Burned by Desire (Highland County Heroes Book 2) Read online

  “I guess I’ll just keep looking for a hot, motivated man to just fall in my lap.” She wiggled back and forth on the sofa. “I know what to do with him once he’s there.”

  Since Livy was too busy shimmying to pour, Melody filled each glass about half full, took hers, and sat back in the chair, curling herself into a little ball. “You keep dreaming. Hot guys don’t stay in small towns.” Except fire fighters…

  “Maybe. And maybe instead of applying to work at the college next summer, I’ll stay here, buy a new bikini and focus on magnetizing.”

  Livy had a running joke that you rub something magnetic against a hard metal and it, too, becomes magnetic. She could make a man stick if she rubbed hard enough.

  “I don’t think it works the same with people, Livy.” Melody sipped the red wine and closed her eyes, wishing she liked the taste of it as much as her friend obviously did.

  “What do you know about it? You made that New Year’s resolution to get with one hot guy. One. Take one hot man into that room and blow his world to bits, and yet…” Livy leaned back and stared at the bedroom door. “I can practically see the dust on your sheets.”

  It was all fun when Livy was flirty and vivacious and, frankly, New Year’s was one of the few times Melody let her guard down and had partied as much as her friend. But Melody just couldn’t be that girl, could she? Who would she even invite? It was already September, football season was in full swing. It would be Christmas before long and the year would be gone. “I haven’t had time to even think about a man and, like I said, there are no hot men in Santinas.”

  “Really? Tell me about the guys you’ve met this year. We’ll pick a bedfellow from one of them.” Livy finally picked up her glass and pursed her lips as she sipped, looking not only like a natural, but like she’d be a little less herself without one.

  “Well, there was Kurt, the cable guy, who came in here when I moved. He was only about ten years older than me, has a good job, and a van. Course, that wedding ring on his finger is a big deterrent.”

  Livy held out her left hand and stared at her long fingers. “Yeah, as much as I like men, the married one’s are off. If I ever do decide to stick to just one, I don’t want Karma to be a bitch.”

  “My professor keeps texting me—”

  “No,” Livy interrupted with a firm voice. “I will take hostages if you go back with him. He’s the whole reason you need to see someone else. Get that asshole out of your system.”

  “Well, of all the guys I’ve met, he’s the only one willing.” Not that she hadn’t done her best to make sure every interaction with a guy wasn’t on her terms. Leiken had been so subtle, having her stay late, complimenting her work, telling her she was beautiful, the best and brightest among her peers. Then, slowly, his words changed from “you’re the best,” to, “you won’t be anything without me.” Eventually, he’d cut all pretense and told her that if she didn’t sleep with him, he’d fail her in all three classes she’d taken with him. Classes he’d convinced her she needed. He’d played her for a fool and she’d let him. But no more.

  “What about that firefighter from your story? How old is he?” Livy broke into her thoughts.

  “Gage? He’s maybe five years older than me, but don’t even think about it. After that story, he would never want to see my face again, much less my bed.”

  “Maybe. Sometimes the best sex is when you both don’t know much, don’t care much, and you’re only looking for one night to release the tension. I say, have a few more sips, then give him a call. You can offer to print a new story, then take it back once you’ve done the deed.”

  “Aren’t you afraid of getting sick?” Melody asked, cocking an eyebrow.

  “Me? No. Maybe I should be, but I’m more careful than I sound.” Livy shrugged and gave a wistful smile. “I like sex, but what I’d really like is a man who wanted more than midnight. A guy who still wanted me around to make the coffee in the morning would be a nice change.”

  Melody had assumed her flirty friend was mostly talk, hadn’t seen that there was more than physical desire to her flirtatiousness. Maybe talking about her own lack would make Livy feel like she could be more herself, less outgoing, if Melody at least acted like she might make her resolution come true.

  “I don’t even know what I would say to Gage.”

  She chuckled. “You tell him you’ve been thinking about him all day.”

