Slow Burn (Into The Fire Book 2)

by J. H. Croix

  Lucy looked from her to Susannah and me. “This is her new thing. She thinks I’m missing out,” Lucy said drolly. “I keep reminding her not everyone gets a second chance with the love of their life.”

  “Have you even given anyone a chance?” Amelia asked with a roll of her eyes. She started to say something else, but was interrupted when someone called her name.

  I glanced over to see Cade approaching. Beck was a few steps behind him, pausing to talk to someone at the bar. Cade was a classic, rugged Alaskan firefighter. He had rumpled brown curls, green eyes, and a body to die for. I’d gotten used to the fact that any man who was a hotshot firefighter had a body practically carved from stone. Their work was grueling and so physically demanding, it blew me away. In short though, I was surrounded by men who could fill a calendar with hotness. I didn’t feel a damn thing for any of them. Except Beck.

  Cade reached our table, hooked his hand over a chair nearby and slid it up right beside Amelia. He dropped a kiss on the side of her neck as he did. The intimacy between them was so obvious, it was almost a physical manifestation. I wondered what it was like to have something like that. It wasn’t something I really thought much about. There was only one person I could count on—me. At least, that’s what I told myself when I occasionally considered that it might be nice to have something like what Amelia and Cade shared.

  Beck started approaching us again after he finished chatting with someone at the bar. I willed my eyes not to wander in his direction, but my eyes were stronger than my will. He walked with an unconscious swagger, his muscled arms swinging with ease. Dear God. His arms. Even his arms turned me on. My low belly clenched, and my pulse kicked up a notch.

  Great. Just what I need. A night at the bar with Beck where I’m a mess inside. Why did I let Susannah talk me into this?

  Maybe because you were hoping you’d see him.

  Shut up.

  As Beck threaded his way through the tables and the light crowd, a woman touched him on the shoulder and threw a flirtatious glance his way. He laughed at whatever she said, flashing one of his devastating grins. I wished, oh how I wished, I didn’t fall for his grin the way I did. Every time he bestowed one upon me, I felt like a top spinning and lighting up inside. That feeling would invariably follow with a harsh reminder that Beck was practically a professional flirt.

  Chapter 8

  Beck

  I headed straight for the table where I could see Maisie sitting with a few friends. Conveniently, the only empty chair happened to be right beside her. I slid into it quickly. I looked around the table, greeting everyone individually before finally allowing myself to look at Maisie. Lust jolted me at the sight of her plump lips and those wide brown eyes.

  “Hey Maisie, didn't expect to see you here. Come to think of it, I don’t know if I’ve ever seen you here,” I said.

  Her eye roll was quick. It usually was around me. I fucking loved it because it meant I was getting to her.

  “It’s not usually my speed,” she said, her tone snippy.

  “What's wrong with dinner with friends?”

  I could feel her annoyance notch a little higher. Honestly, she was like a cactus around me. Much as I enjoyed needling her in small ways, it fed into the desire I could barely keep in check around her.

  With my pulse running along on high idle and my cock so hard I had to shift in my seat, I bit back the urge to keep teasing her.

  Susannah’s gaze bounced from me to Maisie. “Exactly what I told her. Dinner with friends is not a bad thing. Maisie’s more central to the station than all of us, and she hardly ever hangs out with us,” she said with a grin.

  Maisie rolled her eyes at Susannah. “Well, I'm here now.”

  The waitress stopped by our table. Drinks and food were ordered, and conversation carried on. Much as I wanted to relax, I was finding it slightly distracting and challenging to have the ridiculously tempting Maisie sitting right beside me.

  Cade was in the middle of regaling the rest of the table with an amusing story about a moose encounter the last time his crew had been out in the backcountry. I glanced to Maisie, giving in to the urge to touch her with a little nudge of my elbow. Immediately, she looked up, her cheeks pinkening. My cock responded accordingly.

  “So how’ve you been?” I asked conversationally, snagging a sweet potato fry and popping it in my mouth.

