Firestarter (12 page)

Hamish returned, pulled off his boots, socks, sweater and jeans! She knew from her earlier experience there wasn't room to get undressed in the tiny bathroom and the kitchen was barely any bigger, so he really didn't have much option but to get changed in the same room as her. And he was a gorgeous, hunky fireman so she had no option but to watch.

She couldn't see much. His top half remained covered with a long sleeved polo shirt and although he'd removed one pair of socks he still wore another which came up to his knees, so really it was just his thighs. That wasn't too disappointing; those were some seriously muscular thighs! In moments they were covered again and he was ready to leave. Alice was feeling considerably warmer by then. She thawed further on the drive to his place. During the journey the car was filled with the pungent smell of river mud.

'A hot shower might be a good idea,' Hamish said once he'd parked the car.

'A very good idea,' Alice agreed. And if her overworked legs were too tired to hold her up and she needed someone with strong muscular thighs to lean on, whose fault would that be?

Hamish's narrow hallway contained a bicycle as well as a rack of coats and row of footwear. She added her boots, but not the filthy coat which they'd left spread over the back seat of Hamish's car to dry out. Hopefully the mud would then shake off. His flat was much like hers in terms of size and clutter, but a lot less brightly coloured and more open plan. It wasn't untidy exactly, but in the living area, piles of books, a remote controlled helicopter and various electronic gadgets topped the cupboards and coffee table. She liked it.

Hamish gently pulled her into his arms and she let her body slump against his as he held her. They stayed like that for a few moments, then he kissed her ear, her cheek, her lips. He kissed her until she was no longer aware of the ache in her legs, the pain in her arms and soreness of her back. All that mattered was his mouth on hers, his arms around her and that he never stop, never let go.

When he pulled away slightly his breathing was heavy and his voice low. 'Right, now let's get you out of these muddy clothes and properly warmed up.'

With his arm around her, he got her to the bathroom. When he let go to switch on the shower she sank down so she was sat on the toilet lid.

He chuckled and knelt down to remove her socks, all three pairs. 'Come on then, lift your arms,' he said when her feet were bare.

She obeyed and he stripped off layer after layer, throwing each in turn out into the hallway. It took a while as he kissed her again between every item of clothing.

Chapter 12

When Hamish had removed everything but Alice's final T-shirt and jeans he stopped.

'You'd better see to the rest yourself or I won't be responsible for my actions.'

Irresponsible was just fine with her.

'And we won't get anything to eat and I definitely need something to eat.'

So did she, but her hunger for him was stronger.

'Pepperoni pizza with extra cheese?'

Ah, well maybe she could satisfy both appetites. It was still early and the food would give her more strength to enjoy what she hoped would follow.

'Yes please.'

'Right. Chuck your clothes outside the bathroom door and wear my dressing gown when you've finished.'

The water was the perfect temperature; almost too hot but not quite. It revived her sufficiently that she was able to wash her hair and body with Hamish's toiletries. It was a good thing she wasn't the kind of girl who worried about being seen without make-up, she thought as she dried herself, wrapped a towel round her head and put on Hamish's dressing gown. Anyway, even without mascara and lippy she probably looked better now than she had when she got into his car at the wildlife sanctuary. She felt better too; the hot water had eased her aching muscles and the tension in her back.

Alice's clothes were nowhere in sight and she could hear a washing machine whirring away. Oh good, she wouldn't be able to go home anytime soon.

Hamish got up as she walked into the living area. 'Feeling better?' he asked.

'Much, thank you.'

'Sorry, I don't have a hair dryer.'

'No problem.' She only used one when she was in a hurry and that wasn't the case just then. Tongs would have been good but she doubted her arms would have coped with holding them. She did think about combing her hair straight, got as far as finding her comb and decided that required too much effort.

Hamish settled her on the sofa, tucked a quilt around her and asked, 'Do you want the hot chocolate now, or later?' His grin and the sparkle in his eyes suggested he was asking about more than just the drink.

'Later I think.' That seemed to be the answer he'd wanted.

'Just going to have a shower myself. My wallet's here,' he placed it next to her comb on the coffee table, 'in case the pizza comes before I'm out, but it shouldn't do.'

'OK.' She wondered where he'd hidden all the stuff which had been on the table earlier. Under his bed perhaps? Hopefully she'd get to find out.

