Free Love's Embers (Canon City Series) by Lauren Marie Page A

getting a second wind. I’ll go get the chocolate, you get the fire roaring. I’ll be right back.”
    As she walked back to her home, she thought about that kiss. It surprised her how warm and tingly it made her feel. She thought about Thomas, and how he hadn’t made her feel that way for a very long time. 
    She ran the rest of the way home and found the special chocolate powder her grandmother mixed. She left it on the counter and ran up the stairs to her room. She pulled open her closet door and hunted around for a particular box. Finding the one she wanted, she took it out of the closet and set it on the corner of her bed. She rummaged through it and found exactly what she wanted. She stuffed it in her pocket with the letter and went back down the stairs. She remembered her Gran was still out with her friends. She stopped at the table and turned the note over. She wanted Gran to know where she was and not worry. She grabbed the can of powder and a jug of milk from the refrigerator and then turned off the light and went back out the door.

Chapter Nine

    Charlie got the fire blazing and heard his microwave turn on. He must have been outside when Lark came back. He stood up and went into the kitchen. She was at the counter putting spoonfuls of powder into his two cups. She’d taken her coat off and wore a fuzzy, soft looking sweater and tight straight-legged jeans. Her blonde hair caught the light from the stove top and seemed to glow. He liked the view and felt his blood start to warm. She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled.
    “Lou, I don’t know if this sounds crude, but you have a great ass,” he said and smiled.
    “Thanks for the compliment.” She left a spoon in one of the cups and walked over to her coat, which hung on the back door knob. She pulled something out of a pocket and flipped it to him.
    He caught the yellow, rubber duck and was surprised. “Hey, where did this come from?”
    “I was on a walk to somewhere one day when your mom still lived here. It was garbage day and her cans were on the curb, loaded with a ton of stuff. I saw Mr. Ducky on one of the piles and had to grab it.” She turned back to the microwave as the ringer went off.
    “You’ve turned into a garbage picker?” He grinned and looked at one of the few things, besides Lark, his horse and his bike, that ever meant anything to him. It was given to him as a birthday present when he turned five.
    “Yeah, it’s like those guys on the History Channel say. You never know when you’ll find gold.” She turned and carried two steaming cups.
    His brows creased. “You’re not really picking garbage cans?”
    She handed him a cup. “No, that was my one and only time.” She smiled.
    “It’s warmer in the living room. Let’s go out there. I should have heat and water in the kitchen on Monday. I have field mice living in the air-ducts and once they’re cleaned out I’ll be able to turn on the furnace. Until then, it’s like camping in here. I don’t want mice poop flying through the air. The furnace guy started to ramble about twenty-six letter diseases I could get. It gave me the willies.”
    “I guess, it’s probably a good idea not to turn it on then,” she said.
    They walked back to the living room and she moved the chair to face the fire and sat. She took off her boots and put her socked feet up on the hearth. Breaker was stretched out on the sleeping bag.
    “So, tell me about your pup. Where did you find him?” she asked and took a sip from her cup.
    Charlie sat back down on the hearth and stretched out his long legs. “He sort of found me. I was at a rest area in Montana, just taking a break. I heard something whine outside the truck and when I looked there was this little scrawny puppy dancing around. I thought he might have rabies, but now I know he was just trying to get my attention.” He looked down at Breaker, whose tail started to wag. “I named him Breaker, because I was on a break. It wasn’t until