Crashed (5 page)

***

The rest of the day at the fire house dragged on since Avery saw Emily at Starbucks. He would never hear the end of it from the guys. The entire day had been filled with bullshit comments about passing her along to the other guys when he was done with her.
I don’t plan on being done with her,
was all he could think. He was a hopeless romantic, but he would never tell anyone that.

When she’d texted him Luke Bryan lyrics earlier in the afternoon, he couldn’t stop thinking about her or smiling. No matter how tired and bored he was, every time he would lay his head back on the couch and close his eyes, he would picture her. Everything about her.

He could smell the scent of her, something she wore distinctly smelled of crisp fall apples. Her short blonde hair was sexily pushed to a side bang, making her deep ocean blue eyes visible. But what got Avery the most was her full lips and perfect smile accented perfectly with two dainty dimples on either side. The more he thought about her lips, the further his daydreams would go.

When Captain Sullivan plopped down on the couch next to him, Avery shook his head, letting go of his fantasies for the moment. In his years in the fire service, this man had become very much a mentor since Avery’s entire family lived back in Georgia.

“How’d your
date
go last night with our patient?” Avery immediately knew he was in trouble.
Shit, how did he find out?

“I’m not sure I would call it much of a date. I bought her some decent food. That hospital stuff is for the birds.” He tried to act nonchalant about it all, even though he knew it was much more than just dinner. Sullivan let out a chuckle as a hint of a smile formed on his well mustached hidden lips.

“You aren’t in trouble, Martin. Just treat her well, boy. I was on scene two years ago when both her parents were killed in a DUI accident. They never stood a chance against that drunk piece of shit.”

It felt like Avery had been punched in the chest.
Her parents?

“I won’t do anything to hurt her, Sir.” He shook his head as the words came out of his mouth. She was far more delicate than he originally thought. Sadness filled him as his heart ached, thinking about his own fresh loss. Just a year ago while visiting for the weekend, Avery’s kid brother Chad had been the victim of a hit and run driver while crossing the road near his apartment. The asshole hadn’t even stopped to see if he was okay, or what he hit. He’d since moved to a different area of Daytona Beach. He couldn’t bear to see that intersection on a daily basis.

The clock read three o’clock finally. He couldn’t get out of this place fast enough.

***

“You gotta leave soon. Avery is going to be here in an hour, and no, you won’t be meeting him today. I’m not letting you scare him off!” Emily yelled at Becca from the kitchen as she continued unloading her dishwasher. After the pair worked their asses off for three hours it finally looked like a twenty-six year old woman’s apartment and not a fucking frat house.

Becca whined across the room, “But whyyyyyyyyy nottttttttttt?”

“No way, this is only our second date. First, if you even consider dinner in my hospital room a date.” Emily laughed. “If he leaves early, I will text you to come over for some beers, but don’t hold your breath.”

Becca threw an accent pillow from the couch across the adjoining living room, nailing Emily right in the back, as she laughed while ducking down, anticipating something to come whizzing past her head. Just as Emily turned to dish it back to her, she spied Becca behind the coffee table, waving a little white piece of fabric.

“I surrender!” She choked out in between laughs.

“Is that my underwear?” Emily questioned while gasping for breath in between laughs.

“EWWWWWW.” Becca chucked them, jumped up and ran for the bathroom. “I so need to wash your crotch crust off my hands now!”

“Tell me how you really feel about my vag, Becca!”

Emily felt good being home, safe and content with life. She never realized how much comfort she took in her apartment. Maybe it was her anxiety starting to creep up on her again. She was distracted from her own thoughts when her phone vibrated against the counter.

What do you like on your pizza?

Avery’s name appeared and her breathing hitched. She picked up the phone to reply.

Whatever. Cheese, pepperoni, sausage...doesn’t really matter to me.

“Okay, that’s your cue to leave, Bec.”

“What? Why?” She looked at her best friend with a puzzled look on her face, afraid their pillow fight had pissed her off.

