While I wasn’t interested in Luke, he was a nice enough guy and easy on the eyes, but there was nothing there. No spark. No butterflies. Maybe I’d read one too many romance novels. Maybe I was expecting too much. But for now, I was happy with my life and I wasn’t going to settle for anything less than fireworks.
“It was great talking with you too, Luke,” I replied, collecting his card and tucking it in my purse. I knew I’d never use it, but that didn’t mean I had to be rude and throw it out in front of him.
“We’re going to take a fifteen-minute break. So, if you want to use the bathrooms or take a breather, now’s your chance. There’re four more dates for each of you, so please don’t run out the door. If you haven’t already met Mr. or Mrs. Right, there’s still plenty of opportunity,” Courtney encouraged, sounding upbeat and hopeful.
I’d met Courtney a few times with Sarah and I knew how much tonight was terrifying her. If you thought I was an introvert, Courtney took it to another level. She was pretty much a crazy cat lady with a husband. But the moment it came to raising money for the hospital, especially the children’s ward, she stepped up and out of her comfort zone determined to take on the world.
“Hey. I’m just going to duck to the bathroom…” Sage started.
“Wait up. I’ll join you.”
There was no way she was leaving me out here alone.
Following her through the dimly lit bar, I spied Dan at the bar mixing cocktails. It was a busy night for him. The pool tables were crowded. The booths were full and there were a few girls who couldn’t possibly be a day older than twenty-one shaking their asses on the dancefloor.
As we got closer to the bathrooms, we noticed the line snaking down the hall. Seems like everyone had the same idea. Joining the end of the queue, I dug my phone out of my purse and shot Linda a text, checking on Ava. If she even hinted that I was needed, I was willing to walk out the door right now and all the way home in these damn boots if need be.
“Well now I’m confused…” one of the women waiting in the line started while I eavesdropped.
“With what?” her friend asked.
“I always thought I liked cops. You know. They have the uniforms. They carry handcuffs.”
“Ah, yeah they do. What’s to be confused about?”
“Now I’m starting to see the appeal of a firefighter.”
“Firefighters? Ew, gross. They’re always covered in soot and ash and stink like smoke.”
“Yeah. But they carry a big hose.”
My ears perked up. There were firefighters here. Why hadn’t I met any of them yet?
“I saw that,” Sage whispered into my ear.
“Saw what?” I begged off, hoping my face didn’t display every single emotion running through my body.
“Fine. Play dumb. I’m a patient woman. I’ll just wait and see what happens.”
Thankfully the line shuffled forward, and I could ignore Sage’s comments, but my mind was buzzing. Was Zach here? Was he the fireman with the big hose they were referring to? Ah shit. I didn’t need to see him tonight. Not like this. What would he think of me? Shit! Shit! Double shit!
After ducking into the stall and taking care of business, I adjusted my top in the mirror before stepping back out. There was no sign of Sage but that didn’t really surprise me. Knowing her, she’d probably run into someone she knew and was already doing shots at the bar.
Rounding the corner, I looked down to check if I’d got a reply from Linda when I ran straight into a hard chest.
“Whoa!” His arms shot out, grabbing my shoulders and steadying me.
“Sorry,” I apologized quickly, forgetting my phone and looking up into the chocolate eyes of a beautiful boy. He was stunning. The type of guy authors wrote books about. Tall. Broad shoulders. Square, stubbled jaw. His nose slightly crooked. And the longest lashes I’d ever seen on a human. Like I had serious lash envy. Even my long lash mascara didn’t produce those sort of results.
“You right there, darlin’?”
Wow! His voice was like the smoothest whiskey.
If only he was ten years older. Kid was going to be a heartbreaker when he grew up.
“I’m fine. Sorry about crashing into you…”
“Honey. You can crash into me anytime you like.”
Talk about saved by the bell. The jingling brought me out of my hormone-induced stupor, and I scurried back towards my table hoping Sage had at least managed to snag me another drink. I was going to need it.
