by Opal Carew
She shifted on Simon’s lap, pleasure quivering through her at the feel of his semi-erect cock still inside her. She squeezed him, then groaned when he twitched.
Her voice came out hoarse when she said, “I think maybe I did.”
* * *
Rikki sipped the cold beer Carter handed her, sitting back in the chair as Simon placed a piece of the gooey, outrageously delicious-smelling pizza onto her plate. She picked it up and took a bite.
“Oh, my God, you’re right. This is the best pizza I’ve ever tasted,” she said.
“Told you,” Simon said. “It’s a little family place just around the corner. Everything’s made from scratch.”
“And I’m sure they double up the cheese and toppings for us,” Carter said as he grabbed a slice for himself. “And always throw in free cookies. Wait until you taste those.”
“We put out a fire in their place about a year ago,” Simon explained. “We won’t let them give us the pizza for free, so they do that instead.”
“It must be nice to know you help people,” she said. “That restaurant. The people whose lives you saved. You touch the lives of people around here every day.”
“That’s why we do it,” Carter said.
She nodded. Jesse had told her the same thing.
“So have you ever lost a fellow firefighter?” she found herself asking.
Carter frowned. “Yeah, about four years ago. One of the guys we went through training with.”
She nodded sympathetically. “So how did you deal with it?”
Simon pulled at the label on his beer bottle, pulling the edge up.
“It isn’t easy,” he said. “You just get on with your life.”
“We knew that he’d want us to keep on doing what we’re doing. Saving lives. Helping people. That’s what it’s all about,” Carter added.
“Do you ever talk about it?” Rikki asked.
Carter shrugged. “What’s the point? These things happen. It’s part of the job.”
“You’ve got to remember,” Simon said somberly, “we face danger every single day. Every one of us knows it. It’s painful to lose one of our own, but there’s nothing we can do about it. It’s part of who we are. Of what we do.”
Her heart ached. “So you just keep the pain inside?”
An uncomfortable silence fell and Rikki regretted bringing up the subject.
Finally, Carter changed the subject and they continued eating.
When they finished dinner, they played some cards. As they were laughing over a joke Carter told, Rikki felt her cell buzz. She pulled it from her jeans pocket and glanced at it.
“Sorry, I’m going to take this. It’s from a friend back home.” She pressed the button and held the phone to her ear. “Cindy, how are you doing?”
“Hi. I’m fine. How are you finding it there? Do you like your new place?”
Cindy worked at the firehouse where Jesse had been stationed. They kept in touch and used to run together a couple of times a week before Rikki had moved.
“It’s good. My roommates are working out.”
“That’s great. The reason I’m calling is because Tony asked if I’d give him your phone number. He’s going to be passing by there on a trip to visit his parents, so he wanted to call you to get together. Is that okay?”
Her chest tightened. Tony was one of Jesse’s friends. She’d gotten to know him pretty well when she used to hang out with them on their days off.
“Uh … sure. That would be fine. Thanks for asking.”
They chatted a little longer, then Rikki hung up.
“What was that?” Simon asked. “Everything okay?”
She slipped her phone back in her pocket.
“Uh, yeah. A friend’s going to be passing through town and wants to visit me.”
“That’s nice,” Carter said.
She just nodded distractedly.
* * *
Simon dealt another hand, then he watched Rikki with concern as she spread out her cards and gazed at them. Something was bothering her.
They played another couple of hands and Simon wound up winning, even though Rikki had been ahead. He could tell her head wasn’t in the game.
He pushed the deck of cards aside and stood up, then offered his hand.
“Let’s go in the living room,” he suggested.
She took his hand and followed him. He sat down on the couch and she sat beside him. Carter sat on her other side.
Simon squeezed her hand. “Ever since that phone call, you’ve been distracted. Why don’t you tell us what’s going on?”
She frowned. “It’s nothing, really. I just…” She shrugged. “I guess I just started thinking about Ashton and the life I left behind and…” She pushed her hair back, but he was pretty sure she was actually dashing away a tear.
At her hesitation, Carter prompted, “Whatever it is, you can tell us.”
She nodded. “I know but … you don’t really want to hear this.”
“Try us,” Simon coaxed.
She sighed. “I just started thinking that … in leaving Ashton, I’ve left Jesse behind, too.”
“That’s a good thing.” Carter took her other hand. “I don’t mean leaving behind good memories of him, or forgetting how you felt about him, but it is good for you to finally move on.”
She nodded. “Yeah, I know. It’s just … It still hurts. Thinking of him. Remembering how he died.” Her eyes welled with tears. “I’ll never forget when Chief Rogers showed up at my door to tell me.” She shook her head. “I never want to feel that kind of pain again.” She gazed up at Simon with imploring eyes.
He squeezed her hand again. “I know, sweetheart. I can’t imagine what you went through.”
“Look, I don’t want you to get the wrong impression,” she said. “What the three of us are sharing is fun and exciting, but—”
“No, don’t add a ‘but’ to that sentence,” Simon said. He knew where this was going.
“I can’t let you think that … there’ll ever be any more … to this relationship … than that.” She spoke slowly, taking calming breaths along the way.
