Page 13 of Playing with Fire

Lottie didn’t even take a second to think about it. “Especially him,” she whispered before clearing her throat. “But stop trying to change the subject. If you like Beckett and he likes you, you should just go out with him and see where things go. I know you’re worried about getting caught up in something toxic again, but you know what to look for now, you’re stronger and able to stand up for yourself more, and if you want to dip your toe into the dating pool, isn’t it better to go with a good man than someone you don’t see a future with?” When Willa finally acquiesced, Lottie smiled and gave her shoulder one last squeeze. “Good. Let me grab my purse. I’ll drive you to work.”

As Willa watched Lottie retreat back into her bedroom, she pondered the woman’s advice. It would be better to date a good man, but what she hadn’t told Lottie was that falling into something she had before wasn’t her only worry. Beckett was attractive, caring, and selfless, as far as she could tell. LikeLottie said, he seemed like bonafide marriage material. That was the real danger of dating a man like him. Willa could easily see herself falling in love with him, hard and fast, only to get crushed if he didn’t do the same.

****

Town Hall was abuzz with activity, which in Applewood meant that there was at least one person on the phone and more than three working at their desk instead of milling around the kitchen downstairs, gossiping as they drank their second cup of coffee. The faster pace didn’t bother Willa, but it would have been better suited for a day when her injured ankle wasn’t elevated on a footstool next to her.

After Lottie dropped her off at the office on Monday and helped her to her desk, she found one and placed it near Willa before disappearing for ten minutes and coming back with a cane for her to use. She still had no idea how Lottie managed to find one in the old building, but Willa was grateful she had as it had helped her get back and forth to the bathroom on more than one occasion. Luckily that had been just about the only walking she’d had to do, but the business of the day at hand might change that.

The other surprise Willa received on Monday morning was Nate telling her that she could take a few days off to recuperate. When she refused, he put her on desk duty, asking her to only get up if she absolutely had to. When Willa asked him if the orders were from him or his older brother, he mumbled something about needing to return a call and practically ran back to his office.

Normally someone telling her what to do or calling and checking up on her through a third party would have warning bells going off in Willa’s head big time, but she was injured and Beckett was technically medically trained, so she guessed she could let it slide this once, if only because it seemed to be in herbest interest to do so. However, if she and Beckett were to date, something she was still not certain about, she would need to tell him about her past and ask him to reel in any controlling or monitoring tendencies he might have.

When lunchtime finally rolled around, Willa grabbed her cane and started to stand, pausing mid-motion when she heard someone call her name. “Willa,” Beckett spouted.

His good looks were on full display and his steps were confident as he rushed toward her. His light walnut hair was styled neatly away from his face, a face that boasted a strong jaw and Greek nose that could have been carved from marble. Beckett’s black t-shirt and dark jeans molded to every inch of his powerful body. Willa’s backside hit the chair with a soft thud as her legs turned to limp noodles and warmth pooled deep in her belly at the sight of him.

When Beckett was at her side, his brow knit with concern. “Are you okay? You shouldn’t be walking around.”

The wordshouldn’thit Willa’s ears all wrong. It sounded a little too familiar, a little too much like a certain someone she wished she could forget but likely never would, and she hated it instantly. “Don’t tell me what I should and shouldn’t do!” she snapped, cringing at the obvious anger in her tone. Clearly, that bellow Willa had let loose on the side of the mountain didn’t release as much frustration as she had hoped. When her eyes moved up to Beckett’s, she fully expected to see annoyance or at least resentment at the way she spoke to him after everything he’d done to help her. What she didn’t expect to see was the look of apology that was plain as day on his face.

“I’m so sorry,” Beckett replied, staring straight into her eyes. “I guess I didn’t see it like that, but I get how it could have come across as a little high-handed.” He rubbed the back of his neck, looking every bit the chastised child even though he was clearly all man. “I’ll try to be better.” The words she had neverheard uttered from a man before put enough of a chink in her armor that she felt herself softening toward him.

“No, I’m sorry.” Willa offered an apologetic smile to him, pleased when she saw him reciprocate. “I, uh, don’t really like being told what to do.” It was a direct statement, but it nowhere near encapsulated just how much she couldn’t stand being controlled in any way shape or form now. Willa had gotten her power back and she would be damned if she let anyone take it away from her, even when it was in the form of something as well-meaning as it had been coming from Beckett.

Beckett’s smile widened as his head bobbed. “Understandable and something I will keep in mind in the future.” He reached down to the chair in front of her desk and pulled up a small bouquet of pink and red wildflowers before presenting them to her. In all of her ogling, Willa must have missed the small bundle wrapped in tissue paper. “I didn’t have time to go to the florist this morning, but I saw these growing near my parents’ place and they reminded me of you. Something beautiful and wild.”

