“Listen”—he snakes his fingers through his thinning hair with exasperation—“it’s only ten blocks from here. Let’s not make this a thing, okay? Just drop them off and we can all move on with our afternoon.”
The phoenix inside me falls from the sky and crumples back down into the pile of ashes as my confidence slips away. My mouth tugs down in the corners and I cringe at the meek voice that escapes my lips. “Yeah, sure. I’ll take them over right now.”
Grabbing my purse, I stand up and walk over to the two boys who missed the bus. I feel like even at their age, they know I’m a pushover. My shoulders slump forward with defeat. “Let’s get going. I’m taking you to the fire station.” I jerk my head toward the door and my bouncy bob springs around my face.
So much for changing my life. Looks like I spent a lot of time getting ready today so I could be a less glorified Uber driver. The boys follow down the hall as my shoes clip and clop against the floor, except now it doesn’t sound confident or cheerful, just like the drumbeat of a sad song no one wants to listen to.
Chapter 2
I pull my old Ford Tempo into the fire station and park the car as the kids kick my seat behind me. Despite how shitty this afternoon is going, I can’t help the flurry of excitement as I step out of my car and peer into the huge open bay doors. Seeing the cherry red firetrucks and firefighters all done up in their gear gives me a little thrill. I mean, what woman doesn’t secretly want to be tossed over the broad shoulder of a fireman? It’s the ultimate damsel in distress being saved by her ultimate hero. The idea makes my breath catch in my throat and my nipples pebble under my bra.
I distractedly open the back car door and the boys jump out and run like little streaks of lightning across the parking lot to the demonstration happening inside.
I slam my rusty car door shut and look over at the guys inside. If I didn’t know better, I’d say I recognize the tall, muscular man with the sleeves of colorful tattoos and a tight black T-shirt under his red suspenders holding up his firefighting pants. I take a couple of steps across the pavement toward the bay. I mean, I know I should probably get back to the office. Mr. Gideon most likely has a stack of paperwork for me to get through by the end of the day. But, for some reason, I can’t stop moving my feet toward the sexy man giving the demonstration to the group of attentive seven-year-olds inside.
I stop in my tracks as the realization of who I’m shamelessly staring at comes to me. It’s Cayden.
Cayden Black.
Oh, wow. I bite my lip to prevent my mouth from falling open as my eyes lazily travel over his built frame. I haven’t seen Cayden since high school, but there’s no doubt in my mind that it’s him. He has way more tattoos and muscles, but I can still see the boyish charm in his chiseled features and the mischievous glint in his light blue eyes.
Just like every other girl in our school, I had a huge crush on him. When was that? I can’t believe it’s already been twelve years since we graduated. There’s no way he’d remember me. I was just a nerdy nobody and he was every girl’s fantasy.
I grab my keys and start walking back to my car. I should get back to it. My work here is done.
No.
The small but powerful voice inside me makes me pause.
No.
You look fucking fantastic. You’re not a little, bookish wallflower anymore, Grace. You backed down from asking for a raise, but there’s no reason you have to scurry away from Cayden. Turn your ass around and go see if there’s a ring on that finger.
I nod tightly and take a deep breath. It’s true. I deserve to have a little fun too. So what if I’m late back at the office? It serves Mr. Gideon right for sending me out like a personal chauffeur in the first place. I’m going to march in that hall and enjoy the show, and who knows, maybe after the kids clear out I might get a chance to talk to Cayden. At the very least, I can soak in the sexiness.
I square my shoulders and flip my hair back as I march across the parking lot. This is it. I watch the distance close between us. I can’t be sure, but he looks like he’s checking me out. I smile and swing my hips a little as I briskly walk toward him.
Eat your heart out, Cayden.
Suddenly my heel sticks to the ground and my ankle twists over, crumpling down against the cement. I throw my hands in the air and let out a high-pitched scream as I fall to the ground, splayed out completely, and my head hits the pavement with a thud. For a second, the world goes fuzzy and dark.
