She filled two mugs and set one in front of him before she claimed a seat at her kitchen table across from him. The chocolate macadamia was soft in her fingers. She could feel the sugar crystals mingling with the delicate chips and chopped nuts. The second she took a bite of the cookie, she nearly fell off her chair. His mother needed to leave town before she gained twenty pounds.
“Was this epiphany of yours due to the conversation you had with the mayor the other day?” Roman asked her.
Frankie shrugged. “I’ve had a lot of epiphanies because of that conversation. But yes, Roman, let’s be practical.”
“Maybe I don’t want to be practical.” He spooned sugar into his coffee and drank as Frankie worried this conversation was about to go awry. “Let’s back up. I don’t know exactly what Gil told you, so I’ll tell you the truth. I’ve been applying to the federal fire investigative task force for the past two years. It’s something my dad and I discussed before he died. He loved the idea of me being a fed, mainly because he’d always wanted to be one. He never felt as if he’d reached his full potential, that he hadn’t done enough to help people. I took the test and got pretty high placement on the list. Even had an interview that I thought went as well as it possibly could have. About a week before I saw the listing for the Butterfly Harbor chief position, I found out I didn’t get it.”
“I’m sorry.” Frankie sipped her own coffee and broke off another chunk of cookie. “That sucks.”
“You know it. I applied for the chief job because I didn’t think I had anything to lose. And also because it does look great as experience.”
“Don’t forget your mother said you should.” Frankie toasted him with her mug.
He grinned. “You were listening. Yeah, that, too. Easier to go along with her than argue with her.”
“Really? I hadn’t noticed.” She had to admit, she’d been enjoying having Ezzie around. She loved the no-filter comments and enthusiastic way she threw herself into anything that needed doing. Much in the way her son did.
“It’s absolutely true that I figured being chief of Butterfly Harbor would look good on my résumé. Why would I deny that? But that doesn’t mean I’m going anywhere—at least, for a while. I’m certainly not going to leave when Gil’s got his hatchet hovering over the neck of the department. Besides, I’ve got this to contend with.” He pointed to his casted leg. “I have no idea what the future holds for me, Frankie. But for now, I’m here and I’m happy. I could be happier.”
“Could you?” Frankie arched a disbelieving brow.
“I could if this stubborn, challenging woman I like a whole lot would maybe ease up and give me a chance.”
“Uh-huh.” There was that grin again. That amazing, dimple-revealing smile of his that Frankie was sure had gotten him out of countless scrapes growing up.
“Listen, why couldn’t we just see where things take us?”
“We could.” She hesitated, scooted another cookie off the stack and set it in front of her. “But since we’re being honest.” She took a deep breath. “The entire idea scares me.”
“Me, too.”
His admission knocked her sideways. “It does?”
“Of course it does. You complicate things for me, Frankie. You complicate them a lot. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to walk away if there’s a chance it could bring me something even better than I’ve been looking for.”
Spoken like a man who had never had his heart broken or been forced to make a choice that wouldn’t make anyone happy. “It won’t work, Roman.”
“You mean you don’t want it to work.”
“Maybe I don’t.” The words actually hurt when she pushed them free. “You’re right. It’s all so complicated.” And would be so much easier if she didn’t like him as much as she did.
“Funny.” Roman smirked and reached for another cookie. “I never took you for a coward, Frankie.”
“I’m not—”
“In this respect, you are. But that’s okay. You’re scared. I get that.” He pushed to his feet and reached for his crutches. “I just have to convince you you’re wrong.”
“You won’t.” But even she heard the tremble in her voice.
He moved close, bent down and brushed his lips against hers. She could feel him smile, felt it all the way down to her tingling toes. “Want to bet?”
* * *
ROMAN HAD FACED his share of challenges over the years. Demanding physical qualifications, days of boredom followed by nights of endless calls. Two-stepping around his mother, who had definite plans for his life. But they all paled in comparison to the stubbornness that was Frankie Bettencourt.