Spark & Blaze (A Guns & Hoses Novel) (5 page)

Evan wasn’t feeling tired when he walked into his house. He had hit the rack early enough last night and slept straight through until this morning. So, he dropped his work duffel just inside his bedroom door and stripped out of his work clothes. He put on his gym shorts, a tank top, and sneakers.

Even though he could use about five more cups of coffee, he decided the run to the gym would wake him up enough to be able to actually work out. It was and by the time he arrived at the gym, he was ready to start his workout routine.

Now that his body was awake, it seemed his mind followed suit. On the run to the gym, he was focused on putting one foot in front of the other to pound out the distance between his house and the gym. However, now that he was settling into his chest and arms workout his mind turned back to the shit that happened at work yesterday.

Evan wasn’t thinking about the car accident, the suicidal woman, or the burnt teenagers. No, he was thinking about Malone. Thinking about the soft, deep sound of the man’s voice when it finally registered in his mind while he was having his breakdown. He was thinking about the genuine concern in the larger man’s deep chocolate brown eyes when he approached cautiously.

The memory of Malone stepping toward him so slow, as if he were an animal that might suddenly bolt, was front and center in his mind while he pushed the weight away from his chest.

The look of concern that hadn’t even registered when Evan had stood stunned in front of the man became clear as day to him now. Malone’s chiseled features were no longer hard, but instead softened by his obvious worry over Evan’s state.

As Evan pictured the man in his mind, the funny feeling he had felt before made itself known again. The feeling distracted him enough that he didn’t apply enough resistance to the weight bar when it returned toward his chest.

The weights fell and crashed with a loud clang. Several gym members looked his way. Their expressions were clearly those that despised someone who was too inexperienced to use the equipment they were trying to use for their work out.

Fuck them
, Evan thought while he ignored their disapproving glares and fought to catch his breath.

Why the memory of Malone’s concerned face made him falter with the weights was beyond him. It wasn’t like he was gay and attracted to the man. Evan froze at the thought when he leaned forward to sit up from his semi-reclined position.

The memory of that lip lock, the aggression he used against Malone’s lips and how they felt against his own slammed into him so hard that he gasped. His hand rose and rubbed against his chest of its own accord and his cock started to harden.

The feeling of Malone’s mouth against his was not only foreign, but erotic as hell. The memory played out and as confused and embarrassed as Evan felt, there was one thing he was sure he remembered accurately. Malone had kissed him back.

What. The. Fuck?
Evan mentally cursed at not only the memory and the revelation about Malone, but at his body’s sudden reaction.

Quickly, he pulled his tank top down in an attempt to hide his sudden hard-on. He didn’t know why he was hard and he knew that it was fucked up that he was getting aroused over kissing a man. He wasn’t gay. Plain and simple. He didn’t like guys and never thought about guys sexually. He didn’t have any problem with homosexuals, unlike his father. His father refused to believe that gay men were
real
men. Evan had yet to meet a man he respected more than his father, but steadfastly disagreed with his father when it can to his opinions on gays. Not that their difference in opinion mattered now.

I was traumatized. I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing
, Evan told himself.
I am not responsible for what I did. It was just a reaction from being traumatized from the shit I seen on shift.
Evan reassured himself and breathed a sigh of relief when his erection receded so he could finally stand up from the workout bench.

Normally, Evan would hit two more stations to finish his upper body workout, but now all he wanted to do was escape the gym. So, he did just that.

He forced his mind to stay focused on his feet hitting the sidewalk while he jogged the miles back to his house. Once there, he showered and changed into another pair of workout shorts and a T-shirt.

Evan made himself lunch and channel surfed while he ate his turkey on rye. He had just stopped channel surfing on a rerun of the Big Bang Theory when his cell phone chirped to notify him of an incoming text message.

He frowned at his phone because no one actually had his number. His father had died in a plane crash when he was nineteen and he had no siblings. In fact, the only place he had ever listed his number was on his application for the Fire Academy and his HR paperwork with TFD.

Has to be the captain,
Evan thought and tried not to get pissed that the man felt he needed to check up on him.

Evan picked up his phone off the shitty end table and swiped the dark screen to wake the damn thing up. He tapped the text message icon and only one number, an unknown number, was in the list with a little red dot surrounding the number one to tell him he had a message.

He frowned at the screen and forcefully pressed his thumb down on the number to open the message. Evan fully expected to see sympathetic words from Captain Stevenson. However, that was not what he saw it all.

“You are stronger than you realize and with my love you are invincible.”

“What the fuck?”

Evan stared at his screen and had no idea what to make of the message. After staring at the text for a few minutes, he decided the person who sent the message had the wrong number. He didn’t reply because he just couldn’t be bothered. Instead, he watched Sheldon’s geeky antics and let the show numb him into a relaxed state of mind.

