Page 70 of The Firefighter's Fate

The man chortles.

“I’m not that deep,” he says. His defenses are still there, even though I’ve started to wear them down.

“I’m not so sure about that,” I reply.

“Oh, you’re not so sure?”

“I think you’re still holding back.”

“Why would you think that?”

I narrow my eyes and purse my lips.

“I just do...”

“You want to know me completely, then?” Connor asks me, his voice low.

We really are so close to each other.

I glance down at his lips.

He glances down at mine.

“Yeah,” I reply. “I need to. Professionally, I mean. For this article.”

The man nods and takes a swig from his beer.

“For the article. Sure.”

“See? You’re holding back, even now.”

I stare into his hazel eyes... those treacherous pools that hide his innermost thoughts and desires.

He’s staring right back at me.

I’ve not been able to decipher much about his mind, even after all these days spent together, but I can tell he’s mulling over something... a thought... an idea...

“I’m not holding back, Ember,” he whispers.

I smile softly.

“I really think you are,” I whisper back.

In one swift gulp, Connor finishes his beer and places the empty bottle back on the bar before turning back to me.

“Okay, then. There is a place we can go where you can get to know me properly, Ember. It’s a place I’ve not shown anyone else before.”

“Yeah?”

“But you’ll have to get ready to spend the night,” he says.

Oh.

“We’re leaving Crystal River?” I ask. “Where?”

“Wait and see, Ember Mortensen,” Connor replies. “You think I’m holding back from you, then come and get to know me. Properly. Professionally.”

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