Five Alarm Alphas

by Leah Braemel, Lexxie Couper, Delilah Devlin, Marie Harte, Desiree Holt, Lissa Matthews, Cari Quinn, Shelli Stevens

  “Who’s Shelly?”

  “No one. Seriously. And we didn’t hook up.” He glared at his bigmouthed, soon-to-be ex-best friend. “Not technically.”

  Max frowned. “How—”

  “Please.” Hannah interrupted with a grimace. “I don’t want the details.” She bent down to lift Mephisto in her arms. “Look, Cooper, I just want you to be happy. Dating bimbos with large breasts and not much between their ears might make Coop Junior happy, but it won’t fulfill the real you.”

  “Coop Junior?” Max asked.

  “You know.” Coop’s face felt on fire as he pointed down at his crotch. “Jesus, Hannah. Just stop talking, would you?” He grabbed a handful of cookies, then jerked Max to his feet. “We gotta go.”

  “Bye, Hannah.” Max smiled as Coop dragged his sorry ass out the front door.

  Coop heard the cat meow and Hannah mutter something about him being a stubborn jackass. Then he was driving the engine back to the firehouse, finally able to relax.

  “Your sister is F-I-N-E fine. Just think, bro, we’re going to be related soon! Mr. and Mrs. Max and Hannah Nystrom.”

  “Shut up, moron. You can barely handle me, let alone my brothers. You think any of us will let you actually do the sick things you fantasize about—with our sister?”

  Max let out a sad sigh. “For Hannah, I’ll sacrifice anything. Even my poor, sexy, under-used body. I’d happily surrender to Death by Quad for one taste of yon maiden’s sweet lips.”

  Coop tried not to laugh, but hell. Max could be as melodramatic as Hannah.

  “Death by Quad.” He huffed. “We outgrew that name years ago.” Being one of four quadruplets—the Talbot Quad—Coop had led an interesting life. But at twenty-nine, he thought he might finally be getting beyond being a Talbot clone. And he could be getting past it, if Max and every other guy at the department would let it lie. Probably didn’t help that three of them worked in the same place, but the city was only so big. And they were legacy—their father had worked at the same station.

  “Yeah? Well, your reputation follows you.” Max’s eyes crinkled, and his smile grew sly. “It all started with ‘The Incident’.”

  Coop glared at him before focusing once more on the road. “That happened back in high school. Let it go, man.”

  “No way. Not when—”

  “Let it go, or so help me I’ll tell Hannah about the time you took the Brooks sisters out, together, for a private hour in your hot tub.” Coop’s evil grin must have done the trick, because Max slumped in his seat and stared out the window. To rub it in, Coop added, “And I have pictures. Remember, I’m the Talbot who always gets even.”

  Max flipped him the bird, and Coop laughed. Everything was once again right in the world. Now if he could just get Hannah to stop with all the woo-woo nonsense.

  ***

  Josie Young finished up for the day and walked to her car with Miranda Fenton, her best friend, roommate, and fellow teacher. “We need to stop by the store on the way home. I used the last of the milk this morning.”

  “Sure thing, teach.” Miranda smiled. “Teach. Who the hell thought it would be a good idea to give us degrees and the ability to influence youth?”

  “Someone on drugs, surely.” Josie grinned, fired up her sleek Mustang, and drove them to a nearby supermarket, speeding just a little.

  Walking through the aisles with Miranda, she noticed plenty of men giving her friend a second glance. Gifted with long legs, a tiny waist, and killer boobs, blond and beautiful Miranda Fenton was a popular girl and one of the most well-liked teachers at their school. Josie could hold her own, but next to Miranda, she usually felt like yesterday’s leftovers.

  “Can’t you tone it down?” she griped as she grabbed a quart of milk.

  “Easy, there, Ms. Crabby.” Miranda pulled down some creamer, then forced Josie to wait while they added a roll of cookie dough, pudding, and several chocolate bars to their haul. “Okay. Now we can go.”

  Several dollars poorer and once more in the car, Josie hotfooted it home. “Nice sugar you bought there.”

  “I know. What can I say? I was hungry.” Miranda chomped on a candy bar while Josie gained five pounds from merely smelling the chocolate.

