Slow Burn (Into The Fire Book 2) Read online

  My breath caught for a beat. It didn’t matter I’d been born and raised in Alaska and its natural beauty was a part of my everyday existence, it still blew me away sometimes. My grandfather, long since passed away, used to refer to the wilderness as God’s cathedral. He hadn’t been a particularly religious man, yet he’d hewed to the belief we must respect the ground on which we walked. I took a slow breath and watched the mountains as we flew above them. The thin ribbon of a river glittered under the sun’s rays. I scanned the horizon as I tracked the path of the river.

  Willow Brook came into view, and Maisie, who’d been permanently parked in my brain for weeks, gave my heart a little nudge. When I was out working a fire, there wasn’t much time to ponder. The metaphor that the days were long was no metaphor for hotshot firefighters in Alaska. The sun was up around four in the morning in the more northern part of the state where we’d been and didn’t set fully until after midnight. A mere four hours at best was what constituted ‘night’ there during the summer. We’d worked dawn until dusk and collapsed every night. Only then, in those exhausted moments before I tumbled into dreamless sleep, did I have much time to think. What little thought I had saved up went to Maisie. I missed her. I’d never missed anyone when I was away.

  The experience of the feeling itself was odd—odd enough it made me shift my shoulders and roll my neck just now. I wondered if she’d be on duty when we landed. She should. The fact I knew her schedule spoke volumes. Funny thing though was I’d known her schedule ever since she’d started working at Willow Brook Fire & Rescue. Right from the start, I’d looked forward to walking in and seeing her. I’d loved how she was so bitchy with all of us at first. She’d long ago moved past that, yet if I was honest, I went out of my way to provoke her because it was damn fun to rile her up. It also turned me on. Now that I’d had a taste of her, everything about her turned me on. Just thinking about the last time I’d seen her got me hard.

  It had been the day after our last mind-blowing interlude in the garage. My crew had gotten the call out the following day. It was my job, and I was entirely accustomed to taking off for weeks at a time. Yet, I hadn’t been able to keep myself from stopping by her desk. I don’t know what I’d wanted, but I’d wanted more than what I got.

  She’d reverted back to being cool with me. It rankled me. That itself was another layer. The way she was getting to me was its own conundrum. I was an easy come-easy go kind of guy. I’d walked into this thinking I’d get my out of control lust for Maisie under control. Instead, all kinds of unexpected side effects were barreling out of control. For starters, being with her had only sent my need for her into the danger zone. I’d always guessed she’d be bold and passionate because it suited her personality. That was how she was, no matter the particular emotion. I hadn’t bargained on how much that would only pour fuel onto the fire of my need for her.

  I shifted in my seat when the memory of her crying out and clenching around me filtered through my thoughts. Fuck. I was so screwed. I should’ve been freaking out about this. Yet, I wasn’t. In fact, I’d pretty much convinced myself it was time to make a major play for her. This very thought should’ve given me pause. What the hell was I thinking? I was thinking Maisie was so fucking hot, all I wanted was more, more, and more. There was that and the way my heart twisted in my chest whenever I thought about her. I had no clue what to think about that because it was something I’d never experienced. All I knew was it fed straight into my desire and vice versa, both feelings feeding into each other.

  The helicopter pilot said something into his headset and then angled our path toward the landing pad behind the fire station. Willow Brook had a tiny airport, like just about every town or village in Alaska. Thousands of small planes took flight across the massive state since much of it wasn’t connected by the highway grid. The small airport in Willow Brook had a few plane hangars and not much else. Its small runway backed up to the fire station, which offered a convenient location for our helipad.

  Once we landed, I climbed out along with the rest of the crew. Fred Banks, the pilot, clapped me on the shoulder when he handed me my gear. “Figure I’ll see you in another few weeks, eh?”

  His blue eyes crinkled at the corners in his weathered face when I glanced his way. Fred was tough as nails and looked it. With his steely gray hair, lithe build and ready smile, he was always a welcome sight at the end of a run out fighting a fire.

