The Fireman's Christmas. Meg Lacey
her. “You eat and I’ll try to explain before you decide to call the cops on me.”
As he took a breath to begin, Danny watched her with growing interest. He remembered that Rhonda had mentioned how attractive her friend was, but he hadn’t paid attention at the time because it wasn’t all that important to him. He sure was paying attention now.
Even though she was sitting down he could tell that Tessa Doherty was tall for a woman, and slender. Her face was tanned a golden hue and the blond streaks in her light brown hair reminded him of the sun setting through the clouds. Her eyes were a warm, true hazel. The unique mixture of green and brown made him think of the earth and growing things.
Except he’d never heard of a wood nymph putting away bread sticks quite the way Tessa did. She was already on her second one.
Danny couldn’t believe how fanciful he was getting. He took a bread stick of his own before they were gone. He cleared his throat. “Like Jorgi said, I’m a firefighter. I work out of Firehouse 173. I’m hoping to be transferred to another position in the fall, which would mean a change to more normal hours. Right now I work a twenty-four-hour shift, then have two days off before I’m on again. That’s why I’m having so much trouble finding someone to watch my kids. Not many sitters want an erratic schedule or to spend the night, you know.”
Tessa gulped down an artichoke and nodded. “I can imagine. You’re divorced?”
His eyes shadowed. “Widower. Until recently my wife’s great-aunt helped out with the kids, but she’s seventy-two and needs hip surgery. She’s with them now, but those long hours during my shifts are too much for her to manage. I need to make some other arrangements.”
“How old are your children?”
“Alison’s almost fourteen, Kyle and Kevin are ten and Emma is almost four.”
“Four kids?” She looked startled.
Danny squirmed. “They’re good kids. But…they can be a handful. Especially the twins.”
Tessa worked her mouth around a black olive. “Mine are twelve and seven. A boy and a girl. And even with two I’m overwhelmed half the time. I’m not sure how anyone can handle more than that.”
Her comment made Danny wonder if they were on the same wavelength after all. Maybe Rhonda had her wires crossed. He decided to try a different tack.
“Rhonda told me you own your own business.”
“Mmm-hmm. Landscape design.”
“Fooling around with plants and stuff, you mean? Do you work full-time?”
“As much as I can. I like to fool around with growing things.” She glared at him as she picked up a bread stick, broke off a chunk and popped it into her mouth. After a moment she said, “But this is in my busy season, or what should be my busy season. I’m hoping to increase my client list by word of mouth. Not that it’s looking too good at the moment. My most recent job was more difficult than I’d expected. I’m not sure my client is going to recommend my services.”
“Why not?”
Tessa drained her wineglass. “As a matter of fact she almost fired me over a slight garden mishap that my kids caused. It was really awkward.”
“I’ll bet.”
“She was kind of stuck because her daughter’s getting married in that garden and she’d already paid me part of the fee. I had to drop my price to satisfy her, though.”
“Tough luck,” Danny sympathized as he sipped his wine.
Tessa sighed. “I’ll say.”
“So who takes care of your kids while you’re working?” Danny watched her out of the corner of his eye as he poured them each another glass of the excellent house wine.
“I do—at least I have been since my babysitter moved into a retirement home last month. I can’t really afford a sitter right now, but Mrs. Carey and I had an arrangement. I did her shopping and errands and she watched the kids when I needed her, which was most of the summer, actually. Since she moved, they’ve been going along on jobs with me. That’s what caused my problem with Mrs. Sherbourne. No one else has objected but—”
“It’s not really working out anymore?”
“Oh, you could say that. Plus, I’d get more done if they weren’t around. I end up breaking jobs into two days when I might have finished in one. Still, what choice do I have?” Tessa hesitated, peered at him for a long moment, then muttered, “They were supposed to spend August with their father, but he decided to go to the Bahamas instead with his latest girlfriend—or maybe I should say his latest assistant.”
Danny took a slow sip of wine. Rhonda had mentioned Tessa’s difficult divorce. He wondered if that was why she insisted she didn’t want a relationship, or if, like him, she was simply too busy for the opposite sex.
“One thing about having kids,” Danny said as Tessa snagged another veggie, “you sure can’t plan too far ahead. They’re always coming up with somethi—Do you always eat like this?”
Her eyes widened, and she gulped down the carrot sliver she had just put into her mouth. “Like what?”
“Like a horde of locusts descending?”
Tessa dropped her gaze to the empty plate and breadbasket, lifted her stricken expression to his, then smiled sheepishly. “Sorry. It’s my metabolism. I burn it right off.”
“Then it’s lucky for you the food’s here.”
The next several minutes were occupied with Jorgi removing empty plates and arranging steaming platters of pasta and more fresh bread sticks on the table. Tessa sampled the manicotti with a rapturous groan, obviously relishing every bite, while Danny ate more slowly. “I can’t imagine where you’re putting all of that food,” he said.
Once Tessa had slowed down to the point where conversation was possible, Danny pushed his plate away and leaned forward.
“Here’s the situation as I see it,” he began. “We both need dependable child care. If you’d consider watching my kids during my shifts, I can keep yours for an equal number of hours on the other days.”
Tessa looked skeptical. “Six children at once?”
“Why not?” Danny shrugged. “It’s not like either one of us isn’t used to kids. The more the merrier, my mom always used to say.”
“You have how many brothers and sisters?”
Danny grinned. “Five, now scattered all over the country. And my mom ruled us with an iron hand. Never a problem.”
From the impish twinkle in his eye, Tessa felt certain he was exaggerating, but she couldn’t help smiling back. “I’m sure that’s true. Still, six children…”
“Only for a day with two days in between—”
“And nights.”
“And nights. The other days I’ll watch them. What d’ya say?”
His expression was a combination of wistfulness and roguish charm. Tessa wasn’t sure which was more appealing, but she knew the intelligent thing to do was to give him an unequivocal no.
“Maybe,” she heard herself say, then wondered if it was the wine or the manicotti that had softened her brain. “Can you honestly trust your kids to someone you don’t even know?”
Danny frowned. “Of course not. But I trust Rhonda to vouch for you. I first met her at the E.R. on one of my hospital runs. I’ve known her for years. That’s as good as going through a child-care service or putting an ad in the paper. We’re getting to know one another now, aren’t we? Come on, ask me anything.”
Even though Tessa was immediately suspicious of so much undiluted charm, his guileless expression slipped beneath her