Page 35 of Burn With Me

By the time we arrived home, I’d received an entire rundown of what it really meant to be in a BDSM lifestyle relationship. Also, I was clear on how much Beck wanted me to call him. She thought it was appropriate that he was the first guy I’d been interested in since my years-long hiatus began and that we were made for one another. I wasn’t so sure.

On the one hand, I had to admit the lifestyle seemed interesting and something I’d like to learn more about, but on the other hand, if the girl that stormed in on our date was any indication of what he wanted from me, then he could forget it.

Even though I couldn’t hear what she was saying, it was obvious she was begging him to either take her back or maybe she just wanted him to fuck her again. I didn’t know for sure, but I never wanted to be ‘that girl,’ begging some guy in the middle of a crowd to take her back. I’d spent way too much time carving out a piece of this male-dominated world for myself, and I was respected. Becoming his plaything, pet, slave, or whatever else Beck called it seemed like a step back. No, it seemed like a leap backward.

I wasn’t sure I wanted a relationship at all. Let alone one with a million rules, punishments, and everything else that Beck seemed all dreamy-eyed about. It certainly explained his attitude and why he asked to touch me.

Stepping out of the shower, I twirled up my hair into a towel and wanted nothing more than a good night’s sleep. As I snuggled into my bed with Heathrow curled up beside me, my phone dinged.

Grabbing the phone off the nightstand, I saw Asher’s text. Ignoring it, I placed the phone back down. Whatever he had to say could wait until tomorrow. My brain was way too tired to deal with him at the moment.

My phone dinged again, and I ignored it. But it began to ring. Pissed off now, I grabbed the phone. Just as I was about to hit talk, I realized it was my boss, reining in my annoyance.

“Mitch? What’s going on?”

“We have another one.”

I closed my eyes. “Text me the address.”

Hanging up the phone I was tempted to roll over, pull the covers over my head and go to sleep. This arsonist seemed to be determined to make sure I didn’t get a single, good nights sleep, ever again.

Asher

“Whoa dude, what is your problem,” Wheels asked as he rounded the corner to my office. I was currently glowering at my computer screen. “Everyone is scared to come to tell you that lunch is ready.”

Pushing myself back from the desk, I stared up at my friend, who’d decided he wasn’t leaving. Unlike the rest of those who worked here, he wasn’t smart when it came to staying away from angry things. Probably part of the reason he loved angry sex so much.

“I’m annoyed.”

“I can see that,” Wheels said.

“And I’m frustrated.”

“Why?”

Sighing, I relented. “Have you ever messaged a girl, and she didn’t get back to you?” It may have seemed like a stupid question, but this was a new situation for me, and I wasn’t sure how to handle it.

“Um…like every day. But that’s me, and I’m a pig, so I get it. Why? Who’s not calling you back?” Wheels leaned against the door frame. “Whoa, not the girl that was here the other night?”

“No, not Britnay, but feel free to contact her.” I tossed the pen I was still holding onto the desktop and pushed myself to my feet. The window allowed me to see the front entrance of the fire station, and I watched the cars as they drove past.

“Naw, she’s hot, but not my type.”

“I’m not sure farm animal is a type,” I said and gave him a smirk.

“Fuck off, man…. Farm animals,” Wheels muttered and then laughed. “Okay, that Jersey cow was sexy, man. She had beautiful eyes.”

I screwed up my face at him as he laughed. “How are we friends?”

“You’re like the only person that will put up with me.” Wheels wandered into the small office and flopped down in my chair and the pushed with his feet so it spun in a circle.

“Gee, I wonder why. Anyway, I met someone that is…I don’t know.”

I looked out the window and watched as an antique, blue truck drove past. It reminded me of the kind Mr. Giltberts liked to take Derek and me to see. I loved going to the car shows. The smell of the old leather and the vibration of all those revving vehicles was comfortable but exciting. Derek hadn’t liked going at first, and then he fell in love with it. It was one of the few places we went where the people didn’t seem to care about his scar. I hated that I didn’t know where he was. I’d tried to find him so many times, but each attempt ended in a dead end. After the police had taken him, he ended up in a hospital and then disappeared.

It was my fault. I did that to my brother, and I had to live with the fact that I’d never find him if he was even alive.

“Did you hear what I said?” Wheels’s voice jerked me out of my thoughts.