Good times, Cody thought back. In spite of Mom’s issues.
“I can’t even imagine being snowed in and having to cook,” Cassie said. “Right on my block in Manhattan, there were three restaurants and a grocery store.”
“So you’re from New York,” he said. “Why did you come to Alaska?”
A shadow crossed her face. “Long story.”
“I’ve been told I’m a good listener,” Cody said.
“But I’m the one who should be listening to your story. Snowed in? Hunting and gathering? That sounds like … something out of a movie.”
“We’re from different worlds, for sure.”
She studied him. “I bet we’re alike in some ways, though.”
“Oh yeah?” He liked that idea. “How?”
She shrugged, then smiled coyly. “I guess we’ll have to find out.”
Cody Bradford was a damn fine cook, Cassie thought as she sat at the long table with all eight firefighters and dug into the moose stew. It had tender pieces of meat, chunks of potatoes, carrots, onion, and rutabaga, in a thick soup so rich that it wouldn’t be out of place in a fine French restaurant.
She wasn’t just impressed with his cooking. Cody was a damn fine specimen of a human being, too. They all were, these firefighters, and she wondered what they’d been fed as boys to grow into such strongly chiseled men. She thought there was more masculinity at that table alone than in all of New York City.
Not much talking went on as they ate bowl after bowl of stew. Cassie had always been a slow eater, but the guys ate fast, and she surmised they did so in case a call came in. The ebb and flow of their day was similar to her own in the newsroom, wherein you could only plan your day so much. News happened whether or not it was convenient.
She liked being in their midst, sitting at the table with them. She had simultaneous feelings of intimidation by their strong presence, yet reassurance by the sense of courtesy they’d shown her all day long. She felt protected, too, in a way she never had before. Not until her stalker had made himself known had she realized that could be something she wanted in her life. Any of these guys would risk their life to save hers, and she sensed it wasn’t just because of their job, but because of the kind of men they were.
Besides the Engine One crew—Cody’s crew—Cassie had been introduced to the firefighters of Ladder One: the captain, Tom Steele; the engineer, a skinny, friendly guy named Nate Halstead; and the two firefighters, Josh Barnes and Troy Garrett. Troy, it was explained, was temporarily in the spot belonging to a firefighter/paramedic currently deployed overseas with the Army.
“So how long are you staying with us tonight, Cassie?” Jack Barnes asked toward the end of dinner. “And what more do you need from us?”
“Everything’s been great,” she said. “We got good footage today, and everybody was so helpful when I asked questions about the job. I think I have just about everything I need, except … well … I think I need more Cody.”
Cody hung his head to hide his red face while the other guys roared with laughter. She’d known they would, and she hoped Cody wasn’t too embarrassed by her declaration. Just a little, she hoped. Cody had such a quiet gravity that she had an irrepressible urge to throw him off guard. Every smile she’d gotten from him had felt well-earned; she’d had to work for them, and she wasn’t used to that.
“What I meant,” she said when the laughter died down, “is I want to get a better sense of who he is outside of work. I feel like I have a good handle on the fire station and how it runs and how you all work together, but I need an anchor for my story, someone to thread through the narrative. So a quick interview with him, Captain, and I’ll be on my way.”
“Take your time,” said Jack. “Since he cooked, he’s off cleaning duty, so Cody’s all yours.”
This time Cassie was the one who hung her head. The idea of Cody being all hers—physically, anyway—was a deliciously dangerous thought. She hadn’t planned on dating at all in Golden Falls, but not dating meant no sex, and if Cody was by some crazy chance interested and willing … she could already tell that turning down sex with him would be damned near impossible. His rock-hard body begged to be explored—or maybe she had that backwards. She wasn’t the begging sort, but the idea of his lips on hers, followed by those lips moving across the rest of her … yep, begging was not off the table. Please fuck me, Cody, was not out of the realm of possibility of things she’d whisper in his ear, given the opportunity.
