The Firefighter's Appeal (Harlequin Superromance) (14 page)

“Okay. Truth is, Garrett, I owe you an apology anyway.” He pulled back a little. That wasn’t what he’d been expecting. “I misjudged you, and I’m sure my behavior reflected that. I’m sorry for judging you solely on the fact that you’re a firefighter.”

He ran his palms down her upper arms. “Now comes the part about
why
you dislike firemen.”

He was sure it was a man who had hurt her, and the darker side of him wanted to know if it was someone from his department. So he could what? Kick the guy’s ass? He didn’t know—but the thought of her being hurt by one of his own left a very sour taste in his mouth. Lily moved to walk down the path again and he fell into step beside her.

“My sister was killed in a fire last year. I...barely made it out myself and I’ve been really angry with the fire department because of what they did—or, rather, what they didn’t do—and that’s all I really want to say about it. I’ve held a pretty big grudge against firemen since then. I shouldn’t have assumed anything about you.”

The back of Garrett’s neck started to prickle. He pressed a palm there to stop the sensation at the same time that his brain went into overdrive. That wasn’t the confession he’d been expecting. Her sister? He thought of all the fires he’d attended in Danbury in the past year or so, but he couldn’t recall any deaths other than one elderly man. As if reading his mind, Lily went on.

“It wasn’t even your department, but meeting you has brought back some of the nightmares I used to have about that night.”

Garrett took her hand and held it with what he hoped was a comforting squeeze. To his joy, she returned the gesture as they walked.

So much could go wrong at the scene of a fire, and for bystanders watching it all unfold, the process the firemen went through could be confusing. Sometimes they were chastised for risking their lives too much; sometimes they were blamed for not doing enough. And sometimes, no matter what they did, a fire could go completely, horribly wrong. Garrett’s instincts told him the latter was the case for Lily’s sister, and while he wanted to know more, Lily had said she didn’t want to talk about it. She didn’t have to go into detail for him to recognize how much pain she was carrying around.

Her admission brought something to mind that he hadn’t thought about in many years.

“When I was a student at the fire academy, one of my instructors set a glass of water on his desk. He asked us how much we thought the glass weighed. As we all guessed, he picked up the glass and held it in front of him at arm’s length.” They paused on the trail. “He said that in the end, it didn’t matter how much the glass actually weighed because the longer you held it, the heavier it would get. At first, you could hold it no problem. After a few hours, your arm would start to shake. After a day, your muscles would be screaming at you until, soon, that simple glass of water would pull you to your knees if you didn’t let it go.”

Garrett glanced at the ground as the words sank in. He hadn’t thought of that analogy in years, but now it seemed fitting.

Lily rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand, her fingers twining more tightly with his as they resumed walking. “What if you’re holding more than one glass?” She said it kind of jokingly, but he wasn’t fooled.

“I suppose just set them down one by one. Can’t juggle them forever.”

“Smart thinking.”

The end of the trail was nearing, reminding Garrett that one of the most relaxing afternoons he’d had in recent memory was coming to a close.

“Firefighting has its really tough moments, and that little bit of wisdom is to remind us when to let go of some of the hell we carry around. I can hardly think of a fireman on my squad who isn’t carrying around a glass. Mikey, Roan, Chief... Pretty much all of them.” They were quiet for a bit. The crunch of dead leaves and twigs was loud in the silence of the woods.

As they neared the end, he tilted his head. Time to change the subject, lighten the mood. “So...any chance that tragic-puppy analogy earlier had anything to do with me?”

Lily’s cheeks flamed red, but she stopped and took both his hands, her gaze steady and soft. He thought he saw the shimmer of tears hidden somewhere in her blue eyes.

“I know you don’t do relationships, and I’m not looking for one considering I’m moving soon, but if either of us were in a better place, you’d be a pretty awesome guy to get involved with, Garrett.”

Garrett didn’t wait to think it through; he didn’t try to talk himself out of it. He pulled Lily against him. Her hands found his hair at the same time his lips crushed hers. Her mouth was hot, her lips supple and giving as she relaxed against him, her fingers knocking off his ball cap to wind into his hair to hold him close.