  “Usually do, Fred. Where you headed next?” I asked in return.

  “I’m shacking up here for the night, but tomorrow I head to Fairbanks. I’ve got a few flights booked out of there.”

  “Ah, well make sure to grab some good coffee at Firehouse Café before you fly out tomorrow.”

  Fred winked. “Wouldn’t miss it. Janet fixes me up with a to-go lunch too.”

  I chuckled and gave a wave as I headed toward the station. “Of course she does. Until next time.”

  My stride picked up as I approached the station. Usually, I’d head straight for the showers, no pause along the way. Today, I needed to see Maisie first. I kicked the door open with my boot and turned into the hallway that led to the front. Another kick to another door, and there she was.

  She sat behind the curved counter at her desk. Her wild curls were barely tamed into a ponytail. Her eyes whipped up from her computer screen. The second she saw me, her cheeks flushed. She might want to play it cool, but I didn’t give a damn.

  Chapter 17

  Maisie

  I stared at Beck and felt my cheeks go hot. He was wearing battered, faded jeans streaked with dirt and a gray t-shirt that did nothing to hide his ridiculously muscled chest and arms. His heavy gear bag fell to the floor with a thump. It took me a second to realize he was rounding the desk and coming straight for me. In a flash, he was beside me, his dark green gaze bearing into me.

  My pulse lunged, my breath hitched, and heat flooded me. All he had to do was look at me and my sex clenched. He’d been gone two whole weeks, and I’d missed him. Terribly. My heart gave a resounding little kick to my ribs as I stared at him. His black curls were messy and windblown. He probably hadn’t showered in days, if not for the entire time he’d been gone. I was using the term shower quite loosely. I knew perfectly well when the guys were out in the field, a shower meant perhaps a dip in a stream, or a splash bath if they had time to rest. Anyway, he was a rumpled mess, and I was so happy to see him, emotion clogged my throat.

  I might have fantasized here and there about him when my defenses were down ever since I’d met him. Yet, I was accustomed to him being gone for stretches of time. That was the life of a hotshot firefighter. All of them rotated in and out of town for weeks at a time. I hadn’t expected to miss him. Usually when Beck was gone, I experienced a bit of relief. He kept me on edge with his teasing, and I’d been so determined to keep my distance. When he was gone, I could relax and not worry about my body’s disobedience.

  Giving into my desire for him had turned me into a crazy person. As long as I didn’t think about anything that had transpired between us, I was fine. The problem was I could hardly stop thinking about it now. My silly idea that fantasy would beat out reality had turned out to be so ridiculously wrong.

  My eyes greedily soaked in the sight of him. He caught the back of my chair and spun me toward him. It was an act of will to keep from jumping up and throwing my arms around him.

  Wow. This is how ridiculous you are over him. Get some kind of grip.

  My little lecture did nothing to corral the need rampaging through me and the way my heart started skipping with joy to see him. I wouldn’t say I didn’t worry about the guys when they were out in the field. I knew they had a dangerous job, yet they were all so authoritatively capable that I rarely considered the true possibilities. These last two weeks while Beck was gone? More than once it had crossed my mind that he could get hurt, or die. Just last year, one of the crews had been in a plane crash. They’d all walked out with nothing more than minor injuries, but it could�
��ve been so much worse.

  Beck startled me when he rested his hips against the half wall beside my desk and slid his back down the wall until he was rocking on his heels between my knees. He caught my hands just when the emergency line beeped in my ear.

  With his gaze intent on me, I had to look away. He easily freed one of my hands, but held the other between both of his. I forced my attention off of him and tapped the button on my headset to take the call.

  “911, what’s your emergency?”

  “Hi Maisie, it’s Carrie Dodge.”

  I almost laughed. I’d come to learn that once people knew who I was, they tended to greet me by name when they called 911. I was the sole dispatcher for Willow Brook with Anchorage as our back up in off hours, so it stood to reason they’d do that. It still amused me. It also gave me a sense of belonging that felt strange.