But how to get that opportunity?
You’re clever, she thought. Figure it out.
She stood. “Can we go talk, Cody?”
She started to clear her plate, but Sean was quick to stop her, saying she was a guest and to let the rest of them do it. As she and Cody went to the living room, she again grew self-conscious, and her heart pounded like she was a preteen with her very first crush. She brought out her reporter’s notebook, pen, and a digital recorder, which she held up to show him.
“Do you mind? This is just for my own notes to make sure I get everything right.”
He looked at the recorder with a quirked eyebrow. “If you must.”
She smiled. In her world, it was hard to know the truth about a person sometimes—politicians lied by nature, PR people had a spin to everything, and everyone wanted to put their best self forward. But Cody just didn’t care. He was refreshingly, unapologetically himself, and she liked that.
They sat in recliners. Cassie turned on the recorder and set it on the thick arm of the chair. The recorder was a top-of-the-line device with a great range, which allowed her to set it to the side. Her interview subjects usually forgot all about it within minutes, and then they were more forthcoming.
“So, Cody.” She gave him what she hoped was a winning smile. “What do I still need to know about you?”
Favorite position in bed …
Size of your …
Naughty, she chastised herself.
“It depends,” Cody said. “What do you want to know about me?”
Everything. Every damn thing.
A brash New Yorker by birth and upbringing, she was used to going after what she wanted and getting it, men included. But Cody was a different breed than the men she’d sought out before, and she wasn’t sure the direct approach was the way to go with him. She wanted to ask if he had a girlfriend, and to know what he liked in a woman, and did he have any interest in her at all? Did she, a city girl in every way, stand a chance with an Alaska man like him? But any one of those questions might shut him down. Or scare him off.
With Cody it might be better to start slow. To stay on safe ground. To reel him in like a fish on a line, not that she’d ever done that before or had any idea how.
“Did you always know you wanted to be a firefighter?” she asked.
“Not really,” he said. “I guess I just fell into it.”
“How does somebody just fall into it?”
“Well,” he said, and paused. She could tell he was sizing her up, deciding whether to blow off her questions and give her the minimum acceptable answer or whether he should take her and her questions seriously. Take me seriously, she thought, and he nodded as if he’d gotten her message.
“Well, I grew up north of here, in a town called Bettles.” He smiled slightly. “Population of nine.”
“Only nine thousand people? That’s tiny!”
“Not nine thousand. Just nine.”
Cassie knew her mouth had dropped open comically, and Cody laughed.
“Why on earth were you there?” she asked.
“My dad worked for the National Park Service. He was head ranger at Gates of the Arctic. We lived there year-round—they probably would have let him go south for the winters, but he loved it there. So did I. As soon as I was old enough, twelve or thirteen, I started helping him with stuff—if a bear was harassing campers, or someone got lost, that kind of thing. You get a good feeling from doing good, you know? I guess firefighting felt like a natural fit.”
> “Did you go into it right away, when you were eighteen?”
“No, I was an ice trucker for a couple years, running supplies up to the North Slope. It was great money, but a hell of a job. I couldn’t take it more than a few seasons. By that time, my folks had moved down to the Lower Forty-Eight, and I moved here.”
“Why Golden Falls?”
“I grew up coming here,” he said. “It was the closest big city to Bettles, so—”
“Big city.” Cassie laughed. “It’s only got thirty thousand people!”
“That’s big enough for me,” he said. “We used to come here for shopping trips, for the doctor and dentist, that sort of thing. I like Golden Falls. If you have to be in a city, this one’s all right.”
“It is nice,” Cassie admitted. “I mean, it’s nothing like New York, but—”
“Thank goodness for that.”
“Have you ever been?”
“No way,” he said. “It’s all I can do to force myself to go to Anchorage every now and then. I feel really closed in there. Like a duck in a shooting gallery with all the buildings.”
“Sean said you were a hermit.”
“I’m not, really.” His bright blue eyes bore into hers. “I’m just alone a lot.”