“Who the hell was that you were hitting on?” Sage interrogated.
“No idea,” I replied truthfully as the piercing shrill of the microphone silenced us and had me covering my ears.
The sound of the feedback was stinging my ears. It was worse than fingernails on a chalk board. Even the thought of it had shivers racing down my spine.
“Sorry about that. Now, gentlemen, if you could once again move around one seat, we can get back underway.”
The guy I’d just smacked into slid confidently into the chair opposite Sage, and I could see her instant interest.
“Hey there, darlin’,” he crooned, and I almost laughed as Sage melted in her seat.
“Nice accent, cowboy.”
I couldn’t look away. I was dying to see who was the first to whip out the cheesy, inappropriate pickup lines. All I needed was a huge bucket of buttery popcorn and I was entertained for the night. Well, I would’ve been except for the guy settling in the chair opposite me.
“Hi. I’m Cole Johnson.”
“Lily Evans.”
He reached out his hand and shook mine. A firm, confident handshake. His face was vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t quite place him.
“Pleasure to meet you, Lily. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“You have?”
That wasn’t what he was supposed to say. He wasn’t supposed to know anything about me. Who the hell had he been talking to?
“Yeah. I’m a firefighter down at Station 13. I’m one of Zach’s—”
Ah crap!
“Right. Zach. Yep. I know him.”
“Anyway. We only have,” Cole pushed back the sleeve on his navy sweater and checked his watch, “Eight minutes left. How’s the flower business treating you?”
“It’s been busy actually. Which is good.”
Filling eight minutes with small talk when we both knew this was going no further was as painful as having a tooth pulled. When the bells finally chimed, I let out a relieved sigh. Cole stood up and took both my hands before leaning over and planting a kiss on my cheek. He’s the only one who’d done that, thankfully. If greasy Grahame, the owner of the hardware store had tried, I might very well have punched him in the nose.
“Lovely talking to you, Cole,” I thanked him.
He moved away and the young guy who’d just spent the last ten minutes making googly eyes at Sage, took the seat opposite me. He was as gorgeous as I’d at first believed.
“Darlin’.”
“Hi.”
“Jake Samuels.”
“Lily Evans. Nice to meet you, Jake.”
“You too, Lily. What do you do for fun?”
Cole, who was currently sitting opposite Elaine, the town’s librarian, leant over and interrupted. “Not you, Samuels. Not if you like your teeth in your mouth.”
“What’d I do?”
“Lily’s Zach’s girl,” Cole offered.
“Hey! Wait a minute. I’m no one’s girl,” I protested.
“Yeah. Keep telling yourself that, sweetheart. Jake, hands to yourself.”
I sat there stunned. Is that what everyone thought? What they assumed? That Zach and I were more than friends? Because we weren’t. We were friends, and he helped me with Ava but that was it.
For a few minutes Jake and I talked complete rubbish. Mainly he probed for more details on Sage, and I had a feeling I’d be seeing a lot more of Jake around.
“Okay, I’ve gotta ask. If you and Zach are together, why the hell are y
ou speed dating?”
“Well firstly, Zach and I aren’t together. And secondly, I’m here tonight because my ex-friend Sage dragged me out.”
“It hasn’t been that bad, has it?”
“No. Not really. The cocktails are delicious. Most of the people I’ve spoken with have been nice guys. Overall, it’s been good to have a night out.”
“Well then, I’m glad. Now, I have something for you,” Jake explained with a wink.
I wasn’t sure why I was suddenly nervous.
“Put out your hand.”
The bells jingled again, and Jake rose from his seat. With him standing and me still in my seat, he towered over me. He should’ve been intimidating, but he looked more like a gentle giant.
“Okay, gentlemen. If you could please move onto another table. You all have two more dates to go before we call it a night.”
“Was lovely to meet you, Jake.”
“You too, Lily. And here… this is for you.”
He dropped a card in my hand before wrapping me up in a bear hug. He was warm and strong and instantly cocooned me in the safety of his arms. The only negative about the guy was I was pretty sure he’d bathed in his cheap cologne.