There was nothing scary about this, about having her in his arms, where she fit like a puzzle piece. It filled him, filled the empty space he’d carried around for as long as he could remember. And although he’d have to live with that emptiness again someday, he could let Lily fit for now. It was temporary for both of them, right?

Her clothes molded to her body as Garrett ran his palms over the delicate length of her ribs to the indent of her waist and flare of her hips. This time he didn’t have to pull her closer; Lily leaned her hips into him as she opened her mouth, welcoming the slide of his tongue along hers. Garrett pressed a hand to her lower back, holding her, filling himself up with her.

“I walked to the office from my apartment. Take me home,” she said as she broke away. Her eyelids fluttered as he searched her face. “That’s an invitation, in case you’re wondering.”

Exactly what he’d been wanting since their time in the gazebo. But now...

“Lily. I can’t give you more than a couple of nights.” He tucked her hair behind her ear, wishing for the first time ever that he could give a woman—Lily—more.

What would it be like, coming home to her every night? Maybe thinking about a family...doing all the things lovers did? Vacations, dates, picking out an apartment, petty fights and nights of laughter.

On the flip side of all that happiness was the cloud of uncertainty. That heavy hand of fate that might come slamming down at any moment and take all that joy away. The cost was just too great.

“I saw your bucket of phone numbers at the bar. I’m well aware that you’re not a one-woman guy.” She put a finger to his lips before he could explain that he’d never called a single number out of that bucket, not once. It had been kept around as a running joke.

“I’m tired of being angry at the world, Garrett.” She took a deep breath. “A couple of nights with you sounds perfect.”

The late-day heat was slowly dying down, leaving behind a hazy burn in the air. It mimicked the sizzle in his blood. He kissed her again and closed his eyes against the well of deeper emotion trying to grow inside. Instead, he fell back to his old standby: covering it up.

“So much for being reformed,” he quipped, grabbing his hat before clasping her hand tightly as they headed back to the ATV and started down a sweet path he was reluctant to see the end of.

* * *

T
HE
DAY
HAD
been so perfect that Lily was afraid to shut her eyes for too long in case she woke up and it all went away. Garrett was everything she’d secretly hoped for and nothing she expected. Each second that he made her laugh or set her pulse racing with a simple touch was one more time she started to see him as someone she could easily fall for. In the span of a few hours, he’d made her feel more cherished than she could recall in her recent past. His thoughtfulness and the way he put her at ease were like slow-burning aphrodisiacs. In the back of her mind, Lily understood that wanting him was normal, healthy. And she did, so much.

They made it back to Danbury in record time, Lily sitting as close to Garrett as she dared while still making it possible for him to drive. The need to be near him was so strong that they barely made it through her front door before they were tangled up in each other’s arms. He kicked the door shut and she spun him around, walking him backward through the small apartment as they kissed and tugged at each other’s clothing. They stumbled their way to the bedroom, tripping over a startled Adam the cat, who ran out of the room. It was surreal and silly and her heart soared.

Lily reached for the buttons on her shirt, undoing them one by one. Garrett’s eyes trailed her hands, until she reached where the shirt tucked into the waist of her skirt. In one swift move, he flipped her down onto the bed and straddled her, one arm on either side of her shoulders. He bent his head and parted the loose sides of her shirt over her breasts with his teeth. A low groan rumbled from his throat as his fingers found her bra strap and followed its length.

“Damn, Lily.” The red-and-white gingham bra had been an afterthought when she’d gotten dressed that morning, but she’d wanted something feminine to match her good mood. As Garrett’s fingers trailed over the eyelet lace peeking from the top of the cups, she was exceptionally happy with her choice. She bent her left leg, the hem of her skirt sliding up her thigh and bunching around her hip.

“Panties match.” The resulting groan was deeper, more needful. Garrett moved lower until his breath washed over her belly. He tugged the shirt with his teeth, freeing it from the waist of her skirt before nibbling his way back up. He had a wicked gleam in his eyes. Lily’s breath came out in a rush when his mouth closed over her nipple through the bra. Garrett teased her breast with hot, moist pulls of his mouth as his fingers found the front clasp and popped it open.

