Blaze And Bind
Kelli Callahan
Copyright © 2019 by Kelli Callahan
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
Contents
1. Rachel
2. Liam
3. Rachel
4. Gerard
5. Rachel
6. Liam
7. Rachel
8. Gerard
9. Rachel
10. Liam
11. Rachel
12. Rachel
13. Gerard
14. Rachel
15. Liam
16. Gerard
17. Rachel
18. Liam
19. Gerard
20. Rachel
Join My Mailing List
Kelli’s Voracious Vixens
Small Town Seven: Sneak Peek
About the Author
1
Rachel
Rachel
“Dad, are you okay?” I walked in the kitchen to find my father leaning against the kitchen counter with a look on his face that suggested he wasn’t.
“No!” He tossed his cell phone on the counter and shook his head. “Your idiot brother has fallen in love.”
“Really?” I tilted my head to the side. “Isn’t that a good thing?”
“Sure, if he was a responsible adult instead of an immature child.” Dad exhaled sharply. “He eloped—he freaking eloped.”
“Wow!” I blinked in surprise. “So, Billy got married?”
“Yes! They drove to Las Vegas and got married last night.” He turned towards me, and his jaw tightened. “I guess my new daughter-in-law, whatever her name is, doesn’t have a lick of common sense either.”
“Maybe they’re a perfect match?” I tried to put a glimmer of hope in my voice.
“They might be, but apparently they like Vegas so much they’re going to stay there.” He walked over and grabbed his coffee cup. “Which means I’m stuck with his damn lease.”
“Oh—right.” I nodded in understanding. “You signed for it…”
“I never learn.” He shook his head back and forth. “Just when I think he’s got his life together, he goes and pulls this shit. Why can’t he be responsible like you?”
“I’m sorry, Dad.” I walked over to pour a cup of coffee. “Figures he would pull this at the start of your vacation, too…”
“Yeah, and I’m sure he’s behind on his rent, just like he was when he moved out of the last place in the middle of the night.” Dad’s lip twitched in disgust. “I guess I’ll go see his landlord this morning and straighten everything out. I always have to clean up his messes.”
“You’re going to miss your flight.” I looked over at the clock on the microwave. “Dad, you really should be on the road already.”
“I don’t even know if I can afford a vacation now…” He sighed and shook his head angrily. “I sure as hell can’t take a hit on my credit because Billy decided to walk away from his responsibility after promising me, he wasn’t going to do it to me again.”
“Come on, Dad. I know this sucks, but you’ve wanted to go on this trip for months. All of your old college buddies are going to be there.” I reached out and put my hand on his. “Let me handle this business with Billy.”
“No, this isn’t your burden.” He sipped his coffee and put the cup down. “I’ll handle it.”
“Dad—seriously.” I narrowed my eyes at him. “I got this. I’m on break from school, and I don’t even have to work today. Please don’t miss your flight because Billy is an idiot.”
“I don’t know how I got everything so right with you and so wrong with him.” Dad looked at his watch. “Okay, but call me if there’s an issue or if you need money. I guess things aren’t going to be screwed up any more than they already are in a week.”
No, they definitely won’t, and I’m sure the landlord can wait another week for his money—not that I’m convinced Dad should have to pay for another one of Billy’s mistakes.
Dad hugged me and then bolted for the door. He still had time to make his flight if the line to get through security wasn’t too long. He had been looking forward to the trip for so long that I really didn’t want him to have to cancel his plans because my brother was an immature dumbass. I sent Billy a rather angry text message as soon as Dad was gone and then headed upstairs to shower. I had never actually seen my brother’s apartment, but I knew where he lived. It was in a decent part of town, and way too expensive, but my brother always managed to get what he wanted. Dad talked a good game, but every time Billy came crawling back, there was another handout waiting for him on the table.
My brother and I might as well have been polar opposites. He was four years older than me, but he didn’t act like it—and it had always been that way. I believed in carving my own path, being as self-reliant as possible, and I never took anything from my father unless I absolutely had to. Billy, on the other hand, would have taken Dad’s last dollar if he could. Even when he wasn’t begging for money, he was making things more complicated than they needed to be. Every time he showed up, it was supposed to be the last time, but it never was. I wasn’t sure it was ever going to change either. Billy dropped out of college, barely held down a job when he had one, and neither of us should have been surprised that he randomly ran off to Las Vegas to get married. It was just another tick on a list of irrational decisions he had made, and that list was far too long already. Never mind the fact we had never even met the girl that now shared our last name. I wouldn’t have known my new sister-in-law if I passed her on the street.