“Avery just texted. He’ll be here shortly. Which means you need to pound sand, lady!” Emily’s phone buzzed against the counter again.

So basically you like meat in your mouth? Sorry, I couldn’t resist. See you in a half hour.

Emily couldn’t help but crack up. He had the same twisted sense of humor as she did. If Becca or Amelia had dared to request different meats on their pizza, Avery’s comment would have been the first thing she would’ve spit out.

She walked through her apartment once more, ensuring there were no more rogue pairs of underwear lying under the coffee table. Becca made her way to the front door, picking up her purse and a bag of garbage which was overdue for the dumpster.

“Have fun tonight.” She winked as she closed the door behind herself.

I’ll have fun all right.

***

Extra cheese, pepperoni, and sausage would do. Avery had never put so much thought into picking out pizza toppings. He figured if he got everything Emily mentioned, he couldn’t disappoint her. Making his way to the cooler inside the pizzeria, he picked out two twenty ounce sodas. One Pepsi, and one Mountain Dew, two of his favorites.

“Number thirty-eight?” A teenage boy with dark hair, way too long for a boy, headed for the counter with a pizza box in his hand.

“That would be me,” Avery said as he paid for the pizza and the boy bagged up the bottles of soda. You could smell the bite in the hot Italian sausage through the box. The pizza was going to be delicious, considering he hadn’t eaten much all day. And the thought of sharing the night with Emily was enough to make him break a couple speed limits getting to her. 

On my way.

He typed out on the screen of his phone from the driver’s seat of his truck as he punched her address into the built in GPS system in his dashboard.
Estimated time eight minutes
. But Avery read it as
time to beat
.

The hum of his tires on the pavement filled his ears while he drove over the bridge onto beachside. With a press of a button on his steering-wheel,
Florida Georgia Line
filled his truck, quieting the sound of his obnoxiously big tires. Avery sang along with the lyrics to
Get Your Shine On
. The music made the trip go by a lot quicker. Moments later, his truck was pulling into the
guest
spot reserved for visitors in her complex.

Avery killed the engine, grabbed the pizza and headed toward the waterfront building in front of him. That was when he caught his first peek of her. Emily was standing a few feet from an open door staring toward the Atlantic Ocean. The wind was running through her hair, while she repeatedly tried to smooth it out. Hot pink flip-flops fitted onto her petite feet placed the perfect emphasis on the gray and pink striped sun dress she wore. Her short, but gorgeous legs were beautifully sun-kissed.

Suddenly she turned around, almost as if she felt Avery staring at her from behind. A slow smile spread across her face, exposing both dimples he’d been fantasizing about just hours earlier.

“Is that your truck?” she questioned, looking back at the beautifully massive, silver truck. Her mouth slowly parted while she gawked at the vehicle.

“Yea, that’s my baby. My pride and joy. You like?”

“Oh, I love.”

Avery couldn’t help letting out an uncomfortable laugh. Here was this petite girl drooling over his truck and all he could think was,
please don’t ask to drive it.

“Why don’t you come in before the pizza gets cold? The wind’s kicking up. I think we have a front moving through.”

Avery slowly walked into her apartment, looking around to take in the details of her home. It was apparent a single woman lived here. The entryway was decorated in excessive amounts of pink. A small turquoise end table next to the door housed a basket full of mail and a petite dish held keys. The white walls displayed a number of canvas prints. Everything from beach scenes to family pictures were all centered around a black and white Marilyn Monroe print. The white tile floor was covered by a small grey running carpet which led to an open floor plan connecting a just-as-girly living room with a tiny kitchen, accented with even more pink. Avery chuckled to himself thinking,
look! More pink!

“Let me grab a couple plates. You can put the box up here on the counter,” she said, snapping him out of his careful inspection of her apartment.

Slowly wandering toward the counter, he placed the box down and opened it. “Extra cheese, pepperoni, and sausage.”

“Oh. My. God. That is like sex on a pizza.” Her look was serious as she eyed the pizza with the plates in her hand. “I got beer, Pepsi, water and uh...” She paused while searching through her refrigerator. “Some flat ginger ale, month old orange juice, and sour milk.”