Brett went home to his two bedroom house in Carrolwood. The whole ride he had tried not to think of the last twenty-four hours. Well, specifically a certain block of that twenty-four hours. Trying not to think about Carmichael’s episode was a lost cause and he finally gave up once he opened his door.

He threw his keys on the kitchen bar and dropped his bag in his bedroom. A soft purring noise reached Brett’s ears before he felt a rubbing pressure against his calf.

“Hey Jinxy,” Brett greeted his roommate. “Miss me, girl?”

Brett bent down and picked up his black Bombay cat. She was big and muscular, weighing just over twenty pounds, but the vet said her weight was typical for her breed. Jinxy immediately relaxed into Brett’s chest when he cradled her like a baby. Her purring grew louder when he stroked her cheeks, neck, and belly.

“Want to go for a swim?” Brett asked Jinxy and she turned her head toward him. Her lime green eyes didn’t blink when he met her gaze.

Jinxy didn’t crave his attention every day or even every time he came home after a shift. She was independent like most cats, and came to him when she wanted attention. Apparently, today she did.

Brett walked out of his bedroom, still absently curling his fingers repeatedly under her chin. He didn’t pause before he opened the sliding glass door to his lanai. Jinxy didn’t flinch or try to jump out of his arms. He knew she wouldn’t because they had done this many times when he came home from a shift. A float was drifting lazily in his pool, but Brett didn’t pay it much mind when he rolled Jinxy over and dropped her onto his patio table.

“Meow.”

“I know girl. Give me a minute,” Brett answered Jinxy because it was his habit to talk to her as if she were a person.

Brett stripped down to his boxer briefs and turned toward his pool. He didn’t always swim to relax after shift, but after the last one he knew he needed the feeling that only floating almost weightlessly on the water could give him to drain the stress away.

“Meow.”

“Okay, okay. I’m going.” Brett grinned at his jet black cat before he dived into the deeper end of his pool.

The water wasn’t cold, but it wasn’t overly warm either. Brett resurfaced right next to his float. He threw an arm over the raft and looked back to where he had left Jinxy on the patio table. He didn’t expect to see her still perched on the glass top table and she wasn’t. Jinxy was standing at the edge of the pool, twitching her tail in what Brett assumed was impatience.

“All right, all right.” Brett laughed and pushed off the bottom to move himself and the raft closer to his roommate.

Once Brett was close to the pool ledge where Jinxy was perched, he climbed onto the raft. He stretched out his 6’4” length on top of the inflated plastic and enjoyed the feeling of the water pooling around his hips and ass. He used his arm in the water to float himself closer to his inpatient cat and once he was within half a foot of her, she jumped.

With the grace only cats possess, Jinxy landed dead center on his chest. Not a single one of her sharp claws pierced his naked flesh while she gained her balance. Still, that didn’t stop her from moving around before she finally started mush-mushing. Brett pushed off the side of the pool to send them both floating toward the center. Jinxy finally lay down on his chest and Brett brought a wet hand up to rub along her back.

“Finally settled?” Brett asked her and closed his eyes while her body began to vibrate under his hand from her contented purrs.

Brett let the sensation of almost weightlessness and the soothing sounds of Jinxy’s purring relax his body. However, neither seemed to be able to relax his mind.

He still couldn’t get the image of Carmichael staring vacantly at his equipment rack out of his mind. No, that wasn’t true. Brett could admit while he floated and ran his hand along Jinxy’s back from her head to her tail. It was the look in Carmichael’s eyes, the desperation, right before the man’s lips crashed into his that Brett couldn’t stop reliving in his mind.

Granted, the rookie pissed him off at the Shadows’ fire, but Brett had already admitted to himself that he found the younger man attractive. He also admitted to himself that finding Carmichael attractive didn’t mean shit. It couldn’t mean anything even if Brett wanted it to.

His closet door at work was welded shut and Carmichael was straight. Regardless of how the rookie attacked his lips, whether there was even the slightest chance Carmichael was gay or not, it didn’t matter. They worked together and the thought of unlocking that closet door at the station practically made Brett physically ill.

Still, as he floated and let Jinxy’s purrs of contentment relax him, Brett couldn’t stop replaying how good Carmichael’s lips felt against his own.

Chapter Five

Eva
n
looked at the clock. 6:43. The invitation from Flame and Brostowski echoed in his ears as if both of his co-workers were present. They had mentioned drinks, pool, and darts, and the more Evan thought about Brostowski’s words, the more he believed the invitation to hang out wasn’t offered out of pity for a rookie who had freaked the fuck out after a brutal shift.

