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Elizabeth blinked, a totally deceptive innocent look on her face, which she managed to hold for three full seconds before it crumbled into a mischievous smile. “What would be the fun in that?”
“Thanks for the heads up, Elizabeth.”
“No problem. I’ll hitch a ride with you once you get all your photo gear together.” The way she and the other matchmakers could get you to do things you hadn’t agreed to was a superpower, and I wanted to learn it. Badly. “Make it snappy dear, before the whole thing is over when we get there.”
Ten minutes later, I had just enough gear to get the pictures I needed. It was more important to get the photos than it was to make them artistic, though that was my plan.
“Here we are.”
“Thanks for the ride, Janey.”
“No problem,” I told her distractedly, my gaze already on the orange and purple blaze lighting up the sky. Strange how something so destructive could be so beautiful. My fingers itched to capture it all, and I jumped from the car and grabbed my easy hand-held camera with the multi-use lens. From the moment my feet touched the dirt, I didn’t stop shooting. The fire was wild, and the gentle breeze made it difficult to contain, but watching Rafe and the Tulip firefighters work was transfixing. I couldn’t look away as I snapped photo after photo of the firefighters listening to the orders Rafe issued, nodding and disbursing to do his bidding.
And Rafe, watching him in action was as hypnotic as if he’d been naked. He stood tall, with his spine straight and one hand on his hip and he issued commands to the waiting team. They respected his knowledge and trusted him to guide them through the dangerous maze of the mill. He didn’t just bark orders though, he asked questions and deferred to his men when it was needed, and he used a firm hand to make sure they got medical attention when they needed it. Watching the way he commanded and cared in equal measure, I was more attracted to Rafe than ever.
In that moment, what I wanted crystallized. Solidified. Rafe Montgomery. I wanted him as badly as I did that night in Santa Fe and I had no good reason to keep fighting it. Not when I’d already determined that he would never want more, and certainly not with me. Which meant my heart was in no actual danger.
But I could enjoy a few days or weeks of being in his arms, of experiencing the erotic pleasures he could give me. Of dragging my tongue up and down his naked body. Yeah, I could definitely do that.
An idea started to form, and once the fire had been fully extinguished, I made my escape since Elizabeth had gotten a ride with Betty. Everyone was safe, but for the mill was completely destroyed. The property was neglected, and no one was quite sure who owned it anyway.
Once at home, I took a quick shower and went through the photos I’d taken, sending a few relevant ones to Ginger, so she would have art for the stories on the fire in the Gazette tomorrow morning. With a tall glass of peach and bourbon tea, I looked at the photos I’d taken of Rafe and his men. The job they did and how seriously they took it was mesmerizing, and I knew these photos were the beginning of something new. Something different.
The sound of the doorbell pulled me out of my thoughts and I blinked away the eyestrain. “Coming!” No one in Tulip stood on ceremony, so it could have been anyone. But my money was on my Uncle Leland, who loved nothing more than a late evening drive-by, like he might catch me in the middle of an orgy or something. I pulled the door open and froze.
Rafe stood on my doorstep shirtless, in nothing but his protective fire pants. “Here’s your proof.” His voice was low and deep. Thick with desire. “What are you gonna do about it?”
I don’t know how I managed it, but I swallowed around the lump in my throat and tore my gaze from his naked torso to his smirking face. Then I grabbed him by those really hot red suspenders and yanked him inside my house with a smile just for him.
“So. Many. Things.”RafeWhat was meant to be a cute gesture and yeah, sure, a bit of a bluff calling, had quickly turned into…something else. After the fire at the mill and all the paperwork that comes along with a structure being rendered useless from fire and water damage, I didn’t want to go home. So, I grabbed a pair of the extra protective fire pants and did something that ended up working out.
The look in Janey’s eyes when she saw me in my pants and fire hat, was priceless. Her obvious approval was enough to have me hard in an instant. It fired up my blood so it slogged through my veins, slowing down every second until it felt like ten. And when she grabbed my suspenders and yanked me inside, making promises I hoped she planned on keeping, I was powerless to do anything but give in. We’d been dancing around each other enough and this was the culmination of that.