Lily slid her fingers into his hair as Garrett’s lips met her bare nipple. The quick sensation of cool air collapsing against the heat of his mouth created a frenzy in her brain. He found her mouth as he cupped her breasts, kneading them softly, swirling his palms over her taut nipples.

There was no separation between conscious thought and the fog of pure sensation as Garrett’s hands and mouth took over her body. He caressed her with long, hot strokes of his rough fingertips, tracking over her ribs to her waist, then back up. His lips traced her jaw, her neck, her breastbone, as his fingers found the side zipper of her skirt and lowered it.

Garrett’s mouth tugged at her left nipple at the same time as he whisked her skirt down her hips and sent it flying. Her slight panic over the newness of being bared to him melted under the glory of his mouth. The need to feel his skin was nearly as overwhelming as the need to have him in her—hard and insistent and unrelenting. As he found her other breast, Lily reached for the back of his shirt and pulled it off.

She raised her head from the bed just enough to see his naked torso. Supple, hard, sleek and covered in a soft dusting of golden hair...a ridge of hard muscles leading to the V that disappeared inside his jeans.

“Touch me.” Garrett gave her nipple a firm tug, sending a million little shocks over her body.

Her hand stopped, suspended in front of his chest, so close but not close enough. Making that first contact...letting her fingers wander over his incredible body would be giving in. Surrendering.

Receiving pleasure was one thing, but giving it back—that was an intimacy, a personal connection that terrified her. She was about to give herself over to a firefighter, but she didn’t want to be saved this time. She craved an out-of-control spiral—a leap with no safety net.

He placed a kiss between her breasts, shifted just a little and began kissing a trail down her middle. Her palm cupped warm, firm muscle and supple skin. It was good, so good, to feel his skin under her hand...to caress up his neck until stubble scratched her fingertips. Lily slid her hand down to the flat plane of his shoulder blade. Long, smooth-edged curves of muscle met her touch as she ran her hand as far over his back as she could reach.

Garrett pushed up on his hands to look down at her. His eyes were a deep blue, clouded with desire that pushed delicious warmth down her body to the tips of her toes.

“I promise you’ll know with every touch, every kiss, how much I don’t take this moment with you for granted.”

His palms cupped her hips and pressed inward. The movement sent sparks through the deep heat that pulsed between her legs. And then he was kissing her again, hard and soft, deep and light, while he brought her hips up so her pelvis met his. Garrett leaned into her, drawing the length of his erection down the middle of her, making her gasp.

“When you leave for Nashville, you’ll remember this. My hands on your body, my lips on your skin, the way I move inside you.” Garrett hooked his fingers into the sides of her panties and began to pull them down.

“You’ll remember how much you loved it and you’ll crave more of me.”

She bent her knees to allow the panties to slide down more easily, her fingers gliding through his hair with a desperate need to pull him back up—to feel his body on top of hers again. He was right. She would remember this. She was naked with a man too beautiful and considerate to be real. He was a wish materialized, and she was going to take him in, hold him close, before all of this wafted away like dandelion fluff on the wind.

Garrett’s touch became a storm of sensation as he smoothed his hand up and down the length of her, his lips loving her mouth, her neck, her breasts. She fumbled with the button of his jeans, too flooded with adrenaline to be coordinated about it.

By the time the button popped free, Garrett had parted her thighs with a gentle touch of his hand. His palm rested over her mound, making her arch and demand with a thrust of her hips. His fingers slid inside her, and she forgot about everything except the way he moved over her, her eyes locking with his, and the gleam of passion looking back at her, making her body respond that much more.

Tension began to build and split in two directions—one leading her to the edge she wanted to jump off so badly and the other to a place that couldn’t let go. She closed her eyes, aware that Garrett was watching her. He shifted his hand, driving two fingers inside her while his thumb resumed its play over her nub. A gentle kiss on the side of her neck; a sexy voice rumbled in her ear.