Still, he wasn’t sure if he should go to Guns & Hoses. So, regardless of whether he went to the bar or not, Evan made himself get off the couch and take a shower.

Who the fuck am I my kidding?
Evan asked himself as he washed.

He had nothing else to do, and even though he didn’t want to admit it at the time, it hurt when he wasn’t invited to hang out the last time after their shift. Plus, he really hadn’t made any friends yet and getting to know his co-workers seemed more important than spending another night at Bubbalouie’s.

The only thing he would rather do was dance, but even he knew that there were not likely to be many places that he could get his groove on since it was a Tuesday night. So, Evan finished his shower, dressed, and grabbed his cue before he locked up his house and jumped into his truck.

Hopefully someone can play an even half assed good game of pool
, Evan thought when he selected the address for Guns & Hoses on his GPS.

Brett chilled in the pool with Jinxy on his chest for several hours. She helped him relax just as much as floating in the pool. He was sure if he hadn’t started the practice when she was a kitten, she would never be so content surrounded by so much water.

They finally got out of the pool and Brett added food to Jinxy’s bowl before he made himself a simple dinner. While he ate his spaghetti, he thought about Flame’s invitation to hang out again at Guns & Hoses. This morning he hadn’t been awake enough to commit. However, now that he had relaxed, he could consider the invitation with a clear mind.

Flame’s cousin, Austin, was fun to shoot pool with and Brett really had nothing better to do than lie on his couch and watch a movie while Jinxy slept on his chest. His mind made up, Brett showered and dressed in stone washed jeans, his most comfortable cowboy boots, and a T-shirt before he grabbed his cue and headed out the door.

Brett received almost the same greeting from Flame as he had the first time he took his co-worker up on the invitation to hang out. In fact, Flame was at the same table with a pitcher of beer in front of him just like before when he walked into Guns & Hoses.

What wasn’t the same was the guy sitting next to Flame. T… Tig, Flame’s boyfriend. Just the sight of the man had Brett stomach doing flips. Those flips had nothing to do with attraction, either. No, they had everything to do with the man outing him which would effectively blow the closet door he had at work all to smithereens.

Still, he took his seat at the table and said hello as Flame handed him a Jack and Coke. Flame wasn’t treating him any differently, as if his boyfriend had told him about their hookup, but that barely settled Brett’s nerves.

“You alright man?” Flame asked with a smile and sounded genuinely concerned.

“Yeah, I’m good.” Brett forced himself not to fidget or look at Flame’s boyfriend. “Just the rough shift.”

“No shit,” Flame agreed. “Hope we don’t have another one like that… Ever.”

Brett nodded and took a sip of his drink while he tried to think of something to say that wasn’t related to the fucked up last shift they shared. He was saved when Austin and Wolf walked into the bar. Brett still couldn’t believe Lucas Wolf was gay, but gay or not, the guy was still an asshole.

“Back for more of an ass kicking?” Austin grinned when he stepped up to the table.

“From what I hear, he was kicking your ass the last time he was here.”

Brett looked around Austin and Wolf to see Brostowski and another man approaching them. The guy walking next to Brostowski had sandy brown hair and green eyes. It wasn’t blatantly obvious the two were a couple, but after Flame’s revelation about Brostowski’s orientation, it was easy for Brett to deduce that the guy was his co-worker’s boyfriend. Even if Brett thought his assumption was wrong, which he didn’t, Brostowski’s introduction proved what he thought was right on the money.

“Malone.” Brostowski dropped a hand on Brett’s shoulder and gave a friendly squeeze. “This is my boyfriend, Simon. Simon, meet Brett Malone.”

“Nice to meet you.” Brett and Simon said at the same time before they both laughed.

Brett was slightly surprised at how comfortable and relaxed Brostowski was when he introduced his boyfriend. Flame had shared that Brostowski was gay and Brett had even heard the rumors about Brostowski professing his love for Flame last year. Still, he didn’t believe the rumors before, but maybe he should have. However, since Brostowski was so straight at work, it was difficult for Brett to accept that the good-looking guy he had just been introduced to was Brostowski’s boyfriend.

“So Brett, you ready to have your ass handed to you again?” Austin’s voice broke through Brett’s contemplation about Brostowski.

“As I recall, I’m up by one.” Brett grinned and stood.

“Not for long,” Austin challenged before turning to Wolf and giving his boyfriend a wickedly heated grin.

Brett watched Wolf raise a brow. That was the only part of his expression that changed before the arson investigator turned, walked to the bar, and took a seat where he would have a clear view of the pool tables.

“Guess we’ll see.” Brett smirked and grabbed his drink and cue before he stood. “We playing for drinks like last time? I’m feeling thirsty tonight.” Brett taunted on their way to the table.

“Bet your hot ass we are!” Austin laughed and squatted down to put quarters into the table.

