Authors: Dani Jace
“So, were you really planning to meet me after this?” He breathed, rimming the outer edge of her ear with his tongue.
“Even drove my own truck.”
He retrieved his phone from his pocket and found the message. She’d thought of him, even while with the SEAL. They were definitely going to have to work on communications. Keeping secrets hinted at mistrust and he wanted her to trust him completely.
“Why did your captain’s daughter need a date?”
He slid his hand along her lower back. “Tina’s fiancé is overseas. She decided to do her nurse residency here and stay with her parents while he’s gone.”
She clasped her hands behind his neck where her soft breasts brushed against his chest. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“So you could find another excuse to keep me at arm’s length or worse?” He squeezed her tightly.
Her cheeks paled as she looked away. “I see your point.”
He felt a vibration and she wrenched from his arms.
“What the hell.”
From beneath her short jacket, she whipped out her phone.
He rolled his eyes. Just when he was making headway.
She cocked an eyebrow. “What?”
He bent to check the display at the same moment as she and bumped her head.
10-35 @ 1265 Parham Drive. 5:17 p.m.
House fire.
“I gotta go.” As fast as her heels allowed, she left the dance floor, grabbed her purse and sprinted for the door.
“Not without me.” He followed, thrilled for an excuse to blow the fiasco of an evening.
“It’s a volunteer call. Do you mind?” Ray asked Tina, who waved him on before he’d finished. Harley grinned, probably hoping to get lucky. Tina’s poor fiancé, but better his woman getting the SEAL treatment than Jo. “I’ll drive.” Outside, he pressed his remote. “Get your gear from the Bronco and I’ll pick you up.”
He stopped behind her truck as she closed the rear window. She climbed into the back with her firefighter gear bag while he mounted an emergency light to his roof.
He shoved the Hummer into gear, and sped off. Lucky him, he’d get to watch her change.
Jo fought a smile as she caught Ray playing voyeur via the rearview mirror while she shimmied from of her dress.
“Black lace. Hmm…nice.”
“Eyes on the road, tiger.”
“Leave the garters on.” He wiggled his brows.
“Yeah, right.” She slipped her garter belt off and leaned forward between the seats to hang it on the rearview mirror. “You know the address?”
“Somewhere around milepost fourteen on the sound side. Finish changing and we’ll swap seats.”
She changed into her extra clothes she kept with her gear and then worked her way into the heavy bunker pants and coat. At the next signal, they played red light and she slid behind the wheel of a Hummer for the first time in her life.
Ya hoo!
He changed into his gear faster either from practice or lack of garters.
“We just passed milepost thirteen. Tell me when―” She literally bit her tongue at the thick black smoke signal in the sky.
At the next street, she hung a right. Neighboring houses made the exposure high. Worse, the gusting wind would only increase as night fell.
“Park here,” he said, already swinging open his door.
She slammed the brakes and slid the truck onto the grass. After killing the engine, she bailed out, shoved her feet in the clunky boots and trailed him to the scene.
Ray approached the captain. “Where do you need us?”
“Fire started in the kitchen. There’s an attack line inside already, and the truck crew is upstairs searching for a little girl. The mom thinks her daughter accidentally started the blaze with a candle. We’re hoping she got scared and ran. It’s getting hot, and I don’t know how long the truck crew can keep searching the second story. All my guys are on it. A second alarm just went out, but it’ll take them at least ten minutes to get here.”
Another volly jogged up as the captain finished. The green clip on his turncoats marked him cleared for inside duties. “I need you guys to check the back stairwell on Bravo side.” The captioned motioned with a hand. “Grab a fresh oxygen tank off the truck.”
Ray and his new partner grabbed a tank and raced for the structure. They donned their SCBA masks and disappeared through the side garage door.
She uttered a silent prayer.
The captain faced her. “Search the neighbors and surrounding area. The little girl’s name is Brianna, five years old, blond, and wearing a pink shirt and jeans.”
“Yes sir.” Jo turned and set off. With darkness looming and a chilling fall breeze, she would probably try to get out of the elements if she hadn’t taken the first hidey-hole she found.
