Make Me Burn

by Marie Harte

  “Nope.” Avery kicked off her shoes and hung up her jacket, tossing her purse to the counter. Then she grabbed a yogurt and settled on the arm of the couch to watch Gerty kick barbarian ass in their favorite streaming game, the popular Arrow Sins & Siege.

  “So, how’d work go?” Gerty asked as she killed things on-screen.

  Avery finished her yogurt and wondered what else she could gobble up that required little effort. She loved to cook, but not after working a ten-hour day. “Well, I got a ton done on the spring planting series and set up interviews with your Pets Fur Life friends all this week. Emil wants me to do more work with the charity. Apparently, I need to run a weekly Friday morning segment—that’s streaming live—about adopting pets.” She paused.

  “That’s great.” Gerty beamed. “And neatly ties into the adorable puppy we’re fostering.”

  “God. Gerty, you are seriously going to get us kicked out of here.” In order to have pets, they needed to, one, be approved and, two, pay a monthly pet fee neither could afford.

  “Please. If Landlord Larry finds out we have pets, I’ll charm him into foregoing the monthly pet fee.”

  “Before long he’s going to demand you actually go on one of the dates you keep promising him.”

  Gerty grinned. “Oh, I already have.” She wiggled her brows then swore when she died.

  “Already have?” Avery gaped. “No way.”

  Gerty nodded to the screen. “It was virtual, but it was really interesting. I wore red leather and—”

  “I’ve heard enough, thanks.” Their landlord, whom Gerty had for some reason nicknamed Landlord Larry, had to be a good twenty years older than them and gave off a weird vibe Gerty insisted was rooted in geekery. Frankly, Avery didn’t like the way he never looked anywhere but at her boobs. He’d never said or done anything inappropriate otherwise, but geez, it would be nice if he made eye contact once in a while, not eye-to-nipple contact.

  “Whatever. Landlord Larry loves us. Hell, he told me we could even foster a snake if we wanted and he won’t care.”

  The hopeful look on Gerty’s face disturbed Avery on every level. “No. No way.”

  “Aw, come on. Just that one? Patty is friendly.”

  “I watched Patty the Python swallow a mouse whole.” Avery glared. “N. O.”

  Gerty sighed. “Fine. No snakes. But the puppy is in my room in his kennel, sleeping. We’ll have him for another two or three weeks, I’m guessing.”

  “Fine.” Avery knew better than to argue with Gerty over furry animals.

  Her best friend since high school, Gerty had gone to a different university than Avery, had gotten a degree in computer science, and now worked from home more than she went to the office downtown. Gerty loved it and devoted her spare time to animals in need.

  She proudly owned her geekiness, loved being different, and didn’t seem to care what anyone thought of her. Avery wanted to be her when she grew up.

  She sighed.

  “What’s that for? I said we wouldn’t be getting a snake. Sadly.”

  “I didn’t tell you the twisty part about my new pet spot on Searching the Needle Weekly.”

  “Uh-oh. That look on your face is scaring me.” Gerty waited, wide-eyed.

  “I have to partner with the troll—Super Hunk FD—for those weekly spots. Meaning I’m going to have to work very close to him for the next few weeks.” She explained about the mayor’s interest and all the publicity they’d gotten from Brad saving her from that dastardly Lab.

  “Oh wow.” Gerty blinked. “That’s…um…”

  “Exactly.” Avery groaned. “I can only pray he refuses to go along with the spot.” She perked up. “You know, maybe he’ll hand off the pet segment to one of his firefighter buddies. Oh, maybe Tex will do it instead.”

  Gerty just looked at her. “You keep dreaming, kid. For what it’s worth, my money says you and Super Hunk are going to be joined at the hip for the foreseeable future.” She patted the spot next to her on the other side of the couch. “Now if you want to destress, why not join me killing monsters?”

  “Trolls. I want to kill trolls tonight.”

  “You go, girl. Aim straight for the peanuts.” She winked. “Because trolls have little dicks.”

  Avery grinned. “Sounds about right to me.”

