Page 13 of Hot Firefighter

“This is Aidan Allen,” Aidan says into the speaker. “Can I help you?”

“...thought it was you,” the voice grumbles, nearly too low to make out through the buzzer system. “...taking what isn’t yours and…”

I step closer to Aidan, frowning deeper. I swear I recognize that voice…but from where? I can’t place it, especially with the interference screwing with the sounds, but that seed of suspicion is planted in my gut. I lean into Aidan, using his solid warmth for comfort.

The static stops and Aidan tries to ask who it is or if they’re even still there, but there’s no reply. I sigh, shaking my head as Aidan turns to me.

“That was weird as hell,” Aidan mumbles with a furrow between his brows. I step into him, and he wraps an arm around my shoulders, tugging me close. In his arms, everything else fades away. I can barely remember what I was worried about.

“Yeah.” He holds the door open for me, and we step out into the empty corridor. “Weird.”

Aidan’s place is on the outskirts of town, close to the best hiking trails, and the walk to the trail only takes twenty or so minutes. The first inhale of morning air settles my nerves, and contentment flows through me as I shake off the confusion of before.

It’s a mild day outside, a little chilly but in a good way that means I won’t feel like I’m dying of overheating when the hike gets hard, and the sky is blessedly clear.

We pick the trail that I know has the best viewpoint over the town, and Aidan keeps my hand in his while we begin the incline.

7

AIDAN

This trail is one of my favorites, and it’s made even better by the company I have this time. Autumn is sunshine in human form, pointing out the flower buds and spring blooms along the side of the path. The trail is rocky at the start, but the higher we climb, the more lush the surroundings become.

It’s at that point, near the top of the hill where the trees begin to fill out on either side into the deepest part of the wooded section, that I pause, turning to take in the trail around us. I swear that I saw another hiker behind us a second ago, but there’s no one there now. Maybe they’re stopping for water or maybe my peripheral vision is playing tricks on me. Regardless, it’s not anything as important as the beautiful girl tugging on my hand, pointing at a dirt track to the side that leads off the main trail and into the wooded area.

“The summit’s just up ahead,” I say to Autumn, even as I start following her. I’m at her mercy, and I don’t have a single complaint about that. Whatever she wants, she can have, even if that’s taking some tiny path off the track into some trees. I’ll follow her off the face of the damn earth.

Last night hadn’t just been about the sex, thoughfuck, knowing I’m her first is still a fucking incredible feeling. My cock twitches in my pants at the thought. She looked so good beneath me, her face contorted in pleasure, pleasureIandonly Icould give her. Shit, my mind’s getting as off track as we are.

No, it wasn’t just about the sex. It was aboutconnection. A connection I’ve never experienced before, one that I don’t ever want to let go of. I don’t care what it’s called—fate or destiny or dumb luck—Autumn’s meant to be mine. And she is because I’m never letting her go.

“I know, but the real best view is this way,” Autumn calls out, tugging me after her.

“Really?” I’m a little skeptical considering all I can see is trees and plants. “Where—holy shit.”

She’s right. This is the best view. The trunks and branches of two large oak trees frame the outline of the town below, making it look like a painting. Apartment blocks, shops, and gardens look idyllic from up here, the cars and people milling around as small as ants. But it’s the look on Autumn’s face that really makes it.

She’s grinning from ear to ear, leaning against the trunk of the right tree, watching me for my reaction. She steals my damn breath away.

“It’s beautiful.” I stare right at her while I say it so that she knows damn well I don’t just mean the view. Blush creeps on her skin, and her eyes sparkle. The sight of her combines with my memories of her flushed face the night before, and suddenly I think that if I don’t get to touch her again, I might die. It’s a unique kind of longing, the urge to lay claim to her in every way possible. I need to know what she tastes like right from the source, need to know everything.

She brings out a possessive side of me I never knew existed, but it’s one I’m more than willing to embrace. We’re hidden in this section of the trees, which is good because like fuck am I sharing her with anyone else. Mine. Only mine.

I need to prove it again.

“What are you doing?” she asks curiously as I take a step towards her, making her lean more heavily against the tree.

“There’s far too much space between us.” We’re so close now, so I reach out and cup the back of her neck. “And it occurred to me that even after everything we did last night, I’ve neglected a very important task.”

Autumn frowns, her breath shaking as she inhales sharply when I press a kiss to her neck and begin to lower to my knees. Sticks and undergrowth crunch beneath my knees as I hit the ground in front of her.

“What?” She looks down at me with big eyes. Fuck,so damn gorgeous.

“I don’t know how you taste.” My hands skim up her thighs to her waist, fingers hooking into her waistband. “And that is a damn crime.”

“Here?” she squeaks, looking around.

“Don’t want to wait.” I tug her leggings down. She arches off the tree a little to make it easier for me, showing me how much she agrees with me even if she is nervous. “I’ll take care of you, Autumn. We’re alone. Nobody gets to see you like this but me, understood?Ever.”

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