The way he said it made her kind of sad.
“By choice?”
“More like by circumstance.” He shrugged. “It’s just the way it is.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you can’t even get cell reception where I live,” he said. “And there’s no internet access. Not many women are going to put up with that. Even local girls need their WiFi these days.”
“So why don’t you move in closer?”
“Because I love it out there. It’s my ten acres of heaven.”
“You wouldn’t even give it up for a woman?”
“I guess that remains to be seen. If I loved her, maybe. I’ve got to be true to myself before I can be true to someone else.” He gave her a thoughtful look. “How about you? Would you ever drastically change your life for a guy?”
“I already have,” Cassie said, thinking of Stalker Doug and his dangerous obsession that had forced her out of the only place she’d ever called home.
Cody leaned forward, close to her, elbows on his knees. Cassie could feel him studying her, trying to figure her out.
“Was it worth it?” he asked.
Cassie’s breath caught. She hungered for him to kiss her. She knew he wouldn’t—not here, not now. The other firefighters were keeping their distance, but their presence was palpable. And with the conversation taking a turn for the personal, she turned off the voice recorder.
“That remains to be seen,” she said, echoing him.
“Are you seeing someone now?” he said. “Did you move here with someone?”
She shook her head, pleased he was asking.
“Did you leave someone behind?”
“Not in the way you think.”
HIs eyes twinkled. “You think you know me well enough to know how I think?”
“Fair enough,” she said. “I guess I don’t.”
His smile felt like an invitation. Or maybe she just wanted it to feel that way, because she had enough for her interview and the thought of walking out the fire station door and never seeing him again made her heart hurt.
“But I’d like to,” she added. “What would you think about showing me around?” She cursed the nervous squeak in her voice. “You could show me how real Alaskans spend their time. I’ve got a lot to learn, and I’m sure my news director would appreciate my learning sooner rather than later.”
“I could do that.” Cody grinned at the idea. “I could give you a whole series of Alaska lessons.”
“Yes! Alaska lessons!” Cassie’s heart jumped more at the idea of seeing him again than getting the lessons, although she was sure they’d be fun, too. “What kind of things would you teach me?”
“I’ll give it some thought. You leave it to me.”
Cody in charge. It was a tantalizing thought.
“Okay,” she agreed.
“Alaska lessons,” he mused, and Cassie felt him taking in her pearl earrings, her Gucci loafers, her expensive outfit. “I’ve got to warn you—whatever we do, it’ll be dirty.”
Oh, now that’s just asking for it.
“Trust me, Cody,” she said. “I can do dirty.”
6
Early the next week, Cassie stood in her walk-in closet and scowled. She had tailored suits, silk blouses, pencil skirts, embellished black skinny jeans, a leather cocktail dress—no, no, no, no, and no. She had nothing appropriate for Alaska lessons, Cody Bradford style.
He’d be picking her up soon and had told her to dress casually, but casual wasn’t really her thing. She liked high heels, expensive labels, bold makeup, and sparkly jewelry. She’d had a generous allowance all through college and used it to put her feminine wiles on full display.
She didn’t think she even owned anything flannel.
It was a dilemma, and she decided to call the one person she knew would be able to offer her a solution—her best friend, Abby, who’d moved to Atlanta for her newspaper reporter job the same week Cassie moved to Golden Falls for her TV job. They’d met their first week in grad school and had been inseparable ever since. Abby was one of the few people who knew where Cassie was and her true reasons for being there.
“Hey, hey!” she said when Abby answered. “Guess who?”
“My crazy Alaska friend! Girl, you should have been out with me last night. So. Much. Fun. Atlanta’s a hopping town. Tons of smart, preppy boys who like to buy women expensive drinks.”
“Did you go dancing?”
“You know it. I danced until dawn.”