  * * *

  Brad had tried. When he’d heard the news Tuesday morning, he’d argued, pleaded, and even cited his past history with the nosy reporter in question, but the lieutenant had refused to budge. By Tuesday afternoon, even his captain refused to hear him out, having orders directly from their battalion chief to go along with the publicity piece, declaring the effort “a win” to help the department look good. Unfortunately, the mayor loved the idea of Brad, Pets Fur Life, and Searching the Needle Weekly teaming up.

  And when the fire department looked good, fiscal concerns might look even better when it came time to reevaluate the fire department’s budget.

  “Sorry, man,” Tex said again, making sure to include the rest of their crew on Brad’s misfortune. They all sat at the long metal table that served as a communal eating spot, large enough to fit a dozen. “I’d love to help you out with sexy Avery Dearborn, but it seems you’ve got all the luck.”

  “Bad luck,” he muttered as he fixed the guys killer sub sandwiches. They’d had a brief pause in their busy day, and he hurried with lunch. He didn’t do much cooking, but he wasn’t bad with cold cuts.

  “Hey, make sure to throw extra provolone on mine,” Reggie ordered.

  “Yes, boss.” Brad shot him the finger.

  Reggie grinned. Next to him, Tex rolled his head on his neck, making some terrible cracking sounds. “Damn, I gotta get a better pillow. My neck is killing me.”

  “It’s killing me too,” Mack said. “It’s like watching The Exorcist, live. You start throwing up pea soup and levitating, and friend or no friend, I’m decapitating you. Just saying.”

  Tex grinned.

  Reggie rolled his eyes. “Kill him later. Feed me now.”

  A big man, like the rest of their four-man crew, Reggie had a tall frame and dense muscle. While Brad and Tex had done time in the Marine Corps, Reggie had served in the Navy, Mack in the Air Force. A few others in the station had served in the military before joining the department, but Brad and his buddies had bonded years ago and formed a tight group that continued to work together.

  Though he had to wonder why when Reggie and the guys didn’t see fit to give him the sympathy he deserved.

  “You have no idea what that woman is like,” he warned Tex.

  “Maybe because you haven’t told us.” Reggie motioned to the sandwich.

  “Yeah, yeah, I’m cutting. Hold on, Reginald.”

  “Asshole.”

  Brad grinned and slid a plate Reggie’s way. Six-one and two hundred twenty pounds of solid muscle, Reggie was the strongest of them, though Brad wouldn’t admit it aloud. Dark-skinned, with a gruff kind of charm that somehow had kids and women all over the guy, Reggie’d had his share of issues with women, so Brad would think Reggie would be more compassionate.

  “Well, it sounds to me like you’re scared,” Mack said, the moron thinking with his dick instead of his brains, as was often the case. With short, hickory-brown hair and laughing blue eyes, he never seemed to hurt for something to say. “Tex said she’s fine, no doubt.”

  Tex tipped the brim of his ballcap up. The tallest of them, looking more like a poster boy for cowboys than a firefighter, Tex had bronze skin, always-mussed black hair, and gray eyes women seemed to fawn over. The guy had a new girl on his arm every week, or so it seemed. Apparently, solidarity with a fellow Marine meant nothing when a woman was involved.

  Brad grimaced. “She’s not bad looking, I guess. But she’s a menace. She—”

  “Is super fine.” Tex smiled. “Really sweet, st
acked, and kind of tall. Long, dark hair, big blue eyes, and those lips…” He sighed. “You just know she’d be able to kiss like a—”

  “Reporter,” Brad said and slid plates down to Tex and Mack. He took a sub for himself and sat to eat. “I wasn’t even separated a year from the service when they unsealed those ops and the press jumped all over them.” A series of classified operations that he’d been on had been cleared for use so some asshole politicians could justify their existence. “I was suddenly hot news, and I was having a bad time adjusting.”

  “That sucks.” Reggie nodded.

  “And there’s Avery Dearborn, this fresh-faced reporter, invading my privacy. I asked her in the nicest way possible to leave me alone, to give me space, but she hounded me. And when I wouldn’t talk, she went through my family.” And had nearly opened up a huge mess that continued to haunt him. He did his best to forget a past that wouldn’t stay forgotten, memories of Dana creeping in when he’d least expect them.

