Prairie Fire

by Tessa Layne

  “Just like a bull after a cow in heat,” they both spoke at once.

  Parker stuck out his hand, grinning. “Parker Hansen. Prairie wildfire crew.”

  “Pete Wilder, Assistant Chief, Hutchinson, and for the moment, your boss. Nice to meet you, now get your ass on the line.”

  Parker turned and jogged down the line looking for an opening. Past the enormous eighteen-wheeler tank with huge hoses snaking out of it, and finding space at the fourth hose. “What can I do?”

  “Step right up,” another firefighter said. “We need another pair of hands on the hose. We don’t open the nozzle until Pete calls.”

  “What are we waiting for?”

  The man in front of him lifted his chin. “The cavalry.”

  Of course.

  From the safety of the road, Parker could take a moment to appreciate the vision of the line of helicopters hovering above the smoke, Bambi buckets trailing in the wind. Only this time, when they dumped their load, the water didn’t seem to have an effect. The wind was too strong. The water disintegrated into a fine mist before ever hitting the fire.

  Shouts of Go relayed down the line, and the lead fighter turned on the hose. Water filled the slack hose between Parker’s hands, and he braced himself against the force of it. His body vibrated with the pulse of the water.

  Too soon, the hose softened. They must have emptied the whole tanker. They’d made a dent in this corner of the fire provided the wind didn’t change again.

  Peter’s voice barked out over a megaphone. “Everyone get out there and swat down those hotspots. The sooner we contain this section of the beast, the sooner we get to rest.”

  A chorus of grumbles rose up around him. He got it. They were beat. Parker guessed there were a lot of men out here who’d broken the rules and pulled back to back shifts. They all needed a rest, but he grabbed his swatter and went back at it. He’d lost track of his men, but they were here, and most important, they were safe.

  He just hoped wherever she was, Cassidy was too.

  CHAPTER 2

  Parker toweled his damp hair before tossing the scrap of terry cloth into a pile on the locker room floor. A shower often helped take the edge off the adrenaline surge that inevitably came after a job. It didn’t matter how beat he and the other guys were. If they weren’t injured, there was always a period of up, before the inevitable crash into exhaustion and mindless sleep.

  He left the locker room and headed to the rec room in search of his team. The place smelled like chlorine, sweat, and adrenaline. Parker chuckled. They were living the firefighter’s dream here in Hutchinson. At least the Y had showers. The forest fire he’d worked in Wyoming last summer was so remote, they’d had to make do with tents and latrines. It had taken a week to wash out the stench of sweat and smoke that had followed him home on the transport vehicle back to Kansas.

  “Anyone heard from Cass?” Parker asked as he approached the foosball table where the rest of the team stood gathered. In spite of the relief he’d felt when they came off the line, Parker’s stomach remained a tight knot of worry, muscles tense and tired from exhaustion. He hadn’t spoken with Cassidy since his crew had arrived on site three days ago. Granted, she was flying with the National Guard, but she was still part of his team, and he wouldn’t rest until she was accounted for.

  “You mean your girlfriend?” Johnny shot a sly grin in his direction.

  Heat raced up Parker’s neck. So what if his interest was more than casual? He and Cassie had started something years ago that he aimed to finish now that she was back in town. But that was his business. Not theirs. He shook his head. “Just keeping track of everyone. It’s my job.”

  “Bullshit,” Tony coughed into his hand.

  “You need to go to bed, Tony. And no midnight prowling this time, either.” It was futile to stand here and talk with his buddies. Maybe a square meal would settle him. “I’m heading for food.” Hell, who was he kidding? He wouldn’t settle until he knew for sure Cassie was safe.

  Two heaping plates of spaghetti and a salad later, the tightness in his muscles began to unwind as exhaustion hovered at the edge of his awareness. The knot in his belly unraveled the rest of the way as the contingency of pilots sauntered in, still in their flight suits, Cassidy the sole woman among them. A tug of awareness quickly replaced anxiety as she stopped and scanned the room, face lighting up as they locked eyes. A slow smile tilted her mouth, and she gave him a little wink before turning to one of her colleagues.