  She liked herself just fine, had no issues being a redhead or for being a bit top-heavy compared to the rest of her body. She had boobs and hips and had to work like a demon to stay in shape, but she did. Not that it had gotten her any dates recently. In a town the size of Pryor, she’d have thought she’d have her pick of eligible gentlemen. But of the eighty thousand plus citizens, it felt like most of the men were already engaged or married, and the others were either gay or had eyes only for Miranda.

  She might have hated her best friend if Miranda hadn’t been such a generous and good-spirited soul. That and her friend had a hint of meanness Josie understood. She could never trust anyone who smiled all the time.

  “Okay, spit it out. You’re in one of those moods. I can tell.” Miranda crossed her arms and waited.

  Josie let out a loud groan. “I can’t help it. My birthday is tomorrow.”

  “I know. The big two-seven. Three more years until you’re past your prime.” Miranda, who’d turned thirty earlier in the year, chuckled.

  “I just… I feel like life is passing me by. I love my job, and I love living with you, don’t get me wrong. But I’m so—”

  “Lonely? Sex-starved? Pathetic?”

  “Gee, I’m feeling so much better for having shared.”

  “I get it. Trust me, I do.” Miranda nodded. “Yeah, guys look at me a lot. I’m hot.”

  “And so modest.”

  “But they don’t see me for me,” Miranda added. “I know, this isn’t about me. It’s about you. I’m just saying I feel your pain. You want my opinion? Josie, honey, you need to change things up a little. Stop playing it so safe and cut loose.”

  They’d driven into the more rural part of town, on the outskirts of the city, Josie’s favorite part of the drive. The city had its share of traffic, but not out here. Houses were spaced apart, and a few farms and woods surrounding the area gave her a sense of living off the grid.

  “Let loose, huh? Like this?” Josie’s major flaw. She liked speed. Anything fast, and her Mustang was a dream. She floored it, racing past their house down the nearly deserted side road toward the Parkway cutoff. She got the needle past sixty and kept climbing.

  The flashing lights behind her reminded her that reality sucked.

  “Shit.”

  Once stopped, she realized the unmarked car was cherry. A gorgeous black Dodge Charger opened to reveal a man in plain clothes. Odd, she’d have thought a uniformed officer should…

  “Well, well.” Miranda beamed. “This is my lucky day. Look at that hunk of man. You know, he looks a lot like—”

  “One of the Quad,” she groaned and rolled down her window.

  Typical Talbot men. They were all sexy, handsome, and dickheads. Though none of them were identical, they all appeared enough alike to pass as one another if you didn’t look too carefully. And up close… Harrison Talbot strolled—he never walked—like he owned the road. He wore jeans and a dark blue button-down shirt that made him look like a model, not a cop.

  “Going a little fast out here, eh, Josie Young? Hell. I haven’t seen you in ages.”

  The bastard had teased her unmercifully for years before she’d tried to put a stop to it. Only to avenge herself on the wrong Talbot—the one she’d always crushed on and still dreamed about. Now two of the four hotbods held a grudge against her. And one was a cop. What a nightmare. What moron had decided it would be a good idea to give Harrison a badge? She’d caught him giving one of his brothers a noogie not two weeks ago at the Firefighter-Police Officer Bash Brawl kicking off the first football game of the season.

  She studied him, noting the short dark hair, the square jaw, the deep blue eyes. Almost as attractive as—Stop it, Josie. Forget him already. “I thought you were a detective. Why are y
ou policing deserted streets for speeders?”

  He leaned down next to her window and smirked. “How fast were you going?”

  “Oh, she wasn’t speeding, officer.” Miranda batted her eyelashes, and Harrison blinked. “Her foot slipped.”

  “For a good five seconds,” he murmured, still staring at Miranda. “I don’t know you, Miss…?”

  She leaned across Josie and held out her hand. “Ms. Miranda Fenton. But you can call me Miranda. I work with Josie at Cascade Falls Middle School.” He took her hand, and the contact seemed to last forever while Josie tried not to interfere.

  Let Miranda work her magic… You don’t need another speeding ticket.

  They finally let go of each other.

