Wilde For You (The Wilde Sisters Book 3) by Marianne Rice Read Free Book Online Page B

independent woman from her barren condo to her sexy red heels. The woman would be too afraid of messing up her clothes to want a dog. Would never go near a toddler with their peanut butter and jelly fingers or runny noses.
    Even though she was wrong for him in so many ways, he couldn’t help thinking about her. A lot. Anytime he talked with his brothers or sisters about the party, he pictured Sage. Smelled her. Tasted her. Time didn’t erase the memories and sometimes he wished it would. He didn’t need the way her mess would complicate his life. His life was simple, just the way he liked it.
    At the end of January, the fire station was fairly quiet. They had their share of Christmas tree fires but the new LED lights and more awareness of tree safety cut back on the calls. The next month would bring an onslaught of chimney fires, though. January and February were damn cold in Maine.
    Luke finished the safety check on Engine 57 and headed up the stairs to the lounge when the front bell rang. Probably a pizza delivery. Only a few guys were on, so no family meal was made. He opened the front door but it was no pimply-faced pizza kid that greeted him.
    “Hey.”
    Her hair had grown out a little. Before it had been barely long enough for him to grip as he tilted her head back to suck on her neck. Now he’d have even more leverage. It fell soft around Sage’s face instead of being in the usual seductive style she’d worn before. Her lips were just as full, only not as ripe as the last time he saw her. Granted, he’d been lapping and sucking at them for twenty minutes before she slapped the insult on him.
    “What do you want?” He didn’t mean to sound so rude, but the memory of being discarded like worthless trash did that to a man.
    “Are you busy?”
    “I’m working.”
    Sage had the courtesy to look away before she sighed. “I’m sorry.”
    If she looked him in the eyes it would have had more effect. He couldn’t refuse her sultry gaze. Still, he wanted her to work for it. “For what?” Weeks had gone by since her embarrassing brush-off, yet the rejection still felt raw.
    The strong, independent woman he knew returned. She lifted her head and threw back her shoulders. “For insulting your ego. However, I can explain. After I do, if you choose to never see me again, that’s fine. But I think we could…” She quirked her eyebrow and smirked. “Please each other.”
    Yeah, she knew how to get his attention. “Okay. So explain.” He still hadn’t let her in the fire station. He knew he was rude, keeping her out in the cold, but he didn’t want to be overheard by his buddies and he didn’t want them ogling Sage. The territorial thing kicked in, even if she didn’t belong to him.
    “Not here. When do you get off work?” She stroked her finger down his cheek and he shivered.
    “Damn, your fingers are ice cold. Where are your gloves? You’re going to get frostbite.” Screw the hecklers, he couldn’t let the woman freeze to death. He pulled her inside by her coat sleeve, keeping her coat in his grasp, and kicked the door closed behind her.
    “I wasn’t planning on having a conversation outside.” Mischief flickered in her eyes, making his tongue itch to lick along the seductive arch of her brow.
    They stared at each other, each too stubborn to give in first. He could ask her to meet him at his place, cook her dinner, but he couldn’t face rejection again. Somewhere safe, where there’d be no expectations.
    Tamping down on the lust that threatened to show its colors, he let go of her coat and stepped away from her warmth. “The Coffee House at three. I have an hour break before I’m back for an all-nighter.”
    Sage licked her lips before lowering her gaze to his mouth. The fire inside his belly burned with desire. “Fine. I’ll see you at three.” She let herself out and he smiled at his victory. She didn’t even pull out her phone to check her schedule. Either she was wide open or she was