“Love usually is.”
“Hey, easy. No one said anything about love,”
Riley shrugged. “Call it whatever you want. But you two both obviously have some sort of feelings for each other. I know about the whole thing where he missed your drink date, by the way.”
“He told you about that?”
“Yup. He was pretty upset that it happened.”
“So, was it true, then? That he got called for an emergency.”
Riley nodded. “I think he could have handled it better, and given you a better explanation before just disappearing for three days like that. But he did get called to a wildfire pretty unexpectedly. The fire season is nearly over, so the crew doesn’t get many calls. In the middle of the summer, they were almost constantly gone. Now it’s once every other week or so. Hunter says pretty soon they’ll be done until next fire season. But I guarantee you that Luke didn’t expect an emergency call that night. And it’s true what he told you about not taking his phone on the job. None of the guys take their cell phones with them.”
River took a long, slow sip from her coffee. “Maybe I overreacted a little bit. I’m just so used to being treated horribly by guys like Luke.”
“What do you mean, ‘guys like Luke’?” Riley asked.
“You know, guys who look amazing and can get any girl they want. They’re usually assholes who are only after one thing, and don’t bother to give you the time of day after they get it.”
Riley shook her head. “Luke’s not like that. He’s definitely good-looking, but he’s not an asshole. He’s actually really sweet once you get to know him.”
“So you think I should give him another chance? Do you think he’s still interested in me now, anyway?”
Riley tilted her head sideways. “I can’t tell you what to do, and I can’t speak for Luke. But I’m willing to bet that if you two can find a way to give each other a chance, you have a good shot at finding happiness together.”
River stared down at her coffee without speaking. She felt more foolish than ever about treating Luke so harshly. Maybe she needed to consider getting rid of her strict rules and admit that every handsome guy she met wasn’t, in fact, an asshole.
Riley seemed to sense that River needed time to process everything. “Just think about it, River. Don’t put pressure on yourself to do something you don’t want to do, but don’t give up a shot at happiness because you’re scared of being hurt. There are some good guys out there.”
River nodded, then sighed wearily as she stood. “Okay. I’ll think about it. Right now I’ve got to get going to get everything set up for book club, though.”
“Is tonight romance or fantasy fiction?” Riley asked, standing up as well.
“Romance,” River said, then gave Riley a rueful smile. “I’m not sure I want to sit through a long discussion of a romantic hero at the moment, but duty calls.”
Riley smiled back at River. “You’ll be fine. Treat yourself to an extra slice of pie tonight. Here, I’ll help you carry them out, since your knight in shining armor isn’t around today.”
Riley grabbed a few of the boxes and followed River out to the Jeep. After giving Riley a quick hug and thanking her, River headed for the library. She eyed the sky suspiciously as she unloaded the first few boxes of pies and took them inside. Dark, angry storm clouds were gathering, threatening to let loose a torrent of rain. River quickly ran back to get the second round of pies, and got inside just as the skies opened. Thunder, lightning, and violent winds joined with a huge downpour of rain to create one of the worst thunderstorms that River had seen in a long time.
She thought that a storm of that intensity wouldn’t last long, but it continued for over an hour. As the clock ticked closer to the time that the book club was scheduled to start, River’s phone started lighting up with texts. One by one, the members of the book club all said they weren’t going to make it that night, due to the weather. River sat in the library alone, feeling dejected and staring at five boxes of pies. What in the world was she going to do with so much pie?
The rain continued, but finally slowed from a violent storm into a soft, steady shower. River opened the box of key lime pie and cut herself a generous slice. She slowly munched on the sweet, tart confection as she watched the rain sliding down the large front windows of the library. She could have just gone home, but something about being in the library alone in the middle of a rainstorm felt cozy and safe. She inhaled deeply, breathing in the scent of the hundreds of books that lined the shelves behind her. The moment felt peaceful, and for the first time in several weeks, she felt truly happy. Even if her life wasn’t a shining example of having all your shit together, at least she had a decent job and a few good friends. What more could you ask for, really?
As River shoved another bite of pie into her mouth, she saw blurry headlights pulling into the parking lot. She frowned and walked to the window, trying to make out whose car had just arrived. Everyone in the book club had said they weren’t coming, and it was now thirty minutes past the start time. It would be weird for anyone to show up at this point. And the library was clearly closed. All of the lights were out.
Suddenly, River went from feeling cozy to feeling creeped out at being alone in a dark building filled with nothing but books. Maybe someone was just returning books to the book drop, but the middle of a rainstorm seemed like an odd time to do that. She pressed her face up against the window, trying to see what kind of vehicle had driven into the parking lot. It looked like some sort of large SUV.
The SUV parked right next to River’s Jeep, and the lights turned off a moment later. In the dim light of the streetlights, River saw a tall figure get out in the middle of the pouring rain. Even though the light was awful, River knew right away that it was Luke. Something deep inside of her reacted to the sight of him. Like a magnet, she felt her heart drawn to him. Without stopping to think, she ran to the front door of the library and out into the rain, where Luke was standing and staring at the library, probably trying to figure out if anyone was actually in there.