  That wasn’t a lie. She had been. All day. How angry he would be with her, how he might want to throttle her, though part of that thought was mildly exciting.

  “And what if he says he doesn’t care, that he hates me after what I’ve done to his career?” Melody asked. “He’ll never believe I didn’t write that.”

  “Then give him a reason to want to do better, just for you. Your professor did it to you, and though it was sneaky and underhanded, it isn’t like you need to have this guy around all the time. Just give him a good reason to want to see you again, and leave it at that.”

  She’d never wanted a guy like that, but could that be the way she dealt with him? Before they met up by accident, they could meet on purpose, for her purposes.

  “I don’t know his number.”

  Livy picked up her phone from the table and tossed it at Melody. “Call the fire house from my phone. If he’s there, he might not answer it if he sees your number, but he won’t know mine.”

  Melody looked up the number quick, and hit the call button. It rang twice then picked up.

  “Gage.”

  She held her breath, scared, what to say?

  “Hello?”

  “Gage, this is Melody.” Would he yell at her loud enough for Livy to hear, call her names and tell her that she’d cost him his career and the trust of the entire town. Would he listen if she told him it wasn’t her fault?

  “I heard you talked to Karen today. I hope you decide to do the right thing and use your platform for truth and decency, instead of some vendetta. Like you did to me. That poor family doesn’t deserve anything else.”

  “I…” She hadn’t fought back, hadn’t told Melva that the story Melva wanted to print wasn’t true, she’d let her boss have the upper hand. Just like Leiken, she’d let Melva lord her position.

  “I’m sorry, Gage. Can we meet and talk about this?”

  “I’m meeting with someone important right now and I can’t see having much time for chatting with you in the near future. You can direct any calls you have about the investigation to Special Agent Alexander Hernandez. They have a small satellite office of the ATF in Albuquerque.”

  “Wait, Gage! I didn’t get you taken off the investigation, did I?”

  He hung up the phone and Melody let her hands fall to her lap and she stared at the little device. Nothing she could do could make it take back her call, or anything else she’d done.

  “I think he lost the investigation part of his job. I’m supposed to call an agent in Albuquerque with any further questions.” Her mouth didn’t want to work and her words felt jumbled together, slurred, barely audible. She’d only had one glass of wine, but her brain felt as if she’d had the bottle all to herself.

  “Melody, it’ll be all right. There will be more firefighters. I promise.”

  But none with a hot temper and an ass to match.

  Chapter 8

  The house had been empty, a snowbird property, and now it was little more than embers. It was just two houses down from the Moens, and every second Gage had been inside, trying to get the flames under control, he couldn’t stop thinking about things Hernandez had said.

  Hernandez had looked in the Moens house and agreed the fire had been started by a bomb, could see how hot it had burned, and that they had a dangerous situation. The new fire was too much like the other. It appeared to be another basement fire, burning hot at the origin, and there was no way to even get close. He listened on his radio for the safety specialist to tell them to get out of there, because his second nature was screaming that it wouldn’t
be safe soon. The structure would be a loss.

  There was an explosion from the basement that rocked the whole house. Sheetrock from the ceiling above him gave way and landed inches from his feet. Rabbit yelled over the radio that the living room had caved and he was trapped under a beam.

  “Gage—”

  He didn’t even allow the chief to finish. “Yes, sir. I’m on it.”

  He pushed through the kitchen, abandoning his other job inside. Those outside men would surround and douse as much as they could. The living room was fully engulfed, with flames licking up the walls and rolling over what was left of the ceiling, then flicking up into the second floor. Along the wall, Rabbit lay trapped under a ceiling joist that had given way. It was still burning and the only thing Gage could clearly see, between the bright fire and the smoke, was Rabbit’s mask, reflecting back at him. He was pinned to the floor.

  “Hey,” Gage called, hoping Rabbit would answer. He looked up, but didn’t speak.

  Rabbit hated to swear, no matter how much the other guys did. If he was hurting, he was focused on holding all that emotion in, instead of letting it out for the world to hear.

