Chapter 5
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Eli tried to ignore the magnetic force that was pulling him back into the gym. Whenever Kenzie was in a ten-mile radius, he was drawn to her. Hell, whenever Kenzie was in any radius he was drawn to her. It’d been that way since the first day he’d met her.
As he walked across the parking lot, every step took more and more effort. His legs and arms were heavy, like they were filled with lead. It was more than just physical exhaustion that he was experiencing, it was the emotional weight of seeing her, hearing her melodic voice, being so close to her, watching her partner put his arm around her.
It’d been torture and he had no one to blame but himself.
He’d planned on leaving when he’d seen her head back toward the locker rooms. But instead, he’d stayed. Every scrap of self-preservation and common sense he possessed had been urging him to get out before he had an encounter with her. But he just couldn’t make himself leave until he looked into her eyes and spoke to her. And now he was paying the price.
At this point he knew he could kiss the idea of sleep goodbye. And there was no way he was going to come up with a plan be immune to Kenzie while she was here without some much-needed caffeine assistance. So instead of heading home, he jogged across the street to Brewed Awakenings.
Brewed Awakenings was the only coffee shop in town. It was owned by two sisters, Audrey and Vivien, who were polar opposites of each other. Not only in appearance but also in personality. Audrey was a gorgeous, petite brunette who was soft-spoken and as sweet and genuine as they came. Vivien was a knockout redhead with curves that made men believe in God and who made her presence and her desires known. Loudly. They were both generous, hard workers that always supported the community and showed up at the station with complimentary baked goods and drinks when the crew needed it most.
He pushed open the glass door that had a coffee cup with steam rising out of it etched in its center. An invigorating, earthy scent filled his nostrils as he stepped inside and inhaled deeply as he got in line. He’d always loved the smell of coffee even before he’d developed a taste for it. It reminded him of home. It was the smell he’d woken up to every morning.
Home. It was the abstract, elusive, hole that sat in the middle of Eli’s chest. When he got out of the military, he’d assumed that his homesickness would be a thing of the past. He’d been wrong. Upon moving back to his hometown, he realized he was just as restless and even more miserable than he’d been when he was three thousand miles away. That agitation had been what prompted his relocation to Hope Falls. Well, that and the fact that they were hiring.
“Hey, Eli!” Audrey greeted him with a broad smile after she’d helped the customers in front of him. “Are you finally off-duty?”
Audrey had been at the station when the chief asked him to stay on for another forty-eight. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Good. You work too hard.” She smiled before placing her hand on her chest. “But, I’m so happy you guys found those kids. How are they?”
The last call they’d gone on was a search and rescue for a couple of teens that had decided to sneak out of their summer camp and go on a romantic midnight hike. They’d gotten lost and fallen down an embankment. “Despite themselves, they’re fine. Just scraped up.”
“Thank God.” Her relief was evident, shining through her large almond-colored eyes. “You want the regular?”
His regular was just that, regular. He was an old school guy through and through. Coffee black. That’s how his dad and brothers had drunk it. None of this iced, latte, macchiato, cappuccino nonsense. Since he wanted the ability to grab some shut-eye after he’d figured out his next tactical maneuver he made one adjustment. “Let’s go half caff.”
“Coming right up.” She dipped her head, and a lock of her dark hair fell over her face as she wrote his order on a paper cup.
Audrey was beautiful, sweet, smart, funny, compassionate, and local. She was the whole package. He felt a mild attraction for her, but that’s it. She was everything that he should want, so why didn’t he?
The answer was one he didn’t want to face, and she was currently across the street at Lucky’s gym.
He pulled out his wallet and started to hand Audrey the bill, but she shook her head. “I know you’re coming off a brutal few days. It’s on the house.”
“Thanks,” he smiled.
As much as he appreciated the gesture, he wasn’t about to accept the charity. Since she wouldn’t take his money the traditional way, when she wasn’t looking he slipped a twenty in the tip jar as he moved down to wait for his drink.
As he waited at the pickup counter, he glanced around the crowded shop that boasted a half dozen small tables and two oversized couches that lined the east wall, each with a coffee table in front of it. All of the tables were occupied and the seating areas full. Even at mid-morning on a weekday this place was near capacity.
Most of the patrons were vacationers. He recognized only a few faces and in a small town like this, everyone knew everyone. As much as tourist season was a pain in his ass, he was aware that the mom-and-pop shops, or in this case sister-and-sister shops, of Hope Falls depended on the money that the out-of-towners brought with them. It was a necessary evil.
“Hey there, hot stuff.”