Over my shoulder, I heard a guttural growl. “What the hell is going on here?”
19
ZACH
I hoped Samuels enjoyed his last moment with arms. Why the fuck they were wrapped around Lily right now I had no idea but they wouldn’t be for much longer. I was going to rip him limb from limb until he learned to keep his hands to himself.
“What the hell is going on here?” I asked, my voice tight.
Lily shivered. I saw the moment it passed down her spine as she moved out of Jake’s grasp and turned to face me.
“Oh, hey, Zach. How’s your night going?” Lily questioned innocently.
A crackle over the microphone, scolding us to take our seat had me dropping into my seat opposite Sage. It was awkward as hell. Technically, for the next ten minutes I was on a date with Sage, Lily’s friend and employee, while she sat beside us.
“What are you doing here, Lily?”
“Excuse me?”
“Why are you here?”
“Why shouldn’t I be here?”
Someone had her sassy pants on tonight. Although I’m not sure where. Those damn jeans she was wearing the fuck out of, were skin-tight and showing off her ass, making my dick twitch. I’d almost lost my shit when I saw Samuels’ hands on her waist. Way too close for my liking.
“Where’s Ava?”
“Ah. Of course, now it makes sense. Think I’m neglecting your little princess? Well don’t worry, hero. She’s safely tucked into bed at home and, not that it’s any of your business, but I’ve been checking on her each hour. She’s fine.”
“Who’s with her?” I grunted out, sounding like a damn caveman. The truth was I was jealous as hell. Why did she want to date other guys? If she met someone, I could lose two of the most important women in my life. Something that was not an option.
You’d think this was the worst date I’d had tonight. I mean, all we’d done so far was argue. But somehow it wasn’t even close. So far tonight I’d been asked, more than once, about the size of my hose, had multiple offers for women who wanted to slide down my pole, and even one, although I wasn’t really surprised it was Phoebe, who’d told me I was the perfect firefighter; I found her hot and left her wet. Their comments would’ve been funny if they were joking, but I wasn’t even mildly convinced they were, and I hadn’t had anywhere near enough to drink to see the comical side.
“Someone I trust,” Lily spat out angrily at me. “I’m going to get another drink, since it seems I’ve suddenly got a ten-minute break before my next date.”
Next date my ass. There was no way she was having any more dates tonight. Hell! Had I known she was even here, Lily wouldn’t have had one. Snatching her purse from the table, she stood up, wobbled on her heels and tugged down the bottom of her top. I wasn’t sure if she realized what she’d just done, but her creamy tits were spilling out the top of her shirt, and before I knew what I was doing, I was on my feet, following Lily across the bar like a pathetic little puppy, much to the amusement of the guys.
“I’ll take another margarita please, Dan,” she ordered.
“And another beer please, mate.”
“No worries.”
We waited for our drinks in silence. It was awkward and uncomfortable and annoying. This wasn’t us. We weren’t these people. And I didn’t like it. Not one damn bit.
Swallowing my pride, I broke the deadlock. “How’s your night been?”
“Really? You actually care?”
The surprise in her voice stung. I deserved it, I know I did, but damn did it hurt. “Course I do.”
“Oh. It’s been eye-opening, that’s for sure.”
“Eye-opening?”
“Do guys really think the cheesy pickup lines work?”
“Guys used pickup lines on you?”
“Ah yeah. I’m not sure which was my favorite. It’s between, ‘they say Disneyland is the happiest place on earth. Well apparently, no one has ever been sitting opposite you’ or ‘I’m not a photographer, but I can picture you and me together.’”
“They did not say that… did they?”
I was actually almost kind of nervous. That was the sort of shit I could actually hear coming out of Samuels’ mouth.
Lily nodded and smirked over the salted rim of her glass.
“That’s terrible.”
“Yep. How’s your night going? Got a pocket full of phone numbers?”