  Damn if he didn’t need another shower. This time a cold one.

  “Better make your move, Hansen.” Mike slid into a chair next to him.

  “Yeah,” Tony added, flanking him. “You’re gonna get your girl stolen right out from under you.”

  “Shut-up, Cruz. What do you know about women?”

  Tony chuckled. “I know not to piss around when it’s time to make a move.”

  “She’s not my girl,” Parker grumbled. She never had been. She’d always been a pal. He’d always thought of her as one of the guys until the night before she’d left for basic. Only then had he realized, too late, that she was far, far more than one of the guys. And now that she’d moved home to Prairie and joined the fire department, he wasn’t sure how to pick up where they’d left off. Or even if she wanted to.

  “You two’ve been circling each other for weeks. Time to piss or get off the pot, Hansen.” Mike raised an eyebrow and stroked his beard. “Or, you know… I might have to ask her out.”

  “Fuck you, McAllister. Go back to your brew cave.”

  “Women love a man who pursues his passion. And I bet a woman like Cassie appreciates craft beer.”

  “Well, you’re not gonna find out,” Parker growled, a hot flash of jealousy spiking through him.

  Tony snorted, and Mike rolled his eyes, covering a laugh. “Shit or get off the pot, man. Shit or get off the pot.”

  Parker glanced in her direction. Her back was turned as she moved through the buffet with confidence. Except it was more than that. She moved with swagger. How had he never noticed that about her before? Her movements were no different than they’d always been. The tilt of her head as she scanned the room, looking. The way her shoulders rolled back, spine ramrod straight as she cut a path through the room. She walked like she owned the world. And he couldn’t tear his gaze away as she paused directly in front of him, eyebrow cocked in challenge. “Got something to say, Park?”

  He knew that glint in her eye. The glassy sheen from the adrenaline high. A look that said all bets were on the table.

  Tony cleared his throat and leaned forward, tilting his chin at Mike like he was giving him some kind of signal.

  “Yeah,” Parker answered evenly, holding her gaze, an ember sparking to life in his chest. “Cruz here was just leaving.”

  Her lips twitched, but she didn’t make a move to sit down. She stood there brimming with confidence, sexy as sin in her flight suit, eyes boring into him. She wasn’t going to make this easy, was she?

  Mike pushed back from the table. “C’mon, Tony. Three’s a crowd.”

  “I don’t know about that. I have a sudden hankering for popcorn.” Tony shifted, settling deeper into the folding chair.

  Parker didn’t have to look over to know Tony was grinning broadly. Still keeping his eyes locked on Cassie, he gave Tony a push on the arm. “It’s past your bedtime, Cruz. You’re not hitting the line tomorrow until you’ve clocked ten hours in the sack.”

  Tony grunted in disagreement but pushed away from the table. Cassie’s eyes flared briefly before she broke their staring contest. The loss of her attention left an empty spot in his chest where the ember had been glowing. She swept her gaze to his two closest friends. “Nice work on the line today.”

  “You too,” Mike answered appreciatively, covering a yawn. “It was a relief to have air attack save the day. Which ship were you?”

  A slow smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. There it was again. That swagger. How had he be
en blind to it all those years? She was sexy as hell when she smiled like that. A mixture of triumph and challenge. Daring Mike to act surprised when she answered. “Lead.” Cassie swung the weight of her gaze back to him, and just like that – the ember smoldering in Parker’s chest flared to life a second time in as many minutes. He shouldn’t feel this energized. His muscles screamed from exhaustion and the release that came with knowing his team was safe and complete. And yet… being in her presence had his muscles twitching with energy, ready to run until he dropped.

  “You gonna invite me to sit?”

  Shit. His mother would whale him for a bullshit move like that. Quickly, Parker stood, gesturing to the chair across from him. “Please. Sit. I didn’t mean to leave you standing.”

  She rolled her eyes, and let out a breathy laugh as she pulled out the chair across from him and sat. “I was just fucking with you, Park. Keep me company?”

