To Save His Mate(9)

“Good call. I’m sure some of the muscle-heads will end up lost before the end of the week. I guess it’s a good thing we have our very own forest ranger on hand to search for them,” Lacy teased as she tapped the patch on the sleeve of his tan shirt. “So I guess you make a decent living as a ranger?”

“It’s nothing that will lead to a mansion and a limo, but I do just fine. I live alone, so I manage to put a good bit into savings every month.”

“That’s something I would love to do,” Lacy groaned. “My apartment is ridiculous, but it beats living in the crime-ridden end of town. I ended up selling my car because the traffic scares the hell out of me. I let my partner do all of the driving.”

Lacy damn near bit her tongue off when she snapped her jabberty-jaws shut. Shit!

“Partner?”

“Um, yeah, you know, like you’re my partner for this shoot?” She could only pray that he accepted her lame-ass attempt to cover her slip. “I guess I could call you my co-model. Most models don’t befriend other models due to the competition over jobs,” she explained.

“Yet you ride with one?”

“Or public transportation,” she shrugged.

“So what led you to modeling?” he asked.

So he wanted to change the subject? Perfect, Lacy could handle small talk. At least, she hoped she could. Something about this man completely disarmed her. She’d never slipped up like that before, but it felt right that he know the truth. For some reason, she found herself wanting to tell him everything.

Unfortunately, that couldn’t be allowed. “I was approached by an agent while I was in my first semester of college. She gave me a brief rundown of what to expect and even an average payment for a shoot. Let me tell you, to a struggling college student, that kind of money is a real motivator. I was able to take weekend jobs and still make my classes, pay my tuition in full and get an apartment with a friend.”

“I thought models didn’t have friends,” Ethan teased.

“A college friend. She’s a damn fine lawyer now, too.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. So what were you studying?”

“Law mostly. I loved the forensics part of the classes. It’s like a puzzle. You put all the pieces together and Bam! you’ve solved the case.”

Ethan laughed, shaking his head as he drove. “You should have been a detective then. Maybe even a private detective. It’s not like you’re going to get anything like that from modeling.”

If only you knew, Lacy mused. “It’s definitely in the cards, but tell me a little about you.”

Anything to get us away from this topic.

“Well, I’m a simple guy, really. I’ve lived here my whole life. I have three brothers, two sisters-in-law, and I’m single. I’m also a full-time forest ranger and a volunteer fireman.”

Lacy let out a low whistle. “You’ve got a mighty full plate there.”

“I like to keep busy.”

“Obviously.”

Ethan eased to the side of the road, and Lacy realized they’d arrived.

The diner was just as quaint as the rest of the town. Red and white checkered curtains hung in the windows, a hand-painted sign hung above the door, bicycles rested against the red-brick wall, and a few servers could be seen through the windows bustling around the tables in their aprons. It was straight out of an old Andy Griffith re-run.

Ethan held the door for her, and Lacy found his manners refreshing. Too many times she’d thought about meeting a true gentleman, and it appeared she finally had. “Thank you.”

“Any time,” he replied. “Just pick a table. It’s self-seating here.”

“Okay. Let’s grab that booth by the window.” Lacy led the way, ignoring the open stares of the locals. “This town must not get many visitors,” she commented as she slid into the booth.

Ethan took his seat across from her, resting his arms on the smooth wood table and returning a few nods of hello. “They’re probably just surprised to see you here with me.”

“Why?” Had he never brought a girl out for lunch?

“I’m usually eating lunch with Stephanie whenever I come in,” he answered, handing her a menu. “She works at the clinic across the street, but she’s off for her honeymoon.”

“Oh, that’s sweet. Where did they go?” Lacy didn’t want to explore that little green monster she saw peeking out. For crying out loud, there was no reason to be jealous. She had no claim on this man. Though the thought did have merit.

For some reason, Lacy was reacting to this guy, more so than she ever had with another, and she didn’t like the idea of any other woman, married or not. It was a little disturbing actually. The other detectives often referred to her as the Ice Queen, since she always acted so cold to their advances.