  “Hi Carrie, can you tell me the nature of your emergency?” I asked, sticking to the script for taking calls.

  I remembered my last call with Carrie when it had taken her a good ten minutes to tell me she was trapped inside an excavator in a ditch. Beck idly traced his thumb across the back of my palm. The feel of the roughened pad of his thumb reminded me what his hands felt like in all kinds of other places. My channel clenched, and I roughly forced my attention off of that, shooting him a glare.

  “Oh, Herman’s stuck in that same tree again. Usually, I’d use the excavator and get him out with the bucket. It’s been kind of a game for us. But if you remember, last time I did that, it didn’t go so well.”

  “I do remember that. Do you mind if I ask if you’re okay?”

  I could hear her huff through the line and bit back a laugh.

  “I’m fine. I just need someone to come get Herman out of the tree,” she replied.

  “You got it. I’ll send one of the crews out your way.”

  “You’re not gonna make me stay on the line and chat this time, are you?”

  “No need this time. You’re safe and sound. If one of the trucks isn’t there within fifteen minutes, you can call me back, okay?”

  The line clicked off without a reply. I shook my head and glanced down to Beck. My pulse lunged again and my heart felt funny. He sat propped against the wall, his eyes locked to me. The moment felt too intimate, too much, and I didn’t know what to do with any of it. So, I focused on the practical.

  “Hate to tell you this, but you might need to rally a few guys to head out to help Carrie Dodge get Herman out of a tree.”

  A dark brow rose in question. “Herman?”

  “Her cat.”

  A low laugh rumbled out of him, and my belly spun, little sparks of heat scattering through me.

  “Where are the other crews?”

  “Cade’s crew is out dealing with a fire at that construction site just outside of town, and the other crew went to Anchorage for a rotation. Cade’s guys didn’t leave until Fred called in your landing time. I suppose they guessed you guys could deal with any calls that came in.”

  Beck leaned his head back with a sigh. I’d been so focused on finally seeing him after missing him so much for two weeks, I hadn’t noticed how tired he looked. Weariness etched his features. He lifted his head and nodded before squeezing my hand slightly and pushing himself to standing. He was quiet for a beat, his eyes coasting over my face.

  “Can I see you tonight?” he asked, his voice gruff.

  His question startled me, enough so that I was nodding before I thought about it.

  The hot look in his eyes sent a jolt of heat through me. My God. The way he looked at me made me all kinds of crazy inside.

  “You probably don’t have to go out to Carrie’s. Sounds like just enough guys with the cherry picker can probably handle it,’ I said, referring to the buckets firefighters used to be lifted up to high locations.

  Beck shrugged. “I know I could make someone else go, but that’s shitty. We’re all beat. The least I can do is help out.”

  My heart squeezed as I stared at him. He just had to go and be a decent guy. He was the superintendent of a crew of twenty. There was no doubt it would only take a few of them to help rescue Carrie’s beloved Herman. But Beck wasn’t the kind of leader who shirked duty and shifted it off on his crew when he could handle it. On another day when they weren’t all worn from weeks fighting a wildfire, he might easily send a portion of the crew out and hang back. But not today.

  I swallowed against the sudden emotion clogging my throat and nodded. “Right. Okay, well…”

  My words trailed off because I had no idea what else to say.

  He glanced at the clock above the door to the hallway beside my desk. “You leave at six?” he asked.

  My schedule was the same whenever I was here, so it shouldn’t surprise me he knew it. But still. A little curl of warmth wrapped around my heart to think he paid attention to anything to do with me.

  “Uh huh,” I replied, glancing at the clock on my computer screen. I’d be finishing my shift inside of a half an hour.

  “I’ll go make sure Herman’s okay,” he said with a grin before he paused. “Then, I’ll come to your place. How’s that sound?”

  Again, my head was just nodding along.