Fuck.
Chapter 3
“Hey, are you okay? That was quite the fall.”
I open my eyes and inwardly groan as Cayden leans over me.
Is it possible to actually die from embarrassment? At this moment, death seems like a better option than being laid out in the parking lot like I’m trying to make snow angels on the dusty pavement while my old high school crush looks down at me like a sad puppy trapped in a well.
“Let’s get you inside and I’ll take a look to make sure you’re good.” He holds out his broad hands and I let my eyes travel from his palms, up his tattooed arms, to his burly shoulders.
Damn.
“Thank you.” I grab onto his hands and squeal as he effortlessly plucks me from the ground and steadies me on my feet.
Double damn.
Cayden was the high school heartthrob that good girls like me wanted to be bad for. My mouth twitches down as I realize that’s just not me, though. I’m not the girl who lands the bad boy firefighter. I’m not even the girl who can ask for a raise or competently walk across a parking lot.
I’m just never going to be her and I should give up on trying.
I follow Cayden in through the bay door in a haze. “Chuck,” he yells across to his partner, “take over, will ya? I’m taking her to the first aid station.” He jerks his thumb back at me and I watch as Chuck purses his lips and nods.
“Sure thing, man.” He turns his attention to the crowd of kids as we walk past and inside the building.
“Just this way. It won’t take more than a minute and I’ll have you on your way. I just want to make sure you’re good to drive and you don’t have any signs of a concussion,” Cayden explains as he leads me through the empty building.
“Sure, sounds good.” I bite my tongue before I can confess the part where I’m in no hurry to go anywhere and that he can kiss my boo-boos better anytime, night or day. But especially at night.
Instead, I clip-clop behind him into a room with a doctor’s bed and medical equipment.
“Okay, just take a seat here.” Cayden’s thick fingers dig into my waist and he lifts me from the floor and gently seats me on top of the sheet of crinkly paper covering the bed. “I’ll just grab the first aid kit and get some gloves on.” He quickly unzips the red bag and somehow squeezes his hands into the latex.
“Thanks. I’m sure I’m fine, though.” I lower my gaze bashfully and notice a huge streak of dirt down my skirt.
“You’re more than fine.” Cayden’s voice drops an octave and my cheeks burn bright as I peer up at him from under my lashes.
Whoa. Wait. Did he mean what I think he meant?
If his words left any lingering doubt, his not-so-subtle stare is removing it from my mind. A buzz of excitement travels over my skin as his eyes shamelessly explore my body. I know I’m still fully dressed, but the way he’s assessing me makes me feel so exposed. So vulnerable. So fucking wet.
“Thank you.” My cheeks are blazing as I shyly look away. In the distance of the hall I can hear a radio playing a familiar song, but I can’t quite place it.
That’s gonna bug me. I hate when I know a song but can’t think of the name. I give my head a shake and focus back on Cayden. Who cares about the music? The only music I want to make right now is passionate moaning as we fuck.
He lifts a flashlight and beams it into my eye, checking my pupils with a half-cocked smirk on his lips.
“You know, I remember you from high school,” he muses.
He shouldn’t be
worried about my head, because it’s my heart that’s about to give out on me.
“Really?” I squeak in disbelief. How is that even possible?
“I really do.” He checks my other eye with the light. “The faces from those days are mostly a blur now, but I recognized you right away. Grace, right? Grace Spalding?”
He really does remember me. Holy shit.
“That’s right. I knew who you were right away too,” I confess quietly. “I’m surprised you recognized me, though. It’s not like we were in the same group.” I rub my sweaty palm over the dusty trail on my skirt as Cayden puts the flashlight away.
“No, I remember you from the grade eleven dance. You shot me down when I asked you to slow dance with me. I guess I thought I was a big deal back then and all the girls should’ve too. It impressed me that you said no. I noticed you a lot after that.” he smiles at me.
The music around us seems to be getting louder as I get lost in his icy eyes. How did I ever turn him down? I must have been too afraid to let myself live in the moment.