  Because my eyes were willful, they kept flicking down to her breasts. Her navy t-shirt pulled tight across them. My mind flashed to the feel of her taut nipple and the delicious weight of her breast cupped in my palm.

  I took a gulp of my beer.

  “Fine,” she said with a small shrug.

  I took another drag on my beer and pondered my situation. It shouldn’t be difficult to have a casual conversation with her, but I was bound tight with need. I was relieved when she continued.

  “Everything go okay on the call? I saw the report that everybody was out safe. Do you know what caused the fire?” she asked.

  “Best guess is some embers blew over from a fire down the road, but we don’t know for sure yet. It's too bad the call came in late. By the time we got there, there wasn't much to do other than make sure everybody was out safe. There were two teenage kids and their grandmother in the house.”

  “Oh, is everyone okay?”

  “Yup. A little smoke inhalation for the grandmother. They took her to the hospital to get checked out, but she should be fine. The house is a total loss, but I call it a win as long as nobody gets hurt.”

  She nodded and took a swallow of her drink. My eyes lingered on her throat as she leaned back. I was so tempted to lean over and drag my tongue along the sensitive skin there. I wasn’t accustomed to having need rule me the way it did with Maisie. It was impossible for me to forget how she’d looked naked and wet in the shower and then how she felt when I kissed her.

  “Thanks again for fixing my hot water heater. It’s great to have hot water.”

  “Of course. Anytime you need help with something like that, just let me know,” I said, managing to draw my words out and wink. I couldn’t help my reflexive response. Fucking perfect.

  Her cheeks flushed deeper, and she looked down at her burger and took a giant bite. Even that was sexy.

  I was still mystified she hadn’t asked for help in the first place. “Do me a favor and don’t make yourself wait next time,” I added.

  “I probably should've said something sooner, but I'm not used to having a whole bunch of guys around that would help me with things like that.”

  “Well, you definitely have me,” I said.

  I hadn’t meant to flirt, but it was a fallback habit for me. Just now, I didn’t mind.

  Not when I saw her pulse flutter in her neck and her eyes narrow as she looked up.

  “No need to look like that. You’ve got plenty of girls here to flirt with. Why don’t you go find one?”

  I doubted she meant it, but her words stung a little. “Hey, I'm here just to hang out with some friends.”

  She eyed me for a beat and took another gulp from her drink. “I may not spend much time around here, but I know what the rumors are. This is right up your alley. Plenty of girls to pick up, most of them just passing through, so you can love em’ and leave em.’ Don't look at me like one of them,” she snapped.

  I liked to have fun and made no bones about it, but I didn’t appreciate how she pegged me for some jerk. Uncertain how to reply, I stared at her for a moment.

  I finally lifted a shoulder in a shrug and took a swig of my beer. “Whatever, Maisie. I won't pretend to be something I'm not, but I'm not an asshole. I like to have fun, and I like to tease. It is what it is. Tonight, I'm just here for dinner with my friends.”

  “Don’t give Beck too hard of a time. All he ever does is flirt. He’s pretty harmless,” Lucy interjected with a roll of her eyes and a soft grin tossed my way.

  If possible, Lucy was more gun shy than Maisie when it came to
men. I hadn’t known her to date anyone since high school. She was a good friend though. I smiled across the table at her, gratified at least she didn’t think I was an ass.

  “See, even Lucy says I'm not that bad.”

  Lucy started laughing, and Amelia joined in.

  “Lucy went to high school with us too, so we know he's harmless. He's always there if you need him. He’s a professional flirt, but that's about it,” Amelia added.

  I shook my head lightly and glanced to Cade. “What do I gotta do to get these girls off my back? Shack up like you?”

  Cade merely laughed and hooked his arm over Amelia's shoulder. “That would certainly do it.”

  “Well, you might be harmless, but I can’t imagine you settling down,” Lucy said with a low laugh.

