“That’s it? You still screw each other?”
“It’s more than that. We listen to one another. Do this with your husband and I guarantee that you will begin to listen to one another.”
The woman shrugged. “I’ll give it a shot. Thank you very much.”
After she had left, “Did that just really happen?” Peter asked.
“It just happened.”
“Wow.”
Collin ran up to them once the game was over. “Did you see that shot I made?”
“That was amazing, I am so proud of you,” Peter gushed.
The Walshes drove home, a picture of happiness.
***
[Hope you liked the story and don't forget your 8 complimentary books, which you may find a download link to on the last page of this collection, just after the 11th story ends. Now, on to the next story!]
Starting Fires
by
Cynthia Conley
Dana rushed to place a wet towel under her bedroom door, trying not to panic as she heard the sirens and saw the fire trucks pull to the curb. Placing the pillowcase over her mouth, she hit the floor to avoid the smoke-filled air and crawled to the window. The minute she pushed it up, more smoke puffed in and a window shattered in her living room.
She screamed as loud as she could, swinging a towel out the window to signal her location. Dragging herself up to the window, she spotted the firefighter waving to her, “Flatten yourself to the floor. I’m coming up.”
The ladder hit her window frame as she collapsed onto the floor. She gagged and coughed on the stench, causing tears to flood her vision. Terrified of passing out, she screamed again as the paint on her door bubbled. Hands suddenly lifted her from the floor and a mask was placed on her face before someone yelled, “Are you alone?”
She nodded before he yelled, “Hang on to me!”
Dana wrapped herself around him, gulping the oxygen and squeezing her eyes shut. Petrified of heights, she screamed in panic as he made his way down the ladder from her second story apartment. Other residents milled about, huddled together on the lawn as all their belongings went up in smoke.
As soon as his feet touched the ground, he tried to pass her to another firefighter but she wouldn’t let go of his neck. He swung her into his arms, “It’s okay! We’re on the ground.”
She relaxed but was still shaking so he carried her a safe distance before reassuring her again before she would finally release her death grip. He ran toward the three-story building, aiding others in pointing a huge hose directly at her window before they released the valve.
She coughed into the mask as her neighbor, Rose, sat down heavily beside her with shock written all over her face. Dana tried to hold it together while asking her, “Did everyone make it out?”
Looking around, Rose nodded before they both cringed when the roof caved. Scrambling backwards in the face of the chaotic scene, she shook even worse as tears flew into her eyes.
Rose leaned toward her and pointed to the firefighter that carried her down the ladder, “That’s my brother, Chad!”
Dana distractedly nodded, knowing the woman was trying to take their minds off the chaos. She finally broke, gasping between sobs while wondering where she would stay. With no family and new to the area, she’d just rented the apartment a week ago.
Rose put her arm around her, “It’s okay. At least we made it out alive.”
She nodded but couldn’t stop crying so Rose asked, “Did you lose a pet?”
Dana shook her head, unwilling to admit that she was completely alone. Her brother sank down in front of them and, seeing how upset she was, asked the same. Dana shook her head and admitted, “I just arrived in town. I don’t know anyone. Is there a shelter around here?”
Rose stared at her brother who quickly said, “Rose will be staying with me. You’re welcome, too. Don’t worry. We’ll take care of you.”
She glanced at Rose who was nodding as well. Dana frowned, “Are you sure? I don’t want to intrude.”
He nodded, “I’m positive.”
Dana thanked him, wiping tears away as Rose put her arm around her, “How old are you, Dana? You don’t look old enough to be on your own.”
“Twenty-three. Everyone thinks I’m younger.”
Her neighbor nodded, “Yeah. You look more like fifteen.”
Dana grinned through her tears but shook her head, “I can’t prove it because my purse was in there.”
Rose patted her knee, “I believe you. What do you do for a living?”
She told her where she was to start work as they watched the firefighters douse the apartment building. A tower of smoke started to rise as they kept each other company. They finally fell into silence, commenting occasionally about various things in order to keep the shock at bay.
Her brother, Chad, finally came back and asked how they were doing. Both nodded before he asked Rose if she was okay to drive. She stared at him, “My keys are in there.”
He glanced at Dana, “Same here but I have a spare under my back tire.”
“Are you okay to drive?”
Dana nodded, leading Rose to the parking lot where most of the tenants’ cars remained. Rose directed her to his house where she slipped a key out from under the doormat. Slipping inside, she went into a spare bedroom before telling Dana, “Let me go see what I can scrounge up so we can get out of these pajamas.”
Dana glanced around at the scant furnishings before wandering out into the hallway. Rose reappeared and handed her a T-shirt, pointing to a door, “That’s the bathroom. Sorry but this is the best I can do.” She shrugged by way of apology, “He’s not married and that shirt is going to swallow you but…”
Dana waved her off, “It’s great. Listen, thanks! Are you sure he won’t mind?”
