The Fireman I Loved to Hate by Jenna Gunn

Chapter 7

For the second Sunday in a row, I’ve been invited for supper with the Logans.

Lynn (who I keep almost calling Mrs. Logan, but she yelled at me) keeps delivering casseroles, under the guise of making sure I’m eating enough. Truth be told, I think she’s just happy to have someone else to cook for.

I tuck Monroe under my arm, and he chirps a protest. “You know you’re going to the Logans’, little man, and you get table scraps there, so shush with all that.”

I pad over there in my bare feet and find Lynn’s husband staring at his rose bushes. “Hi, Mr. Jimmy.” It’s as formal as he’ll allow.

He grins and says, “Miss Raina, how are you? And Mr. Monroe, good day, good sir. Door is open, go on in.”

I avoid staring at the walls and visual cacophony, then set Monroe down onto the floor. He darts away to the object of his desire: the fake cactus. He’s made a game of trying to tear it apart and fails every time, so Lynn doesn’t mind.

I find her in the kitchen. She’s still in her church clothes, but they’re covered with an apron. Her sleeves are rolled up to her elbows, and she’s working in a big steaming bowl. “Come, give an old lady a hand.” I wash my hands first, then join her. Turns out the bowl is filled with boiled potatoes and butter. She’s been working with a masher. “I need you to take over here, so I can check on the chicken in the oven.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I start to work the potatoes. “You’re not frying the chicken?” I’m not disappointed. Just very surprised.

“Jimmy’s cholesterol came back high. Might be forty years of Sunday fried chicken, might just be a bad test. Either way, I’m roasting the chicken.”

I ask facetiously, “Do you think his cholesterol will be helped by all the butter in the potatoes?”

“That’s why I’m roasting the chicken, Dearie. It’s about balance.”

I laugh and tell her, “I hope to be as wise as you one day, Lynn.”

“Everyone should hope for such things,” she says, and winks. “So, this week at church, you’ll never believe what Debbie Harris did.”

“Oh, what’s that?”

Lynn’s church gossip was the most minor form of gossip I’d ever seen, but it worked beautifully for subplot material for my novel, so I was all ears. I longed for my notepad; this week, Mrs. Harris outdid herself by berating everyone for donations to her charity, all the while holding an expensive handbag. It was a scandal, by Lynn’s standards, and G-rated enough to be able to fit into my sweet Victorian romance book. By the time she wound down, we were halfway through with supper.

Monroe had so much chicken skin, I worry he will have a bellyache. But I didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so I gently ask, “Maybe that’s enough for him?”

“Mr. Monroe, that’s enough, go on, now,” Lynn tells him. He scampers off, then lays down in the living room. “He just likes it so much, I hate to deny him.”

“I know what you mean. It’s hard being the grown up in the relationship with that guy. If you don’t mind a quick change of topic-”

Jimmy shakes his head. “I would love to hear anything other than Debbie Harris for one supper.”

Lynn makes a mean face, then sticks her tongue out at him.

I giggle, then ask, “I’m working on a new book and I have two characters in mind, who I’d like to base on the two of you, if you don’t object.”

Lynn gasps, “Really?”

Jimmy is surprised, too. “But we’re just a couple of old farts, why on earth would you want us in your book?”

I laugh. “You two are great. I won’t do it if you object-”

“Nonsense!” Lynn declares. “We would be honored.”

Jimmy nods. “I just figured we were too normal to be in a book.”

I smile. “You two have made Rockville feel like a real home to me and Monroe,” I glance his way. “Where did he go now?”

Jimmy stands up, “I’ll check outside.”

My stomach sinks, and my head drops backward. I mumble, “Please, no, not again.”

Jimmy comes back in and he’s on the phone. “That’s right, Marina Road. Yes, her cat.”

Oh, hell. They know me for this. I’m probably the crazy cat lady to the firefighters. Then I realize, if they know me now, I bet Whitmore will avoid the call. This is good.

Could I possibly be that lucky?

-

I wait on the front porch with Lynn and Mr. Jimmy. By the time they arrive, I’ve prayed for a Whitmore-free visit five times. And apparently, no one is listening. “Not him again.”

“This makes three times he’s helped you out, right?”

“Yes.”

“You should invite him into your house for some lemonade. Or something sweet,” she insinuates.

I take a deep breath and say, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh, sure you do, Dearie. Why, you kissed him the first time he came out.”

“What? How do you know about that?”

She laughs, “Because I saw you.”

I stand firm on the matter, “Well, I don’t like him.”

“Mm, hmm. Well, whatever the case, he’s been a huge help to you and your furry child, and the neighborly thing to do is to invite him for lemonade. And the respectful thing to do is to listen to your elder,” she said with a gleam in her eye.