Avery held up the plastic shopping bag with the soda he picked up in the pizzeria. “I came prepared. Pepsi or Mountain Dew?”

“Oh that’s a tough choice. Both are my favorite. I’ll take the Pepsi.” Emily placed the two plates down on the counter next to the pizza box. Eyeing the pizza for the best slice, she slid it onto her plate. Avery repeated her actions and they headed to the table to enjoy their dinner over the single candle Emily had lit in the center. Her favorite Yankee Candle scent:
apple cider
.

“So how was your day? You end up getting a new car?” Avery asked, picking a piece of pepperoni off his slice and tossing it into his mouth clumsily. Emily finished chewing the bite of pizza, while he focused on her luscious lips. She giggled and held up a single finger, signaling him to wait a moment while she finished her mouthful of food. She puckered up and took a sip of her Pepsi.

“Yes! It was actually pretty easy. They had the car I wanted right on the lot. As long as it had a sun-roof, and CD player I was sold.” She was beaming just talking about her new purchase, like a little kid in a candy store.

“Let me guess? A big truck just like mine?” he joked.

“Oh, I so wish! I ended up with a new Volkswagen, GTI this time. I figured you would be mad if I bought another Beetle.” She gave him a wink and took another bite of her pizza.

With each bite she stopped to savor all the flavors running through her mouth. The hint of garlic mixed with the right amount of tomato sauce complimented the toppings perfectly.

With each bite she took, he couldn’t help but watch her sensual mouth. It was absolutely gorgeous. He couldn’t pull his gaze away from it. There was no telling how often he’d thought about it since the night before in the hospital when he realized how perfect it was. Shaking his head, he tried to think of something else. “Beach or movie after the pizza? I see you have an ample collection of DVDs over there.” Avery held his breath, waiting for her reply.
Please say both. Please say both. Please say both.
He chanted internally.

“Beach first, before the rain starts. Movie after?” she asked him, waiting for his approval. “But, I must warn you. I only have chick flicks.”

In his best chick impression he squealed, “Those are sooooo my favorite!”

Emily almost spit out her soda. Instead, she started choking on it. She tried to mask her coughs while still laughing at Avery. Tears started streaming down her face created by her own hysterics. Trying to catch her breath, she placed her soda down on the table and grabbed a napkin from the pile to her left. “God, you can’t do that to me when I’m drinking something!” She reached over and playfully punched Avery in the shoulder.

Every moment they spent together was easier than the next. Their personalities just meshed perfectly. She found herself staring at him across the table, examining the slight stubble forming on his chin, his backward Braves cap, her gaze always falling back to his gleaming green eyes. Before she could look away, Avery caught her staring. He slowly reached across the table, taking her chin in his oversized rugged hand. 

“I’ve been dying to do this since the moment we met,” he whispered, leaning in to taste her lips. She was taken aback by his actions, but more than ready. They could feel the electricity charging between them as their mouths accommodated each other, a deeper connection than merely lust.

She slowly parted her lips, tenderly nibbling on his bottom lip. He ran his hands through her blonde locks and gently down her face before he slowly backed away, leaving her mouth with a light and tender final kiss.

“Wow,” was all she could whisper, looking up to meet his eyes.

“I’m sorry, I just…I couldn’t help it. God, Emily, you are so beautiful.”

Across the table she started to blush, thinking about his words.
Beautiful?
She picked up her plate and headed for the dishwasher. There was no way she could eat any more with her stomach flip-flopping around. His words made her feel dizzy.

“Thank you, Avery. I liked it,” she uttered from the kitchen, peeking over her shoulder to examine the dumbfounded look on his face. “Ready for a walk on the beach?”

Reaching down to unlace the work boots on his feet was the only answer she needed. Slipping off her sandals next to the couch, she eyed him and held her hand out for him to come and join her. They made their way for the front door, connected by their entwined fingers, wearing duel blinding smiles.