Rose grinned, “From the look on his face, he didn’t mind you staying here at all.”
With a wink, she headed into the bedroom to change and left Dana to frown over her comment. Shrugging, she went into the bathroom to change. Pulling Chad’s shirt over her head, she grinned over the realization that the T-shirt held a distinct male aroma. Rose was right, the shirt swallowed her but she was grateful that the smoky odor was gone.
Peering at her blonde hair in the mirror, she cringed and washed the black streaks off her heart-shaped face. She hurried back out to ask Rose if she had a washcloth but ran right into Chad who was walking down the hall.
He grabbed her as she bounced off him, “Whoa, I almost knocked you flat. Shit, you are a tiny thing!”
She’d thought the firefighting suit made him massive but realized that was just his build. She swallowed hard, suddenly gasping for air for a completely different reason.
He grinned, “Are you okay?”
She squeaked out, “You’re just… huge!”
He laughed, studying her face as Rose peaked out the door, “He was a football player in high school.”
Stepping back and looking up at him, Dana’s quick wit surfaced, “Is the air thinner up there?”
Dimples appeared as interest flew into his eyes, “You tell me. Come here.”
Rose’s head appeared around the corner again with her mouth open in surprise before she grinned, “Chad, remember you put fires out… not start them!”
Dana was suddenly face-to-face with him as he asked, “So, is it?”
Completely forgetting the question, she stared at him until he laughed, “The air… is it thinner up here?”
“Oh-kay! Um… no, it’s not.”
Dimples hit his cheeks at her breathless tone, “Are you sure you don’t need some oxygen? I can perform mouth-to-mouth.”
Rose’s amused snort from behind them rang through the air, “I told you he doesn’t mind you staying.”
“Oh, hell no. Let me take a shower and I’ll show just how accommodating I can be.”
Rose rolled her eyes as Dana slid down his tall muscular frame, almost sliding straight to the floor as amusement shot over his face, “Dam
n, Rose. Why didn’t you tell me that you had such a cute little neighbor?”
“She just moved in last week. I haven’t talked to you since before then.”
He nodded and pointed to a door, “You know where the towels are if you want to shower.”
Turning to Dana, he winked, “That dress looks good on you.”
Her jaw dropped, leaving Rose cackling at her expression. He brushed by her, “I’ll see you ladies after I wash this smoke off me.”
Dana stared at him before shooting a wide-eyed look at his sister who was bent over and shaking her head as she tried to control her laughter. She scrambled behind her, placing the sister between them when he reappeared to say, “Oh… I’ve got a stocked fridge with beer if you guys are hungry or whatever.”
Looking directly at her, he pointedly said, “And you make yourself at home.”
She dumbly nodded as Rose got a grip on her laughter to pull a door open and drag some towels out. She handed one to Dana and asked if she wanted to go first. She eyed his bedroom and nodded, needing a moment to cool her heated cheeks. She barely used the hot water, standing under the tepid spray while contemplating the massive hunk that had just saved her ass from a burning building.
She finally rinsed herself, pulling on the T-shirt but cringing when she had to put the pajama bottoms against her skin. When she opened the bathroom door, Rose jerked her head toward the kitchen, “I found a wine glass and some wine if you want some.”
Dana nodded, “Good idea! Thanks!”
Hoping it would relax her but, unused to drinking, she poured half a glass. On the first sip, she made a face but forced herself to swallow the rest. Fortunately, it worked well so she poured another half-glass but jumped when he appeared in the doorway. He quickly put a hand up, “I was just going to join you for a sip.”
He bypassed the wine glass and grabbed a tumbler, pouring a healthy bit before downing it. His eyes narrowed, “You’re old enough to drink, right?”
She frowned, “I’m twenty-three.”
He grinned, “Nice to meet you, Twenty-three. I’m twenty-six.”
She laughed as he poured another splash into his glass while asking, “What do you do when you’re not working and where do you work?”
She told him that she was supposed to start working at a bank next week and had been busy unpacking. He grinned at her nervousness, “What kind of movies do you like or do you even watch TV?”
She nodded, “I like thrillers and horror. I have weird tastes in movies or so I’ve been told.”
Intrigued, he asked, “What do you mean by weird and who told you this?”
She followed him into the living room, “Normally, people think I like romance or chick-flicks but I can’t stand them. I like dark comedies and things that are out of the ordinary. Various friends told me but I no longer hang around them for a variety of reasons. Do you always ask a lot of questions?”
He stopped in front of a shelf and pointed out a movie, “Yes. How else would I get answers? Have you seen this one?”
She grinned, “Yeah, I like that one.” Her gaze ran over his library as her grin widened, “You have the same tastes that I do. Ohhh… can we watch this?”