  “Push if you can. Let’s get this off of you.” Gage thought it was just a couple two-by-fours, nailed together, but it was still attached to the ceiling joists and now the weight pushed the beam right into the floor. Neither his pike pole or halligan would do any good because if he broke the timber, the whole ceiling portion could come down on Rabbit. It might anyway. He needed to wedge and lift it, like a car jack, and he needed to do it in seconds.

  “Gage, you both need to get out of there. I give you ninety seconds.” The chief hated to make that call, but Gage would rather risk disobeying an order than leave a comrade.

  Rabbit’s voice finally came over the radio, “You’ve got to get out of here.”

  “Not without you. No man left behind.” Gage grabbed an end table and smashed it against the wall, splintering off a leg, shoved it under the thick timber and hoped it didn’t just snap. He shoved down on it and it raised the timber enough for Rabbit to yank his leg out. His turnouts were blackened, but still in one piece.

  “Shit, shit, shit!” Rabbit writhed on the floor. “Help me get out of here.”

  Gage gripped his hand and helped him up, then took Rabbit’s arm and wrapped it around his neck, helping to bear his weight. They rushed for the door as the house creaked and groaned around them.

  “Get out, now!” The chief yelled into his helmet earpiece.

  They didn’t worry about the door or anything else as they hurried across the lawn where Gage could put his EMT training to use. While the team moved to a sit and spout position where all men stood back and poured water on the fire to keep it from spreading, Gage stripped off his coat and helped Rabbit out of his turnouts. An ambulance pulled up just as he was about to examine Rabbit’s leg and he collapsed on the grass, letting his friends do their job.

  He hated not being able to save everything. He volunteered, and no one else from citywide public safety was expected to volunteer their time or even life, but he did because it was right. He loved the excitement, the science, the heat. It was scary as hell after the fact, but not in the moment.

  He worked with Kyle to get the hose wound back up neatly on the truck. “Hey, Gage, don’t look now, but Redding is coming this way. Want me to intercept?”

  All the guys had taken her article from the weekend before as a slap. She wasn’t going to get anywhere near them, even though he’d been the only one mentioned by name. Rabbit had been angry about that, too, because she’d talked to him the day of the fire. The reminder of his friend burned like acid in his stomach.

  “No, just go finish cleaning up the area. I’ll handle her.” Though he didn’t want to. He still couldn’t believe she’d reached out to him at all after what she’d done. She’d sounded so innocent as if she hadn’t tried to take out his career with the trash when she didn’t get what she’d wanted from him. He wouldn’t give her anything this time, either.

  “Gage…” She strode up, voice hesitant, hands in her front pockets, pulling her jeans tight around the curve of her ass. He waited for her to yank out her phone, but it didn’t happen. “Is everyone okay?”

  He ignored her question, knowing she wouldn’t really care about Rabbit or what he’d been through. Even if she did, he wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction of splashing it all over the paper.

  “Can I ask you a few questions?” She pulled her hand from her pocket, clutching her phone.

  He shrugged out of his turnout coat, taking slight satisfaction in her wide-eyed appreciation of his damp tee underneath. “You can put your phone away. I’m not at liberty to talk to you. If you have questions, direct them to Hernandez or the chief.”

  Her lip firmed up and gave the bottom one a plump curve. “I don’t want to call someone else. I’ve worked to build a rapport with you. I’ve met with you three times now. I don’t even know the chief or this Hernandez person.”

  “Is that what you think you built? ‘Cause I’m not feeling a rapport.” He yanked his emotions back in check. She wouldn’t get to him, couldn’t get to him. He couldn’t get angry now when the chief had told him to fix it. It would just end up in the paper. As it was, too many gawkers were nearby, possibly listening.

  “Did you at least decide to take me seriously and look into DemaCrane?” She rested her hands on her hips, sliding her phone back into her pocket.