“I wish I’d danced with you,” I admit.
“There’s no time like the present.” His eyes twinkle mischievously and he holds out his hand.
“What?” I look at him like I’ve been watching a movie and all of a sudden the characters began speaking a different language.
“Listen.” He nods and I tilt my head as the sound of Lifehouse singing “You and Me” swirls on the air around us. “It’s just you and me in here. What do you say? Will you dance with me now, Grace?”
I cautiously look around the room, like I’m not sure if this is all an elaborate joke or what. However, the sincerity in Cayden’s eyes tells me all I need to know.
“Of course I will.” I clutch onto his hand and he helps me from the table and pulls me into his broad chest.
The music seems to get even louder as I press my cheek into his muscled pec and close my eyes, breathing him deep into my lungs. Cayden wraps his hand around the edge of my waist and his fingertips stretch around to my lower back, pulling me in close.
It’s all so perfect. I wish this moment could last forever.
Chapter 4
They say all good things must come to an end and unfortunately that’s always true. Especially right now.
The music changes and Cayden steps back from me. Not a full step back, just far enough that his lips are hovering over mine. Like, if I just stood on my tiptoes, I could kiss him.
“I should, uh, probably see you out.” He looks down at me but doesn’t move.
I can still feel the rigid definition of his hard muscles pressed against me. You have no idea how much I wish it were the rigid definition of something else.
Why can’t I be that girl? I want to so badly, but instead, I step back too and smile politely. “Lead the way,” I answer.
My heart squeezes when he walks out the door. Whatever magical moment we just had seems to have shattered.
Once again I follow him down the hall and back out toward the bay with the fire trucks. I let my gaze lick his entire body. My God, Cayden could be in one of those firefighter calendars where the guys get stripped down. He could have an entire calendar just to himself. Every month celebrating him and his big…hose.
I clear my throat and my cheeks burn bright as I try to push the naughty thought away.
“Well, it looks like we’ve got the place to ourselves.” Cayden sweeps his hand over the abandoned bays. Did all the children go home already? How long have I been hiding out in the first aid office? What time of day is it?
It’s impossible for me to gauge because the doors are closed now. Cayden is right. It’s just him, me, and the fire trucks. I bite my lip as heat blooms between my legs. I can’t help it. Cayden brings out my inner bad girl. And I didn’t even know I had an inner bad girl. But she’s there and she’s desperate to see what he’s got going on under his firefighter gear.
“You look like you’ve got something on your mind. What’s going on up there?” Cayden touches his fingertips to my temple and my throat dries. I could never tell him what I’m really thinking. What would he say?
What if he said yes?
You didn’t ask for your raise and you didn’t play it cool when you tried to walk in here, but so what? This guy you craved all through high school is into you! Stop thinking about all the things you want to do and do them!
“I was thinking I’d like to kiss you.” I can barely believe I spoke the words.
Cayden, however, doesn’t look the least bit surprised. The smirk on his full lips turns into a full smile as he walks me back into the truck until my body is pressed flat against it.
“Is that so? ’Cause I’ve been thinking about kissing these lips since I saw you.” He leans into me and I exhale all of my anxiety and concerns.
This is it. I’m going to live in the moment. To hell with a life of regretting the things I’ve never done.
I don’t wait for his lips to touch mine. Instead, I kiss him. His tongue flickers over my lips and I open my mouth to him, letting our tongues collide feverishly as he presses me into the truck.
Cayden’s hand tangles in my hair and I press my hips forward into him. He breaks our kiss but doesn’t release me from the truck, keeping me pinned under his hips.
“Was that all you were thinking about? Or was there anything else you wanted to try?” he murmurs against my cheek and a cloud of heat billows over my body.
“I, I want to try…I want you to fuck me.” I don’t avert my gaze or clasp my hands over my mouth. Instead, I look him straight in the eyes, making sure he knows exactly what I want.