Austin’s comment sounded like a flirty pick me up line, but Brett knew that wasn’t the case so he relaxed. He was still relaxed when he bent over the table and sent the cue ball careening into the rack to cause the balls to scatter wildly.

It was just after eight thirty when Evan stepped into Guns & Hoses. The small hole in the wall bar was aptly named. The walls were covered with everything and anything cop or fire related. It was a hodgepodge of stuff, but it somehow seemed to work.

He spotted Flame and Brostowski the minute he walked in. They were sitting at a table with two other guys that Evan didn’t know, but the presence of strangers didn’t stop him from approaching. Flame spotted him once he got close to their table and gave him a big smile.

“Carmichael, glad you decided to come out.”

“Yeah.” Evan tried not to fidget. Why he felt even the slightest bit nervous around his co-workers, he didn’t know.

“What you drinking?” Flame asked.

“That’ll work.” Evan nodded at the pitcher that sat in front of Flame.

“Cool.” Flame stood. “I’ll grab you a mug.”

Flame took off toward the bar and Evan’s eyes followed him for a moment before he turned back and looked at Brostowski.

“Take a seat, rookie,” Brostowski grinned and kicked out a chair to reinforce his invitation.

Evan took the seat and placed his cue case on his lap. It was a hard case so there was no strap to hang it off his chair. Normally, he would lay his case on the table, but the collection of drinks didn’t leave him much room to do so.

“Thanks,” Evan replied to Brostowski.

“This is Tig and Simon,” Brostowski introduced the other men at the table. “Guys, this is Evan Carmichael. He’s our new rookie at the station.”

Evan nodded hello to the other two men and was glad when Flame returned with an empty mug. He was even more grateful when Flame didn’t hesitate to fill the mug and push it his way. Evan wasn’t sure why he felt so off kilter. He never had a problem meeting new people, but for some reason his nerves were going haywire with apprehension while he sat at the table.

“I see that you play,” Flame nodded to the case that rested across his thighs.

“Yeah, I shoot some,” Evan replied after he lowered his mug of beer from his lips.

“You any good?” Flame asked without any challenge in his tone.

“Good is relative.” Evan grinned and took another sip of his beer.

“I guess you’re right. I used to think I was good.”

“Then Austin moved here.” Tig chuckled. “Now you suck.”

“Yeah, I suck.” Flame’s gaze shifted away from Evan to Tig.

The moment dragged on until Evan felt he needed to say something to break the silence.

“So you play, Flame?” Evan asked even though Flame had already indicated that he shot pool.

“Yeah.” Flame turned back to look at Evan. “But if my cousin can kick my ass with a bar cue, I’m sure I’m not in your league since you brought your own.”

“You never know.” Evan smiled. “Let’s play.”

“All right.” Flame stood and looked at Tig and Simon. “Keep an eye on me. If I need rescuing, I’ll flap like a chicken.” Flame flapped his arms to give his friends the visual if he needed to be saved from losing his ass on the table.

They all laughed and Evan was still chuckling when he walked toward the empty pool table. His amusement died in his throat when he saw who was playing on the other table. How he had not noticed Malone shooting pool on the only other table in the bar was beyond him. The fact that he noticed now, while the man was bent over and facing in his direction to take a shot, made him wonder even more why he was noticing the man now.

Still, just seeing Malone whose eyes briefly flashed up and met his before he took his shot, made Evan regret coming out tonight. Brostowski said Malone always declined invitations to hang out and no one would be offended if he did the same. Apparently, Malone didn’t always decline the invites.

“Flip for the break?” Flame’s voice broke into Evan’s thoughts about Malone’s presence.

“Sure,” Evan agreed. “We playing for anything?”

“Fuck no! I only play for bragging rights with anyone who brings their own stick to shoot.” Flame laughed. “Call it.”

Flame flicked the quarter over the green felt and Evan only glanced at the spinning silver that reflected light for a moment.

“Heads.”

The coin dropped and they both looked at the quarter after it rolled and came to rest on the green felt.

“Tails.” Flame picked up the quarter. “You rack, buddy.”

“Won’t help you win,” Evan shot back.

“Probably not, but I’ll take any advantage I can get.”

Evan snorted and pushed the tray of coins into the table. The loud clunk of the balls dropping into the channel sounded before they rolled down to the reservoir at the end of the table. Evan squatted down, pulled the plastic rack out of the slot, and proceeded to rack the balls.

“Good luck,” Evan said when he lifted the rack off the balls before shoving the plastic triangle back into its storage slot.

“I have a feeling I’m going to need it.”

Flame smirked before he bent over, lined up the cue ball, and sent the bitch rolling down the table to slam into the waiting colored balls.