  Maisie stayed quiet, and my gut clenched a little. I wasn’t looking for love and never had been. I didn’t quite know what to make of the flaming hot chemistry between us, but I was pretty sure it would be best for both of us if we let it end with that one wild and crazy kiss. It had been a big enough mistake as it was. Yet, somehow I didn’t want to. I wanted more and hell if I knew what to make of that.

  Chapter 9

  Maisie

  Eventually the party started to break up. I said my goodbyes and went to the restroom. I washed my hands and splashed water on my cheeks. I was still flushed. It made me feel ridiculous the way I was around Beck. I stared at myself in the mirror and wondered what he saw in me.

  My dark, crazy curls stuck out willy-nilly even though I’d pulled them back in a ponytail this morning. One errant curl hung loose on my cheek. My eyes were a little big and dark in my face, or so I thought. I looked at myself with a critical eye. I didn't think much about how I looked. It wasn't something I’d ever had much time to contemplate. Makeup wasn't my thing either. I saw wide brown eyes, dark lashes, and round cheeks. I'd always been a little bit round all over. Though they were in the right places, my curves were definitely enthusiastic. I patted my face dry and headed out the back door of Wildlands to the parking lot, telling myself I’d get past my body’s willful response to Beck.

  ***

  A few days later, I proved myself even more social by grabbing a late coffee at Firehouse Café after work with Susannah and Lucy. I climbed in my truck afterwards, only to realize I didn’t have my purse. A quick trip back inside, and it was nowhere to be found. I tugged my phone out of my pocket and quickly texted Susannah to ask if she’d seen it before she left.

  She replied in a flash.

  Nope. Didn’t see one. Maybe you left it at the station?

  Probably. Thanks.

  That’s twice you survived a social event. Now you won’t get away with telling me no all the time. 

  Don’t get crazy.

  At that, I hurried back out to the parking lot, climbed in my truck and headed for the station.

  Within a few minutes, I was walking into the station. All year long, we had back up emergency call support from the Anchorage Fire Department. Unless I was on duty, the calls routed through there. Our crews were also set up to receive calls from home. Unlike the old-school fire stations where they actually had people sleeping there, our station didn’t. It was dark and quiet. I headed into the back and found my purse right where I’d left it in my locker. I walked back out front, pausing at the counter. It might be odd, but I found the station comforting. I’d been at this job longer than any I’d had before. I loved it too. I didn't get paid a ton, but I had enough to cover all of my bills and start saving a little. I’d been stubborn about my hot water heater because I didn't want to put a dent in my savings. For the first time in my life, I had more than five hundred dollars saved up. The only time I had savings before, I’d used all of it to fly up here before Gram passed away.

  This place felt sort of like a home for me. The whole front counter was mine. Nobody else really went back there. We had a few alternates to cover in emergencies but that was it. It made me feel responsible, and I loved that feeling. Out of habit, I quickly powered up my computer and scanned the list of calls that had come in recently. Tonight had been pretty quiet so far. A few short calls were logged, including a truck engine fire on the outskirts of town. I turned my computer off again and double-checked the front doors even though I hadn't even come in through the front. I headed into the back again. Just as I entered the hallway, I heard footsteps.

  There would be no reason for anybody to be here unless a call had come in and I’d just checked. The lights were off since I hadn't bothered to turn them on when I came in. The only light available was from a small light that remained on over the sink in the kitchen area. It cast a soft, silvery glow in the room. The footsteps rounded the corner from the back door, and Beck stepped into view.

  My pulse took off at a gallop, and my breath caught.

  He walked toward me, hot as hell in his faded jeans and t-shirt. That was pretty much a uniform for him. His clothes hugged his body like a lover, every muscled inch outlined. He didn't even have to try, and he was so sexy it was obscene. His arms swung easily with his slightly lazy swagger. I doubt he even tried to swagger. He just did, that’s the kind of guy he was. All man. He stopped a few feet away from me and caught my eyes.

  “I wondered whose truck that was,” he said. “What are you doing here this late, Maisie?”

