Page 63 of Set Me On Fire

Chapter 31

Knox

“You wanted to talk.”

Nope, that’s not what I wanted. Feeling that ache in my chest and my cock stiffen just had me tossing what was left of my sandwich down onto the plastic I’d wrapped it in. I was past this, I insisted. Decision was made. Millie and I would talk this out, so I got to my feet and then nodded to the door, not looking to see if she followed me.

A public place that was secluded enough not to be heard, but not so much that anyone would get the wrong idea, Millie included. I found a small meeting room and stepped inside, ushering her in, though leaving the door open. I made sure to move away from the door, giving her a clear path out of the room, before parking my butt on the edge of a table. Crossing my arms gave off defensive vibes, but I couldn’t seem to unfold them as she stopped a small distance away.

“Knox—”

I knew that tremulous tone. It was one women used when they were about to hit you with bad news and they thought bysoftening their voices it’d be more palatable. I shook my head and cut in.

“I just wanted to clear the air.”

“Oh, OK.” Her hand fiddled with the hem of her shirt until she forced them into her skirt pockets. “Yeah, me too.”

“So we’re agreed then?” She looked at me in confusion, but I kept on going. “What happened…” All my control fractured right then, but you didn’t go rushing into burning buildings without being able to keep your damn head. “It was just a drunken night of fun. There’s no reason why we can’t be professional.”

“Professional.” She tried to smile, but it ended up being this weird twist of her lips. “Yeah, right, of course.” I watched her shake her head then force herself to meet my eyes. “Wouldn’t want to be unprofessional.”

“People do dumb shit at Christmas parties.” Who was I trying to convince, her or me? “At least you didn’t end up photocopying your bum or something.”

“No.” Whatever she was thinking, it was smoothed away now. The same cool gaze she walked in with this morning was back. “I wouldn’t want to do something stupid that could come back to bite me later.”

“No biting…”

Fuck, my voice was dropping lower, because I remembered her teeth digging themselves into my shoulder, right as she bore down. My cock was buried so deep inside her, it felt like I could feel the steady throb of her heart. She’d stared at me, just like she did now, but there was a crucial difference. Alcohol, the time of year, or the vibe in the room, I didn’t know, but she was so open, so vulnerable, I felt as though I could stare straight into her soul.

And her into mine.

Now, Millie’s walls were up, built sky high, and part of me wanted to scale each one, breaking them down and bringingher back to me, but… Consent, that’s what had been clear in our sexual harassment training and she didn’t want that, so I wouldn’t push.

“Anyway.” I thrust my hand out like when meeting any other new team member. “Welcome to the fire service.”

“Right.”

Her sigh, the way she gripped my hand momentarily before pulling away as if stung, they all had me wanting to ask questions, demand answers. Not my job, none of my concern, I nodded to myself and then pulled away, pausing in the doorway.

“If you have any issues with anyone here, don’t be afraid to come and talk to me. I’d be happy to help out.”

At that I walked out, satisfied that I’d behaved like a good bloke, but one little sound from her had me lingering in the hallway.

“Fuck…”

I played it over and over in my head later that night, listening to the nuances, reading way too much into it, but right now? I smiled, something unworthy of me, however for just a second it helped, to know she was struggling with this as well.

“What did she say?”

Noah was up and in my face the minute I walked into the main conference room. We were supposed to be paying attention to the latest bushfire forecast from head office.

“What did who say?”

One long look made clear I wasn’t fooling anyone, but I sat down and leaned back in my chair, watching Brent and the presenter fuss over the projector.

“Millie.” He sat down beside me. “You two went off and talked.”

“It went fine.”

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