I can’t fix that, so I’ll do my best to correct the situation with the apartment. Maybe I’ll get lucky, and his landlord will be understanding…
I had more time to fume on my ride across town. Billy knew how much the trip meant to our father, yet he didn’t even think twice about dropping a bombshell on him before his flight was supposed to leave. Why couldn’t he wait a week? Why did he have to be such a selfish prick? My anger was at an all-time high when I got to the apartment building, so I took a moment to settle down before I walked inside. The man at the front desk pointed me in the direction of the landlord’s office, and I prepared to humble myself. It wasn’t his fault that my brother skipped town, but I needed him to be understanding of our situation. At least it was a decent looking place. I hoped that meant they didn’t have trouble finding tenants—that might help my case. I got to the door and gently knocked until I heard a voice inside.
“Come in.” The voice was gruff, and when I pushed the door open, I saw an older man with gray hair sitting behind a desk. “Are you here about the ad?”
“Ad? No sir.” I shook my head back and forth as I entered. “I’m Billy Lawson’s sister—he has an apartment here.”
“Billy Lawson? I don’t think—oh, that’s right. Your Dad signed the lease. I remember now.” He nodded as he made the connection.
“Yes, that’s right.” I looked towards the chair across from his desk. “Can I sit down?”
“Sure.” He leaned back in his chair. “I hope you’re here about the rent that’s due tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow.” I exhaled sharply. “So, about that…”
“You gotta be shitting me.” He leaned forward suddenly, and his chair squeaked. “I agreed to let him move those other two guys in becaus
e he promised that there wouldn’t be any more late rent! That’s it. I’m done with this.”
“I was actually hoping that would be an option.” I raised an eyebrow, but I could see that the expression on his face wasn’t a reflection of generosity. “If we could just cancel the lease…”
“Right, cancel the lease.” His eyes narrowed, and he chuckled under his breath. “I’ll cancel it alright, just like the contract says I can do if the rent was not paid on time—and the remaining six months are due right now.”
“Six months.” My eyes got wide. “Hold on, that’s a lot of money…”
“It’s normally enough motivation for people to pay their rent on time, and I’ve been more than understanding when it comes to Apartment 2B.” He nodded quickly.
“Well, hold on—the rent isn’t due until tomorrow, right?” I tilted my head to the side.
“Yes.” He put his palms on the desk. “Same day every month.”
“So, if I pay what’s due, then we don’t have to pay the entire six months right now?” I tapped my chin in contemplation.
“That’s—correct.” His words were followed by a light grumble behind his pursed lips.
“You said my brother has roommates?” I raised an eyebrow.
“Yes…” He nodded.
“Okay, I’ll be back in a few minutes.” I grabbed my purse and stood.
I don’t know who my brother has living with him, but they owe two-thirds of the rent, and I’m definitely going to collect it. Surely, I can cover the rest. That will give Dad another month to figure this out.
I hit the button outside of the elevator and waited for it to come down to the lobby. I hoped Billy’s roommates weren’t losers like him. I could only imagine what kind of company he was keeping considering how irresponsible he was. For all I knew, I was about to meet a couple of drug addicts that crashed on his floor. I hoped the landlord at least wouldn’t let someone like that move into the building, regardless of how much he wanted to have the rent paid. Booting my brother out probably didn’t seem like the best option if the rent was eventually getting paid, especially if he was running ads for new tenants.
The landlord probably had no idea that my Dad was Mr. Responsible and would rush in and try to fix everything, even if that meant he had to pay six months of rent to close out the lease. I was kind of glad my Dad wasn’t the one who went to deal with it, because he would have just written a check. I was at least going to collect one month of rent from them—then my Dad could figure out what he was going to do about the rest of the lease when he returned home. My Dad wasn’t hurting for money, but every time my brother came calling, his retirement got further away. I got to the second floor and walked up to Apartment 2B. I knocked several times, but I didn’t hear anything—my next knock was a little louder and I finally listened to what sounded like footsteps approaching the door.
“Just a minute…” The voice sounded annoyed—but it also seemed familiar.
Why do I recognize that voice?
The door opened, and I saw a guy with long brown hair and a beard that looked like it hadn’t seen a razor in a few days. He tilted his head in confusion when he saw me, and I tried to figure out why his voice sounded familiar. Then I saw his eyes—dark brown eyes that looked like they were staring into my soul. It was Liam—one of my brother’s best friends. I hadn’t seen him since high school, and he didn’t look like the pretty-boy jock I remembered, but there was no mistaking those eyes. Seeing them again made my heart skip a beat, and my stomach did a flip. Liam was my first real high school crush—well, as much as he could be in the short time that I knew him. I was a Freshman when he was a Senior, and he had too much attention from the other girls to notice his best friend’s little sister.
“Liam—wow.” I blinked a couple of times.
“Yeah?” His eyebrows shot up. “Can I help you?”
“It’s me—Rachel. I’m Billy’s sister.” I felt dumb introducing myself to him, especially since I had sat across the table from him when he stayed over for dinner.
