Hearts On Fire: Park City Firefighter Romance

by Christine Kersey

  Stop! Just forget about him.

  “You should add more weight,” a voice said beside her.

  Arwen’s eyes snapped to Tyler’s face as he stood beside her.

  Dang. He’s hotter than I remember.

  Flustered by his unexpected appearance and the knowledge that he’d been watching her right when she’d been thinking about him, Arwen’s face heated.

  Good thing her face was already flushed from the treadmill.

  Trying to calm her racing heart, she said, “I don’t know.” Then she struggled to lift the bar that lay across her shins. “I think I might be at my limit.”

  “You can do more than you think, Arwen.”

  She liked the way her name sounded coming from him, and she liked the way he encouraged her.

  “Try three more leg lifts,” he said as he reached behind her and moved the pin to add an additional ten pounds.

  Slightly annoyed that he was pushing her to do more than she thought she could, she held back a frown.

  Despite that, he smiled at her. “Come on, Arwen. You can do it.”

  Torn between wanting to impress him and wanting to tell him to jump in a lake, she decided to show him that she could do whatever she set her mind to. Forcing her shins to push the bar upward, she grunted with the effort, but she did it.

  “Awesome. Two more.”

  Arwen nearly glared at him, but she did what he said, then struggled to do one more. “There. Happy?”

  He smiled, his good looks irritating her. Why did he have to be so attractive?

  “Yes,” he said. “You should focus on your lower body today. I suggest glute kicks. Three sets of five reps.”

  Her glutes? What was wrong with her glutes? Okay, yes, they could use some work, but she hoped he wasn’t planning on watching her.

  Half-hoping he’d leave her alone and half-hoping he’d insist on staying, she said, “I told you I wanted to work out on my own.”

  His smile grew, displaying his straight white teeth framed by kissable lips.

  Annoyed with herself for noticing, Arwen looked away, then stood. But she wasn’t sure what to do next. “Wait. How do I do a glute kick?”

  Glad her dismissal had been revoked, Tyler showed her what to do, attaching the strap to his ankle so he could use the weights to work his glutes.

  “Then you lift your leg behind you. Like this.” He demonstrated the motion, then removed the strap. “Okay. Now you try it.”

  She gave him a look that seemed to say Thanks, but I would have preferred if I didn’t have to ask, then she did what he’d shown her. He watched her lift her leg, trying to focus on whether she was using the proper form instead of on her beauty.

  Yes, she was gorgeous. So what? She was just a client. Well, technically she wasn’t since she’d turned down his services.

  He pictured her laughing it up with Tommy the night before and felt the same pinch of jealousy he’d felt then. What was up with that anyway? She could talk to whomever she wanted.

  “You need to keep your back straight as you pull your leg back,” he said in a desperate attempt to think of her in terms other than as a beautiful woman who had caught his interest in a way no woman had since… No, he didn’t want to think about Madison. But despite his best efforts her face flashed into his mind, sending a sharp pain to his heart. Exactly what he wanted to avoid. And exactly why he refused to risk his heart again. When Madison had died he’d been devastated. It had taken him months to get out of the funk he’d fallen into. No way did he want to feel that way again. Safest way to prevent that? Never fall in love again. An idea he was committed to.

  Arwen turned to look at him, her forehead scrunched in concentration. “Like this?”

  With great self-will, he forced his mind to the here and now, concentrating on her form like his life depended on it, like if he thought about anything else he could quite possibly die. The same way he’d died inside when he’d learned of Madison’s death.

  Focus, focus, focus.

  Arwen’s back had an arch to it. Wrong, completely wrong. “You need to keep your back straight.” With no other choice, he placed one hand on her stomach and the other on her back to position her correctly. “Now pull your leg back.”

  His touch took her by surprise, but as she looked at him she saw his pained expression. Using that to direct her attention away from the pulse of heat his touch ignited, she said, “Are you okay?”

