The Men of CLE-FD updated (3 page)

“
On a real note, Lincoln, your sister may have lost her trust in men since she’s been burned twice by her ex-husband.  Our rotations at the firehouse are crazy and we are out of reach a lot.  Will Regan be able to deal with that?  Orlando won’t be able to drop whatever he is doing to be with her.”
 

“
She will know what Orlando is doing while at work since firefighters don’t sleep with the staff like that asshole Mark was doing.  Baby, Regan needs an adventure with a hard-working man that gets dirty, not the suit and tie corporate drone whose job is to wine and dine clients in order to get business.”
 

“
Damn, baby, give the man a break.  He provided a good living for your sister.  You don’t know what was going on with them or what really happened in their marriage.  So don’t you think it is unfair to put all the blame on him?”
 

“
Okay, maybe I am being hard on Mark and taking my sister’s side.  All I know is another woman is benefiting from what my sister help create and all she got is a broken heart.  She really felt they had a fairytale marriage.”  Lincoln cuddled closer to him.  “Regan wants what I have, Anthony.  And I admit there is something very sexy about being with a firefighter,” she said caressing Anthony’s bald head.
 

“
Well, what can I say?  We are the center of women’s wet dreams.”
 

Lincoln laughed.  “I’m surprised there is a helmet big enough to fit your bloated head.”

He chuckled.  “Exactly the reason I joined the fire department.  Besides saving lives, I can gloat and not seem conceited while doing it.”

“
Anthony, we could have been together a long time ago.  We wasted a lot of hours flirting instead of getting it on.”
 

“
You were young and I didn’t want to push you into something you might not be able to handle—me.  Plus, I was scared of your mother and that big gun she carried.”
 

“
Anthony, my mother didn’t rule my life.”
 

He called for a waitress to order a drink. “She might not have ruled your life, but she knew how to shoot a gun.  When she moved to Chicago, I was able to make my move and lower the risk of getting my butt shot.  You know it makes me nervous that you go to the gun range.”

Lincoln fluffed the curls of her hair.  “Remember that in case you decide to step out of line.”

Anthony let his eyes travel along Lincoln’s body.  She wasn’t as curvy as her sister was but thin with an athletic build.  She was definitely pretty with light brown eyes, high cheekbones, and shoulder length brownish-black hair.  But he noted all the Hathaway sisters were beautiful women.  He cracked up when heard the names of her other sisters.  Carter was the oldest, then Regan.  Lincoln was the baby of the bunch, and they had become friendly when she took a job as temporary office assistant to the Battalion Chief at the firehouse.  When that job ended, they remained in touch.

He nodded smiling.  “Damn straight I will, but you know I love you.”

“
I love you too, baby.  Now, tell me more about Orlando.”
 

Anthony sat back in the chair.  “Baby, there isn’t really much more to tell.  He loves the outdoors.  He is very athletic and into fitness.  I hope Regan likes to ride bikes, hike, and shit.  I know he is killing me Jon with the workout routine he set for us.  The man is a sadist when it comes to training for something.”

“
From what you’ve told me, he is determined to win that charity event you all have entered.  Baby, Orlando says very little about himself.  About how old is he?”
 

Anthony folded his hands behind his head.  “I don’t know for sure but I think he’s thirty-six or thirty-seven years old.  He has worked hard to get where he is and is a damn good firefighter and leader.  If I had to explain him in one word, it would be ‘honorable’.”

Lincoln rubbed her hands together.  “He sounds perfect for Regan.  I like that he has focus and determination.  And I like even better that he doesn’t have a wandering eye.”

“
No, he doesn’t play around anymore after Maggie.  He is more serious about himself and not the playa he was when he first entered the fire academy.”
 

Lincoln hemmed.  “His marriage made him rigid?  That could be a problem for Regan since she is friendly and outgoing.  She might get on his nerves with her bubbly personality, although, she has been in the dumps lately and kind of sulking.”

“
Baby, I know Orlando very well.  He stays to himself since his divorce, but that is by choice and not because he is not a sociable person.  Will Regan will like him—yes.  Hell, all women are attracted to him but he just brushes it aside and moves on.  That is why I am not sure he is ready to get back into dating.”
 

