Just totally hot.
Oblivious to her hormone-infused thoughts, Declan leaned down again to get close to Judah. “Is he eating anything these days?”
“A little. And he has to eat something before six tonight, last meal prior to surgery. I’m cutting up some chicken for him.” She turned with the dog bowl, and Declan took it, setting it down in front of Judah.
For a moment, the pure domesticity of it all hit Evie square in the gut, even more than her primal physical attraction. This was worse than hormones. This was…a physical ache.
The togetherness of cooking in the kitchen, with a dog, the late afternoon sun pouring golden light through the windows. What would it be like…
“He polished that right off,” Declan said, crouching to gently love on the dog. “Good boy, Judah.”
“Would you like wine?” she asked.
“Just ice water, thanks. I don’t drink much.”
“Really?” she asked, getting a glass from the cabinet while he washed his hands. “I remember that you liked to borrow your grandmother’s Irish whiskey now and again.”
“I’m famous for holding my drinks and not actually drinking them, if you ask my brothers. But don’t let me stop you if you want some wine.”
“Not tonight. I have surgery in twelve hours.”
While she poured them ice water, he stepped close to one of the antique oil lamps by the back door. “Please tell me you never light these.”
“Of course not. I doubt they would work, but they do have to be polished, sadly.”
“Want me to put that on the handyman list?” he asked, taking the glass she handed him.
“The list is getting longer, Declan.”
He clinked her glass. “More reasons to see you, Evie.”
She smiled and took a sip. “So you don’t drink because you think you could lose control, or because you never know when you might get called in?” she guessed.
“I stopped drinking once I had my family to take care of.” He angled his water glass and glanced at it thoughtfully. “Plus, once you have Jameson’s in a paper cup with your best friend, every other drink after that is a letdown.”
Jameson’s in a paper cup.
A ribbon of emotion curled through her at the memory as she tapped the glasses again. “To good drinks we’ve had in the past.”
She purposely let the conversation drop, asking him questions about work as she started the pasta water and pulled the salad fixings from the fridge.
Taking a serrated knife from the block, he started cutting tomatoes, all the while telling her about life at the fire station and all the administrative work it involved, while Judah snoozed under the table, satisfied and blissfully ignorant of what tomorrow would hold.
He stayed there when they set the table, barely moving during the hour or so they lingered over dinner and more conversation, mostly chatting about the Founder’s Day event and how excited Granddaddy was for the party they’d have here that weekend.
By the time they’d finished, the glow in the room wasn’t just from the setting sun. Dinner had been perfect.
“I have an idea,” Declan said as they cleaned up together. “How about we take Judah for a slow walk? It’s probably his last one for a while.”
“That’s brilliant. Let me run up and see if Granddaddy’s awake, and I’ll let him know.”
But he was sound asleep, and a few minutes later, Evie grabbed a hoodie and met Declan and Judah in the driveway. “A walk through Ambrose Acres?” she suggested.
“He’s okay without a leash?”
“A leash would be miserable for him. Even a harness. This is Judah. He won’t leave our side.”
He took her hand, which felt like the most natural move in the world, and they started toward the street, taking it slow for the dog, who sidled up next to Declan. “So you do still love me,” he said, rubbing Judah’s head.
“You talking to him or me?” Evie teased.
He gave a slow smile and slid a look sideways. “I already know the answer to that, E.”
She laughed, so grateful they could fall back into easy jokes and the comfort of a lifetime of friendship.
“Hey, I know we missed a few, but how about a two-decade-long round of the Birthday Game?” she suggested.
“Wow, that’s a blast from the past.”
“A fun one,” she said. “I’ll start. Best movie?”
“In the last twenty years?” He narrowed his eyes, thinking. “Well, I did think of you when Lord of the Rings came out. We’d have liked watching any of those together, and I remember you devoured the books.”
“Loved them,” she agreed. “I took you for