  A muscle in his jaw tightened, then he said, “I’m fine. Now, see how that feels different? Feel how straight your back is?”

  The only thing she felt was his hands on her body, which made it difficult to concentrate on anything else. “Uh-huh,” she said instead.

  He released her, and for half a second she considered doing it wrong on purpose so he would have to touch her again.

  “When your leg is back,” he said, “squeeze your glutes for a few seconds before lowering your leg.”

  Trying to gather herself, all she could do was agree. “Okay.”

  “Good. Very good,” he said after she did two more lifts. “Now, two more sets of five reps on each leg, but alternate between legs. One set of five reps on one leg, and then one set of five reps on the other. Okay?”

  It was like he was speaking a foreign language, but she didn’t want to admit that. “Okay.”

  “Great job.” He smiled and nodded, making her feel like she was doing it just right. “I’ll be around if you need me.”

  He was leaving? Please don’t leave. Then she came to her senses. What was she thinking? Of course he should leave. He shouldn’t be there at all. He wasn’t her personal trainer. She didn’t even want him around. He wasn’t her type at all.

  “Okay,” she said. “Thanks.”

  After he left she did all the sets and reps she thought he’d told her to, but she made a concerted effort not to check to see if he was watching. Instead, she pretended like he didn’t exist, although she was extremely aware that he most certainly did.

  Tyler didn’t have a client during the time Arwen was there, but he found it difficult to stay away from her, to not go over and offer helpful suggestions, although he managed to keep his distance. And when he saw her struggling with getting the elliptical machine to work, he resisted the nearly overwhelming temptation to go to her and lend a hand.

  She wasn’t his client. He’d told her to let him know if she needed his help and she hadn’t asked. He needed to leave her alone. She’d specifically said she wanted to do this on her own, so he needed to let her.

  But when a man who worked out there regularly went to her aid and she favored him with a smile, Tyler nearly lost it. He should be the one stepping up and offering assistance. It was what he did.

  Putting aside his pride, he strode over to them. “I’ve got this, Dillon.” He nodded at the man with an expression that said Thanks for helping, but move on.

  “Hey, Tyler,” Dillon said, then he smiled at Arwen.

  “Thank you,” she said to Dillon, then she turned to Tyler. “He already helped me.” To prove it, she pressed the right buttons on the elliptical and began moving the foot pedals.

  Feeling like a jerk for coming over too late when he could have been there first, he forced a smile. “Perfect.” Then, trying to salvage the moment, although he wasn’t sure why he cared about that, he said, “How’s your workout going?”

  Arwen wasn’t sure why, but she was flattered that Tyler had rushed over when Dillon had started helping her. Though she’d acted like she hadn’t known he’d been watching her, she’d been acutely aware that his gaze had been on her for much of her workout.

  Muscle-bound gym rat, remember? Not your type.

  Silencing her inner voice, she smiled at him. “Pretty good, I think.” Then she added, “I appreciate your help earlier. On the weight machine.” Especially the part where he’d touched her. Her face heated at the memory.

  He grinned. “So maybe you could use the assistance of a personal trainer after all?”


  Would that be a good idea? To spend more time with him? But before she could talk herself out of it, she said, “Maybe I could use a little help.” Wait. Was he just trying to drum up business for himself? Hoping that wasn’t his motivation for asking, she said, “Why, do you know of one who’s available?”

  He tapped his chin with one finger. “Hmm. I might. And he’s available most evenings.”

  “Okay. Evenings work for me.” Was she sure she wanted to lock this in? But she knew that besides not being able to resist the opportunity to spend time with him, she could use some help. Her form had been wrong when she’d been doing the glute kicks. She could hurt herself if she did things incorrectly, so having him be her personal trainer would be for health and safety reasons.

  Trying not to laugh out loud at her twisted logic, Arwen focused on moving her feet on the elliptical.

  “Do you want to schedule a session tomorrow night?” Tyler asked.

