Ash (12 page)

One thing I hated more than anything was confrontation. Things had changed from my youth, when I used any excuse to get into arguments. I no longer thrived on being an asshole. I preferred the quiet life, but trouble always seemed to find me.

I put the bad feeling to the back of my mind, along with Sophia and continued with my errands. I was on a mission not to allow anything to dampen my day. Not when I had a twelve-hour shift ahead of me.

I was checking off the trucks when Joe came along.

He mumbled something to himself and stopped by me.

“You look like a man with a whole lot of something on your mind,” I remarked.

“Booze at my age and twelve-hour shifts don’t really mix well,” he grumbled.

“Rough night?”

Joe smiled and nodded. “Ooooh, the whiskey was too good to say no to. Unfortunately, I can’t handle the stuff like I used to.”

When Joe admitted defeat, I knew he had more than likely become the heart and soul of the little gathering, which, in turn, would have caused a bit of bad blood between him and his wife. I opted to question no more and continued reading my checklist.

“And speaking of booze, where did you scurry off to?” he asked.

Great, he’d noticed!

“Jake wasn’t feeling so great, so Danny dropped me off at home,” I lied.

“Ah, how’s the little guy doing anyway?”

My discomfort dissipated, and I smiled. “He’s great. Danny is bringing him in later, as a treat.”

“Good, make sure he stops by the office.” He pointed his finger at me. “And let him sit in the truck. Little boys and the truck, the stuff dreams are made off.”

Joe walked away, slurping his coffee, letting me continue my rounds.

I was always happiest when left to work on my own. The station was busy, but most of the guys knew how I liked to do things my way, and rarely interrupted me. Of course, Tracey was an exception to the rule.

For some reason, I was her target whenever we both ended up on duty together. I always tried my best to be polite and courteous, but there were days when Tracey irritated the hell out of me and she pushed the wrong buttons. Today was one of those days.

She strolled over to me. “Heard about your rush exit from Joe’s.”

“And?” I didn’t look at her.

“And you should fill in the blanks. I mean, it makes for interesting conversation.”

I glanced at her and saw her purse her lips, waiting for my reply. Tracey may have been a good-looking woman, but her personality made a corpse look more attractive. She bored me with her conversation skills and irritated me with her prying ways.

“I’m afraid you’re not privy to such things,” I retorted. “And I’m sure you have duties, not standing here gossiping.”

She raised her eyebrows, sucked her bottom lip between her teeth, and pulled a face at me. The conversation ended, and she walked away.

How Danny thought she was a good catch confused me. Then again, Danny wasn’t interested in long-term romances. He was all about living for the moment. Tracey just so happened to have fallen into his bed at the right time.

I continued checking the truck and made sure everything was in order before I decided to take a quick break. I walked up to the kitchen, made myself a cup of coffee, and decided to retreat to the office. Avoiding Sophia was at the top of my list. She was on duty, and as much as it pained me, I knew that if a call came in, we would be working together.

I sat down and ran a hand over my face. Night shift was tough. It never got any easier, but it also served as a way for me to unwind from the hectic life at home. My mother was doing more for me, and as much as I loved her help, she was beginning to take over my life. I needed to regain control. How? I had no idea, but something had to happen.

A knock on the door pulled me from my deep thoughts. I looked up and frowned when Sophia peered in through the glass. For a brief moment, my stomach spun, and I held my breath. I hadn’t expected her to show her face, not in the office. Then again, Sophia wasn’t like most of the women I knew.

She opened the door and asked, “Can we talk?”

Begrudgingly, I waved her in. “Come in. Close door.”

Sophia took a seat in front of the desk. She looked pretty with her hair tied back, and I had to do everything in my power to reel myself in.

“What can I do for you?” I inquired, trying to remain professional.

“What happened?”

I swallowed hard. It took every morsel in my body not to react like a complete asshole. I had to remember we were at work. Our private life had no place here.

“I don’t think this is an appropriate time to be discussing anything.” I stared at her and flinched in my chair.

She sat forward and rested her hands on the desk. “Then, when would be a good time?”

God, she was the most infuriating woman I had ever met, yet I wanted to bend her over the table and fuck her hard.

What was happening to me?

“I’m not sure we need to talk about anything, not unless it’s to do with work.” I watched Sophia lick her lips and smile.

“Really?” She looked and sounded surprised. “You fucked me and left without a word. What did I do wrong? Was it me?”

“Sophia, I’m not talking about this here. Is there anything else?” I tried changing the subject.

She grinned, stood, and rested the palms of her hands on the table. “As a matter of fact, yes.”

“What?”

“The next time we fuck, stay around long enough to get a goodbye kiss.” She smirked, walked to the door, and winked at me as she left.

A part of me liked the thrill of her being sassy. Sophia was certainly a match for me. She was brazen and fearless. I didn’t know what scared me more.

What could I do or say? I shook my head and tried to get the visuals out of my mind, but the more I thought about those last few words, the more aroused I became.

Grabbing the phone, I called home. I would have done anything to get Sophia out of my head.