  Heat coiled low in my belly, and my pulse lunged. Great, just great. I’d avoided being alone with him for a full week, and somehow I managed to run into him in the middle of the night, alone and only feet away from the showers where he'd seen me completely naked. I swallowed and willed my pulse to slow down. All I needed to do was act normal and then get out of this as fast as humanly possible.

  “Oh, I forgot my purse,” I said, holding it up as if he needed verification. “I’m off for the next two days, and I figured I’d need it.”

  Of course you need your purse. Obvious much?

  My snide side was always quick on the take when Beck was around.

  He was quiet, his dark green gaze shifting from knowing to teasing as his eyes held mine.

  “Ah, you forgot your purse.”

  He nodded slowly, his simple response instantly annoying me.

  “Yes. That’s it. I forgot my purse.”

  I held it up again, giving it another little shake as if I needed to really prove it. His low laugh sent a shiver down my spine.

  “I see that. I didn't think you were lying Maisie, that's not really your style.”

  I tried to take a deep breath, but air was hard to come by, especially when my heart was beating like crazy, and I was hot all over. Again.

  Being alone with him wasn't comfortable. It reminded me precisely of the last time I was alone with him. He’d kissed me senseless. No matter how hard I tried to tell myself I didn’t want him, I did. Badly.

  I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stay quiet and wondered what to say to gracefully exit myself from this situation. He’d stopped a few feet away from the run of counters along the back wall. His eyes stayed locked to me. One hand was hooked in his pocket, and he rolled his shoulder absentmindedly. He did that often enough—because dammit I paid attention to him—sometimes I wondered if he’d ever injured that shoulder.

  “You never replied last weekend,” he said abruptly, his voice low, taut and husky.

  The sound of it alone sent another shiver down my spine. Damn, my body's reaction to him was ridiculous. I didn't want to want him, but I wanted him like crazy. When I stayed quiet, solely because I was paralyzed by the need flooding me, Beck arched a brow.

  Without him saying a word, I knew he was teasing me for the fact that I couldn't even seem to reply. I straightened my shoulders and took in gulp of air before mustering a glare.

  “My last reply was the only one you’ll get on that topic.”

  He pulled his hand out of his pocket, his phone coming with it. Inside of a second, he was scanning his screen. “Ah, you said it was a bad idea.�
�

  He spun his phone idly in his hand, watching me, the air loaded and humming around us. It felt as if he were touching me, my skin prickling everywhere his eyes landed. Maybe ten feet separated us. I stood right in front of the showers. In a flash, he closed the distance between us, his stride long and sure. He stopped in front of me, too close for comfort.

  “Why are you being so stubborn about this?” he asked, his voice gruff.

  “About what?” I hedged.

  I was determined not to take his bait. As soon as I said that, I realized I had. He wasn’t one to dodge topics, and he’d call me out for even trying to do that. A dark brow rose in a slash, his mouth curled up at one corner, and that knowing, teasing glint in his eyes was in full force.

  “Can't even talk about it,” he observed.

  I had to bite the inside of my cheek—hard—to keep from swearing at him. Why, oh why did he get to me so easily?

  “I'm not talking about it because there's nothing to talk about. We kissed. Once. It won’t happen again. If you're looking for someone to pick up, I suggest you head back to the bar.”

  This only led to his grin widening. Oh hell. His grin was dangerous to me. Heat spun in circles in my belly, my nipples tightened, and I wished like hell I had actually bothered to put my jacket on because I knew he could see them pressing against my t-shirt. The only thing on my side was the dim lighting. He probably couldn't see the flush on my face and neck. I was hot and prickly all over. I swallowed, marshaling myself.

  “I don’t want anyone else. I want you, Maisie.”

  Oh. My. God. It was a miracle I didn’t melt into a puddle at his feet. I’d only fantasized—against my will fantasies, mind you—about Beck for two years. The list I’d written of all the ways I wasn’t supposed to think about him had turned out to be utterly useless. Trust me, having him be this blunt about wanting me made me a little bit crazy inside.

  He continued, “I want you, you want me. I don't want to go back to the bar for anybody else, in fact.”