Page 2 of Slow Burn (Forbidden Heat 2)

even if that was their job.

We all lined up in the training room and waited to see what was going to happen. I bit my lip a bit nervously. I was a little bit antsy. I tended to get that way when I was cooped up inside for too long and with no calls coming in, sitting around and playing cards or watching movies was about the only thing we had to do. Training would provide a welcome relief to that, but only for a few minutes. After that it would become physical drudgery.

“So, you in for basketball this weekend, Gary?” Max asked me.

“Um, yeah. That sounds fun,” I said. Playing basketball with the guys on the weekend was something we did in the early morning to relieve stress and get some exercise that didn’t involve lifting heavy things. It was a great bonding activity that I looked forward to every weekend. I also had my softball league and I did some martial arts a few nights a week as well. And lately, I’d gotten back into songwriting and singing at open mic bars occasionally. It was something I did a lot of in my early twenties, but then I’d gotten away from it. Now, since turning thirty earlier in the year, I found that I had a lot to say through my music.

The door opened and in walked a beautiful woman. She was about five feet eight inches tall with a slender, but athletic and curvy build to her. She had a sweet smile, amazing blue eyes that bore right into you just enough to give your heart a few squeezes and make it stop for a moment, and she had the kind of strong walk that told you she was not one to mess with.

Yeah, it was safe to say I fell in love with this woman right from the start.

“Hello, everyone,” the woman spoke. “My name is Shelly Henry. I’ll be your new chief training officer. I’m sure I’ll get to know you all very well in time, but right now we have a lot to cover, so let’s get started.”

I saw a few of the guys glancing at each other and smiling their approval at how beautiful our new trainer was. Of course none of them would ever dare to step out of line, or even so much as ask her for a cup of coffee, given the company’s strict policy against fraternization. We all hated it, but I understood the logic behind it. We were supposed to care about each other as family, but there was a line to be drawn. We never put each other ahead of the victims. Every company was different. Some had the same exact motto. They believed the first priority is your own safety and the safety of your crew. I believed this was important, but to me the safety of the innocent victims was always the most important thing. We made a choice to do whatever it took to save lives, even if that meant sacrificing ourselves. We made that choice when we signed up for this.

So, the company rule stood firm. If any members of the company were caught to be engaging in any romantic behavior, it was terms for immediate termination. There was a zero tolerance policy on this. You would never be given a second chance. You would be shown the door so fast you wouldn’t know what hit you.

None of us wanted to risk that.

But as I watched Shelly speak, I couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming attraction to her. She was so beautiful, so confident, but behind all that, I could see a sweet vulnerability to her that drew me in. I wanted to be a part of her world. I had to know what made her tick.

“Let me ask you,” Shelly spoke. “What is the best way to hoist someone onto your back to carry them down out of a building? Let’s say you are on the second floor, and you find someone who is downed. They need drastic medical attention right away or they will die. You are alone. How do you get them on your back?”

Max raised his hand. Shelly pointed to him. “You squat down, you drape their arms over your shoulders and then stand up. But as you stand up, you thrust your hips backward and tuck your chin. This will send them sliding onto your upper back. Then you can stand up and bring them along.”

Shelly nodded. “Ok, that will work. But does anyone know an easier way?”

We looked at each other in silence. We’d all been taught that way, but was there an easier way? If so, we were all ears.

“Ok,” Shelly continued. “Suppose you are by yourself and you have to carry someone who is much heavier than you? What is the best way? What would you do?”

I wished I had a better answer, but so far we’d only learned the basic ways of carrying someone, and occasionally it was difficult and slower then we needed it to be. In that situation, time was of the essence. We had to get this person to safety and ourselves to safety right now.

“Ok, I need a volunteer,” Shelly said. She started looking around the room. Eventually, her gaze landed on me and she smiled. “You there. Yeah, you look like a big, strapping guy. Would you help me demonstrate?”

I nodded and stepped forward. I was one of the bigger men in the unit at six feet three, and two hundred pounds. As I stepped forward and stood beside Shelly, I could feel my attraction growing more pronounced. Her sweet perfume wafted up from her soft, shapely body to my nostrils and filled my head with all sorts of naughty thoughts. She was wearing her uniform top buttoned down a bit, and from the angle right beside her I could see her cleavage perfectly. It took all my strength to not stare at it while she spoke and demonstrated.

“Ok, what is your name?” Shelly asked.

“Gary Tenny,” I said.

“Gary, if you would lie down on the floor and pretend to be unconscious for me.”

I did as she suggested.

“Ok, so Gary here is downed. I don’t know how badly hurt he is, but I have to get him to safety. I don’t have time to muscle his weight onto my back and just hope that I make it out with him on time and that my legs don’t give out. So, first what I need to do, is bring his legs in together so that he has both knees up towards the sky. Next, it is very important that I stand on his feet, otherwise he will just flop around when I do the next movement. Everyone with me?”

I heard everyone murmuring in agreement that they were in fact following.

“Ok, next, I’m going to grab Gary’s left arm. I’m going to pull it straight up and this will get his momentum going. As he pulls forward and his legs bounce off the balls of his feet, I’m going to reach all the way through his legs with my left arm and squat under him as he moves forward.”

I felt myself being pulled up and then hoisted upwards. When Shelly put her hand between my legs, I shivered as her arm pushed between my inner thighs. She was so close to my special places. I wished we were alone and that she was touching me exactly where and how I wanted to be touched.

“Now, as I stand up, I’m going to push my shoulder firmly into the crotch and then reach around his leg to grab his wrist and bring his arm inside.”

As her shoulder pressed into my groin, I felt so much elation I thought I would moan in exquisite pleasure. But somehow, I kept myself together. Wow… this was interesting.

“Now, I have my right hand free for whatever else I may need it for and I can run out of the building to get us both to safety. Now, everyone got that?”

---