“Luke!” River shouted, as the cold November rain hit her skin. He turned his intense gaze to look at her, and River started running toward him. Her hair which she had pulled back into a messy bun, turned frizzy almost instantly. Loose tendrils curled up into ringlets around her face. Her thick, red sweater and black leggings soaked through to her skin as she jumped into Luke’s arms. He was more soaked then she was. His hair was spiking out in a hundred different directions, and his light blue button down shirt was plastered to his skin.
“River,” Luke said, taking her cheeks in his hands as she ran up to him. River felt warmth shooting out of Luke’s hands and flooding her body. She had always thought people were exaggerating when they said they had that kind of chemistry with someone, but Luke affected her in a way no one ever had before.
“I’m so sorry,” River said. “I acted like such an idiot. I should have been more understanding. There you are, working so hard and risking your life to protect the beautiful forests around here, and I’m mad because you had to cancel a silly date for a drink.”
Luke blinked away the small streams of water that were running down his face. River had never seen eyes that looked so warm and inviting. What had she been thinking, labeling him an asshole? Riley was right—underneath Luke’s gorgeous exterior was a sweet, sensitive man.
“River, I’m the one who’s sorry. I should have explained things better. I’m such a blundering idiot when it comes to this kind of stuff. I didn’t mean to hurt you, or make you think that I didn’t care enough about you to get back to you.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” River said. “You were right. I judged you and decided we didn’t have anything in common before I even knew you.”
Luke blinked rapidly again. River couldn’t be sure, but it looked almost like he was blinking away tears in addition to rainwater.
“I made you something,” he said. “I came here to beg you again to fo
rgive me, and to give me a chance to show you that we are compatible. Or, at least, that we have a chance at being compatible. I wanted to put some time and effort into proving that to you, so I made you something. Come here.” Luke reached out and grabbed River’s hand pulling her toward the rear of the SUV. His hand was rough, but strong and warm. River tried to memorize the way it felt against her palm.
When they got to the back of the vehicle, Luke fumbled with the lift gate until he managed to open it.
“Sorry,” he said as he pushed the gate upward. “This isn’t my car, actually. I borrowed it from my buddy, Trevor, because I needed the space to transport your gift.”
Curious, River looked into the back of the SUV. The middle seats were folded flat to make more room, and a large, wooden mass that appeared to be a bookshelf filled the interior space.
“A bookshelf?” River asked, running her finger gingerly across the smooth wood of the bottom shelf.
“Yes. I made it. I don’t think you can see from here, but I carved a river scene into the panel at the top.”
“You made this?” River’s voice sounded incredulous. She could only see a small portion of the shelf from her current vantage point, but she could already tell that the piece was beautiful. This obviously was not Luke’s first attempt at woodworking. His cheeks reddened in the dim streetlights, and he looked slightly embarrassed as he nodded.
“Yeah, I made it. I wanted to show you that you matter to me as a person. I might not be an avid reader like you, but I think it’s really cool that you love books. It’s important to have something that you’re passionate about. I thought about buying you a special book, but I don’t know what kind of stuff you like to read, or what you already have. And since I’m not much of a bookworm myself, trying to figure out which books were good enough to be special wasn’t an easy task. I decided to stick with something I know I’m good at, and put my woodworking skills to good use. I’m sure you already have many books that are special to you. Now you have somewhere special to store them.”
River stared at the bookshelf, taking in its lovely finish and smooth edges.
“Luke, this is beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like it. Where did you learn to build things like this?”
Luke shrugged. “I had a lot of angst in my younger years, and I needed some sort of physical outlet for it. I started woodworking as a hobby to distract me from deeper thoughts, and I eventually got really good at it. But I joined the army several years back, and hadn’t built anything since then. I guess trying to impress a pretty girl was as good a reason as any to get back into it.”
It was River’s turn to blush. “This is amazing, Luke. I can’t believe you put all this effort into something for me. Especially after I tried so hard to get rid of you.”
Luke beamed at River’s praise. “Wait until you see the whole thing standing up. I think the river scene I carved at the top turned out really awesome. I don’t want to pull it out here in the rain though.”
River looked up at the dark sky. The rain didn’t show any signs of stopping.
“I’m here by myself, because the other book club members didn’t want to come out in the storm. Which means I can leave anytime I want,” River said. “We could take it back to my place right now.” The statement sounded way more sexual than River had intended it to sound, but she didn’t care. The idea of Luke coming over made her heart flutter. She grinned when he nodded.
“Okay,” Luke said. “Do you want me to just follow you?”
“That works. Let me go lock up the building really quickly and then we can go.”
River ran back into the library, and grabbed the box of key lime pie. She left the other pie boxes sitting on the meeting room table. She’d have to figure out what to do with them tomorrow. Right now, she had a sexy, hot firefighter waiting for her outside.
River bounded back to her Jeep, and placed the pie on the passenger seat. Her wet clothes were going to soak through the fabric of the driver’s seat, but the Jeep was old and it wasn’t the first time it had been subjected to harsh treatment. It would dry out.