“This is not a casual fling,” Carter said. “What we have is deeper than that.”
She shook her head. “No. I can’t. I told you that right from the beginning.”
Simon slid his arm around her and drew her close.
“You’ve just been thrown off balance getting that call from your friend. We can work this out. We can help you past this.”
“No. I…” She sucked in a breath and stared at him with a resolute expression. “I think we should end this before we get any more deeply involved.”
His heart clenched.
“Rikki, I know you suffered a great deal. But there are no guarantees you won’t get hurt again. That you won’t lose someone you love, no matter what they do for a living.”
“But the odds with firefighters—”
“Are higher. Granted. But that doesn’t mean you should walk away from what we have.” He smiled. “Which is fantastic, by the way.”
The glitter of tears in her eyes tore at his heart. She was in pain, and he knew if she fell for them, like he was falling for her, and he knew Carter was, too, that she would be on tenterhooks every day worrying about losing them. But that didn’t mean she should run away. She had to find the strength inside herself to make this work. Because otherwise she would never find true happiness.
He stroked her hair behind her ear, and cradled her head in his hands, then kissed her. Her lips were soft and pliable under his.
“Rikki, you don’t have to make a commitment right now. All we ask is that you give this relationship a chance. Go into it with the belief that it could work out between us.”
She gazed at him, shaking her head. “I shouldn’t,” she murmured. “It’ll only get harder.”
“All I can say is that, for me,” Simon said, “walking away from you right now would be impossible. I need to see where this might go.
Don’t you?”
She glanced from him to Carter. Carter tugged her close and captured her lips. She sank back on the couch as he deepened the kiss. Simon could see their mouths moving. See her melt into Carter’s embrace. When his friend released her and the two of them gazed into each other’s eyes, she seemed captivated.
“Give us a chance, baby,” Carter insisted.
She drew in a deep breath. The next few moments hung between them for what seemed like an eternity. Simon felt as if he couldn’t breathe.
Then finally Rikki nodded.
“Okay,” she murmured.
* * *
During the next shift at the firehouse, Simon rounded everyone up and helped Rikki get organized to start doing the photo shoot. It was a beautiful, sunny day, so she set up outside with the firehouse in the background.
The first two in line were Tanner and Kyle.
Tanner, the tall Texan, strolled into position, then pulled off his T-shirt. The sight of his broad chest and ridged ab muscles made her think of Simon and Carter as she’d watched them strip off their shirts this morning and drag her off to the shower with them.
He put on his fire hat and she snapped pictures of him posing in different ways. She didn’t need to direct him. He was a natural in front of the camera. He grabbed different pieces of equipment and used them in a creative, yet natural way. Like holding an axe crossed in front of his body, throwing a coiled fire hose over his shoulder, and carrying one of the big power saws at his side. Sometimes he’d stand, sometimes he’d walk, his gaze intent, as if he were actually walking into a fire.
Except for the fact that he was bare-chested.
Kyle was up next and he was a little uncertain, so she gave him directions. Only the six men they’d scheduled for the morning session were around watching and waiting their turn, but they started giving suggestions and she wound up taking some shots of several of them together. Leaning on the truck as if taking a break, some action shots of them running or walking with intense stares, and a few with them getting out of the truck.
Some of these would be great as promo photos.
“Get some good shots this morning?” Carter asked as she sat down beside him at the table in the firehouse kitchen, a plate in her hand.
Simon joined them, as did Tanner and a couple of others from the morning’s shoot.
“Yes. The guys were really great to work with. They had some good suggestions and we got a lot of extra photos that could be used for the calendar cover and promo images. I also thought that it might be a good idea to put together a Web site and social media pages specifically to promote the calendar. All these extra photos would be useful for that.”
“I’m not sure we have the resources for a Web site,” Simon said.
“I’d be happy to volunteer to design and develop it. It would be helpful to me to hone those skills for the work I’ll do with Cassie. So then it’ll just be hosting charges for the Web site, and you should be able to cover that small amount with sales from the calendar.”
“Sold,” Simon said.
She ate the chicken enchilada as the men turned the conversation to small talk. After lunch, Carter explained that they couldn’t spare most of the men she needed for the afternoon shoot because an expert who was supposed to come and give them some training next shift had to switch to today.
“We don’t need Dodge, though, so you can do him,” Carter said as the other men headed out the door.
“Yes, you can definitely do me.”
She turned at the sound of Dodge’s voice to see the tall, tattooed fireman leaning against the doorway, a slow smile spreading across his face.
Carter sent Dodge a warning gaze, then he squeezed her arm. “See you later.”
She and Carter and Simon had decided not to let people at the firehouse know about their relationship. Not yet. But Carter was definitely acting protective. Hopefully, it just came across as a lieutenant’s concern for a visitor to the firehouse.
Carter went outside with the others and Dodge stepped closer.
“You and Carter got something going on?” Dodge asked.
“No, nothing like that.”
She could look out for herself, so she didn’t need to make it look like she was under Carter’s protection. Anyway, Dodge might have an unmistakable bad-boy vibe, with his tattooed arms, defiant blue eyes, and definite swagger, but she also sensed that he was a strong, protective type himself.