  He searched the gawkers for anyone craning to listen. “Keep your voice down. I told you, I’m not the one to talk to. How many times do I need to say it?” He couldn’t just walk away from her, or she could report that he was combative once again, but it would do no good to stand there, because she was only making him angrier and bringing up things the public didn’t need to hear.

  Melody bent forward, leaning to the ground and the front of her shirt dipped open, revealing a hot-pink bra with black lace pushing her breasts tightly together. His body reacted instantly and he was glad of the heavy turnout pants to keep her from ever knowing what her curves did to him. She picked up a small corner of charred paper and handed it to him.

  “It looks like a gym pass. I thought the gym here in Santinas closed.” Her eyes met his and he could read an apology there, but he wasn’t ready to accept it. Not yet. Not after what she’d done to him and the men who were closer than brothers.

  “We had a gym, but it closed about two months ago. Bad management. Maybe the homeowners had used it. People never throw anything away.” He looked for a moment at the charred card with a partial logo on it.

  Melody pressed her lips together and took a deep breath. Her breasts rose, then fell sharply and he wondered if she was the kind of girl who matched her bras and panties.

  “Have you gotten everything you need from me?” He couldn’t look her in the eye, just in case she might see his thoughts written on his face and know that she still held a little power over him. A power that he would rinse from his body at the bar later. For once, he would indulge in a little rest. He’d earned it.

  “No, absolutely not. You haven’t told me a thing. Meet with me later and let me talk to you. I need to see you in private, just for a few minutes.”

  His head was shaking even before he could fully think about it, which was good because if he met her alone, they would both regret it. He couldn’t stand her, yet he wanted her. He’d never felt such a draw to someone so off-limits. “I’m not meeting with you. We tried that at the station. It didn’t stop you from printing your version of the story and twisting everything I said.”

  She bit her lip then let the plump bit flick from her teeth and he pressed his own lips together to keep from groaning. How could his body be so traitorous?

  “Fine, I’ll say what I need to right here and now. I didn’t write that article, my boss did. I didn’t point the finger at you or anyone on your team, I didn’t call you incompetent. You’re an ass who likes to control things, and I hate control frea
ks, but I would never put that in the paper.”

  He wanted to believe that it was true, wanted to believe that she wasn’t a two-faced bitch, but she’d just admitted she hated him. So, all bets were off.

  “You think I’m a control freak and you hate me. Seems like a good enough motive to try to sink me.”

  “I get it, you think I’m a bitch. Maybe it’s because you haven’t taken me seriously from the first moment you saw me, so I’ve felt the need to be pushy with you. I could see on your face the moment I walked up that first day that you weren’t going to be easy to work with.”

  He’d taken her seriously, but not as a journalist like she wanted him to. She was right about that. “You didn’t even give me the chance to respect you or not. You decided to react to how I looked after just getting out of a fire, with a child. Did you think I would welcome talking to you just then? No, you didn’t. You decided that if you turned on the sexy, you’d get me to grovel, instead of trying to just act professional. That didn’t work, so then you tried pushy. That still didn’t work, so you thought you’d take me down for daring to ignore you.”

  She took what he had to say with less anger than he’d thought. He’d assumed he’d see Mount Vesuvius, what he got was dormant Mount St. Helens.

  “You just can’t stand that I’m a woman and do my job well, can you? You tell me to go have my nails done so you can do your job, you tell me I turned on the sexy. It bugs you that I can do my job, wear heels, and kick your ass.” She narrowed her eyes, the entire contrite façade long gone.

  “I don’t care that you’re a woman who can do her job, the fact is, you didn’t do your job. Everything in that paper was a twisted lie and you know it.” He turned from her and scraped the back of his wrist over his forehead, remembering in time that his hands were filthy.

  A moment later, she touched his arm and he bit back a curse when his body came to immediate and painful attention at her touch. “I still want to meet with you privately and talk about this.” She slipped another one of her cards into his hand. “I’m pretty sure you destroyed the first one, but please, call me and we can discuss this, personally.”