Page 7 of Phoenix Rising

A chill washed over her.

Iris was a placeholder to fight against loneliness. That's all she ever was. It was a shame that Iris had refused to believe her.

She could hear her voice echo in her memory. “You're really an icy bitch, you know that?”

She dropped the frame into the trash can, ignoring the shatter that rumbled throughout the apartment.

After a few hours of meticulously arranging the living room and kitchen, Lucinda looked over tomorrow's proposals with a glass of dry red wine.

She got to the end of the file, saw Chief Rebecca Thompson’s name, and internally cringed.

The chief wasn't exactly what she expected. She had imagined some wrinkled American gunslinger who hated any sort of progression. Nother.Thompson was tallish and muscular with messy reddish- gold hair laced with strands of silver that fell at her chin. Her body looked like she could jump out of a burning building single handedly carrying three people. She looked strong and Lucinda had always had a weakness for strong women. Lucinda could barely catch her breath as the firefighter had leaned against the doorway, her warm green eyes focused fully on Lucinda. Her heart had raced from the chief's heated glare. Lucinda liked it so much that she had decided to bait Thompson by skipping over her title.

That was not professional.She bit the end of her pen.

But the look on Thompson's face had been worth it. Her eyebrows raised, and her muscular arms crossed over her chest as she watched Lucinda saunter down the hallway and barked “It’sChief” to her retreating figure.

Maybe Lucinda had let her hips sway more than usual. She knew her ass looked great from behind, especially in that skirt.

Those simple five minutes she was in Thompson's office enthralled her to no end. She was unsure exactly why. People often went with whatever Lucinda wanted. She was so put together that she often had ten backup plans put together before the first had even failed. But Thompson was so ready to question her, and that was infuriating. And intriguing.

Lucinda flipped through the file. Thompson's work was impeccable, though. Very much the opposite of her explosion of an office. Everything was thought out, clearly listed, and neat. It made her blood buzz with satisfaction. Or maybe that was the wine.

The heat between her legs when she recalled Thompson's glare wasdefinitelythe wine.

Lucinda shook the memory away. She neededto bloody focus on the task at hand. This opportunity could be everything if she let it.

Her mobile buzzed beside her, scaring Rosalind. The cat bounded from the couch and into the bedroom, but not before she glared at Lucinda for interrupting her slumber.

Lucinda accepted the video call. "Hello, Mum. You're up early."

"More like you're up late, sweetheart." Her mother, Angelica, held the phone too close to her face as she spoke into the camera. "What time is it there?"

Lucinda looked at her watch. "12:30. Mum, you don't need to hold the phone directly in front of your nose."

Her mom dropped the phone into her lap and then quickly recovered it, now holding it a decent distance away. Lucinda could see her silver hair and half-moon glasses. Her pink robe was bundled around her.

"Better?"

Lucinda chuckled. "Much."

"How was your first day? Tell me about your new place. Have you made any friends?"

"Well, technically, my first day is tomorrow," Lucinda clarified.

"Damn time zones," Angelica mumbled. "Have you seen the hospital yet?"

"We passed by it momentarily. But I'll be seeing my office tomorrow." Lucinda sipped her wine.

"Wine at this hour will give you heartburn, darling."

"Lucinda's drinking at six in the morning?" Lucinda's father's voice cut from the background.

"Time change, Richard!" Angelica yelled.

"Oh! I was about to say, 'This job has already pushed her to drink?’'" His loud laugh rumbled through Lucinda's empty apartment, already making it feel warmer and like home.

"And how's your flat?" Her mother craned her neck to try to see whatever was behind Lucinda. Lucinda flipped the camera to show her mother the living room and kitchen. "It's lovely. I can see all of downtown during the day."

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