  “I moved here in the summer. Josie and I went to college together at Rutgers, and we kept in touch over the years. When an opening became available at her school, she hooked me up. And bam, here I am.”

  “Ah.” He continued to crouch next to them, his smile huge and beaming. For Miranda.

  “I’m really sorry about this.” Miranda bit her lip. “I confess—I pleaded with her to speed up to pass that deer back there. I was afraid we’d hit it if we didn’t outrun it.”

  Deer? Josie subtly looked to her right and left, seeing nothing but trees.

  “You don’t want to hit those.” Harrison, the big jerk, shook his head and stood. “You two be careful.” He backed away, this time looking at Josie, his smile sincere, his eyes bright. “Drive safe.”

  “Safe-ly,” she corrected and put her window back up, frowning at him. His blue eyes were pretty, she conceded, but she had a thing for smoky gray eyes. Mysterious eyes that in her dreams always regarded her with love and affection.

  Harrison had the nerve to wave. Josie ignored him and pulled away, driving carefully, slowly, and ended the excruciating mile Miranda spent sighing over “Officer Do-Me” by pulling into their drive. “Miranda, please. Enough already. Harrison is a huge pain. Don’t get fooled by his good looks.”

  She stared at her house and let out a satisfied sigh. At least there was something pretty here she could appreciate. And it wasn’t a Talbot. The refurbished barn home she’d bought last year looked so cute in the fall, with her chrysanthemums awash in color. The place had four bedrooms, an open floor plan with a large living room, kitchen, and den. Because it was outside the city limits, she had to drive a bit to get to work, but Josie relished her privacy. Living out here meant being away from the school’s principal, her well-meaning yet interfering parents, and everything else that annoyed her.

  Miranda swept by her, continuing to sigh. If the girl wasn’t careful, soon she’d be added to that list.

  “Oh cut it out. So he’s handsome? His brothers are too,” Josie said sourly.

  “Imagine having quadruplets that look like that.”

  “Don’t forget their older sister.”

  “Right. Five kids. Man, their parents are brave.”

  Despite her mood, Josie chuckled. “Hannah isn’t too bad. She’s a good five years older than the boys. Men, now, I guess, though they still act like the jerks they were in high school.”

  “So much animosity.” Miranda grinned. “This all goes back to pantsing the wrong boy at Cascade High, doesn’t it?”

  Josie flushed, having told that story more times than she cared to admit, and all at Miranda’s request. Her friend laughed every time. Had Josie not been the recipient of so much teasing, she’d have found it funny too. Maybe. “Look, from the back, they might as well be identical. Even from the front they look alike. It wasn’t my fault I was trying to nail Harrison and got Cooper instead.” And lost her dream date before she’d ever had him.

  “True love gone astray. How sad.” Miranda perked up. “But that leads me to something I’ve been wanting to tell you.”

  “Oh?” Leery, Josie put the groceries away and leaned on the kitchen counter, waiting for Miranda to drop her bomb.

  “You’re in search of true love, and I have just the birthday gift to help you find it.”

  “Oh?”

  “See, that ‘Oh’ sounds much better than the other ‘Oh’. That’s your interested ‘Oh’.”

  “Cut to the chase, sister. So you found me a date?” She could do that, take Miranda’s rejects. At this point, tired of the terrible online dating sites she’d barely survived, a friend of a friend sounded just fine. God, it had been so long since she’d last had sex. She wanted a man, at least for a little fun. Hopefully more, but she’d take what she could get.

  “Not exactly. I have a present for you though.”

  “Something I can actually use this year?”

  “Hey, those edible undies will one day come in handy. Just you wait.”

  She’d had the pair since last year. They remained unused.

  “Trust me. When have I ever steered you wrong?”

  “Oh, let me count the ways.” Josie groaned.

  Miranda laughed, brought up another embarrassing incident, this one from their second year in college, and somehow had Josie laughing as well. Then they dug out the wine, and the night became a blur.

  Chapter Two

  “Oh, Miranda. Tell me you didn’t.” Staring at the beaming woman standing on their front porch the next day, Josie thought about slamming the door shut and hiding inside.

  Miranda swore, no doubt sharing the headache making Josie’s temples throb. “I did. But I didn’t think I did it so early…”

  “Hello, ladies!” Hannah Talbot stood holding a black cat and wearing a broad smile. “Rough night?”

