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By the time Mac and Jodie crawled into the tent that night, the camp had gone mostly quiet.

Somebody laughed near the barn, followed by a few muffled voices, but the volunteers had an early start in the morning and nobody seemed interested in repeating the night before. The air had finally cooled enough that Mac didn’t feel sweat immediately bead along his hairline when he moved.

Jodie sat on her sleeping bag pulling the elastic tie from her hair. “I swear, if that helicopter breaks again tomorrow, Willow’s going to finish the job and dismantle it herself.”

Mac pulled off one boot. “Probably with her teeth.”

Jodie laughed softly.

Normally, the sound would have made him smile. Tonight, it made his stomach hurt.

Just ask her about the assignment changes.

He’d been telling himself that for hours. Except then he’d have to admit he’d been snooping.

So what? Man up and talk to her, you dummy. You love her, don’t you?

Mac set his boot beside the other one and looked at Jodie. She was running her fingers through her hair, working out the worst of the tangles before reaching for her brush.

Now.

“Jodie?”

“Hmm?”

“The Hawthorne detail last August. You remember it?”

Say you don’t.

Her hand stopped. “Mm-hmm. What about it?” She avoided his eyes.

Shit.

“You took me off that assignment, not Kyle. Or at least you suggested it to him.”

Jodie lowered the brush into her lap. “Yes.”

And there went Mac’s last hope that she’d say no.

He bent his knees until he was sitting cross-legged. “Why?”

She looked at him for a moment. “It was supposed to be a twelve-hour outdoor detail during an excessive-heat warning.”

“I know.”

“I moved Shane onto it and gave you the Emerson job instead. It was longer, so you didn’t lose hours.”

“That’s not what you told me at the time.”

Jodie’s mouth tightened slightly as she looked away.

“You told me Shane wanted the overtime.”

“He did.”

“Did he?”

Her gaze snapped back to him. “Yes, Mac. He did. He was saving up for a bike for Kevin.”