Jimmy jumped in, “Now, Lyndy, don’t you go snooping in her business. If she wants to be rude to the nice man who keeps saving her cat, that is her business. Even though people talk. And if she keeps up this attitude, no one will want to help her when there’s real trouble.”

I laugh in shock at him. “Fine, fine, I give. I’ll invite him in. Geez.”

They share a fist bump, before Whitmore brings his ladder to the porch. “Monroe likes your chimney, huh?”

Lynn says, “He loves it briefly.”

He chuckles, then says, “Nice to see you, Miss Groves.”

Lynn gives me a look and I tell him, “Call me Raina.”

“I’m Alex,” he says with a slight smile. His lips have the nicest upturn to them. It strikes me how intense his dark eyes are. Like he’s constantly thinking about five hundred things. “I’ll go get set up.” Then he jogs with the ladder around the corner.

She gives me that look again, and I relent. I wonder if this is what it’s like to have real parents around. I drag my feet and by the time I join him, he’s halfway down the ladder, with Monroe in his arms. “Alex, would you like some lemonade? At my house?”

Monroe jumps into my arms, but this time, Alex is ready for it and the ladder doesn’t wobble. He comes down and says, “Sure. Let me repark the truck and I’ll meet you there.”

-

His eyes roam all over the remaining boxes that make up my home. “I’m still getting settled. Have a seat,” I gesture to the kitchen table chairs and fetch the lemonade.

“Just moved to Rockville, I take it?”

“Why else would everything be in boxes?”

“People move all the time in the same city. Breakups, lease issues-”

I shake my head and pour our glasses. “Sorry. Yeah, that makes sense. I’m just spiky because of Monroe. It sets me on edge when he does this little Houdini act.”

“When we were little, my sister’s cat was named Houdini.”

I laugh. “You’re lying!”

“God’s honest truth,” he smiles, “that little bastard kept escaping everything she ever put him in.”

“So, then you know how these things just happen?”

He nods. “They’re slick.”

“Maybe then you shouldn’t blame the owner?” I ask pointedly.

He’s caught and he knows it. He smiles nervously, then looks away. “Yeah, I was kind of a dick that day. I’m sorry for that.”

I shake my head. “Tense situations. I’m sorry my cat keeps getting you dragged away from the exciting calls.”

“Thankfully, we don’t have too many of those.”

“Thankfully? I would have thought you’d prefer those.”

He waves his hands in the air. “Absolutely not. In a perfect world, my job would not exist. No one would have a fire ever again.”

“I never thought of it that way,” I smile. “I figured you were all adrenaline junkies.”

“Don’t get me wrong, there’s a little of that involved, but mostly, I just like helping people.”

He says it so earnestly that I’m entranced. He’s being sweet and genuine. I didn’t expect that. “What, um, why does the dispatcher keep sending you for, anyway? I would have thought they’d send animal control.”

“Rockville has two animal control guys, and I wouldn’t trust them to help you with your cat. Or anything else.”

“Why is that?”

“Giant stoners.” I laugh and he smiles. “You have a pretty laugh.”

I look in his brown eyes to see if he’s making fun of me. They’ve softened and warmed. I can’t keep eye contact. It’s like the static in the room has changed. His hands are on the table, next to my own. “You have…really big hands. My god, man, are you a mutant?”

He laughs hard. “They’re not that big.”

I reach over and put my hand up to his. “See? They’re twice the size of mine.”

“No, you’re at a weird angle, come closer and face me.”

I do and find myself almost straddled on his long legs. His hand is still twice the size of mine and calloused from work, I’m sure of it. Touching him feels right. The static has intensified. My voice is soft when I ask, “See? You’re huge.”

“I bet you say that to all the boys.”

I laugh again, and I’m not sure who moves first, but we meet in the middle and kiss. Suddenly, his arms wrap around me tightly, and the kiss gets intense. A moan escapes my lips. It’s like he’s hungry for me and only my body can quench his thirst. His hands explore my lower back, while my fingers search for the hem of his tee shirt. I find a warm cobblestone street of abs beneath the cotton. I rake my fingernails down them, and he grabs my wrists.

Our kiss breaks, and he looks in my eyes. “I want you, Raina. But, I don’t want you, if you think you owe me something.”

“I owed you lemonade. That debt is paid.”

He half-smiles again. “Good.” Then he pulls me in for another kiss.

I pull back and take his wrist, so he’ll follow me to the bedroom. He lets me push him onto the bed. I straddle him over his jeans and think, what am I doing, I don’t even know him! But I don’t really care. I want this.

Before I know it, we’re both topless, and his hands cup my small breasts. Then, a hand sneaks into my shorts from the leg. His fingers toy with me there, and I’m sure he’s going to make me ruin my shorts. I moan and writhe on his rough digits. He’s driving me crazy, so I reach into my nightstand for a condom. I toss it at his chest, then get up and pull my shorts off. Alex holds it up and asks, “You’re sure?”