Luke had already climbed back into the SUV. His face was blurred and distorted by the rain running down the windows of both of their vehicles, but River could still see the smile he flashed at her when she gave him a quick thumbs up. Her stomach filled with butterflies, and her automatic reaction was to tell herself not to think of him in a sexual way because it was too soon. But she caught herself, and gave herself a pep talk out loud as she put the Jeep in drive.
“Enough with the stupid rules, River,” she told herself. “Just have fun, and give Luke a chance. If he wants to kiss you, then let him give you a damn kiss.”
River’s cheeks turned warm at the thought of Luke’s lips on her lips. She couldn’t bring herself to say it out loud, but she knew that she wanted more than just his lips. She wanted his arms around her, his skin against her skin, and his body in her body. She had always denied herself any kind of physical relationship with a guy until after several dates, but she had never felt so strongly attracted to anyone before. Some kind of primal force drew her to Luke. She wanted him, and she could tell that he wanted her, too.
She hadn’t given up on her desire for a relationship and romance. She still wanted more than just a quick fling. But her rollercoaster of emotions since she’d met Luke had made her realize that all of her dating rules didn’t account for the possibility of love at first sight. And River was quickly realizing that she had loved Luke since the moment she met him. She should have listened to her initial gut reaction about Luke. It sounded crazy, but she knew somewhere deep down that they were meant to be together. From the way he acted around her, she was willing to bet that Luke felt the same way.
And she had a feeling that she was about to find out exactly how he felt.
Chapter Six
The rain kept coming as River pulled into her apartment complex. She parked in a spot with an open spot right next to her, so that Luke could pull in beside her. She hopped out of her vehicle, not caring that she was getting a fresh dose of rainwater as she did. She was already soaked through, so what difference did it make? Luke got out of his vehicle as well, squinting his eyes against the downpour.
“I think we should still wait to move the bookshelf,” he said. “The rain is still coming down so fast that it will get soaked even on the short walk to the building.”
River nodded. “I agree. Do you want to come up and hang out for a bit, and see if it stops? I have pie,” she teased.
“One of Riley’s pies?” Luke asked. River nodded, and Luke grinned. “Well, I would be an idiot to pass up a Sweet Crust pie, now wouldn’t I? Lead the way.”
River grinned back at Luke. She knew they both had a sneaking suspicion that pie was not going to be the highlight of the evening. River quickly opened the passenger door to grab the pie from inside the Jeep. Then she took off at a brisk walk toward her apartment building, with Luke close behind her. They raced up the stairs to her third floor apartment, drenched but laughing. River fumbled with her keys for a moment, and finally got the door open. She stepped inside, thankful that entryway had vinyl tile instead of carpet. Water was running down both of their bodies like little streams.
In the year and a half that River had lived in this particular apartment, she had never had a man over. She felt suddenly self-conscious about the small, plain look of her place. The apartment was a tiny one bedroom of about five hundred square feet. She had a small couch and a folding table for a dining room table. Her television sat on the floor because she had never bothered to buy a TV stand. She always kept the place neat and clean, but she hadn’t decorated that much. Stacks of books were piled in neat rows against the walls. River blushed, realizing that Luke’s gift of a bookshelf had been more appropriate than he realized.
“Sorry, it’s small and I don’t have much furniture. But it’s home for me,” River said.
Luke smiled at her. “Nothing wrong with small. You’re just o
ne person living here. No sense in wasting space. I like it. The books everywhere are very appropriate. Although it looks like I might have to build you a second bookshelf. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen one person own so many books.”
“Yeah, it’s an obsession. I’m trying to cut back on buying new ones. I don’t have any room for more books, and I can usually find whatever I want to read at the library, anyway.”
They stood in the entryway, dripping little puddles onto the floor and looking at each other for several moments. River should have said something…Maybe offer Luke a towel, or try to find him an oversized t-shirt that might fit—although she doubted that even her baggiest t-shirt could stretch over those muscles. But all she did was stare at him with an awkward, lovestruck look. In all fairness to her, he looked back at her with the same expression. His eyes seemed to be almost swirling, and the intense look he always gave her grew fiercer than ever.
“River,” he said softly. There was no need to say anything else. That one word, her name on his tongue, said everything she needed to know. It held a statement and a question all at once. He wanted her, and he was asking if she wanted him, too. She took a deep breath, and then gave him a coy smile.
“We’re both soaking wet,” she said. “We should get out of these clothes.”
She kicked off her shoes, and then reached down to grab the hem of her sweater, pulling it over her head and letting it drop with a splat onto the tile. She reached down to grab the hem of her leggings, pulling them down to her ankles and stepping out of them. She stood in front of Luke in her matching, lacy turquoise bra and underwear. Thank god she always wore nice underwear. She had decided long ago that she deserved pretty bras and panties for herself, even if a man wasn’t going to see them. Now that a man was seeing them, she was thankful she hadn’t succumbed to wearing grungy old underwear. River vaguely realized that the temperature had dropped and she hadn’t turned on the heat in her apartment, but she didn’t feel cold. Her beating heart was sending burning hot blood coursing through her body, warming her at the anticipation of Luke’s touch.
A Burn To Bear (Fire Bear Shifters Book 3) Page 4