He snatched up his phone and put in a call. They had to make sure those two didn’t talk. Next time, he wasn’t going to trust a grunt to do the work.
Jesse couldn’t get out from under the dogs fast enough. She skipped and tripped over Lupin in his rush to get to Elsa and pretty much face-planted herself into Hunter’s chest.
He was there.
She squeezed him, both so she didn’t fall and also because—he was there.
God love her brothers, they were wonderful, but they were suffocating her. Nicholas couldn’t stop apologizing. James kept offering her food, or a beer. Justin just stared at her. All she wanted to do was lie in the dark and be held.
“Hey, sweetheart,” Hunter whispered.
Nicholas launched into another apology, this time aimed at her and Hunter.
“I want to go home,” she said. So far her brothers had ignored that statement, insisting she stay there, but now that Hunter was here…she couldn’t take them anymore. She needed him to be strong for her.
“Yeah, okay, sure.” Hunter stroked her back. He hadn’t changed out of his fireman uniform of blue pants and button-down shirt. He still had the smell of blood, grease and sweat on him—but he was there. The rest hardly mattered.
“Jesse, don’t you think you should stay here tonight?” Justin stood at the door.
Hunter gave her a little squeeze and then let go. That little wrinkle next to his mouth was his restraint line. He wanted to say something, but he was holding his tongue. Because he’d listened to her poorly delivered diatribe.
Jesse inhaled a deep breath. She let go of Hunter and turned to face her brother. God love them, but they were too much sometimes.
“I just—I want to throw balls for my dogs and then go to sleep in my own bed.” She took a step toward the door and nudged Justin out of the way. “See you in the morning, okay? I’m fine.”
Justin stared at her a moment longer then darted a quick glance at Hunter. Great. Now she had a keeper. At least Hunter listened to her. Sort of.
“I’ll have breakfast ready for you.” Justin reached forward and folded his arms around her. It was a little stiff, but it was a hug.
She squeezed him back, hiding her smile against his shoulder, then let go.
“Night.” She waved to the rest and proceeded her pack outside into the cool evening
Hunter followed her out, his hand splaying across the small of her back. His touch steadying her in a way she needed.
They didn’t speak. They didn’t have to.
Together they strolled across the porch and toward her home, the seven silly dogs loping around them. Elsa and Lupin sprinting circles around them all.
“Thank you for coming to see me,” she said.
“Is this okay? I know you said yesterday—”
“That was yesterday. I’m sorry I got angry like that, I just—”
“No, I was totally in the wrong. You were right. I over-stepped.”
She squeezed his hand and everything was right again.
“Jesse.” Hunter pulled her to a stop outside the barn and turned to face her.
The sun was mostly set and the clear, spring sky dotted with stars so bright she could see his face perfectly.
“Hm?” Her stomach still did that crazy butterfly number when he looked at her. They were so dissimilar, and yet…she clicked with Hunter like she hadn’t ever clicked with anyone else.
“I…”
His jaw worked soundlessly, making words her soul understood. Her heart beat a little faster, not yet in synch with the rest of her.
Hunter stepped in closer and bent his head. The press of his lips to her, the feel of his mouth, she felt him in every cell of his body. He’d imprinted himself on her so deeply, so fast, she didn’t know how she could go forward without him there.
“Jesse.” He rested his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.
“Hunter?”
He sighed and stared at her through narrowed slits.
Why did she have the feeling that this moment, right now, was about to change things permanently?
“I love you, Jesse, and I almost lost you today.” He cupped her cheek. “I’m not a very good man. I’ve been pretty shitty at times. I always knew someday I’d meet a girl I didn’t deserve and chances were she wouldn’t want me. I don’t know how to be the kind of guy you need or even want, but…”
But…?
There was a but there?
Her knees wobbled and she leaned against him.
Oh, God, what if his “but” was that he didn’t want this? That he couldn’t see himself with her? She’d…she’d die. Or wish she’d die.
“But—what?” she blurted.
“But I want to be with you.”
All the tension in her rushed out, leaving her weary, exhausted and giddy.
“What? What’s so funny?” Hunter frowned at her.
Jesse covered her mouth, smothering the uncontrollable laughter. It had to be stress, the near-death experience and adrenaline fall-out, but she couldn’t stop laughing.
“I thought—I thought you were going to say you didn’t like being with me.” She swiped at her eyes and sucked in a deep breath.
“What? No. That’s crazy. I’m madly in love with you and you’re laughing at me?”
“Hey, you’re the one in love with this crazy mess.” She waved at herself.
“Yeah, I am.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tight.
“Hunter?”
“Hm?”
“You’re the last thing I expected, and I love you, too.”
A slow smile spread across his lips and he slid his hands into the back pockets of her jeans, digging his fingers into the globes of her ass.
“See, now aren’t you glad you bought me?” He nudged her nose with his and she laughed.
She was glad. Him being house broken and eager to please were just bonuses.
Epilogue.