“Rachel? Whoa. When did you get hot?” The stupidly-sexy grin I remembered formed on the edge of his lips.
Hot?
“I’m here about the rent.” I tried to regain my composure as I mentally stumbled over what he had said. “It’s due tomorrow.”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “I know—that’s why I gave it to Billy yesterday.”
Oh shit—well that’s not good.
2
Liam
Yesterday morning
“Fuck, that was a brutal shift.” I walked towards my truck with my roommate and one of my best friends, Gerard, following behind me.
“Yeah.” He nodded and sighed as he got to the passenger side of the truck. “I am so tired of people being careless in the winter.”
“No shit.” I climbed behind the steering wheel and cranked up my truck. “I’m looking forward to twenty-four hours of peace and quiet.”
“Hopefully that doesn’t involve Billy banging the headboard against the wall the entire time.” Gerard chuckled under his breath.
“His new girlfriend is—insatiable?” I exhaled sharply and laughed.
“She’s a fucking nymphomaniac, that’s what she is.” Gerard rolled his eyes. “I’m starting to regret moving in with Billy in the first place.”
“Especially since it’s been such a damn dry spell for us.” I nodded in agreement. “What happened to us, man? We used to be drowning in pussy.”
“Life—responsibility.” Gerard shrugged. “Getting too old for all that shit.”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” I sighed and pushed the accelerator as we approached a green light that flipped to yellow.
The truth was, I didn’t chase after girls the way I used to because I had felt true passion once, and one-night stands were a pale comparison. Some days I regretted finding out that there was more to a relationship than banging the headboard against the wall. Other days I cherished the memories, even if they hurt. It was indeed easier when my longest relationships lasted a couple of weeks, and my bed never got cold. I didn’t overanalyze things or try to figure out if the woman I was talking to at the bar had more to offer than a pair of tits and a tight pussy. That just wasn’t good enough anymore. I needed to feel some sort of connection, and my job made that difficult because I was always working. Twenty-four hours on, forty-eight hours off. The life of a man who rushed into burning buildings to save lives—yet I had no idea how to put out the fire in my heart—the one that left me broken when I found ashes where love used to live.
“Don’t forget, the rent is due in a couple of days. If we don’t stop by the bank on the way home, we’ll have to make another trip out.” Gerard looked over at me.
“Oh yeah.” I nodded and took a left instead of a right when we got to the intersection. “We’ve still got a little bit before it opens though. Breakfast?”
“Sounds good.” Gerard pointed to a cafe ahead of us. “That place is usually pretty good.”
I parked my truck, and we headed inside. Gerard flirted with our waitress while I looked over the menu for something to eat. I wasn’t sure why Gerard only seemed to flirt with the girls he met. He used to seal the deal faster than I did, but he had been pretty hesitant as well recently, even when the women he met were willing. Our waitress certainly was, and it wasn’t because she wanted a big tip—well, not the monetary kind at least. She even slipped him her phone number when she brought coffee to our table. When we were younger, we might have even taken her back to our place and shared her. She was certainly pretty enough—but there was no spark. I saw the desperation in her eyes. That might as well have been repellent for me. A woman like that wasn’t interested in anything that lasted longer than a quick fuck. If she was handing out her phone number to one of her customers after a little light flirting, it probably wasn’t the first time she served something besides bacon and eggs to a random guy.
“Are you going to call her?” I grinned and chuckled as Ger
ard pushed the napkin with her phone number into his pocket.
“Nah, I was just being nice.” He shrugged and reached for his coffee. “I’m sure I won’t be the only guy who gets her phone number today.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” I nodded in agreement and sipped my coffee.
We ate our breakfast and headed to the bank to make a withdrawal. It was nice to see some money in my account instead of teetering on the brink of insufficient funds. After I graduated high school, I wasted money faster than I made it, and had the debt to prove that I had no idea how to manage my life back then. That was before Gerard kicked my ass into gear and convinced me to join him at the Fire Academy. It was better than starving, and my parents were tired of bailing me out when the credit card bills came, so I decided to become a productive member of society.
Gerard and I lived together to save money for a couple of years, and then after I moved out to live with my girlfriend, he moved in with Billy. When my relationship hit the skids, they were kind enough to let me crash on the couch—which is where I had been for the last four months. I was saving up to get my own place, but that was proving to be rather complicated because Billy barely came up with his third of the rent as it was. It also didn’t help that my ex-girlfriend had expensive tastes, and I let myself get further in debt rather than making progress towards paying off what I had already accumulated.
“Do you think Billy will have his share?” I looked over at Gerard once we got back to the truck.
Blaze & Bind: A MFM Firefighter Romance (Surrender to Them Book 10) Page 1