  Though she was enjoying this working out thing so far—well, this was only her second day—tomorrow was Friday. “Uh, I might not be available tomorrow.” Plus she would want to take the weekends off. “What about Monday?”

  Did she have a date tomorrow? The idea bothered Tyler for some reason. He didn’t know anything about her. Maybe she had a boyfriend.

  Just focus on the job.

  “I won’t be available until Wednesday.” He would be at the firehouse Monday and Tuesday. “Will that work?”

  “Sure. That’ll work. On Monday and Tuesday I’ll just work out on my own.”

  “Okay. Same time you came in today?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Great. I’ll plan on it.” He turned to leave, but turned back. “When you’re done, make sure to stretch out while your muscles are cooling down.”

  “If you say so.”

  Was she taking this seriously? “I do. Cooling your muscles down is important.”

  She nodded. “All right.”

  With a final look at her pretty face, Tyler turned and walked away. Good thing he wouldn’t have to see her for a few days. Although he suspected that wouldn’t keep her out of his head.

  Chapter Four

  When it was time to head to the gym on Wednesday evening, Arwen took a few minutes in the office bathroom to touch up her make-up and put her hair into a smooth ponytail. The last two days she had gone to the gym and had worked out as best she could on her own, but she was eager to have Tyler’s help that night.

  Why was she adding mascara? She knew Tyler was going to make her work hard, which would make her sweat.

  The thought of sweating made her frown, but when she pictured Tyler and knew she would be spending time with him one on one, her frown turned into a smile.

  She was glad he’d jumped in to help her the week before. Clearly, she needed some guidance, which was why she was hiring him as her personal trainer.

  She caught her eye in the mirror.

  Was that really why?

  Glaring at her reflection, she reminded herself that Tyler was just an average guy in an amazing package. Nothing to get worked up about. She tried to remember why she’d joined the gym in the first place—which had been before she’d met Tyler. To get her body into shape.

  Tossing her mascara into her purse, she grabbed her gym bag from the floor and left the bathroom.

  “Arwen?” a voice called as she walked towards the building’s exit.

  Arwen turned to find one of her patients—a man in his mid-thirties—standing about forty feet away. They met on Fridays so she was surprised to see him. The receptionist had already gone home, and she was pretty sure the other therapists, including Paisley, had left as well.

  “Hi, Ben,” she said. “What can I help you with?”

  He began walking towards her. “Looks like you’re done for the day.”

  “Yeah. I’m just leaving.” Why was he there? Putting on her professional smile, she said, “What’s up?”

  He stopped a few feet from her. “I, uh, I was just wondering if you’d like to get a coffee with me.”

  Oh no. This wasn’t good. “I think you know that’s against our policy.”

  He chuckled. “Having coffee is against your policy?”

  “Of course not. But a therapist having coffee with a patient outside of the office is.”

  He stared at her. “Maybe I don’t want to be your patient anymore.”

  What was he doing? “We can talk about this on Friday, Ben. During our session.”

  His forehead puckered. “Are you mad at me?”

  “No, I’m not mad at you. But I am leaving now.”

  “I think you’re mad at me. For asking you to have coffee with me. Don’t you think that’s a little ridiculous? To be mad at me for something like that?”

  Still a relatively new therapist, Arwen had yet to deal with a patient in this type of situation. “I’ll see you on Friday, Ben. As scheduled. Have a good night.” Then with a tight-lipped smile, she turned and strode to the door and into the parking lot. Heart pounding, she hurried to her car and climbed behind the wheel, then looked toward the building. Ben had come outside, and as Arwen turned on her car and drove away, he stayed where he was, watching her.

  Forcing away her concerns, she turned her mind to her workout that evening.

  She bet Tyler wouldn’t feel intimidated by a client who pressured him to go out. If she was as strong as he was, she wouldn’t be either.

  Knowing that might give her the motivation she needed to work hard that night, she nodded, her expression determined.

