The heat in his eyes, the intimacy in his tone, touched something deep inside Toni. Something she didn’t want touched. Especially not by him. For three years she’d never once wavered from her resolve to avoid firefighters. Had never been even remotely tempted to do so. The fact that she was now so sorely tempted confused and irritated her. And actually scared her. And on top of that, the timing was all wrong. She simply didn’t have time for this. For him. For anyone.

She pushed the gift card back. “Look, I appreciate the effort you’ve put in here, but-”

“So have dinner with me.”

She had to force herself to shake her head. Force herself to say, “No. Thank you, but no. And I recall the rest of our earlier conversation. Please don’t show up here dressed as a circus clown. This is very flattering, but the answer is still no.”

He heaved a sigh and slipped the gift card back in his pocket. “Well, as they say on the ranch, if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging.” He tipped his hat, then without another word, turned and loped out of the store.

“Okay, that does it,” Jayne said, reaching for the phone. “I’m calling the men in the white coats. You’re totally certifiable. You must have a lump of granite where your heart belongs. Not to mention rocks in your head to turn him down.”

“I’m sure you mean that in the nicest way,” Toni said, unable to keep the traces of hurt and annoyance from her voice.

“Actually, I don’t. Look, I understand your aversion to firefighters-”

“Thank you. Because it doesn’t seem as if you do.”

Jayne reached out and clasped Toni’s hand. “I really do, sweetie. And I agree with you. What happened to you was awful and wrong and very, very hurtful. You have every right to feel the way you do. But in this particular case, I think you’re making a mistake to pile Brad into the same category as those idiots you worked with. They’re the ones who hurt you-not Brad. He seems really sweet and sincere, and God knows, he’s sexy as hell. And obviously he has a sense of humor. How many times have I heard you say you’d love to meet a man with a sense of humor?”

“And I would. Someday. Not now. And never, if he’s a firefighter.”

“It’s only dinner. A simple meal.”

A humorless sound escaped Toni. “A simple meal. The problem is I somehow don’t think it would remain simple. And that…scares me.” There. She’d said it out loud.

“Of course it could be simple-if that’s what you want.”

“You really think I should have said yes?”

“Yes. I really think you should have. Maybe he’s a really great guy whose only fault is saving people’s lives for a living. That beast.”

“Maybe he’s a real jerk.”

“Maybe. Don’t you want to know? I know I would.”

Toni pulled in a long breath. Dammit, she did want to know. She didn’t want to want to know, but she did. Which was really annoying. And frightening.

“What if I discover he isn’t a jerk?”

“Would that really be so terrible?” Jayne asked, her big blue eyes filled with compassion.

“Yes. No.” Toni raked her hands through her curls. “I don’t know. I have so much on my plate right now, with the shop and upcoming bank review-I need a man like I need a bad rash.”

“I disagree. After six months with no sex, I think a man is exactly what you need. A few man-induced orgasms would be a perfect Christmas gift to give yourself.”

Toni refused to consider how perfect a few man-induced orgasms would be. “If he isn’t a jerk…I’m afraid…I don’t want to end up liking a guy whose occupation would remind me every day of something I’ve worked very hard to put behind me and forget.”

“Well, as I said before, it isn’t necessary that you marry the guy. Again-you haven’t had sex in six months.”

“Way to rub it in.”

“I’m just stating a fact.” Jayne grabbed the calendar from the bag beneath the counter and flashed Mr. December’s picture. “If that’s not enough to make you want to end your sexless streak, you don’t have a pulse.”

Toni grabbed the calendar and shoved it back beneath the counter. “Fine. He’s hot. Fine. I’m horny. Doesn’t matter since he’s gone and won’t be back. It’s for the best.” Right. Completely for the best.

“But if he came back?”

“He won’t. I was very clear.”

“But if he did?” Jayne persisted.

“If he did, then I’d-”

The door opened and the jingling bell cut off her words. She turned and her pulse stuttered as Brad, dressed, she guessed, as himself, in jeans and a green polo shirt, entered. With his gaze steady on hers, he approached the counter. God help her, he looked good enough to eat. An image instantly popped into her mind. Of her running her tongue down his torso. Licking her way beneath his waistband-

“It occurred to me,” he said when he stood in front of her, “that you never mentioned a teacher.”

Toni had to swallow to find her voice. “Teacher?”

He nodded. “In addition to being a firefighter, I’m also a teacher. At the Ocean Harbor Beach Community College.”

