up with another gust of wind. The same breeze wafted her lilac scent, the subtle aroma an assault on Jacob’s resolve.

He braced himself. “It never came up. I didn’t realize you hadn’t known until we were leaving the Boardwalk
Friday and you told me who your father was.” Jacob raked his hands through his hair. “I was shocked. I had no idea you were Chief Brady’s daughter. If I had known, I wouldn’t have ever—” He stopped, not sure how to say the rest of that sentence without increasing her hurt. It wasn’t Marissa’s fault who her family was. But the fact remained he couldn’t get anywhere near her. Not if he wanted to keep his job and help his family.

Marissa bit her lower lip. “Wouldn’t have asked me out?”

“Right.” His hands dropped to his sides in defeat. Man, this wasn’t fair. Not a bit of it. But how could he risk his entire career and financial support of his brother? That wouldn’t be right—even if part of him wanted to.

She nodded slowly, processing the new information, her eyes averted somewhere over his shoulder. A truck rumbled by the street to their left, and the birds chirped from nearby trees as if this was any other, regular day. But the cheery décor of Your Special Day, visible through the window behind Marissa, served as a startling contradiction to the sadness in her expression. Sadness he was once again responsible for.

Jacob couldn’t help it. He reached for her hand. “Marissa, you have to believe me. I never meant for you to find out this way, never meant for Owen to get involved. I needed time to get my thoughts together, and I was going to tell you. I promise you that.” He clutched her fingers in his, wishing they didn’t feel so cold and lifeless.

“Seems convenient.” She stared at their joined hands. Did she still feel the connection he did, despite her disappointment? But it didn’t matter. It couldn’t.

“Trust me, Marissa, if there was any way I could
make this work—” He stopped as she abruptly tugged her hand free of his grip.