  “He’d love to,” Mike answered for him. “Don’t stay out too late kids,” he tossed over his shoulder as he dragged Cruz away with him, leaving the two of them alone.

  Even though the room was crowded with exhausted and hungry firefighters, and chatter echoed from the walls, silence settled between them. Cassie ate quickly, stuffing a forkful of meatball into her mouth and chewing thoughtfully. Her eyes sparked with energy and amusement. How was it that she wasn’t tired?

  “My job’s easier than yours.”

  A laugh escaped from his chest. “Did I say that out loud?”

  She smirked, fork stopping in midair. “Sure did. And nothing gets me excited like flying.” She popped another bite into her mouth giving him a wink.

  Except sex, if he remembered correctly.

  All the blood in his body rushed to his balls in a heated rush at the thought of seeing Cassie light up. “You sure about that?”

  She stopped chewing, eyes narrowed, and slowly wiped her thumb across her plump lower lip.

  Parker shifted uncomfortably in his seat, the energy of attraction overriding exhaustion and common sense. She’d been home a little over a month, and while they’d hung out with the rest of Prairie’s first responders, worked together, trained together, and run into each other at the Trading Post, they’d never been alone. Not that he hadn’t thought about how to get her alone. He had. A lot.

  But this was Cassie, his former best friend. He should ask about her sisters, or whether she needed help fixing the beat-up motorcycle she always brought to him for repairs when they’d been young, not dream up excuses to get into her pants. But he couldn’t stop thinking about that. And he kept getting distracted by the damned zipper on her flight suit, mesmerized by the way her generous breasts pushed against the material.

  “Eyes up, cowboy.”

  He dragged his gaze away, a flush heating the back of his neck, and met her eyes. She was shaking with suppressed laughter. At least she wasn’t pissed she’d caught him staring. He flashed her a sheepish grin. “Sorry.” Not so much.

  She put down her fork and balanced her elbows on the table, leaning in. “So. When are you going to make your move?”

  CHAPTER 3

  Cassie smothered a laugh as Parker’s eyes grew wide. If she’d learned one thing on her last two tours, it was that life was too short to wait around. Seeing people you loved die had a way of cutting through all life’s bullshit. And she’d given Parker plenty of opportunities to make his move. Hell, they saw each other every day. Multiple times a day. And while she’d caught him staring when he thought she wasn’t looking, he’d stayed infuriatingly professional.

  She was pretty sure he was interested in picking up where they’d left off the night before she’d left for basic all those years ago. But she was tired of waiting. And if that meant shocking him by taking the bull by the horns, so be it. If he wasn’t interested, better to find out now.

  Parker opened his mouth to speak, and promptly snapped it shut, shaking his head.

  “Well?” She waited, stomach jumping nervously.

  “You’re something else, Cass, know that?”

  She sat back, crossing her arms under her breasts, pushing them up. Let him look. Maybe that would spur him to action. “Why, yes. I do know that, thank you very much.” She shot him a saucy smile. Let him squirm a bit.

  “You saved our asses out there today.” His voice grew serious.

  Cassie fought a frustrated sigh and dug back into her spaghetti. You could lead a horse to water…

  Fine.

  She’d play it his way, for a bit. “Glad your pretty face didn’t melt like Indiana Jones.”

  He huffed out a laugh and raked his fingers through his head. “Yeah. It was touch and go out there for a while.” He blew out a breath and rocked back on the legs of his chair, studying her.

  A rush of heat spiraled through her as his gaze bore straight into her. Like he was finally seeing her. Was that the reason for his hesitation? That they needed time to slip back into their old friendship?

  She’d always been the wilder of the two, pulling him along into whatever escapade happened to pop into her head. He’d always been more measured, more cautious. And she’d freely admit, her antics had started out purely as a way to grab his attention. When they’d been kids, Parker had come around in the name of making sure she didn’t break her neck. But then it had changed. In the months before she’d left for basic, he’d come around not to keep her safe, but to hang out. And then, yeah…

  Her thoughts drifted to the night before she’d left for basic.