Cassie missed the club scene. She’d never been much of a drinker, but she loved music and dancing, the glitter and the glitz. She loved getting dressed beforehand with girlfriends and anticipating the night ahead and what sort of fun and men it might bring. Truth be told, Cassie loved to flirt. The fact that her attempts to flirt with Cody seemed to have gone unrewarded so far had perplexed her to no end.
“Listen, Abby, I need help. You know that sort-of date I have today?”
“With your hunky firefighter?”
“Right. I have no idea what to wear, so I’m relying on your wisdom to help me figure it out.”
“Ooh, fun. What look are you going for?”
“Sexy outdoor Alaska chick,” Cassie said.
Abby laughed. “There’s no such thing.”
“Hey, you’re not allowed to diss my new hometown!” Cassie said. “You’ve never even been here—what do you know?”
Cassie had already texted Abby all the details about Cody and her date—was it even a date? She didn’t know!—because she’d needed to share her excitement with someone and didn’t yet know anyone in town in whom she could confide. In return, she’d gotten a ton of messages about how much Abby loved Atlanta and all the new friends she was meeting through work and meetups and online dates, which left Cassie wishing she were in Atlanta, too. Or at least in a big city with people more like her, where she belonged.
It was a new and not altogether pleasant experience to feel like the odd woman out. There was a term for newcomers to Alaska—Cheechako—and it wasn’t complimentary. Most found they couldn’t handle the winters and lasted less than a year, so long-timers didn’t bother investing much time in developing friendships with them until they’d stuck around for a full year. Like it or not, Cassie was a Cheechako—worse, even, because she already knew she had no intention of sticking around, as quaint and lovely as Golden Falls was. As soon as she felt she was safe, as soon as he stopped trying to contact her … then the first big-city job offer that came along would have her packing her bags. She missed sushi and concerts and being in a city that never slept.
“Fair enough. I’ve never been to Alaska,” Abby conceded. “I’ll look it up on social media and see what comes up. Hold on.” Cassie
heard typing in the background, and then Abby was back. “Oh, this is pathetic. All I’m getting is girls in overalls and baseball hats.”
“Neither of which I have.”
“I guess do your hair in braids,” Abby said. “And how about wear a black tank with tight denim and a super cute belt? If you show lots of cleavage and highlight your tiny waist, your sexy will be in your shape. That’s really the best I can do for you.”
“I think that could work,” Cassie said. Most importantly, she had the items in her closet. “And then I could soften it up with dainty earrings.”
“And perfume,” Abby said.
“Of course,” Cassie replied. “Always perfume.”
“What are you guys doing?”
“I have no idea.” Cassie smiled. “All I know is Cody said it’ll be dirty.”
“Ooh,” Abby said. “I like the sound of that.”
“Right? I swear, I’ve never been with someone like him before,” Cassie said. “He’s a man in a way no New York guy ever could be. I mean, there are plenty of alpha males in New York, but their brand of alpha is I’ll-slit-your-throat-as-I-climb-over-you-on-my-way-to-the-top. Polished and ass-holey. But Cody is just pure physicality and total competence and he’s got muscles like I’ve never seen before. I cannot wait to feel his biceps, and his pecs, and his abs—preferably when he’s … you know … over me and naked.”
“Pound, pound, pound,” Abby said, and Cassie laughed at the phrase they’d used often when referring to sex.
“The sooner the better,” Cassie said. “I mean, he’s giving me Alaska lessons. Don’t you think sex with the sexiest man in Golden Falls should be one of the lessons?”
“I’d think so.”
“Maybe even today.” Cassie sighed dreamily. “On a bearskin rug.”
“A bearskin rug—now that’s Alaska,” Abby said.
They said their goodbyes, and before Cassie got dressed, she rubbed her favorite scented lotion all over herself to make sure her skin was soft as could be. Cody would like that, she thought. If he touched her, he’d like that.
The thought of him touching her made desire course through her, and the unbidden thought of his cock filling her made her breathless with want.
True North (Golden Falls Fire Book 1) Page 4