  “Aw, come on, Brad. She was just doing her job,” Tex protested. “Doesn’t explain why she seems to hate your guts though.”

  “Oh, now there’s a reason to like her,” Mack teased.

  Reggie grinned. “Yeah, there is that. Someone who hasn’t fallen for Fashion Backward Ken.”

  “Barbie’s—or should I say Avery’s—future boy toy,” Mack added. The dick.

  The guys, minus Brad, laughed.

  “Oh, and by the way,” Brad growled, “the next naked Ken doll I find doing weird things with My Little Pony gets all three of you in the shit house. Yeah, you want to keep joking around? It’s on.” The gags around the station typically involved action figures doing things no child should ever witness.

  “Oh, I’m so scared.” Tex pretended to cringe in fright. “Lame-o. You ain’t got nothing I haven’t faced before.” He paused. “Though for the record, I saw Hernandez coming out of your room last night.”

  “Ha. I knew it!” Then he noticed the sly look Mack shot Tex. “Oh, so it’s gonna be like that, eh?” Baiting Brad with another member of C shift for something one of them had likely done.

  “Not sure what you mean, son.” Tex ignored him in favor of his sandwich.

  “This is good,” Mack acknowledged.

  Reggie had yet to come up for air.

  Brad picked at his food and tried not to feel amusement, doing his best to hold on to a grudge. But the guys were family, and even he had to admit the things that poor naked Ken doll had been doing all over the fire station had made the entire unit laugh.

  And it wasn’t just the guys pulling stunts. He’d seen Nat and Lori posing some action figures in questionable positions. He also wouldn’t put it past his lieutenant to use his daughter’s toys to screw with Brad. No way was the LT in the clear either.

  Ken, sadly, had turned into a major pervert.

  Tex drank down his iced tea and added, “Oh, and Avery wears glasses. These sexy black frames just make you think naughty librarian. Hmm. Or naughty boss, and I’d be her helpless secretary.”

  “Oh, I like that.” Mack grinned.

  “Her eyes are really blue. She’s hot.” Tex sighed. “Okay, it’s settled. I’ll talk to the LT about working with her while you take over my shift Friday, Brad.”

  Reggie frowned. “Fuck that. I’ll work with her while you idiots clean Aid 44.” Aid 44—one of the basic life support vehicles they were often assigned. “Good sandwich, Brad.”

  Brad stared at his mostly uneaten sub and sighed. “Trust me. I’ve tried asking for all of you to take my place. No go.” He patted Reggie on the arm. “But thanks, bro.”

  “Oh, I wasn’t doing it for you. I just don’t want to be on cleaning detail with Frick and Frack here. They goof around too much.”

  Tex leaned forward. “That’s crap. You’re so busy flexing and staring at your reflection off the trucks you leave all the manual labor to me and Air Farce.”

  Mack was about to agree and paused. “Air Farce? Really? We’re back to that?”

  Brad started eating, thoroughly entertained by his buddies, his thoughts no longer on the pretty, annoying Avery. And by “pretty annoying,” I mean very annoying. Not that she’s attractive. Sad he had to keep lying to himself about that. Hell, he hadn’t seen her in five years. Too bad her ugliness lay buried under that sexy exterior.

  “Oh, come off it.” Tex snickered. “Tell them, Brad. Once you go Corps, you always come back for more.”

  Reggie groaned. “That’s both old and sad. And let’s not forget, you Marines fall under the Department of the…what’s that?”

  “Uh, the Department of the Navy, is that what you mean, Reggie?” Mack asked, all smiles.

  “Why, that’s right, Mack. Sergeants Battle and McGovern are nothing without the help of the good old USN.”

  “Useless Second-Class Nerds?” Tex asked.

  Brad chuckled. “Good one.”

  Reggie snorted. “Yeah, because I’m a nerd.”

  Tex sighed. “Sadly, yes. But it’s a big step to embrace your truth, my man. Way to go.”

  “I hate you guys.” Reggie grabbed the remains of Brad’s uneaten sandwich and took a bite.

  “Hey.”

  Reggie held up a finger. “USMC this.”