Hamish was back, clean, sweet smelling and changed before she'd imagined many of the details that might involve. He wore short legged and sleeved pyjamas, which meant more of his body was on display than she'd seen before. She liked what she saw; firm muscles, an even tan suggesting he spent a good part of the summer outside without excessive clothing, fair hairs on his chest and limbs, but not too much of it. Hamish, unlike Alice, was clearly unselfconscious about his body.

She was very, very conscious of his body. Especially the way those snug fitting shorts passed by at eye level and again when he returned with a bottle of wine and two glasses.

'Red OK?' He showed her the label.

'Perfect.'

He placed the glasses on the coffee table, pushed aside the end of the quilt and sat on the sofa next to her. Alice was conscious of the way her naked feet touched the warm skin of his thigh. Then, as he leant across to reach the bottle, of his weight on her.

Hamish poured a little wine into each glass and offered her one. She shuffled into a more upright position, accepted the drink and clinked her glass against his.

'Cheers.'

As they sipped the wine he hardly looked away from Alice. Not that she was noticing much. He leant across her again to swap his glass for her comb.

'Shall I?' He gestured with it.

'If you like.'

He gently combed through strands of her hair. She'd quite liked her mum doing that when she was little and enjoyed the hairdresser teasing her locks smooth, but this was a very different experience. It felt good to know Hamish's hands and attention were solely on her. It felt even better when he gently pulled her against him so he could do the side furthest from him. He was slow and gentle and thorough. Maybe he did everything that way. She really, really hoped so.

'What do you do with the front?' he asked. He crouched down in front of her, his cool grey-green eyes level with hers. His warm lips level with hers. Leaning closer he brushed damp tendrils off her face, stroking her hair smooth and caressing her cheeks with his thumbs. Then his lips brushed her forehead and she closed her eyes, tilting her head back a little. He nuzzled against her neck, then nipped her earlobe with his teeth.

The doorbell rang.

Hamish made a sound like a growl before giving her a quick kiss. He stood, turning away from her as he did. His walk to the door looked more awkward than the easy way he'd previously moved around the flat. Almost as awkward as the way he kept the lower part of his body behind the door as he opened it and paid the pizza delivery boy.

As well as an extra large pizza he'd ordered garlic bread, sour cream and chive dip and a tub of white chocolate ice cream. The pizza had a properly crisp base, rich tangy tomato sauce and plenty of slices of fiery hot pepperoni. The thick layer of gooey cheese pulled out into impressively long strands too. And the smell... possibly even better than the clean lemony scent clinging to Hamish's skin. The acidity of the dip was a perfect contrast to the buttery richness of the garlic bread.

The food wasn't better than having him kiss her, but it was an extremely nice way to fill in the time until he did it again. Hamish kept her wine glass topped up too. The ice cream, like the hot chocolate, was going to have to wait.

Once they'd finished eating, Hamish took the boxes away and returned with paper towels. He wiped her face and hands as though she were a candyfloss covered toddler. To show she was a grown woman, she stroked a towel over his cheek, then followed it with tiny kisses. She did the same on the other side and then to his mouth.

When he tried to return the kisses she murmured, 'I haven't finished yet,' and lifted one of his hands to her lips. She sucked clean each of his fingers in turn and was rewarded by hearing him groan again.

Hamish tugged at the quilt and wriggled under it with her.

'This is cosy,' Alice said. She turned and leant back against him, sighed as he slipped his arms around her, and relaxed.

When she woke the following morning, she was in Hamish's bed. He was sitting on the edge watching her, so she couldn't check underneath it for hastily tidied away clutter. That was the least of her disappointments. Not getting to the ice cream and hot chocolate were in second and third place. Having fallen asleep in his arms right after finishing her meal was way out in front though. He must have carried her to bed and she supposed they had slept together, but only in the most restful and innocent sense of the word.

'Morning,' Hamish said. 'I'm guessing you slept well?'

His bedside clock showed it was gone seven, so almost twelve hours since the pizza had been delivered.

'Must have, I don't remember a thing. Sorry.'

He shrugged. The grin he gave her suggested that although he might well be disappointed he wasn't annoyed.

'Tea or coffee?'

'Tea please.'

'While I make it you can decide what you want to do today.'

'What are my options?'

'I can drop you home in a minute, you can stay here, or come with me to the sanctuary.'

Staying where she was held the most appeal, or would have done if it wasn't for the fact she'd be alone. 'I'll come with you.'

'Great. Louise will be delighted.'

Good thing he was on his way out the room as he said that. Her expression couldn't possibly have been so cheerfully philosophical as his.