He pivoted back to the counter and saw Vivien holding his drink behind it. He and Vivien had an ongoing pattern of flirting whenever they saw each other, but that’s as far as it’d ever gone. Nothing more than some PG verbal foreplay that never went anywhere.
Vivien was stunning. With her long, thick red hair, creamy, ivory complexion and a body that gave Jessica Rabbit a run for her money, she was most guys’ wet dream incarnate. And his reaction to her was the same as it was to Audrey or any other woman: he appreciated her beauty but had no real interest.
Which was becoming a running theme.
He grinned. “How ya doing, beautiful?”
“That depends.” Her eyes lit up and she leaned forward, causing her cleavage to push up over her Brewed Awakenings V-neck shirt. “Word is, Gabe Maguire is coming into town today.”
“He is,” Eli confirmed.
“Then I’m doing very good,” she answered as her smile grew wide with mischief.
“Big fan, huh?” He teased, doubting that her interest had anything to do with MMA.
“Of the sport? No, not so much. Of the man and his body?” She fanned herself. “Yes, sir. I’m his number one fan.”
Eli shook his head with a grin as he reached for his drink. When he did, he noticed that the drink wasn’t all she was handing him. His eyes shot down, and he saw that she’d also slid the cash he’d put in the tip jar.
When he looked back up at her, her left brow was raised and her stare pinned him. “Nice try, hot stuff, but like Aud said, it’s on the house.”
“You don’t miss much, do you?” His lips turned up higher in amusement.
“I don’t miss anything.”
He believed her.
Lifting his cup up in cheers, he said loud enough that Audrey could hear, “Thanks, ladies.”
As he headed out, he noticed the line had doubled since he’d come in. A thought hit him as he walked past the people waiting, the increase of people in town would serve as an excellent buffer between himself and Kenzie. If she’d shown up even a month earlier, the chances of them running into each other all the time would’ve increased tenfold. Now, there were so many tourists the odds were good he’d barely see her, especially if he stayed out of Lucky’s Gym as much as possible.
It was more of a gray lining than silver, but he’d take it.
He reached for the handle of the door just as it opened, and he stopped on a dime when a hypnotizing amber gaze locked with his. Kenzie took a step back, startled.
So much for his buffer theory.
She wobbled, and Eli instinctively reached out to stabilize her. The moment that his skin touched hers he knew that he’d made a mistake. A bolt of electricity ran up his arm and he was momentarily stunned by it. His fingers impulsively flexed slightly against her soft skin and the sensation of her flesh beneath his sent a tidal wave of emotions washing over him.
After getting over the initial shock of contact, he pulled his hand back as if she was a hot stove. He was too late. He’d been singed. His palm and fingers were alive with prickling tingles of awareness.
The brief contact branded him, which only cemented the fact that he needed to keep his distance.
*
“Oh!” Mackenzie gasped as she recoiled in surprise when Eli appeared in front of her.
She only had a vague awareness that her balance was compromised when she felt a strong hand steady her. It may have helped her from falling flat on her backside, but it did nothing for the emotions that rioted through her. But just as fast as he’d touched her, he pulled his hand away. She winced at the sudden loss.
Seeing Eli again was a shock to her system. So many feelings raced around her mind, all of them vied to pull ahead and take the lead. Fear was currently in first place, with sadness coming in second and frustration right on their tail. But excitement was rounding out the pack in fourth place.
She couldn’t begin to explain why she was excited to see the man that had abandoned her. Had lied to her. Had disappeared from her life with no explanation. She chalked it up to stupidity.
As soon as he’d left the gym, Deanna pulled her aside and filled her in on facts that Mackenzie was still trying to process. Eli lived in Hope Falls. He was a firefighter, which explained the letters on the back of his shirt. Her friend also explained that she’d tried to give her that information months ago but had been unable to because Kenzie always changed the subject whenever Eli was mentioned.
Mackenzie wasn’t one to pat herself on the back, but her palm was itching to slap her shoulder over the fact that she’d maintained her composure while Deanna filled her in on the situation. She’d nodded and smiled like hearing that news wasn’t a rug that was being jerked out from under her.
After her Oscar winning performance, she’d needed some fresh air and some time alone in order to regain her center. When she’d excused herself to make a call, she’d walked out of the gym and noticed Brewed Awakenings across the street. It was a beacon of java goodness that called to her, and so she’d headed over for some much-needed caffeine therapy.