Six months later…
Hunter sat back on the stairs and watched Jesse call out short, terse commands to Sirius. The lanky pup he’d been saddled with up all those months ago was shaping up to be a stellar scent dog. Jesse insisted she was going to re-home him with another FEMA handler when his training was over, but Hunter wasn’t so sure. The pup had not only brought them together as a couple, but wormed his way into all their hearts. Especially old Dumbledore.
Elsa and Lupin lay in a contented pile, still as infatuated with each other as the day they’d met, which was one thing he got.
Life with Jesse was never what Hunter had expected, but it was what he’d needed. Being with her…grounded him. Together…it was right. And he was looking forward to a life spent with her in the most permanent sense possible.
Justin and James snuck into the training area through the side door and wandered toward Hunter, no hurry to their steps. The brothers and Hunter had come to an arrangement of sorts. They only asked his input when they wanted it, and no one threw a punch they weren’t willing to take. But never when Jesse was around. These days the punches were friendly and about the only thing the guys wanted to know about was out of his control.
When was Hunter going to stop shacking up with their sister and make an honest woman out of her?
They hadn’t liked Hunter’s double fisted flipped bird reply.
Jesse would do what she wanted, when she wanted, and not one of them could make her do otherwise. Not even him. Hunter considered it his job to look out for her best interests, not the other way around.
“Picked up the mail today.” Justin handed a cardboard envelope to Hunter when Jesse wasn’t looking.
Well, hell…
Hunter shoved it behind him, though he was just as eager to open the package and see the ring in person. If it weren’t for Charlie, Abby and Everly, Hunter might not have realized Jesse was throwing him hints in the first place. Everly wasn’t convinced Jesse meant to sigh at the glossy page of rings, but both Charlie and Abby
were convinced. The rest, well, he’d gone forward with her brother’s less-than-enthusiastic permission.
“How long she going to be?” Justin asked.
“Thirty more minutes?” Hunter glanced at his watch.
“I’m starving,” James whined.
“Well, we’ll get out of your hair.” Justin turned and the two moseyed out of the barn.
Nicholas hadn’t been around as much in the last few months, something all three Durcell siblings had remarked on. Hunter got it though. James had laid it out, that Nicholas had always intended to pursue Jesse when the time was right, and then Hunter showed up and the time was gone. Between that and Benjamin’s crimes, Nicholas was taking time for himself.
They still hadn’t figured out who Benjamin and Oscar were working with, or who’d started the bomb’s timer. The investigation was on-going, though there were no real leads.
The timer went off, signaling the beginning of dinner prep time.
He pushed to his feet and started the process of portioning out the dog’s dinner. It was their twice a week treat of raw food, something Hunter still wasn’t totally used to. The smell and the dog farts alone were horrible, but Jesse insisted and where she put her foot down, he rolled over and did whatever she wanted.
This was love, wasn’t it?
Hunter still wasn’t sure if he was doing it right. If he wasn’t, he didn’t want to know. When Jesse smiled at him, nothing else mattered anyway.
She finished up the training exercise and together they kenneled the dogs, then served up dinner. For all Sirius’s training, he was a vacuum that would slurp up anyone else’s portion if given the opportunity.
“Today was good.” She turned toward him and smiled, pushing her hair out of her face.
He’d say so.
“Hungry?” he asked.
“Starving. What’d James and Justin want?”
“Drop off the mail.”
“Oh, anything good?”
“Don’t know. You tell me.” He handed over the envelopes.
Technically, his mail still went to his apartment, and he swung by a few times a week to put in an appearance and check things out, but he’d pretty much moved into the barn apartment the day after the bomb scare. Jesse complained about the unnecessary expense, but truth be told, he didn’t want to let go of the apartment until things were a lot more permanent between them. Not because he thought she’d kick him to the curb, but because she deserved space if she wanted it. She’d told him to leave once and she had every right to do so again.
At least until she said yes.
When she said yes, she was permanently stuck with him.
They trudged up stairs and Jesse went straight to the bathroom to wash up, giving Hunter the badly needed moments alone to unbox the surprise.
He should wait and do something over the top romantic. Everly had a dozen great ideas, but Hunter knew himself and he couldn’t wait.
“Hey, Hunter?” Her footsteps thumped closer.
He swallowed and tugged the wedding band from the box and pocketed it.
“Didn’t I get new razors when we went to the store?” She came around the corner wearing nothing but a towel.
He went to a knee. That’s what he was supposed to do, right?
Her eyes widened and she took a step back.
“Jesse?” He swallowed, trying to get rid of the sudden dryness in his mouth.
“Hunter…”
“I got something in the mail today.” He glanced at the ring.
“Yeah?” She shifted from foot to foot, clutching the towel to her chest.
“I couldn’t wait.”
“You never can.” One side of her mouth hitched up.
“So…will you marry me?”
The other side of her mouth lifted and a grin spread across her face.
“Let me think about it.” She whirled and ran across the apartment.
What…the…hell?