“
He is coming tonight to meet Regan so that must mean he is ready to start dating again, right?”
 

Anthony tugged at his ear.  He did not exactly tell Lincoln the whole truth.  Orlando had made it clear he was not interested in a relationship and was only coming to the party as a courtesy to Lincoln.

Anthony squirmed in his seat.  “Um, Lincoln, just don’t press him.  If there is any chemistry between them, let them handle that.  After the introduction, we are not going to have any more to do with getting them together, okay?”

Lincoln’s jubilation spilled over the loud music as she squealed.  “Yeah, whatever you say.  This is too perfect!  Call him to make sure he is coming.  Go ahead, call him,” she urged.

Anthony removed his cell phone from his pocket mumbling.  “I swear I will never understand women and what you actually hear when we talk to you.  But, after tonight, I’m sure I will be down one best friend.”

*****

Orlando entered the nightclub looking for Anthony.  His late arrival was due to him stopping home after shift to change into something decent before heading out for the evening.

Making his way to the bar area he did not see Anthony or Lincoln, but was concerned with the number of people occupying the space.  He was off duty but never off the clock when safety was a factor.

He decided to ignore it for now since the party was for friends of his.  Rapping his knuckles on the surface of the bar to get the bartender’s attention, he noticed a woman standing less than ten feet from him talking with another woman.  The red mini dress she wore clung to her curvy body.  He watched her posture.  She didn’t slouch but stood straight with her shoulders erect.

Besides the red dress being chic but basic, her accessories were modest and not gaudy.  He loved the way a woman’s legs looked in heels and the dark- red shoes she wore had very high heels.  Her smooth brown legs were sexy slender and sleek.  Her head slightly turned and in the dim light of the club, her eyes sparkled as she laughed at whatever she and the woman were talking about.

He could not take his eyes off her.  The bartender broke his gaze. “What can I get you?”

Orlando cleared his throat. “Yeah, I’ll have a Heineken, and a shot of tequila.”

“
Coming right up,” the bartender said disappearing.
 

Orlando returned his attention to the woman who was now with a group of people talking.  It seemed years had passed since he had last been intimate with a woman.  His divorce was not amicable and to deal with it, he threw himself into work.  He volunteered to take extra shifts and used the money towards the expense of updating his house.  The judge awarded him the two-story brick colonial he shared with his ex-wife and he decided to remodel it and put it on the market.

The bartender returned with his drink order.  Swallowing the shot, he took a swig of beer never removing his attention from the woman with a body causing his heart to skip beats.  A sudden urge of wanting to have a conversation with this woman came out of nowhere.  This was not the first time he had been in a place surrounded by beautiful women.  Some had even approached him with offers to buy him drinks or prepare dinner for him. This woman, however, he had zeroed in on as soon as he walked in the door, and that had to be a sign. 

Hell, he was at a party and due for a night of fun, and if her status was single, he wanted to spend it with her.  He eased closer to shorten the distance between them.  He felt sweat tent on his forehead.  He had been out of the game of making the first move too long.  He was not sure if he had any game left that women had not already seen or heard.

He’d always been able to attract women by flashing his boyish smile or flexing his muscles; that wasn’t the problem.  At thirty-six-years of age, his confidence was strong, but not as it was when he played the field.  Women today expected men to show their worthiness upon introduction or face the hand turning them away.

He took in a deep breath and decided to go for it.  He inched his way in her direction until he was standing less than a foot away from her.  He could smell the citrus aroma of her perfume.  Wanting to avoid tired pickup lines, he settled on, “Hello.”

She turned her head to him, smiled, and said, “Hello.”

Ouch, so much for my big approach
he thought as her attention went back to the people dancing.  He rocked back and forth on the heels of his shoes not ready to throw in the towel and walk away.  “I wouldn’t be a gentleman if I didn’t say how stunning you look in that dress.”
 

She gave him a smile sliding her hands down the sides of her dress, and answered, “Thank you.  Are you here for the birthday party?”