He grabbed it and nodded, “Sure. Have you seen it yet?”
She shook her head and a dimple appeared in one of his cheeks. Narrowing her eyes at his calculated grin, she asked, “Why? Is it risqué?”
He laughed, “Why would I tell you that? Wouldn’t it ruin the movie? Here… you need more wine.”
Her eyes widened when he grabbed her glass and downed the contents before filling it for her. He made a face, “That was warmish. You need to drink it faster.”
“I don’t normally drink.”
Glee shot over his face, “Oh, this should be interesting.”
She sipped her wine as her face heated once again. He sat down and patted the sofa next to him with a challenge, “Scared I’ll start a fire?”
She took a gulp of the wine and pointedly sat next to him, immediately regretting it when his body heat made her breath hang. She swallowed past the lump in her throat as he lifted her wine glass from her hand, “You’re surprising me.”
He immediately drank what was in her glass before scowling, “It’s not good when it gets warm.”
Since her brain was already fuzzy, she shook her head when he went to refill it. He barked a laugh, pouring some into the glass anyway, “Lightweight!”
“I’m not seven feet tall and built like Thor!”
Before she could protest, he pulled her onto his lap, “Precisely. You’re light as a feather. And too cute for your own good!”
His fingers dipped into the wine before they painted her lips while his other hand thrust into her hair. With her lips only a fraction of an inch from his, her tongue inadvertently darted out to lick the wine off at the same time as his mouth closed over hers. His fingers entwined in her tresses to hold her head when she went limp against him.
He scrunched down into the couch, turning while cradling her on his wide chest and deepening the kiss. She jerked when Rose’s voice filtered through her fog of desire, “Where the hell did everyone… OH!”
Laughter rumbled in his chest as Dana pulled back from his mouth, dragging in a huge gasp of air as he growled, “Would you please disappear, Rose? We’re trying to see a movie here!”
Dana blinked down at him with her mouth hanging open but, when she tried to push off his chest, he tightened his grip, “Where are you going? We’re watching a movie, remember?”
“Um… yeah… what movie was that?”
He nodded, amusement flooding his face, “I have no idea! More wine?”
She laughed as she shook her head, shooting Rose a glance but she was quickly headed to her room, “Oh, my god! Would you let me go?”
He shook his head, “Letting go of something on fire is not in my nature. I’m a firefighter, remember?”
She giggled as he drew her back down to him, “Really, Chad, I’m not used to…”
“Ahhh! Allow me to familiarize you!”
She cursed as his lips closed over hers again but forgot what her protest was as his firm lips teased hers into submission. He tucked her between the back of the sofa and himself before deepening the kiss, spiraling an ache throughout and a whimper up her throat which immediately sobered her. She angrily pushed at him, unwilling to fall into bed with a man she’d just met regardless if he was a god in disguise.
He broke the kiss and leaned back so she immediately said, “Stop! Let me up… right now!”
His eyebrows shot up, “No more movie?”
“Cut it out, Chad. All my belongings just burned and you’re trying to fuck me? I mean, I know you just rescued me but… damn!”
He immediately released her, “I got carried away. I wasn’t trying to… crap! I know how it looked and… I’m sorry.”
She scrambled over him, shaking her head, “Jesus… I’ve never met someone so damn overwhelming!”
He winced but called out when she reached the doorway, “Hey, I’m just interested—really, I…”
Seeing her expression, he cringed, “…apologize, okay?”
Scowling at him, she finally nodded and quickly entered the room. Rose glanced over in surprise at her angry expression, “Uh-oh! What’d he do?”
Dana shook her head, “I wish you would have warned me. That man is… holy shit!”
Rose burst out in a fit of giggles as she shook her head, stuttering out, “Don’t… oh, hell… don’t be mad at him. He’s always had a thing for tiny blondes!”
Dana took a deep breath and rolled her eyes, “Just my luck! I get rescued by an irresistible eight-arm octopus who…”
Noticing the amused look on Rose’s face, she groaned as her cheeks reddened. Rose glanced at the ceiling to give her a moment, “If he’s irresistible, why are you in here with me?”
Dana practically snapped, “Because I’m not that type!”
Rose calmly asked, “What type
would that be?”
Dana frowned, “The type to be lured into bed with a guy who fucks anything that moves.”
“Whoa… you pegged him wrong! Look, even though he’s affectionate and may seem like he fucks around, he’s pretty damn selective.”
Doubting that, Dana’s face twisted in disbelief as she climbed down into the bed. Rose shrugged, “Suit yourself but, I’m telling you, he’s choosy. Give him a break. He just saved your ass.”
The Ultimate Erotic Short Story Collection 19: 11 Steamingly Hot Erotica Books For Women Page 11