Page 23 of Light My Fire

“So veterinary school?” Luke asks. “Wyatt said you have exams coming up.”

The mini-stare down between me and Wyatt is broken, and he smiles and lets my hair go, but he doesn’t let me float away from him.

I clear my throat and think about what Luke asked me. “Yes. I’m a third year. I’ll start my clinical rotations soon.”

“Why veterinary medicine?” Luke asks.

This is a much easier conversation than choosing celebrities to be stuck with or thinking about how glad I am that I’m here with these three guys instead of anyone famous.

“I love animals,” I say. “I was always a good student, excelled in the sciences, and students like that are often encouraged to think about medicine or other healthcare professions. The idea of working that closely with people every day was not appealing at all but then a friend had a dog get really sick and it occurred to me that I could do that.”

Luke has watched me throughout my explanation with his typical intensity, and I find myself feeling a strange restlessness. But not an uncomfortable restlessness. This is like a pull to float across the hot tub, straddle Luke, and tell him all my secrets.

Not that I have many, but I feel like I could say anything and I’d be safe.

Geez. What the hell is that?

“How about you?” I ask, trying to cover up that Luke flusters me. “Why did you decide to be a firefighter?”

“Was fascinated with firefighters, fire trucks, all of that since I was a kid,” he says.

I’m almost surprised that he answers me without hesitation and with full, complete sentences.

“I told my mom and dad I wanted to be a fireman when I was seven and I never changed my mind. Every birthday cake was a firetruck. They took me on a fire station tour where I got to meet firefighters and climb on the truck when I was ten and they got me a dalmatian puppy when I was twelve.”

I amdelightedby all of that. “Are you close to your family?”

He nods. “Yep. My parents are the best. Everyone still lives in Chicago.”

I give him a big smile. I’m so glad he shared that.

I look at Wyatt. “How about you? How did you end up as a firefighter?”

“It’s in the family,” he says. “My grandpa, my dad, and my uncle, a couple of cousins.”

“Wow.” I love that too. “That’s really cool. And they all live in Chicago?”

“Grandpa and dad and uncle. Cousins have scattered a bit.”

I feel the relaxation washing over me. The water, the quiet night, these guys. It’s all sonice. I’m really glad they showed up.

“So, how many times have you had sex in a hot tub?”

And the relaxation is replaced by tingles and heat just like that. I look at Jackson, waiting for him to answer. He winks at me.

“Twice,” Wyatt answers.

“Probably four or five,” Luke says.

I look at him with wide eyes. He chuckles and I think my panties might have just dissolved. Damn. I find him very hot when he’s broody, but laughing? I’m on fire. And I don’t thinkthatfireman is going to put the flames out.

“I’m forty,” he says. “I’ve had more hot tub experience.”

So he has fifteen years on me. Probably twelve or so on Wyatt and Jackson. I guess he’s been making good use of those years.

“And more experience in general, right Chief?” Jackson asks.

Luke shrugs. “Yeah, probably.”

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