I smile and nod. “Get your jeans off and that condom on.”

“Yeah,” he says, then wriggles free of his jeans and briefs. He sees me about to do the same to my panties, but says, “Wait.”

“What?”

He swings his legs over the side of the bed, then pulls me between them. His eyes are on mine, while his fingers delicately pinch the sides and gradually pull them downward. Alex kisses my navel when my panties hit the floor. But he doesn’t look at me there. His eyes stay on mine the whole time, as he wraps his arms around me and pulls me onto him. Then he rolls onto his back, bringing me for the ride.

I kiss him, while I lay on his body, his condomed cock pinned between us. I nibble his lips, then grope for him down below. His huge right hand grips my rear, and his left hand holds the back of my head. I murmur, “I need it now!”

Without a word, he rolls us so I’m on my back, with him on top. He reaches between us, and I’m sure he’s about to thrust himself into me, but he plays with my button instead. I gasp loudly and he asks, “Is that what you need?”

“Mm, no,” I whimper.

He smirks, then slides a finger inside of me. I shiver from the sensation. His rough skin feels exquisitely manly. Alex demands, “Tell me what you need, Raina.”

“I need to come!”

He grins and I look him in the eye. His touch is delicate, but firm. I am on the precipice of something epic. He’s so good at this. My breaths become gasps and he whispers, “Do it for me.”

That’s all it takes for my body to break through the rush. I come hard on his fingers and release a groan that comes from my bones. My body shakes and spasms, and I don’t want it to ever end. He rubs himself against me there a few times and I am desperate for it. “Oh god, Alex, now, please!”

Something animal takes his eyes, and he thrusts into me. I gasp hard, like I just came up from the bottom of a swimming pool. He is larger than I anticipated. The delicious stretch of him is almost too much on me. He buries his face in my hair and turns his head to face me. He growls, “Raina, you feel amazing.”

“You too!” I breathlessly whisper.

He massages my nipples with his free hand, then it goes between us, and back to my clit. I cry out on the next thrust and he asks, “Are you okay? I’m not hurting you?”

“No, sort of…it’s a good hurt.”

He freezes up, “Raina, I don’t want to hurt you.”

I touch his face and tell him, “Trust me, this feels…” I shudder when my hips move reflexively. “Incredible.”

“I know what you mean.” He props himself over me, then nods, before he continues. He’s so warm and heavy on top of me. It’s better than I fantasized. There’s a comfort to it that I can’t explain. Not everything needs an explanation, though. I wrap my legs around his waist, and he groans loudly. “You do that, and I won’t last much longer.”

I smirk and tell him, “Do it for me.” Then I arch my back to take him deeper inside me. The new angle forces him against my G spot and a totally new sensation takes hold of me. I growl at him, and something unfurls in my body.

“God, yes,” he moans reverently. Then Alex pounds me like a cheap piece of veal. His power and his passion are unrivaled. I feel so spent and so small underneath him. I plant my nails into his skin, but there’s no taming his beast. Each thrust he drives me further to my own orgasm. It’s like someone dropped the reins on a runaway horse. He bucks and pants, and I am along for the ride. I’m on the edge once more.

“You’re gonna…make me,” I can’t finish the sentence. It comes out as a scream when I come again.

He roars and his body arches for one final thrust. His whole body shakes, and his face covered in a sheen, like I’m sure mine is. Then he collapses onto the bed next to me, while we struggle to breathe. The moment is glorious and crushing.

What the hell did I just do?

This isn’t like me. I don’t bang random guys. Okay, he’s not that random. But he’s not my guy, either.

I’m lost in my thoughts when he says, “Oh, damn, I forgot I’m on the clock.”

“Oh, right, um-”

He pops up, then wobbles on his feet, while he gets his bearings.

“You okay?”

“I’m fantastic. Strong orgasm. I’ll be fine. Just a little dizzy.”

I giggle. “Oh.”

“I hate to be this guy, but this could actually get me into a ton of trouble. I need to go. Like, right now. But I swear, I’m not normally like this.” He dresses very fast. Maybe that’s a firefighter thing.

I wave away his concern. “Don’t worry about it. And mum’s the word.”

He laughs and shakes his head. “I don’t mean it like that. Just-”

“You could get in trouble. No, I heard you the first time. I get it. And it’s fine, if this was just a one-time thing for you, Alex. No pressure.” He’s not my type of guy as it is. If it’s just a one-off, then I don’t have to worry about feelings or dealing with a modern guy’s excuses.

He shakes his head, then looks at his phone. “Oh hell, I gotta go.”

I nod. “Yeah. Drive safe.”

He bends down and kisses me. “That was amazing.”

“Go!” I laugh. “You’re already in trouble.”

“Bye,” he nods, then flees.

Silence fills my house and my face falls. What the hell was I thinking?

-