Fear painted neighbor’s faces a ghastly pallor as black smoke pumped from beneath the eaves of the roof. An upstairs window shattered, firefighters ventilating for smoke. The sound straightened her spine as falling glass littered the sidewalk.
Brianna’s frantic mother barreled up and down the street calling for her daughter, occasionally glancing at the house.
At the edge of the fire ground, Jo scanned the backyard. No doghouse, no shed and no fence. She turned her attention to surrounding yards and homes. One had a privacy fence, but the others were open. If Brianna had started a fire in the kitchen and ran, she would have had several options.
As others searched too, the girl’s name echoed in the darkness, chilling Jo to the bone. Adrenaline pumped through her system faster than whiskey on an empty stomach as she raced through backyards, on the bad end of a hide-and-seek game.
A shed looked inviting, but a padlock secured the door. Next, she checked the rear garage door of the neighbor behind which opened. She stuck her head inside and yelled. A walk through produced no noise or movement.
From the neighbor’s yard she attempted to gain a different prospective. A tree house. To the right, another shed and what looked to be a riding lawnmower covered by a tarp. It would be a warm shelter. She sprinted over and found one side distended.
She flipped back the dark green plastic. “Brianna?”
A blond-headed child yelped then bolted. Jo charged after her corralling her in a few steps. “Whoa, sweetheart. It’s okay. I’m a firefighter.” She knelt to the ground and shoved her helmet back. “Your mommy is worried.”
The cherub rubbed her eyes, smudging big tears over her puffy cheeks.
She didn’t fight as Jo picked her up and keyed her radio. “Volunteer Mercer. I’ve found a young girl who answers to Brianna. Heading back now. Over.”
“Mommy’s mad.” The child wailed and started to squirm.
“No, your mom is scared. Wondering where you are. She doesn’t care about the house. Okay?”
“Promise?” Her tiny voice pleaded.
“I promise. You’ll see.” Brianna rode her hip as they rounded the corner and found the captain.
Balling her eyes out, the mom steamed toward them like a freight train. With a grin, Jo handed over the munchkin.
Whirling red lights colored the night in an eerie glow.
“Stop search. Child found.” The captain radioed to the crew. Second engine and truck are here.”
With hose in tow, the arriving firefighters charged for the house. They dropped to their knees before disappearing through the smoky entrance. Behind them, the truck crew followed, holding their long metal halligans like weapons. Radio chatter echoed in the night as the crews switched.
Within a couple of minutes, Ray and his volly partner emerged from behind the house. The relief engine company extinguished flames and the orange glowing house turned gray with acrid smoke.
After an inspection, the captain cleared the dwelling for overhauling.
Smoking furniture soon littered the lawn as firefighters cleared the house and assessed for structural integrity and hot spots. Jo swept glass, then rolled and racked hoses. By her next volunteer call, she hoped to be authorized for inside work.
Once the scene was cleared, Ray and she returned to his truck and shucked out of their bunker gear.
“Way to go.” He punched her shoulder.
Her heart and confidence soared.
“What did you do inside?” she asked as he drove to The Casino.
“Felt my way around with a shoulder to the wall. It’s almost impossible to see when a house is going like that one. You’ll see when they put you in the smoke room. You’ll love it when they send you into a live burn.” His little boy grin lit his face.
“Better than a twenty-footer at Baja?”
“It’ll make you wet your pants.” He winked.
“Okay.” So she should pack extra underwear in her gear bag
.
By the time they returned to The Casino, the wedding reception had ended.
Ray hauled over her gear and boots as she dropped her truck gate.
“I’m ordering pizza. You coming over?” He paused after the invite.
“What’s your favorite beer these days?” She felt queasy with excitement and nerves.
“Whatever gets you in the mood.” He smiled. “I’ll see you in a few.”
His tall form disappeared behind the dark windows of the Hummer.
His roommate’s vehicle was notably absent when she pulled into the driveway. She reached for the beer and her bag then remembered she already had on her extra change of clothes. Usually, she left a pair of shorts or some clothing in the truck. Nothing tonight.
She snatched her backpack from the floorboard and checked his truck for her dress on the way. He must have taken it inside.