No answer.

“Dammit.”

How was I meant to focus when she blatantly planted the seed of lust in my head?

The tones went off.

“Engine ten, rescue four, battalion eight, squad three, ambulance thirteen, respond reference to child entrapped. No further information is available. Caller hung up. Unable to reach on call back,” the responder announced.

I made my way down to the truck.

Sophia kept her distance, glancing at me briefly before turning her attention to Marco.

They got inside their ambulance and protocol had them wait for the truck to lead the way.

The whole journey to the emergency, I had mixed feelings. It had been a while since I last allowed my personal life to interfere with my job. Now wasn’t a good time.

Beads of sweat gathered in the palms of my hands. My heart thumped hard in my chest, the beat pulsing in my ears. The once composed exterior I presented with was now overshadowed with an incessant desire, one I couldn’t control.

The truck pulled up outside an apartment block.

A woman appeared from the main entrance and ran toward us, shouting, “Please help him. You’ve got to help my little boy.”

I jumped down from the truck and rushed over to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Ma’am, can you tell me where your son is?”

“He’s stuck on the fourth floor. My husband doesn’t know what to do,” she sobbed.

“Okay, ma’am, we will do everything we can to help him,” I replied, glancing at Chuck, nodding for him to follow me.

Sophia and Marco raced behind us with their medical kit.

I sprinted up the stairs. My focus was on saving the trapped child. Everything else became a blur in my head.

We arrived on the fourth floor and found our patient.

He was kneeling by the banister, his head stuck between the metal railings.

I let out a sigh of relief and raised my eyebrows, trying my best to hide the chuckle rising to the surface.

His father was down on all fours, talking to the kid. “Don’t worry, Little Ray. The nice firemen are here to help,” he said, looking up at me with desperate eyes.

I smiled at the father and knelt beside the child, examining just how wedged in he was. “So, how old is Little Ray?” I asked.

“He’s two. My wife left him for not even a minute.” The man sounded frantic.

“It’s okay, sir. Boys will be boys,” I replied, and turned to Chuck. “I think we’re going to need the reciprocating saw.”

“On it,” Chuck he said, and ran down the stairs.

I turned my attention back to the child and noticed his tear-streaked cheeks. “Hey there, buddy. There’s no need to cry,” I said, smiling at him. “I promise I will get you out of here.”

Sophia and Marco stood nearby, observing us, though I could see Sophia inching closer.

Chuck returned with the saw, and we got to work. We successfully removed the banister rail, and let Sophia check Little Ray over before we left the building.

“Good work in there,” Sophia said. She turned those dreamy eyes of hers on me, batting her lashes before joining Marco in the ambulance.

Back at the station, the jokes soon started. It was inevitable, especially when Chuck was on duty.

“Seriously, Benton goes running up the stairs as though his ass is on fire, and he halts when he sees the kid’s face, his head trapped.” Chuck laughed in between slurps of coffee. “And to make matters worse,” he continued. “His father is on all fours, crying along with the kid.”

Chuck got the response he wanted. As much as it was funny, it was also a job, an easy one, but one that saw a little boy freed.

The rest of the night was uneventful. By the time I clocked off duty, I was more than ready to hit my own bed. When everyone else caught up on sleep, I caught up on paperwork and cleaning duties. My brain was a hot mess and there was no way rest would come.

Just as I was opening the door on my truck, I eyed Sophia shouting down her phone. She looked exasperated. For a few seconds I thought of ignoring her, but curiosity got the better of me.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

She frowned and ran a hand through her long hair. “My car has decided to die, and I can’t get it recovered until midday.”

Don’t do it, Ash, I thought. “I can give you a ride home.”

An incredulous look spread across Sophia’s face. “Are you trying to be a smartass?” Her condescending French tone sounded sexy.

“No, I’m offering you a ride home, but if you’d rather hang around here until midday, then be my guest.” I jumped in behind the wheel and started the engine.

The passenger door opened. She threw her bag into the back and settled herself into the seat.

“So where to?” I asked.

Sophia smiled, turned up the radio, and replied, “Back to yours.”

I pulled up outside my place.

Sophia reached back and grabbed her bag.

“Are you hungry?” I asked.

She shrugged, didn’t say a word, and got out of the car.

A calm silence descended upon us. Electricity burned between us, an irresistible sexual charge that neither of us could deny.

I led the way inside my building and showed her the way up to the second floor apartment. I unlocked the front door and let her walk in first.

“This is nice,” she remarked, and looked back at me. “Very different to what I imagined.”

I raised my eyebrows and followed her through to the living room. “And why is that?”

Sophia slipped off her shoes and set her jacket down on the sofa. Her eyes swept up and down my body. She smiled.

“Well, look at you. Look at the light and airy tones of your home. It’s like you represent darkness, and your home is full of so much light,” she said. “I guess it’s just weird.”

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you that you talk too much?” I asked before I strolled over to where she stood and cupped her face with my hands. “Just shut up!”

I moved my head in close.