“What do you teach?”

“An Emergency Medical Technician training course. I worked as an EMT before joining the fire department. I teach on my off days.”

“I see…Professor.”

He flashed a grin then pulled out the now-very-familiar gift card from his back pocket and set it on the counter. “Another cowboy bit of wisdom is-when you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. So that’s what I’m doing.” He nudged the card toward her. “Have dinner with me. C’mon, Toni. Just one little dinner.”

Dammit. Her resolve was melting like chocolate left in the sun. “How do you know so much about cowboy wisdom?”

“I spent three summers during high school working on my uncle’s ranch in Wyoming. I’d be happy to tell you all about it over dinner.”

“Are you always this persistent?”

All traces of amusement faded from his eyes, which now looked more green than blue thanks to his shirt. “No.”

That single softly spoken word rendered a direct hit to her rapidly weakening resolve.

“And just so you know,” he continued, “I can keep this up for a while. I have the next two days off.”

“What about your class?”

“The semester ended last week. School doesn’t start again until after the new year.” He nudged the card closer to her. “So…are you free tonight? Please say yes. I really don’t want to come back here dressed as a circus clown.”

Her lips twitched. “Would you?”

His gaze dipped to her mouth and heat flared in his eyes. Heat that sizzled over to her like an electric current and whooshed straight to her core. He raised his eyes to hers. “Yes, I would.”

Somehow resisting the urge to wave her hand in front of her flushed face, she fixed him with a hard stare. “Just one dinner.” After all, what could be the harm in one little dinner? A girl had to eat-right?

Relief flickered in his eyes. “One dinner,” he agreed. “Tonight?”

Might as well make it tonight and get it over with, she decided. Surely this one ill-advised meal that she annoyingly couldn’t seem to resist would drive home the fact that getting involved in any way with a firefighter was a bad idea. Meanwhile, she’d just pretend he was nothing more than a teacher. A really hot teacher. A really hot teacher she already knew looked incredible all wet.

“Tonight,” she agreed. She’d give him one evening, then put him from her mind. And put her focus back where it belonged-on her business.

A huge grin split his handsome face. “I’ll pick you up-”

“I’ll meet you at Sea Shells,” she said firmly. “Eight o’clock.”

“Eight o’clock,” he agreed. After saying goodbye to Jayne, he left the store. The instant the door closed behind him, Jayne said, “Thank God you said yes. If you hadn’t, I would have told Santa to let a reindeer kick you. I would have kicked you.”

“It’s just dinner,” Toni said, trying to ignore the fissure of jittery anticipation running through her.

“Of course it is,” Jayne agreed in a calm voice. “Still, be sure to bring some condoms. Just in case you decide you want dessert.”

4

BRAD SAT in a corner booth at the bustling Sea Shells restaurant and forced himself not to look at his watch; he knew less than a minute had passed since he’d last peeked at the time. Which meant it was five minutes to eight. Five minutes that he suspected were going to pass ve-e-ery slowly.

Dammit, he was nervous. He tried to recall the last time he’d felt so jumpy about a date and realized it was probably in high school. Great. Thirty years old and struck down by teenageritis. It was just a date. Just one little dinner.

Yeah. With a woman you’ve wanted for three months. With a woman you clearly have one shot with. Screw this up and you’re finished.

No pressure.

Yet in spite of his nervousness, he felt more alive than he had in months. Because of the number of women who made themselves available to the guys at the station, it had been a long time since he’d actually had to do any pursuing. In fact, he didn’t know one firefighter who was single who had trouble finding a woman. When was the last time he’d had to put any effort into getting a date or a one-night stand? Damned if he could remember. But then, when was the last time he’d experienced the sort of wild attraction he felt toward Toni?

Never. He never had.

In an effort to relax and not glance at his watch again, he looked out the window at the foamy waves rushing onto the sand. The star-studded sky resembled diamonds tossed on inky velvet, and the full moon cast the beach with a bright silvery glow that reflected off the water. A few people walked along the sand: teenagers jostling each other, a family with two small children who chased the seabirds darting near the waves’ edge, couples holding hands. He studied one couple in particular, their arms wrapped around each other. They were chatting and laughing, smiling, completely absorbed in each other. Even though they didn’t look anything like Greg and Tanya, the love and happiness that radiated from them reminded him of his brother and his bride, and a pang of unmistakable envy hit Brad right in the chest.