How was I supposed to answer that without looking like a chump? Yeah, I had a few numbers scribbled on the back of coasters but none that I’d be using. Not even Phoebe’s who made it very clear it was an open-ended offer.
“It’s been okay.”
“Just okay? Must be losing your charm.”
“Does that mean you think I have charm?”
Lily’s cheeks turned pink at my question. Or maybe it was the cocktail. Either way, I was taking the credit.
“We should go and sit down. It must be almost time to move to the final date.” Tucking her purse under her arm, Lily wove her way through the tables and back to our abandoned seats.
“You two finished making out in dark hallways?” Sage teased, causing Lily’s drink that she’d just taken a gulp of to come out her nose.
Those damn bells tinkled again, and it was time to move. Only I wasn’t moving. There was no way in hell I was sliding along and letting Collins near Lily. He was a player of the worst sort. Over my dead body was Lily going to fall victim to his life motto of ‘hit it and quit it’.
“Well, Zach. This was…”
“Was what?” I challenged, putting her on the spot as I leaned back in my chair and folded my arms across my chest.
“I’m not going to give you my number…”
“Why the hell not?” My voice boomed through the room, causing everyone to fall silent and turn in our direction.
“Ah, you already have it,” Lily hissed.
“Oh.”
“Yeah. Oh. Now, move to the next table so I can see if I like the next guy. Maybe he’ll get my number.”
“Not bloody likely.”
“Excuse me?”
Turning towards my mate, I addressed him directly. “Collins. Skip this table. Just go around me and meet Sage. She’s a great girl.”
He looked confused, not that I could blame him. I was breaking every rule of the night, but I didn’t give a shit. I was over this. I was over playing games. I was ending it and I was ending it now.
“Excuse me, Zach. You’re not the boss of me. You can’t just make decisions like that for me.” Lily stood up, drawing herself to her full height, putting her hands on her hips. If looks could kill, then I’d be nothing more than a pile of ash.
Skirting around us, Collins slipped into the seat opposite Sage while they both watched us. I guess we were making a
pretty dumb spectacle of ourselves.
Rising to the challenge, I stood and stepped towards Lily. I don’t know if she stepped backwards to give me room or to get out of my way, but I didn’t care. Without a word, I bent at the waist and threw her over my shoulder in a fireman’s carry.
“Zach!” she squealed, clutching my shoulders.
Spinning back to Sage, I grabbed Lily’s purse with my free hand before swatting her on the ass with it. “I’ll make sure Lily gets home.”
“No worries. Have fun, kids.”
“Oh, we will!” I promised with a wink before striding through the bar, ignoring the whistles and catcalls.
Outside it was as cold as a witch’s tit. The wind was howling, and it was raining. It was that fine spitty rain that seemed to come in sideways, coating everything in a light sheen of freezing cold water. Lily had stopped struggling and her hands were holding my hips, her fingers digging into me.
Reaching my truck, I slid her down my body, caging her between the cold metal of the car door and my heated body. When her feet touched the ground, she looked up at me through overly made-up eyes. She looked like a damn sex kitten. Every day I’d seen her wearing those ridiculous dresses with the wide, flowing skirts and her pearls and she looked like a wet dream. But standing here now, with the rain dotting her cheeks and her breath coming out in white puffs, she’d never looked more fuckable. And it wasn’t the clothes or the makeup either. It was her. It was all Lily. Maybe it was the liquid courage pumping through her veins or maybe it was seeing her out of her natural environment. Either way, it didn’t matter.
“Zach.” My name fell like a breathless plea from her glistening lips.
It was all the encouragement I needed. Cupping her face with my hands, I slammed my lips down on hers, licking my tongue across her bottom lip, silently begging her to open for me. The moment her lips parted, I didn’t waste any time, plunging inside.
Lily was as delicious as I’d been dreaming about. Her tongue dueled with mine and I could feel the bite from her nails digging into my biceps. When she wriggled even closer to me, pressing her tits against my chest, my dick hardened in my pants. There was no way she could miss it. Lily shivered in my arms.
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