Into the Fire by Donna Alward Read Free Book Online Page A

firefighter. He would be putting himself in danger every time he went on a call. She knew what it was like to think everything was fine and then have a policeman show up at your door, ripping your world apart. She didn’t want to lose someone she loved that way again.
    “Moose is fine now. Let’s get you up out of there,” Chris said, holding out a hand.
    She put her fingers in his warm, sure grip and let him pull her out of the corner. She patted her leg and Moose followed meekly. She had to swallow against the thickness in her throat. Poor Moose looked exactly like she felt. Fenced in by circumstances and unhappy. At least Moose had Chris. Chris never did anything halfway. He’d make sure Moose had a good, loving home.
    “You want some coffee?”
    She checked her watch. “I probably shouldn’t. The 4-H bake sale is happening and I need to put in an appearance.”
    “Even if you’re not going to reopen?”
    She nodded. “The bank account that was set up has looked after the vet bills, thank goodness. The bake sale won’t bring in much, but it will help with the care and food for our foster families. I’m still committed to finding good homes for those animals.”
    They passed the living room and the couch. Her cheeks heated. Only a few days ago she’d been practically naked, sprawled on its length. She looked up at Chris’s back and felt an all-too-familiar burn. Attraction. Desire. Need. Whenever they’d met in the past she put that butterfly-type feeling down to the fact that they had a past. It had seemed natural given the circumstances. But now she recognized it for what it was. A sexual recognition that had never truly gone away. It didn’t help that he was so nice either. It would be easier to ignore if he was full of himself, or selfish, or something. But he wasn’t.
    He was perfect.
    And perhaps that was the one thing that kept her walking towards the door. It was hard to go toe-to-toe with perfect. And she already felt inadequate most of the time.
    As soon as the door opened, Moose darted out around her legs, knocking her off balance and back against Chris. His hand settled on her arms, steadying her. “Are you sure you have to go?” he asked, his breath warm against her ear.
    She nodded, even as she wanted nothing more than to stay. But it wouldn’t solve anything. They weren’t starting up again, were they? So what would be the point of taking things further?
    She moved away from his touch and stepped out into the crisp fall air. It really was beautiful up here. The trees were all changing color and the air was ripe with the scent of it. Not far down the road was a winery, and she would almost swear she could smell the musty scent of the crush.
    He followed her to her car while Moose investigated a corner of the back lawn. “New purse?” he asked as she opened the door. A new handbag was lying on the passenger seat.
    “Old one pressed into everyday duty,” she replied. “I had to trash the other.” She didn’t want to admit that she hadn’t wanted to spend the money on a new one. It only made her look more pathetic.
    His face lost all traces of levity and he put his hands on the top of the car window. “Better to lose a purse than have something happen to you.”
    “Chris—”
    “I mean it,” he answered. “I’ve responded to a lot of calls since I joined the department, and for people I knew too. But nothing froze me up like seeing you standing in that kennel with a towel over your face. I couldn’t let anything happen to you. I just couldn’t.”
    “And you didn’t. When I saw you there I knew I could count on you.”
    There was a significant pause, and then Chris met her gaze evenly. “Then why didn’t you count on me years ago? Why’d you have to give me back my ring, Ally?”
    She never expected him to ask that, especially in such a forthright way. She floundered, unsure of what to say. “I thought we were past all that. Ancient history.”
    “I thought so too.