  Josie limped away to the couch and dropped into it with a groan. “You must be psychic.” She knew Hannah was an up-and-coming artist with paintings beginning to grace the galleries in New York and Philadelphia. An article in the local paper had highlighted her achievements, in addition to Hannah’s predilection for prognostication.

  God, this early and after a bottle of wine, Josie was impressed she could think to use either P-word, but she knew better than to try spelling them.

  “You two look terrible.” Hannah shook her head. “And Miranda, that’s saying something.”

  “I know.” Miranda moaned.

  Josie blinked her eyes open. “You two know each other?”

  “Know each other? We’re practically family,” Hannah said in a loud voice.

  Miranda rubbed her temples. “She means I rescued her when her car broke down last month. You were out of town visiting your parents. I saw a pathetic woman trying to hitch her way to Target, so I stopped to give her a lift.”

  “And a deep and abiding friendship was born.” Hannah let the cat down, then planted her hands on her hips and stared at Josie.

  “What?”

  “I’m here to do a reading for you. Happy birthday.”

  “This?” Josie glared at her roomie. “This is what you get me for the big two-seven?”

  “Oh, yeah, you’re practically ancient.” Hannah snorted. “So where do you want to do it? I prefer the kitchen table.” So saying, sat herself at the table and removed a few items from her overlarge purse.

  Josie reluctantly joined her, and Miranda tagged along. They sat staring at what appeared to be stones with odd etchings on them and tarot cards.

  “No crystal ball?” Josie asked with no small amount of snark.

  “I left it at home for this. I just need to read your aura and throw a few stones for you.”

  “Stones?” Josie lifted one and looked at it.

  “Runes.” Hannah wiggled her fingers and hummed, then stopped and laughed. “Not really. All this is just for show. I have feelings about people.” Her eyes narrowed. They were a familiar gray, just as smoky and rich as Cooper’s eyes.

  Cooper schmooper. The guy hates you, and he’s a jerk to boot. Forget him.

  “Yes, I see.” Hannah cocked her head.

  Josie’s throat was parched. “Would you like something to drink? I’m going to make some coffee.”

  “Definite yes for me,” Miran
da agreed.

  “Sure. Caffeinate me. I work better that way.”

  Josie got to her feet, ignored the tiny men hammering at her brain, and made a pot of coffee while Hannah continued to stare at her. “What do you see, great swami?”

  “A woman with needs.”

  “Sing it, sister,” Miranda muttered and bowed her head in appreciation when offered a cup of hot coffee.

  Josie gave another to Hannah, making sure to step around the cat doing its best to trip her. “Cream or sugar?”

  “Yes.”

  Josie set a tray with both in front of her and poured them each a cup. Then she sat and stared at Hannah, waiting for whatever was about to happen. The caffeine helped clear her mind somewhat, and she thought it odd that she’d been reminiscing about Cooper lately, run into Harrison, whom she hadn’t talked to in years, then had his older sister invade her Saturday morning. Didn’t bad things always happen in threes?

  “So…what’s up with your wall?” Hannah nodded to the black streak above the countertop that ran up the wall from the outlet, marring the bright blue paint in the kitchen. A toaster hid most of the black marks around the outlet Josie had recently fixed.

  “Bad wiring.” Josie shrugged. “But I fixed it.”

  “Ah.”

  Weird woman. “So, Hannah. What—”

  “I’m here to help. I have seen your soul mate, and I think it’s time you met.”

  “Oh, wow.” Miranda looked more alive after the coffee, or was it the prediction?

  Josie groaned. “I need something stronger than caffeine for this.”

  Hannah closed her eyes and waved her hands around, humming under her breath. Miranda watched with awe. Josie just waited for it to all be over. God, she wanted a nap to ease her still throbbing head.

  Then Hannah opened her eyes and pinned Josie with a penetrating and, frankly, spooky stare. “He’s fire and smoke,” she whispered. “Of shine and fur, of flesh and bone, will your destinies come together as one.”

  Shine and fur? Was he a robot werewolf or what?

  Miranda gaped. “Oh wow. You have to do me too.”