Page 29 of Snowed In with Four Firemen
“Were you…waiting for me? I was in there for a long time.”
“Yeah,” I admit, trying to sound nonchalant. “I was just making sure Hailey was okay, she’s like my sister.”
Emily nods, but I can see the flicker of disappointment in her eyes. Damn it. I hate that I might’ve let her down. The truth is, Iwaswaiting for her, but admitting that would make things more complicated than they already are.
There’s a tension between us, a pull I can’t ignore, and I wonder if she feels it too. I should walk away, but I can’t seem to make myself move. I want to reach out, touch her, see if she’ll lean into me the way I’ve been imagining. But instead, I stand there, fighting against the part of me that’s ready to cross a line.
What is it that pulls me to her? I don’t understand it myself, but I know something irrevocably changed when I held her in my arms for the first time, when she called me her angel, when I’m the furthest thing from that. I wish she could call me that again.
Damn, you’re majorly fucked up man, I think to myself.
The silence stretches on, and I know I need to say something, do something, but all I can think about is how badly I want her. How much I want to see her breathless, with my name on her lips. I force myself to take a step back, putting some distance between us, but it feels like the hardest thing I’ve done in a long time.
She rubs her forehead, clearly exhausted from everything that’s happened. Despite my better judgment, I step closer, drawn to her like a moth to a flame.
“You’ve been through a lot,” I say, my voice low, trying to keep the concern from sounding too personal.
Emily gives a small, tired laugh, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “Not as much as Hailey. She’s really broken up about everything, and I don’t blame her.”
“Yeah,” I reply, nodding. “She’s been through the wringer.”
She sighs, rubbing her forehead again
“Are you okay?” I ask softly.
She looks up at me, her eyes searching mine. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she says, but I can hear the weariness in her voice, the way it trembles just a little.
“I know just the cure for that,” I say. “Nothing a little warm spirits won’t help.”
A smile tugs at the corners of her mouth, and for a moment, the tension between us shifts into something lighter, something almost playful. “Isn’t it a little too early for alcohol?” she asks, raising an eyebrow.
I can’t help but grin, leaning in slightly. “Not if you’re with the right company,” I quip, my voice dropping to a murmur. “Besides, we could both use something to take the edge off.”
She hesitates for a second, her eyes flickering to my lips before she catches herself. A part of me is ready to take advantage of this moment, to see how far she’ll let me go.
Emily finally nods, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. “Alright, you’ve convinced me,” she says, and her gaze drops to my lips again as she sucks in her breath. I harden immediately.
Fuck me.
I can feel the tension between us crackle like a live wire. She’s into Tanner, not me, but God, it feels like she wants me as much as I want her. I’m not a gentleman—I never was—but I have clear rules when it comes to my friends. I’m not making the first move here, even if it kills me not to do so.
“Good,” I say, stepping back to give her a little room. “Let’s go find something to warm you up.”
The bar area is almost empty, its usual bustle replaced by an eerie quiet. The dim lighting casts long shadows across the wooden floor, and the low hum of the heater is the only sound breaking the silence. The bar itself is a rustic setup, with polished wood and rows of bottles glinting in the faint light. The stools are high, with worn leather seats that have seen better days. The air smells faintly of spilled whiskey and old wood.
We wait for a couple of minutes but it doesn’t look like anybody is arriving soon.
“The staff were up late yesterday,” I say. “Helping clear the snow off the front porch.”
Emily glances around, then turns to me with a resigned look. “Well, there’s nobody to serve us,” she says. “We should go.”
“We don’t have to,” I say.
She raises a brow. “What do you mean?”
I step behind the counter and give her a wink as I reach for a bottle. “What would you like to have, ma’am?”
She smirks at me. “Part-time firefighter, part-time bartender? Is there anything you can’t do?”