  He stood there for a beat, his eyes on me. The air felt electric. I wanted all kinds of things—to touch him, to burrow into his strength. Yet, I did nothing because we were most certainly not somewhere private. An entire crew was in the station now, not to mention Chief Masters was still around somewhere. So I held my feelings at bay and watched as he winked and spun away.

  Chapter 18

  Beck

  Jesse Franklin flashed a grin as he handed over Carrie Dodge’s cat. Herman eyed me as if he were annoyed with the entire matter. We had just spent a good hour maneuvering the cherry picker as he leapt from branch to branch in the tall spruce tree. Conveniently, Herman was an orange tabby cat. His bright fur helped us find him as he’d darted about in the upper branches of the tree.

  I rubbed my knuckles under his chin, and he promptly set to purring.

  Jesse chuckled. “Oh, now he’s pleased. Damn good thing I had gloves on. He was scratching like crazy up there.”

  I looked down at Herman as he purred away and burrowed into my arms. “Let me drop this guy off, and we can head back to the station,” I said, glancing up at Jesse.

  “Got it.”

  I walked across the yard. Carrie was already walking toward me. I’d known Carrie since I was a kid. She seemed ageless to me. She had the same silvery hair pulled back into a long braid and sharp blue eyes that she’d had back when I was young. She moved a tad more slowly, but that’s about it. She met me halfway, tut-tutting at Herman the moment I handed him over.

  “You know better than to climb that high, Herman.”

  His purr rumbled a little louder as she glanced up at me. “Thank you for getting him down. This is the third time he’s done that this summer.”

  I shrugged. “No problem. Usually I’d try to come up with some sort of suggestion for how to keep him out of that tree, but he’s a cat.”

  Carrie laughed. “Exactly. Until last time, I took care of it myself. I just need to get my excavator…”

  “You are not about to tell me you’re getting it fixed and would be foolish enough to try to get him out with it again, are you? You know that’s not exactly what it’s for, right?”

  Carrie shrugged. “What else am I gonna do with it? I only have it because John never got rid of it before he passed away,” she said, referring to her deceased husband.

  “Carrie, just call us. We’ll come get Herman out of the damn tree whenever you need.”

  She sighed and glanced down at Herman who was entirely unrepentant and purring away in her arms. “Well, thank you. Do you boys need anything to eat?”

  My mind flashed to Maisie, and I glanced at my watch. We’d been here longer than I planned, and it was well past six. “Nah, but thanks for the offer.”

  She waved from her front porch as Jesse
and I drove away. I considered asking Jesse to drop me off at Maisie’s as her place was on the way to the station, but that would open up a line of questioning I wasn’t ready for. I was restless and impatient to get to her.

  After the fastest shower of my life, I leapt in my truck and headed to her place. When there was no answer to my knock at the kitchen door, I carefully opened it, not patient enough to wait for her.

  “Maisie?”

  I heard a muffled voice and pushed the door open wider. I was greeted by the sight of her bent over as she looked inside the oven. Hot damn. Her bottom was displayed perfectly for me. The only downside was she wasn’t naked yet. As it was, she wore stretchy leggings that were tight over her lush bottom. I beat back the urge to walk up behind her and run my hands over her hips. Aside from those few moments at the station, it had been a full two weeks since I’d seen her. I sure as hell didn’t know where we stood. I knew what I wanted though—her. Like crazy.

  She straightened and turned to face me. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her hair was down, those wild dark curls falling in a tumble around her shoulders. I wanted to walk up to her, bury my hand in them and pour two weeks of banked lust into her lips.

  “Hey, I wasn’t sure if you were still coming because…”

  Apparently I wasn’t thinking. At all. Because I did precisely what I imagined. I kicked the door shut behind me and was in front of her in two long strides. I slid a hand in her hair, the curls silky and soft. Her breath drew in sharply. I pulled her flush against me. My cock had gone hard the second I saw her. Sweet hell. Feeling her soft curves against me and the warm heat at the apex of her thighs, I groaned.