  “Where’d you go, Cass?” Parker asked softly, a funny expression on his face.

  She shrugged off the past, giving him a small smile. “Thinking about the last time we were alone together.”

  His eyes heated briefly. Good to know he still remembered that night as fondly as she did. She spun another forkful of spaghetti, waiting for him to speak.

  When he finally did, his words shocked her. “I owe you an apology for that, Cass.”

  Wait. What?

  The night she’d lost her virginity to Parker Hansen went down in the annals as one of the best nights ever. A fucking dream come true. And now, years later, he was sorry? She beat back a flash of hurt and anger. Slowly, she lowered her fork and drew on her training to stay calm and even. Gather information. Make a plan. No room for emotion. Ever. “For what?”

  There was a sharpness to her voice she couldn’t keep out. And he’d heard it too, because his face flashed first confusion, then understanding, and finally amusement. “Shit. That didn’t come out right. I owe you an apology. But not for what you think. I… ah…” Two bright spots bloomed high on his cheeks. “I didn’t really know what I was doing.” The spots morphed into blotches. “I should have made it better for you.”

  Well, damn. Now it was her turn to die from the furnace of heat exploding through her. Served her right. What had she expected when she’d taken the opening shot? She should have remembered who she was tangling with. She waved a hand, trying but failing to keep from grinning like a schoolgirl with a crush. Parker had a way of surprising the shit out of her.

  “Oh, that. We were kids. I expect we’ve both learned a thing or two by now.” A little giggle snuck past her throat. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d giggled at anything. Parker looked positively discomfited. Like he was waging an internal battle. But when he raised his eyes to meet hers, the heat in them curled her toes. “I expect so.”

  Cassie couldn’t look away. She didn’t want to, not with awareness rising and snaking through her, setting long-dead secret places on fire. Their staring standoff lasted about thirty seconds when Parker sat down the chair with a thunk. “We need to continue this conversation someplace else.”

  A little thrill ran through Cassie. Now they were getting somewhere. But she kept her voice light. “So you’re saying you want to walk me to my locker?”

  Parker’s expression grew fierce. “I should have done that years ago.”

  “What else should you have done years ago Pa
rk?”

  He grunted as he fisted a hand. A sound of pure testosterone that shot straight to her core. It had been so long since she’d felt anything resembling a sexual urge, she nearly jumped out of her chair from the intensity.

  “You’re just dying to see what’s under my flight suit, aren’t you?” She kept her voice light and teasing. She was dying to reacquaint herself with what was underneath his low-slung sweatpants.

  “Cassie.” His voice was part warning, part invitation.

  She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand. “Yes?”

  “You know I don’t play games.”

  Everything in her stilled and she looked him straight in the eye. “I’m not playing games, Park.” Let him chew on that for a hot second. She hadn’t gotten to where she was in her career by playing small or acting coy. And if she died tomorrow, she’d regret not laying her cards on the table. War zones had a way of putting things in perspective.

  With another grunt that did squirrelly things to her insides, Parker pushed away from the table and stood, grabbing his empty paper plate. “C’mon.”

  Cassie followed, a thrill of excitement ricocheting through her bones like a bullet. Only this time there was no pain. Simply the delicious ache of anticipation.

  As soon as she pushed through the doors into the hall, Parker snaked an arm out and captured her hand, pulling her close. So close, that when she tilted her chin she could see the gold flecks in his blue eyes, and the lines of exhaustion etched into the skin below his lashes. Their legs lined up, hard muscle pressed against hard muscle. Park’s hand pressed into her lower back, keeping her close. Cassie’s heart lodged itself up in her throat, and her body went tight. A faint smell of smoke lingered at Parker’s neck, mingling with the scent of soap and aftershave. She breathed in deeply, her brain going a little fuzzy with the headiness of him. It had been so long since she’d connected with another human, and now that she was encased in his arms, it took superhuman effort not to burrow into his embrace and bury her face in his neck.