“I was hoping you’d say that.” He smirks and steps back, releasing me from the cool metal of the truck. “Get inside,” he demands, springing the door open and holding out his hand to help me in.
I don’t argue, climbing up inside. A tingle slithers down my spine at how unbelievably naughty I’m being.
And how much I love it.
Cayden climbs in after me and slams the door shut behind him. He climbs on top of me as I lie back across the bench seat and twists his fist in my hair while his other hand quickly yanks the hem of my dress up to my waist, exposing the thin fabric of my panties.
Cayden sits up and tugs his red suspenders down each shoulder and quickly strips off his T-shirt. Damn, he looks so hard. I can’t help but run my hand over his tight muscles. I thought guys only looked like this in magazines or with some kind of photoshopping, but here he is, proving me wrong.
“I want your cock, Cayden.” My voice is hoarse and I sit up, trying feebly to tug down his thick pants.
“Don’t you worry, baby, you’ll get every inch.” He gently pushes my shoulders, guiding me back down, and he manages to slide off his yellow pants and his other pants and underwear under them.
My eyes grow wide. I don’t know if I can fit every inch of that! I’ve never seen a cock so thick, veiny, and long.
Cayden doesn’t give me time to think about it. Shoving my dress up to my belly, he wraps my panties in his fist and tugs them free from my body in one yank.
I open my legs and he settles between them. I can’t believe how wet I am. How ready I for his shaft to fill me. Cayden guides the head to my entrance and slides it up to my clit. I gasp as the pleasure courses through me. He slips it over my sensitive nub a few times and then sinks his cock deep inside me in one relentless and unyielding thrust.
“Oh fuck!” For a second I’m convinced I can’t take it all. It’s too big. Too thick. Too… “Oh my God, that’s amazing!” I cry out and drag my freshly manicured nails over his back.
“Oh, Grace, you have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do this.” He fills me up, stretching me out, making me his as I meet his thrusts.
Cayden pumps into me harder, faster, his cock pushing my pussy to stretch around him. I realize there’s no way I’m going to be able to walk straight tomorrow, not after this. I’ll be walking around like I did a cattle drive on horseback. And I’l
l be smiling like an idiot the entire time.
“Oh, Cayden! I’m gonna cum!” I cry out and my hands flail off his back as my eyes squeeze shut.
“Oh fuck ya, that’s it, baby.” He pushes harder and the cum spurts from his rigid cock inside me.
I accidentally hit something on the dash and a siren goes off as my orgasm tears through me. I’m a moaning, head-rolling mess and I couldn’t care less. This feeling is too amazing to give a fuck about anything else.
“Grace? Is that you? Are you okay? Hey? Earth to Grace, are you good?”
I can hear the siren from the truck, but it sounds farther away. My eyes are still squeezed shut, but the bench seat beneath me has disappeared, replaced by the cold, hard ground.
What the fuck?
I open my eyes slowly and still see Cayden’s face hovering over mine, but he’s fully clothed. And I’m in the parking lot. On the ground.
“You took a nasty bump to the head there.” Concern is tattooed over his face as he studies my features. “You were out cold for less than a minute, but we should probably get you to a hospital. I’m guessing you’re going to have a minor concussion from your fall,” Cayden explains as the world of dancing in the first aid room and sex in the truck begins to lift like a fog. It was a dream. My heart sinks. Of course it was. I would never do those things. I’m still lying in a puddle of my humiliation on the cement. Only in my imagination could I be so bold. Oh God!
“Thank you,” I barely creak the words from my throat. The disappointment is too much. I can’t stand it.
Cayden places his hand under my head. “I’m gonna help you up slowly, okay? I’ve already checked you for bleeding and don’t see any, so I’ll get you to the hospital right away.”
“Wait. How do you know my name?”
“I remember you from high school.” He smiles and it makes me think of the epic fantasy I just had. All of a sudden that swirling heat is blooming inside of me again, but this time for real.
Hot, Quick & Dirty: 12 Steamy Short Stories Page 17