He nodded. “We can’t take shots outside like you did this morning, since that’ll get in the way of the training exercises. So what do you have in mind?”
“There’s good natural light in the living area with those big windows, but it’s not great as a backdrop. Maybe it’ll be better to just wait until the drills are finished.”
“That’s okay by me, but then, there are those other shots you wanted to do.”
“Other shots?”
“Yeah, for your portfolio. Didn’t you say you could sell them to make book covers?”
“Oh. I think I’ll have a lot from the photos I already have.”
“I thought you wanted some that were … sexier. Cassie says that some of her author clients write some pretty steamy stuff. Won’t they want something different from what you’ve got for the calendar?”
Chapter Thirteen
Rikki pursed her lips. He was right.
“Okay, I guess we could do that.”
A slow smile spread across his face. “I have the perfect place for them.”
He turned and headed to the stairs. She followed him up to the second floor, quivering with nerves at the thought of being alone with the tall, uber-masculine man, especially around so many beds.
He strolled into one of the rooms and walked to the bed near the window, then he turned and pulled off his T-shirt, revealing more tattoos across his chest. In fact, most of his torso was inked. But not so much to hide all the natural color of his tanned skin.
He pulled back the cover on the bed, then sat down. With a smile, he stretched out and tucked his hands behind his head.
“What are you doing?” she asked nervously, worried his move was an invitation to join him.
“I’m getting into a sexy pose for you.” He grinned. “Here, is this better?”
He unbuttoned his pants, then pulled the zipper down enough so she could see the top of his navy boxers. The sight of the dusting of curly hair forming an arrow down to his boxers—then him shifting the boxers down a little more, revealing more male groin that she was comfortable with—had her breath quickening. Before something embarrassing popped into view, he pulled the sheet over him. He arranged it so that it was low on his hips and looked like he was naked in the bed, with an enticing amount of male flesh showing to make the pose intensely sexy.
Oh, God, this was going to be an incredible series of shots.
Putting aside her discomfort, she grabbed her camera and started taking pictures. As they continued, he changed the draping of the sheet, shifted the position of his arms, changed his expression from brooding, to sexy, to smoldering.
“Those were some great shots,” she said finally, lowering her camera. “The tattoos make them especially sexy.”
He grinned. “Glad to be of service.”
He tossed aside the covers and she dragged her gaze from his open pants. Everything was covered, but the whole situation just felt … intimate.
He stood up and, to her relief, pulled up the zipper, then he walked toward her.
“There are other shots we can do, too,” he said as he moved close, his masculine aura rippling across her awareness. He rested his hands on her upper arms and drew her in closer. “Why don’t you put the camera on automatic and take some shots?”
But she knew he didn’t care so much about the pictures as he leaned toward her, clearly intending to kiss her.
“This is not a good idea,” she said.
“I disagree.” His mouth surged to hers and his persuasive lips seared her.
She
quickly pulled back, but not before Simon appeared in the doorway.
“What the hell is going on?” he demanded.
Dodge turned and assessed the angry glower on Simon’s face and Rikki’s wide-eyed expression.
“Fuck, sorry, Lieutenant. I didn’t realize the two of you were involved.”
“We’re trying to keep it quiet while Rikki’s doing her work here,” Simon said. “But I’m sure you’ll understand that I expect you to keep your hands off.”
“Of course, sir.” Dodge glanced at her and nodded. “And, sir. Rikki wasn’t a part of it. I caught her off guard. That’s all.”
He grabbed his shirt and pulled it on.
“Fine. And Dodge…” Simon said. “Button up your pants.”
Dodge tucked in his shirt and fastened the button, then headed down the stairs. As Simon approached Rikki, her stomach soured, tensing with his every step forward.
“I’m really sorry, Simon.”
He moved in close and tipped up her chin. “Why?”
She stared into his intense blue eyes. Was that a challenge? To get her to inventory what she’d done wrong? How she’d betrayed both him and Carter?
She shook her head. “About what you just saw,” was all she could manage to say.
“Dodge just told me he caught you off guard. Was that a lie? Did you intend to kiss him?”
“No, of course not, but…” She sucked in a breath. “I shouldn’t have let it happen.”
“So you’re going to take responsibility for him making a move on you?”
She pursed her lips. “I … well, no.”
He smiled. “Then don’t worry about it. You’re a beautiful woman. Men are going to hit on you. As long as you say no, that’s all that’s important.”
Then he cupped her head and planted his mouth on hers. His tongue teased her lips and she opened, then he swept inside. Soon she was melting into him.
Then he drew back. “Except me and Carter, of course.”
“Hmm. What?” she asked in a daze.
He chuckled. “I said to say no to men who hit on you, except me and Carter.”
She smiled. “Okay, it’s a deal.”
* * *
“So how are my favorite guys in the world?”
Rikki glanced up from her laptop at the sound of Cassie’s voice. The handful of men relaxing in the sitting area on break greeted her as she walked across the living area to where Rikki sat at the desk in the corner.