When she opened the door, she came face-to-face with the man that did more for her than caffeine ever could. After feeling the familiar warmth and strength of his touch, she determined that she was going to need stronger therapy than coffee could provide. She might need to see if her therapist in NY could do Skype sessions.
“Hey.” His deep, scratchy voice caused a flutter low in her belly.
No. She reprimanded herself. There will be no more of that.
“Hi.” The word came out in a breathy wisp, to her great disappointment.
Unaffected. That is the vibe she wanted to pull off.
In Vegas, just like today, she’d been blindsided when she saw him. But unlike Vegas, seeing him in Hope Falls wouldn’t be a one-time occurrence. She couldn’t avoid him as she had for the rest of the fight. He lived here. She was going to be here for a month.
Her throat was tight and her heart was thumping like shoes in a dryer as she lifted her eyes to his hypnotic aqua stare. She’d lost hours of her life drowning in his gaze. She used to tease Eli by calling his eyes, smile, and voice her Bermuda Triangle. Any three of those could take her off course, and the combo was one so dangerous she was afraid she’d lose herself forever in them.
She could feel herself slipping under his spell when he broke their eye contact suddenly. His eyes darted over her shoulder and the next thing she knew his arm was around her and he was moving her out of the way as two people, who seemed to be in a heated debate, filed in behind her. If he hadn’t intervened, she was pretty sure they would’ve walked right into her. Not that it would be their fault, she had, after all, been standing in the flow of traffic at the doorway.
Their new position caused their bodies to align. She could feel heat radiating off of him. She could smell the earthy, fresh musk that was uniquely Eli. He was all around her, assaulting her senses.
The sensations caused a feeling she hadn’t felt since she was eighteen years old. Safety.
Eli always took care of not just her, but her brother as well. When Eli was around, she never had to worry about anything. He cared for them, protected them, and defended them.
He was her hero, and then he was gone. She’d tried so hard to bury the pain that she’d felt during that time, but now, now she wanted to drudge it all up so she wouldn’t repeat past mistakes.
“Um…thanks,” she breathed as she forced herself to step out away from him.
He nodded and glanced down at the ground. It was the first time that she could ever remember him looking unsure. Like he had no idea what to say or do. Like he was at a complete loss.
Eli was capable. A leader. He took charge of situations, and people naturally followed his lead. Seeing him look so uncertain, so lost, started pulling at her heartstrings, but she yanked those suckers right back. Not today, empathy.
She was the victim here, not him. It wasn’t her actions that had made an interaction like this so uncomfortable. But, her annoyingly fair and unbiased inner voice piped up and reminded her that she also wasn’t the one that lived here. She was the one that had shown up in his town and was going to be working closely with his cousin-in-law to be.
The best thing to do was probably clear the air. Or at least try.
She stood up straighter and lifted her chin. She still only came up to his chest, but she sought to make herself as tall as possible. “I think we should talk.”
He nodded and glanced around the room. Without saying a word, he did what he did best, he handled shit. He placed his hand on her lower back, guided her to the sole empty table, and pulled out a seat for her.
She leaned back against the cold metal of her bistro-style chair and tried to ignore the pitter-patter of her heart at his chivalry.
It’s a chair, she chided herself in an attempt to pull the e-brake and stop herself from crashing into a brick wall of swoon. Calm down.
Just because most men no longer believed in being gentlemen didn’t mean that Eli deserved Brownie points for it.
He’d always been like that. Even as a kid he’d held doors open for her, given her his jacket when it was cold out, and when they walked home from school, he always made sure that she wasn’t on the side of traffic. All that was before he’d even hit puberty.
After he set his drink down, he leaned his hands on the table. “What can I get you?”
“Nothing.” She waved her hand in dismissal. “I’ll get something later.”
“Kenzie,” he growled.
The raspy sound sent a thrill racing down her.
She hadn’t heard that tone in so long, but she knew precisely what it meant. He was serious. She could dig her heels in over a fight that wasn’t worth having, but she was too tired. So she decided to skip all that and get right to the part where he got his way.
With a resigned sigh, she glanced up at the menu that was displayed like a theater marquee with all of the specials named after classic movies. “I’ll take a large Casablanca Cappuccino with extra whipped cream.”
With a nod, he weaved his way through the tables. He walked up to the pick-up portion of the counter. A beautiful redhead lit up when she saw him. Mackenzie couldn’t help the stab of jealousy that she felt. The barista leaned forward with a familiarity that had Mackenzie’s stomach rolling.
She forced herself to look away. What Eli did and who he did it with was none of her business. Her mind knew that, but evidently she needed to send the memo to her heart that broke just a little more at the sight.