He got up off the floor and took all of two steps, peering after her. Jesse stood in the doorway to the bedroom holding a Crown Royal bag in hand.
Fuck.
He remembered that night.
In all the right ways.
She glanced at him a few times, nervous, quick jerks of her head.
What was she doing?
Jesse’s chest heaved and she shook her hair, then strode toward him.
“I…I was going to wait until this weekend, but you’re kind of forcing my hand here.” She upended the bag and spilled a black, metal band into her palm. “We’re different people, and so I figured…we should do things our way. I was going to ask you to marry me at the fireman picnic.”
“You—what?” Hunter glanced from the ring to her.
“We’re different, Hunter, but we’re the same. I wanted to show you…I wanted to do something…something us. I love you, Hunter, and I’m crazy about you. And that’s never going to change.”
He couldn’t breathe and something was wrong with his knees.
Hunter leaned against the back of the sofa staring at the black band against her tanned skin.
“You…really?” He glanced up at her face.
“Yeah, really. There’s supposed to be a cake, a keg and everything this weekend. You’re totally ruining my surprise, but whatever.” She held up the band. “I know that…you keep thinking something’s going to happen, that you’re going to screw up and I won’t love you anymore, so…this is my promise, I guess. That even when we both mess up, we’re in this for real. Forever. What do you say? Should we both say yes?”
Hunter wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight. He couldn’t breathe. He could barely see. He…was he dying? Could he possibly die from happiness?
He pressed a kiss to her lips.
“Hunter?”
“Fuck, yes, babe. Yes.”
You can stay up to date on the whole
Firehouse Three crew in
Light up the Night by Regina Cole and Light Up the Tree by Regina Cole, coming this November.
Sign up for the New Release Newsletter at
www.SidneyBristol.com
to get inside scoops and free books.
Light up the Night
by Regina Cole
Her attraction is undeniable…
Firefighter Drake Hammerfell knew from the first moment he saw Everly Pitts stuck in a tree rescuing a kitten that there was something about her that called to him. This girl-next-door-beauty has him snared in her web, and for the first time in years…he doesn’t want to escape. He’s willing to be patient and bide his time to win over his reluctant lover. But his new start in Dallas isn’t without complications from his past, and his profession carries with it risks that Everly isn’t prepared for. How can he promise to be everything she needs?
His magnetism is overpowering…
Everly Pitts runs an animal shelter that’s in desperate need of funds. Despite her misgivings, she can’t say no to the hunky firefighters lining up to help her cause by oiling up and taking it off for a bachelor auction. Especially him. When the ripped, four-alarm sex god Drake Hammerfell goes up for bids, she’s determined to buy back her honor after their embarrassing meeting—even if it means emptying her savings account. But what’s a girl like her supposed to do with a guy like him? She’s much better with animals than people, and yet Drake keeps coming back, wearing down her resolve until she can’t help but wonder…what if?
Together they’ll LIGHT UP THE NIGHT.
Light Up the Tree
By Regina Cole
He's a country boy…
Firefighter Nate York isn't the kind of guy she needs, but that hasn't stopped him from wanting Allison from the moment he clapped eyes on her junior year. Years later, he's still thinking about her. Even though his life is great, he can't help but wish he was the polished, urbane kind of man who would catch her eye. He's made himself satisfied with her friendship, but that's not all he wants. Not by a long shot. And when an unexpected kiss makes him realiz
e life isn't lived standing still, he makes a move for the only thing he wants for Christmas. Her.
She's an uptown girl…
Allison Kurtz keeps her time as filled as she possibly can. That way she can't dwell on her string of failed relationships that stretches all the way across Texas. When an old friend cashes in on a favor, she happily agrees. Helping her buddy Nate pick out a Christmas puppy at Hopeful Paws will be a welcome distraction from her most recent failure in the romance department. But their simple friendship isn't so simple anymore, and Allison's worried that she'll lose the one guy she's always been able to trust if she falls for him. Can a Christmas together convince her that the one she's been searching for has been right beside her all along?
The glow of their love will LIGHT UP THE TREE.
Book List
Firehouse Three
Up in Flames by Sidney Bristol
Light Up the Night by Regina Cole
Light Up the Tree by Regina Cole
Up in Smoke by Sidney Bristol
Aegis Group
Blind: Killer Instincts
Dangerous Attraction, parts 1, 2 and 3
Dangerous in Training
Dangerous Games
Dangerous Assignment
Dangerous Protector
Gone Geek
Beauty and the Geek
The Jock and the Geek
Mr. Purr-fect and the Geek
The Gamer and the Geek
The Adorkable Girl and the Geek
The Star and the Geek
Hot Rides
Drive
Shift
Chase
Bayou Bound
Picture Her Bound
Duty Bound
Bound Memories
Bound & Tamed
Other BDSM Titles
Committed
Bound with Pearls
Collar Me in Paris
Festive Seduction
Electric Engagement
Up in Flames (Firehouse Three Book 1) Page 19