Bingo!  I got her attention.
  “
Yes, I was invited by some friends but I don’t see them,” he
said shifting his body to look around the room.  “By the way, my name is Orlando.”  He offered his hand hoping she would accept it.
 

“
I’m Regan and it’s nice to meet you, Orlando.”  She slipped her hand into his making firm eye contact with him.
 

He mirrored her eye contact letting his body posture relax.  “What a beautiful name, Regan.”  The music playing was R Kelly’s
Love Letters
.  He loved to dance and was good at it.  “Would you like to dance?”  He asked observing her moving to the beat of the music.

Regan looked at the couples on the dance floor hand dancing.  She smiled at him and said, “I’d love to, but the song is almost over.”

“
We’ll catch the next one,” he said taking her hand.
 

Orlando’s legs felt heavy walking to the dance floor.  The music switched to a Latin number.  He was an excellent salsa dancer, so any kind of hand-to-hand dancing came easy for him.  He got into the groove, swinging Regan around and keeping in pace with the beat of the music.  The music had a nice tempo that was not too slow or too fast.

He was impressed she kept up with him.  Soon he realized they had a circle formed around them watching his mix of salsa with R&B.  His salsa dancing was natural, no stiff hips and legs, but the fluid swinging of his hips and long legs.

Then the DJ turned the music to a heart-pumping salsa number to pound out of the club’s larger speakers.  The laser lights beamed an arrangement of colors across the dark room, flickering to the beat of the fast music.  They were the only two on the dance floor.  Orlando did not miss a step as he picked up speed to match the quick-paced song.  He spun, dipped, and danced Regan across the dance floor like a professional.

His hips gyrated, and his precise foot movement had the people in the circle clapping and rooting them on as they heated up the dance floor.  As the song neared to an end, he guided Regan in a series of spins ending with a huge dip.

Orlando’s heart was thumping against his chest.  He had not danced like that in a long while.  He lifted Regan upright.  Out of breath, he said in Spanish, “Gracias usted por el baile.  Hermosa dama.”

Regan grabbed her chest.  Out of breath she replied, “Gracias.  However, I think I’m done for the night after that dance.”

Walking to the bar together, she was just as he expected, she was classy woman.  He asked.  “You understood what I said?”

“
Yes.  You said, ‘thank you for the dance, beautiful lady’.”  She leaned against the bar dabbing her forehead with a napkin.
 

Orlando drew in a deep, erratic breath intrigued.  “Where’d you learn Spanish and salsa dancing?”

“
I’ve been to Puerto Rico a number of times and learned the basics of both.  Granted I lack your fancy footwork, but I don’t think I was too shabby for a beginner.  Where’d you learn to salsa?”
 

He shrugged his shoulders.  “I’m Latin; I was born dancing.”

Rapidly Regan fanned the napkin in front of her face.  “I have to applaud your skills, Orlando—you’re a fantastic dancer!  Besides my trips to Latin America, I have never seen anyone in the United States dance like that.”

Her skin glistened with moisture.  Orlando would have given his left arm to be that napkin lightly touching her beautiful cheekbones.  “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to wear you out.”

“
Oh, please don’t apologize.  I enjoyed it very much.  Maybe we can dance again before the night is over—if I recover, that is.”
 

He wasn’t ready for her to leave his company just yet.  May I buy you a drink?”

“
That would be nice, but I should socialize with my other guests since this is my birthday party.”
 

“
You’re the birthday girl?  Then you must be Lincoln’s sister.  They invited me tonight.”
 

“
Yes, I am.  They are in the back room we have reserved.  I’ll take you back.”
 

“
I’m following you,” he said taking the beer and a napkin off the bar.
 

*****

Regan’s spine tingled as she led the way to Anthony and her sister.  The man standing beside her was handsome and intimidating her for some reason.  She had a feeling they’d met before, but she couldn’t place where they might have come in contact.  Either way he was an excellent dancer, and her feet were stinging from their performance.  She could have worn sensible shoes for dancing, but it was her birthday party, and she wanted to be stunning instead of comfortable.