“We’re worried about Roy,” Jeremy said without any preamble. “The other day was the second time this week that I’ve answered a call.”
“To be fair…”
He smiled a little. “It was your fault,” he finished for her. “I get that. But it doesn’t take away the fact that the number of concerning episodes is increasing. We think maybe it’s time to consider moving your grandfather into a—”
“Don’t say it.”
“Bella.” Jeremy reached out and squeezed her forearm the way he’d done the other day, and her body reacted the same way it had then, in a full-body vibration. What was it about this man?
She took a step back, not wanting it, but needing the space between them. “What do you mean we?”
He looked confused for a moment.
“You said that we are concerned,” she explained. “Who is we?”
Jeremy nodded and once again pressed his lips together. “Natalie and I.”
A girlfriend.
Shit.
A wife.
Of course Jeremy would be taken. He was gorgeous and a firefighter, and he obviously had a heart of gold if he was so concerned about her grandfather. Why wouldn’t he be snapped up?
But why did it matter? Especially right now.
Still. The thought of some other woman. Some Natalie having discussions about Papa with Jeremy upset her in a completely unreasonable way. She scrubbed her hands over her face and tried to smooth her ponytail. A pointless task with her wild curls. She straightened her shoulders, and did the only thing she knew how to do in the situation. She got defensive.
Jeremy knew the conversation would be hard. After all, how many grandchildren who adored their grandparent wanted to hear that they were becoming a danger to themselves?
But, for a moment, he thought it might actually go easier than he’d assumed. Bella had even seemed to be on the same page with him, maybe already thinking what he was. That would have made things easier.
But then something shifted.
“Look.” Bella’s voice was icy in a way he’d never heard before. “I don’t know what you and Natalie think. But you don’t know my grandfather. And if the two of you don’t have anything better to do than talk about Papa while you’re sitting around in the evenings sipping wine or whatever it is the two of you do, then I don’t know how to help you.”
Wine?
Evenings?
What was she talking about? Jeremy didn’t sit around drinking with his partners. Even when they were off shift, Natalie never—oh.
He couldn’t stop the smile from stretching across his face when he realized the misunderstanding and exactly what it meant.
Bella was jealous.
“What’s so funny?” She put her hands on her slim hips in a move that was so completely adorable and totally ridiculous at the same time. “Jeremy!”
He forced the smile off his face and looked down at his feet. “Sorry. I don’t mean to—”
“Laugh at my grandfather’s situation?” She stomped a foot and again, Jeremy had to bite back a laugh. “It’s not funny.”
He cleared his throat and looked up. The moment his eyes met hers, the laughter died. She might be jealous in a seriously sexy way, but more importantly, she was filled with concern for her grandfather. She was terrified.
“Bella.” There was no trace of humor as he stepped forward and took her in his arms. To his surprise, she let him hold her. “I’m sorry. It’s not funny. Not even a little bit. Roy is becoming increasingly forgetful, I’m sure you’ve noticed.”
She nodded against his shoulder and he stepped back. Her deep-green eyes shone with unshed tears, but they didn’t spill. She sniffed hard and nodded again.
“I’ve noticed. It’s hard not to.”
He nodded knowingly. “And that’s why Natalie—my rookie partner,” he added quickly before she could react again, “and I are worried. The chief is asking me to recommend to social services that maybe it’s time he’s moved to a nursing home or a facility where he won’t be a danger to himself but still have a high quality of life.” Her pretty face was a mixture of emotions and questions. “Part of my job is to work closely with other community agencies, like social services. In this instance, since you’re in town now, I wanted to come to you first before getting social services involved.”
She nodded and he watched as her face relaxed again. She’d definitely been jealous. An interesting observation he’d examine in depth later. Now wasn’t the time.
“You’re right,” she said after a moment. “It’s hard not to notice and my mom, even though she never actually visits, talks to him a few times a week on the phone and she’s mentioned his memory loss as well. I’m going to talk to the doctor, too, but…” She sighed deeply. “We all agree that it might be time to get rid of the house and move him.”
“I know it’s hard.”
She dropped her head for a moment before looking up quickly. “I’ll bring it up with him and I’ll do my best to get him to agree, but I’m not forcing anything until after Christmas.”
Jeremy wasn’t expecting that. “I assumed you would—”
“Christmas,” she said with more authority. “No move until after Christmas. You didn’t see the way he lit up when he started going through his old decorations. I can’t do that to him. He needs one more Christmas in his house. He loves it.”
Jeremy didn’t know Roy well, but he did know that much about the man. After all, he was the town Santa.
“Okay.” He found himself agreeing. He’d deal with the chief. “And you’ll stay?” He couldn’t be sure whether he was asking for Roy or himself. “Until after Christmas?”
She looked him in the eye and nodded slowly.
He turned quickly so she wouldn’t see the grin that he couldn’t stop, and grabbed two mugs of the cooling hot cocoa. “We should get these out to Roy.”
Chapter 3
“This is the last strand.” Logan Langdon handed Jeremy another bundle of lights and Jeremy couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow in question. Logan had been telling him “just a few more” for over an hour. Jeremy’s fingers were numb from cold, and even in his thick parka, he was starting to shiver.
“I promise,” Logan said in response to his unanswered question.
“It is.” Levi Langdon, Logan’s cousin, chimed in. “You’re lucky Hope is on bed rest, or she’d demand lights on all the trees.”
From his perch on the ladder, Jeremy looked around the Ever After Ranch that was surrounded by dense forest and laughed. “I don’t doubt that for a minute. How is Hope doing, anyway?”
Levi’s face lit up. He and his wife, Hope—one half of the Turner twins—were expecting their first child in a few months. It was a bit of a tricky pregnancy due to an earlier cancer diagnosis, but despite some bed rest as a precaution, everything seemed to be going just fine. “She’s doing really well, but with Christmas coming and some weddings booked up, she has these grand plans to create a winter wonderland out here.”