Over breakfast Alice checked her phone and saw that Kate had tried to call her the evening before. There was a text too, which read, 'Ring me when you've let that poor fireman off duty ;-)'

Alice texted back to say she'd be in touch in a day or two, if by then she had the strength to work her phone. Hopefully Kate would read it when she had a mouthful of orange juice and splutter it all over Pete, showing just how unladylike she was. She switched her phone off again afterwards, partly so it didn't go flat as she didn't have her charger with her and partly so she didn't have to deal with Kate's questions while Hamish was listening.

Almost everyone greeted Alice with as much warmth as on the previous day. The only exception was Louise; she was actually civil. The two women worked just as hard in just as much mud as previously, before going in for a tea break. When Alice stood to go back out she couldn't help but groan with discomfort.

'You OK?' Louise asked.

'Just a bit stiff.'

'Sorry, I've been rough on you. Stay here in the warm. There are magazines somewhere...'

'It's OK, I'll carry on... That's if you want me?'

'It's a lot easier with two.'

As they returned to the spot they were clearing Louise apologised for being rude before. 'I've seen Hamish hurt a few times by girls who throw themselves at him because he's gorgeous or because he's a fireman. They're only interested in the surface and it never lasts long.'

'It must be hard seeing that happen… to a friend.'

That was her second warning to take things steady. Kate had said she'd expected Alice to get tired of dating a fireman and get bored with Hamish. Perhaps she should listen? Not because she believed it was true, but because it just possibly could be. She'd fantasised over dating a fireman for so long that his job could blind her to his faults. She considered for a minute and couldn't think of a single one. Even when she'd been sure she loved Tony she'd seen clearly that he wasn't perfect. She didn't really know Hamish well enough to be in love, even if it did feel that way. And if Louise and Kate could see the possibility that her interest in Hamish was only uniform deep, surely Hamish himself would too.

The day involved five hours hard labour, a burger and apple pie lunch and a walk to inspect the handiwork of Hamish and the others. As Louise pointed out various birds on the way, Alice warmed to her. Louise's enthusiasm was infectious and she managed to supply information without making Alice feel like an idiot for not knowing.

'Are you ready to go?' Hamish asked when they caught up with him.

'I should think the poor girl is ready to pass out,' Louise said. 'We've cleared all the rubbish right down to East Corner.'

'I'm all right,' Alice assured him. 'Nothing a shower and some food won't sort out.'

'We could try for the hot chocolate again,' he suggested as they walked towards his car.

She was very tempted, but if she went back to his place, and managed to stay awake her behaviour was definitely going to come into the throwing herself at him category. Besides her toothbrush and other things she was going to need before work on Monday were all in her flat.

'Another time. I really should go back to mine if you don't mind driving me there.'

'Sure. No problem.'

Alice hardly noticed the drive back to her flat. She jolted into awareness as he stopped the car.

'So... can I see you again?' Hamish asked. He actually looked as though he expected her to say no.

Clearly she'd overdone the backing off. 'Yes. Yes, of course. Let's have dinner tonight. I'll pay.' Oh god, that sounded desperate. Why couldn't she manage to say something which was 'keen but not total slut'?

'Yes to dinner, no to you paying.'

'But...' She didn't have the strength to argue, it could wait until she'd recovered a bit.

'Pick you up at seven then?' Hamish said.

Alice spent ages scrubbing off the mud and conditioning her hair, but didn't bother applying much make-up. If how she'd looked when she and Louise staggered back to the staff building hadn't put him off then Hamish wasn't going to be bothered by a lack of blusher. She did choose a figure hugging jersey dress and high heeled boots though. Just because she wasn't going to throw herself at him didn't mean he had to want her to keep her distance.

She was ready at a quarter to seven and gave Kate a call.

'You out with Hamish tonight... or staying in with him?'

'Out tonight, in last night. All night.'

'Oh! No wonder you didn't answer your phone! I wouldn't have rung if I thought I might be interrupting something.'

'Actually you'd have woken me up.' She explained about working at the sanctuary and falling asleep.

'Oh, disappointing. Did you make up for it this morning?'

'No. We went back to the sanctuary and I spent the day mud wrestling with Louise.'

'That doesn't sound much fun.'

'That bit wasn't fun exactly, but it's a useful thing to do, I'm sure I'll feel good about it once I stop aching. Watching the birds was quite interesting.'

'Be careful, Sis. You went along with the dull stuff Tony liked and said that was educational, you don't want to fall into the same trap.'