Willa’s eyes darted from the flowers up to him, her chest squeezing when she spotted his nervous expression and the tips of his ears turning pink. This giant of a man was also the sweetest one she had ever met. His gesture chipped away at another piece of her armor. “Thank you,” she told him sincerely. The flowers were types Willa had never seen before, but they were gorgeous and smelled delightful. “That’s really sweet of you.”

The corner of Beckett’s mouth twitched. Willa hadn’t known she would find this smile so adorably sexy, but here she was practically melting into her chair as he flashed her a shy grin. “Well, I will admit to having a bit of an ulterior motive.” He rubbed the back of his neck again. Knowing that she made the smoking hot firefighter anxious gave her ego another boost. Italso had the added bonus of helping ease any lingering tension she was feeling. “I was hoping that between the flowers and the whole carrying you down a mountain thing, you might have made up your mind about me taking you out to dinner.”

Narrowing her eyes at him, Willa placed the flowers on her desk before tapping her chin in thought. “The flowers were very nice, and the rescue thing was, what did Lottie call it? Oh yeah,swoonworthy,” she told him. Beckett’s smile widened the longer she talked, and being able to make him so happy gave her a giddy little thrill. Maybe going out with him wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all. “I think I could manage dinner.”

Beckett chuckled, his arms crossed over his chest causing his biceps to pop and the tattoos on his left arm to dance, the flowers she could just make out waving like a gentle breeze was passing through. She wanted to trace the ink with her fingers, then possibly her tongue, and lick her way up his neck until she made camp at his full lips. The thought and the heat that licked at her lower belly had Willa rearing back a moment, but his talking prevented her from spiraling at the reminder of her intense attraction to him.

“Well, I’m happy I could convince you.” His smile was wicked, the flame surrounding his irises glowing brighter as he licked his lower lip. Any hope of keeping her mind out of the gutter went right out the window. “Do you think you could also manage to slip me your phone number?”

Pushing her libido aside, Willa smiled, managing to pull her phone out and hand it over to him without drooling once as she watched his nimble fingers tapping against the screen. When it was back in her hands, still warm from his, she shot him a text. “So, you’ll message me? I don’t think I can handle getting lost in the hills again to try and reach you this time.”

Beckett’s eyes shot to hers, a seriousness there along with the mirth. “Please don’t. I’ll always come find you, but I don’tlike the thought of you alone and hurting again.”

Touched by his concern, Willa nodded solemnly in agreement. The idea wasn’t very appealing to her either, but to hear it from Beckett drove home just how much he seemed to care for her already.Too much, too soon,her heart warned her, and before she could think better of it, she found herself blurting out, “I’m not searching for anything serious.” Beckett’s eyes widened slightly at the statement, and there was no missing the disappointment in his gaze. Willa hated seeing him look like that, and she reminded herself to be open to the possibility of more like Lottie had advised. “At least, not right away,” she tacked on.

Beckett’s expression was thoughtful as he nodded slowly. “You’re calling the shots,” he assured her, a slow smile spreading on his face once again. “And I will definitely text you. Talk to you later, Wild Woman.”

With a wink, he turned and sauntered out the door. Willa unashamedly stared at his pert behind as he walked away from her, not noticing that her boss was watching the whole thing until he cleared his throat. Blushing, Willa turned to find Nate regarding her with an amused expression. “Ready to go over the agenda for the city council meeting?”

“Sure,” she stammered, grateful he wasn’t calling attention to her ogling his brother. Though as she tried to concentrate on work, she found her mind drifting back to Beckett at least once every half hour. More than that, Willa discovered she was looking forward to a message from him more and more each time she did.

Chapter Nine

~Beckett~

After his visit to Willa on Wednesday, Beckett had to restrain himself from texting her the whole time she was at work, even driving himself over to the farm to help Travis manage anyone who might have come up to try and tour the orchard during the warm summer months. It turned out that a fair amount of people had opted to explore the farm and to buy some apple butter and other pantry items, so Beckett had spent most of the day holding kids up to get a better look at the growing apples and ringing up the customers at the small farm stand near the property’s entrance.

After that, his mom invited him to stay for dinner, something Beckett would never pass up on. Her home cooking was comfort food at its finest. The pot roast he devoured warmed Beckett’s belly and touched his soul just as it had when he lived there. By the time he made it back to the apartment he shared with Nate, it was almost nine o’clock. Not texting Willa was something Beckett had considered for all of about two seconds before he stretched out on his bed and pulled out his phone, smiling at her contact name as he sent one off.

Beckett:Is it too late to be texting? I wasn’t sure if you were one of those people who didn’t keep their phone on silent and I would hate it if I woke you.

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