She let herself in and stowed a few beers in the freezer’s ice bin.
Ray swung around the corner into the kitchen. “You’re welcome to shower if you want.”
After cranking off a top, she offered him a cool one.
His pectorals rippled deepening the crevice in his chest as he accepted the beer. Droplets of water meandered down washboard abs to his trim hips wrapped in a low-slung towel that tempted her fingers. She felt small standing before him. A tower of masculine perfection.
She hoped he didn’t notice her once over. “Ahh thanks. I think I will.” Lightly touching a dark bruise on his right shoulder, she said, “Ouch. Did you do that tonight?”
“The other day, I think. After a while, you forget where you hurt what. You’ll see after a few times.” His lips curved then he touched them to hers in a warming kiss. He tasted minty fresh with a hint of hops. “I’ll let you change.” He turned and headed down the hallway.
Her dress lay draped over a chair, shoes and accessories arranged on the seat. She grabbed them and trotted to the bathroom. She quickly steamed away the soot and smoky smell, dressed and returned to the living room.
“Yum.” Ray rose from the sofa and surveyed her in her cocktail dress from bare shoulders to nervously wiggling toes.
Dressed in well-worn jeans that fit him perfectly, paired with an open flannel and the sleeves rolled, he looked as sexy as he had in his suit.
“I had to use my spare clothes under the bunker gear. Otherwise I’d have been in my bra and panties.”
“Poor baby.” With a smile, he closed the gap between them. He captured her chin with a thumb and forefinger. Searched her eyes as he closed in on her mouth.
Her toes dug deeper into the carpet at his gentle kiss. His hand skimmed along her back and down copping what he called her sweet cheeks. Her blood surged hot.
The doorbell jolted him from further exploration. “Since when do they ever deliver pizza early?”
She searched the kitchen cabinets for plates and napkins while he paid the driver. She plucked two, cold beers from the ice bin and returned to the sofa. “Did you record any of today’s football games?”
He placed the pizza on the coffee table and pressed the DVR remote with a wink. Steelers versus Panthers appeared on the menu. “Come on let’s get you something else to wear. I love the dress, but pizza and formals don’t mix.”
He took her hand and led her to his bedroom. It was simple and tidy as she suspected. A black faux suede comforter with a rich brown trim enhanced his manly king-sided bed. Nightstands flanked each side and a matching large dark wood dresser sat against the far wall. From his closet, he retrieved a blue plaid flannel and opened his chest of drawers to a neatly folded collection of sweat pants. “Some have drawstrings, but they’ll still swallow you.”
“Thanks.” She accepted them, taking a whiff. They hinted of ocean and cedar. Like him.
“Guess they’re gone like my hoodie.” He chuckled and left the room.
The shirt hung to her knees. Since it covered more than her dress had, she decided to forego the pants. Only being wrapped in his arms could warm her more.
Back in the living room, she sank beside him on the sofa. He shoveled a large slice of pizza onto a plate and handed it to her. Famished, she dug in. By the end of the first quarter, the pie had vanished. Jo tucked her feet under her and leaned against him.
He slipped an arm over her shoulder. “Well, I think you earned your share of volly brownie points tonight.”
“Hope the captain has a good memory.”
“Like an elephant, but more so when you fuck up.” He smiled. “I was actually glad when you got the call.”
“Ready to shed the suit, weren’t you? You did look good enough to eat, though.”
“Like you weren’t sex on a stick in that dress. I wanted to strangle Harley when I saw you two.” He growled and tugged her onto his lap.
She clenched the back of his hair. “And you almost saw a side of me you’ve never seen before.”
Christ, he’d loved to see her break bad over him. With her on his lap, instant heat fired to his dick. He flexed his abs as his jeans tightened.
Her pupils darkened and she licked her bottom lip.
He wanted her to lick something else as she skittered her tongue along his neck. She smelled like his shower gel and it turned him on. He ran a finger to the center of her chest and unbuttoned the flannel. Her cleavage beckoned him to taste.
“We could move somewhere more comfortable?” He slowly worked open the remaining buttons.
“Here’s fine.” She hesitated.
“Chicken Little.” He parted her shirt and circled her belly button.