Page 30 of Tempered By Flames

The kiss deepened. Liam wasn’t in a hurry, and he wanted to learn the way Ethan kissed, the way he made small sounds when Liam’s thumb brushed along his cheek, the way his grip on Liam’s shirt tightened whenever Liam tilted his head and changed the angle. Liam wanted to memorize all of it, even though this was far from the only time, but the first of many for them.

Ethan ended up with his back against the arm of the couch and Liam leaning over him. Liam’s elbow nearly bumped into the wine glass on the coffee table, and they both pulled back to look at it, and then at each other. They laughed, and Ethan reached up to push the hair back from Liam’s forehead. Ethan’s eyes were dark and soft, and the look on his face made Liam’s chest ache in the best way.

“Hey,” Ethan murmured.

“Hey.”

Ethan pulled Liam back down. Liam felt Ethan’s hands slide under his shirt, his fingers spreading against his sides, and he had to remind himself to breathe. He pressed closer, one knee between Ethan’s thighs, and felt Ethan’s breath hitch. He wanted more of those sounds, so he moved his mouth down Ethan’s jaw, then to the side of his neck, and Ethan turned his head to give him more room. His fingers curled against Liam’s back.

“Liam,” Ethan said quietly.

“I know,” Liam murmured against Ethan’s throat. He knew. This thing between them mattered too much to rush. He wanted Ethan to be sure he was in his life to stay before taking it further, even though he also desperately wanted to lay Ethan out on the couch and kiss every inch of his skin.

He kissed Ethan’s neck, then his jaw and the corner of his mouth. Ethan shivered. His eyes were a little hazy, and he reached for Liam when Liam leaned back. Liam wanted Ethan to feel wanted because he suspected it wasn’t something that had happened often enough, but there was only so much he could resist.

He settled beside Ethan, still breathing a little hard, and Ethan moved to lean against his side. His head ended up on Liam’s shoulder as if it belonged there. Liam rested his cheek against the top of Ethan’s head and breathed him in. They had all the time in the world to do more during their next date, but Liam wanted Ethan to trust him, and he knew it would take more than a dinner for that to happen.

“I like you,” Liam said.

Ethan was quiet for a moment. “I like you, too. It’s a bit inconvenient.”

Liam smiled. He had no idea where Ethan was going. “Oh?”

“I had a whole system. I was very comfortable being alone.”

“And now?”

Ethan tipped his head back to look up at Liam. “And now you’re here, and you brought me sunflowers, and you ate everything on your plate and told me the salmon was perfect.”

“It was perfect.”

“It was a little overcooked.”

“It was perfect,” Liam repeated firmly.

Ethan laughed, and Liam kissed him again because he could. Ethan was warm and laughing, and Liam wanted to kiss him until his lips chapped.

They stayed tangled on the couch, talking and falling silent, then talking again. At one point, Ethan traced the edge of the tattoo on Liam’s shoulder through his shirt, and Liam had to concentrate very hard on not making it obvious how much that affected him. He was doing well. He was being perfectly reasonable about it all, even though he wanted to drag Ethan to his bedroom.

Liam’s phone rang. Liam tensed before he even looked at the screen. He didn’t want to leave Ethan.

He sat up, as did Ethan. Liam grabbed the phone and frowned when he saw it was his captain. There could only be one reason for Taylor to call him when he wasn’t on shift.

“Go,” Ethan said.

“I haven’t even—”

“Liam. Go. Your captain isn’t calling to chat.”

Liam answered. Taylor’s voice was tight and clipped when he explained that an industrial building on the east side was in flames. All off-duty personnel were being called in, including Liam.

He didn’t have a choice. He moved fast, pulling on his jacket and patting his pockets for his keys. Ethan had stood, too. He was watching Liam with an expression that was composed, the way someone’s expression looked when they were used to keeping their feelings to themselves. Liam didn’t like it, but he had to go anyway.

“I’m sorry,” Liam said, because he was. The evening had been exactly what he’d hoped it would be, and he didn’t want it to end, especially not this way.

“Don’t be,” Ethan said. “It’s your job. Go do it.”

Liam moved toward him. He took Ethan’s face in both hands and kissed him hard. Ethan’s hands came up to grab his wrists, and he pulled back just enough to look at Ethan.