Ethan couldn’t help but wonder what the chief had on his mind. This was so unexpected. “The thing is I don’t have any free time. I’m working on the bakery.”

“This won’t take long. I’ll see you in a few minutes.” And then the phone went dead.

Had the chief hung up? “Hello?”

More silence.

Ethan sighed. What was it the chief had on his mind? It must be awfully important. Ethan jumped out of bed with a bounce in his step. He rushed through his morning routine and then with Peaches fed and now leashed, they headed out the door.

The fire station wasn’t far from the bakery. In fact, it was a short walk. Along the way, everyone he passed greeted him and most paused to fuss over Peaches. It was so different from his life in New York. And he had to admit it was nice—it made him feel at home, even if this wasn’t his home.

When he guided Peaches in through the front door of the fire station, he didn’t see a soul. “Hello?”

“Back here.”

He followed the voice to the back of the firehouse and found the chief in his office. “Hi. I hope you don’t mind that I brought Peaches.”

The chief smiled. “Not at all. Hey, girl.”

Peaches barked her greeting.

Ethan cleared his throat. “What did you need?”

The chief waved him farther into the office. “I just need your signature on a couple of papers.”

“My signature? For what?”

“I thought while you were in town that we’d set you up so you can hang out with the crew and go out on some calls.”

Ethan shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “But, sir, I already have a job.”

“I know. But when you’re here, we could use your help.”

Ethan glanced around at the empty station. Help with what? But he kept his thought to himself. “What papers are these?”

“Just adding you to the roster for legality reasons.” The chief explained each document to him. “Don’t worry, you won’t be signing your life away.” The chief held the pen out to him.

Ethan hesitated. The chief’s expectant look spurred him into action. He read over the papers. They were exactly what the chief had said they were. After reasserting that he wasn’t staying on the island permanently, Ethan signed his name.

He’d just walked out the door when he ran into Greg Hoover. They’d previously run into each other here at the firehouse and a few times around town. Greg was an easy guy to be around. His talkative nature made Ethan feel immediately at ease.

Being tall, Ethan wasn’t used to craning his neck to look into someone’s eyes but Greg’s imposing height was the exception. “It seems like we keep running into each other.”

Greg smiled. “Is that your way of saying you were hoping to avoid me?” Greg sent him a teasing grin.

“Not at all.” He suddenly felt awkward and not sure what to say. “I…”