Page 1 of All It Takes

ChapterOne

WES

The woman here to adopt a dog was busy petting a sweet three-legged mutt. Meanwhile, Tiffany Mills stood in the corner of the room, her eyes scanning the bulletin board with photos of cats and dogs and a few of our newest residents awaiting adoption.

I knew Tiffany Mills. She’d been way out of my league in high school. She still was. She glanced over at her friend Alice before her eyes lifted to mine. I felt the shock of her attention and a fiery jolt from her gaze. She crossed over to me, the heels of her cowboy boots striking, almost defiantly, on the tiled floor.

She was wearing a pair of leggings with a silky blue blouse that only brightened her already startlingly blue eyes. A lightweight down jacket topped off her ensemble. She stopped in front of me, peering up as she lifted a hand and brushed back her dark glossy hair.

Fuck me. If I thought Tiffany was beautiful in high school, she was simply stunning now. She had a spray of freckles on her cheeks that I’d never noticed before.

“So,” she began as she studied me. “You’re running the shelter now?”

I nodded. “Well, it’s my mother’s baby.” My chest pinched a little as I added, “She’s recovering from double knee replacements, so I’ve been helping out.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Will she be okay?” Tiffany asked, her gaze softening.

“I hope she’ll be okay. She’s convinced she’ll be bionic after this, so...” I chuckled.

“Both at the same time?” Tiffany’s eyes widened.

I shrugged, my lips twisting slightly. “I’m not so sure it’s the best plan. She said since she was resting anyway, it made more sense to do them together.”

“It’ll be a few months before she can deal with this again.” I gestured vaguely around the room and toward the hallway where the kennels were.

“Oh, well that makes sense. But it sounds like she’ll be okay?” Tiffany prompted.

“I may have to tie her down so she doesn’t get on her feet too early, but yes, she’ll be fine.”

“When do you start with the hotshot crew?” Tiffany asked. Her eyes flicked to Alice who was still petting the dog. I’d just told her and Alice that I was taking a position on the crew with Tiffany’s brother.

“Next week. I take care of the feedings here morning and evening. My mom has tons of volunteers who help out as well, so it won’t be too busy when I’m working.”

Tiffany cocked her head to the side. I tried to keep my eyes focused on hers, but my attention was drawn downward by motion. Her fingers were sliding back and forth on the hem of her silky blouse and her foot tapped on the tile. I sensed the nervousness emanating from her, and I wanted to tell her not to worry. About what, I had no clue. I forced my eyes up.

“So you’ll be on Chase’s crew?” she prompted.

“Yup. I just saw him this morning. We worked out together.”

She waggled her brows. “Hotshots do have to stay in shape.”

My lips tugged into a smile. “We do.”

When her lips curled at the corners in return, electricity sizzled through me. Hell, I needed to get my reaction to this woman under control. I was so busy I barely had time to breathe, much less lust after a woman totally out of my league.

When Tiffany smiled, a dimple peeked out at the corner of one cheek. “I don’t know what I expected you to be doing now, but it wasn’t a firefighter.”

I chuckled. “We never know what we’ll end up doing. What do you do?”

She blinked before replying, “I’m the new office manager at the vet clinic. I dragged Alice down here to adopt a dog.”

I grinned as we looked over at them together. Alice was petting a three-legged dog who’d been dumped here at the shelter. The animal was happily soaking up Alice’s generous attention.

When I glanced back at Tiffany, she was biting her bottom lip. Seeing her teeth denting that plush surface sent a fiery sizzle down my spine. I took a quick breath, trying to quell my body’s response to her.

Her gaze collided with mine, her thick dark lashes sweeping up. Tiffany had felt unattainable to me in high school. She’d kept her distance thoroughly. Every guy had wanted her, myself included. To my knowledge, she’d never even had a boyfriend back then.

“I haven’t seen you around since I came back,” I offered.

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