  Tex laughed and passed Brad some chips. “Here. Maybe barbecue will make you feel better. It ain’t Texas barbecue, but you can make do.”

  Brad glared at Reggie while he munched, then pushed the chips away when a call came in for Aid 44, the unit he was currently working with Tex all day while Reggie rode with Mack in Aid 45. In Seattle, every firefighter had to also be an emergency medical technician, or EMT, since probably 80 percent of the calls they took turned out to be medical.

  “Gotta go, losers. See you in a bit.” He pushed his plate at the guys still sitting. “Yo, Reggie, grab me some tea to go, would you?”

  “Sure thing.”

  Brad and Tex got their gear together, double-checked the truck, grabbed the tea from Reggie, then hurried to help an older man who’d fallen and couldn’t get up—seriously—at the community gardens off Forty-Second.

  Fortunately, they got in and on top of the patient right away.

  Twenty minutes later, heading back to the station, Tex let out a breath. “Man, that was a good one. From a busted hip to a heart attack.” Which would have needed paramedics, not two EMTs. “Thought for sure we were going to lose him ’til he farted.”

  Brad started laughing. “Yeah. Pressure in the chest due to gas buildup. Well, at least we’re saved a ride to the hospital.” The man’s wife and son had insisted on taking him themselves.

  “True.” Tex shrugged. “Although there’s one particular nurse I’ve been seeing that I wouldn’t mind seeing again.”

  “Man, you need to relax on all the women.”

  “And you need to get a date instead of playing with Ken and Barbie in private.” Tex grimaced. “It’s kind of pervy having them in your bed like that. And in the station! Come on, man. Keep that stuff at home in private.”

  “Dick.”

  Tex laughed before turning to him with a more serious expression. “So, this reporter, you okay to deal with her? Seriously?”

  Brad sighed. “It’s no big deal, I guess.” It’s a huge, hairy deal. “More like a headache I’ll have to handle.” He thought back to the way Avery had glared at him. No love lost there. “On the bright side, I can’t imagine she’s all that happy to be working with me on this.”

  “Why not?”

  Brad paused, looking back on the incident with Avery. “Well, you know, after I raised a stink about her unprofessionalism to the paper, she apologized. She cried, come to think of it. She was really upset.” He didn’t like remembering that.

  “Oh, man. That’s rough.”

  “But they still ran the story.”

  “I read it,
you know, and you came across like Superman. She wrote nothing but good shit about your time overseas.”

  “So what? She invaded my privacy after I asked her not to.” And had cornered his grieving brother one night when Oscar had indulged in one too many, telling her things Brad would have rather kept private.

  “Huh. That’s not cool.”

  “No, it wasn’t.” He’d been so focused on his own drama at the time he’d been unable to view any publicity as a good thing, wanting only to lick his wounds in private. But when she’d ignored him and talked to his family behind his back, he’d lost it. “And now she’s working with Searching the Needle Weekly.” A funny cross of local news and events mixed with outlandish stories that never failed to entertain.

  Tex’s eyes widened. “The free newspaper? Buddy, did you get her canned?”

  “No idea. If anything, though, she got herself fired.” Huh, how about that? In all his recollections of that disaster with Avery, he’d never thought about what had happened to her afterward, too lost in his own upheaval. “But Tex, she had it coming. I was having a tough time.” He forced a smile. “I wasn’t the same charmer I am today.”

  “Charmer, my ass.” Tex snorted. “Yeah, right. You think if you turn on that five-hundred-watt smile, she’ll be begging to drop her panties and forgive you for everything? Man, you are deluded.”

  “Why do I want her forgiveness? And who said anything about her dropping her panties?” Though the thought of Avery and panties interested him in a way he’d never before have considered. Hmm.

  “And there you go. My work here is done.”

  “What?”

  Tex looked smug until they got the call to head to a minor fender bender near an elementary school. Unfortunately, this one didn’t look to be as easy to fix as recommending a roll of antacids.

  Chapter Three

  Wednesday afternoon, after a decent run that brought about a good, cleansing sweat, Brad was lifting with the guys at the station, as they often did. Though he liked getting away from work to decompress, he also loved spending time with his friends. And since the station had a kickass new gym, why not make the most of it?