  The thought of being physically strong—like one of those tough chicks in the action movies she liked to watch—made her confidence grow. And as she parked her car at the health club and walked inside, she felt like she could take on the world.

  Something about Arwen was different that night. Tyler noticed it the moment she entered the workout space. Like she was bursting with confidence.

  Maybe she had a new man in her life. Hating that idea, he immediately dismissed it.

  Focus on the job.

  “Hi,” Arwen said as she stopped near him, a big smile on her face.

  “You seem upbeat.”

  She laughed. “I’m just ready to do this.”

  Her cheerfulness was contagious, and he smiled back. “And by ‘this’ you mean work your butt off?”

  Her gaze darted from his face to his biceps and back to his face.

  Like what you see there? Takes a lot of work to build these guns.

  “I’m ready to work hard,” she said, her expression less certain than it had been seconds before.

  Not wanting her to feel discouraged before she’d even begun, he said, “You’ll do great, Arwen. Just like you’ve been doing. And I won’t ask you to do more than you’re capable of.”

  “Okay.”

  “First, you need to warm up. Walk on the treadmill for five minutes, then take a few minutes to stretch your muscles.” He gestured to an area to the side of the room.

  She nodded, then she walked to where he’d indicated and began stretching.

  Tyler tried not to stare, but it was hard to look away. Sure she could be more fit—who couldn’t?—but the way she was at that moment was extremely appealing.

  She was a client. That was all. He didn’t even know anything about her.

  Deciding he’d like to know more, he purposely turned away and went to help a woman who looked like she was struggling on the weight machine, although he kept an eye on Arwen to see when she was done stretching.

  Why did he have to be so hot? And why did she have to think about him so much? She didn’t know anything about him. For all she knew, he had a girlfriend and had no ambitions beyond building those eye-catching muscles.

  Forcing her mind away from Tyler, Arwen sat on the floor, and with her legs stretched out in front of her, she reached for her toes, holding the pose for several seconds.

  “I think you’re ready to get started,” Tyler said beside her after she’d been
stretching for several minutes.

  She looked up, and when he reached out his hand to help her up, she only hesitated for a second before placing her hand in his. The touch of his skin on hers sent a jolt of electricity through her and she had to make a conscious effort to not yank her hand away.

  “Thanks,” she said once she was standing, then he let go of her hand. That had felt nice. Why did he have to let go? Oh yeah, because they weren’t on a date. He was her personal trainer and she was his client.

  Realizing how much she would have preferred that they were on a date instead of a workout appointment, Arwen held back a frown.

  “First, I want you to get your heart rate up,” he said, “so let’s have you do twenty minutes on the elliptical.”

  Being around him got her heart rate going already, but she figured that wouldn’t count as a cardio workout.

  “After that we’ll spend some time on the weight machine.”

  “Okay.”

  She followed him to an empty elliptical machine, and after she’d stepped onto the pedals he punched in the program he wanted her to do and pressed Start.

  He smiled at her. “I’ll check on you in a few minutes.”

  He wasn’t going to stay with her? Then again, maybe it would be better if he didn’t. Less distraction that way.

  She nodded, then after he walked away, she put in her ear buds and focused on her workout. Thinking about the surprise appearance of Ben earlier, she remembered that she wanted to become stronger and she pushed herself harder than she normally would have, then her thoughts went to Ben.

  He was showing classic signs of transference—the redirection of emotions to a substitute. Dealing with his divorce had been a struggle for him and Arwen had been working with him to help him get past the rejection he felt from his ex-wife. Was he starting to see Arwen as a replacement for her?

  Keeping a surreptitious eye on Arwen, Tyler nodded in approval at the pace she was setting. If she kept that up, she would do just fine.

  After checking in with her a couple of times to give her encouragement, he waited until the twenty minutes had passed before walking with her to a weight machine. He waited for her to sit on the weight bench before saying, “Can I ask you something?”