Fighting the flames, p.1
Fighting the Flames, page 1
Also by Leslie Johnson
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Ashes - Book 2
Ashes - Book 3
Ashes - Book 4
Australian Heat
Resisting Him
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The Musician
Wild
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His Saving Grace: The Prequel
Deadly Target
Deadly Target - Book 2
Firefighter Romance Series
Fanning the Flames
Fighting the Flames
Kindling the Blaze
His Saving Grace
His Saving Grace - Collision Course
His Saving Grace - Destinies Collide
His Saving Grace - Hidden Danger
His Saving Grace - Shattered
His Saving Grace - Redemption
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Stoking the Embers - Book 1
Stoking the Embers - Book 2
Stoking the Embers - Book 3
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The Matchmaker - Book One
The Matchmaker - Book Two
The Matchmaker - Book Three
The Matchmaker - Book Four
The Matchmaker - Book Five
The Matchmaker - Book Six
The Matchmaker - Book 7
The Matchmaker - Book Eight
Standalone
Love, Lies, Deceit
The Ambassador's Wife
Rebecca's Gift - The Complete Series
Ashes: The Complete Series
Stoking the Embers: The Complete Series
Claiming Nina
The Reunion
Beneath the Lights
Perfect Husband
Deadly Seduction
Deadly Target
Jungle Fever
His Saving Grace
Sweet Escape
Australian Heat
FIGHTING THE FLAMES
LESLIE JOHNSON
ATREVIDA PUBLISHING
Copyright © 2016 by Leslie Johnson
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CONTENTS
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Also By Leslie Johnson
About the Author
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ONE
THREE YEARS AGO...
Jessie laid wrapped in Ryan’s arms, a thin sheet their only barrier from the cool breeze that blew in from the ocean, caressing their sweaty bodies, the after effect of an hour of intense sex. She snuggled closer to him, the sound of his steady breathing lulling her into total relaxation—as if the multiple orgasms hadn’t already done that. She had been seeing Ryan exclusively for a little over two months, and it had been the best two months of her life. She closed her eyes, and her mind drifted back to the first time she’d seen him…
They met in the most unusual way. Jessie arrived at her family’s beach house to find it filthy. Her mom occasionally rented it out to recoup some of the costs of the upkeep and property taxes. Unfortunately, the prior tenants hadn’t bothered to remove a single piece of trash, so the task of cleaning fell on Jessie if she wanted the place to be habitable. For months, she’d been looking forward to spending the summer at the beach. The sun, the water, the peace and quiet... it was exactly what she needed to regroup and get her life back on track.
Her most recent long-term relationship had gone downhill fast. She’d been with Derrick since her freshman year of college. They had so much history, so much in common. She had thought he was the one, and he was for a while.
Jessie spent the first day at the beach house cleaning and dragging trash to the curb. It was dusk, and she was carrying a particularly heavy garbage bag down the driveway when it broke open, scattering trash on the concrete. She cursed loudly before getting another bag and cleaning up the mess, holding back tears of exhaustion. The bag felt even heavier when she picked it up a second time. “Seriously,” she muttered, dropping the bag and bending over, hands on her knees, panting. “Maybe I’ll take up jogging this summer. Damn, I’m out of shape.”
Derrick's face swam before her eyes. He had supported her when her father died the previous year, holding her hand and helping her with all the details. The devastation had she felt at the sudden loss of her father was doubled when she found evidence of a sordid secret while going through his things. Her father, the man she trusted most in the world, had been having an affair for many years.
The revelation had crushed her and completely altered the precious memories she had of her dad. And she had worried about her mother and decided to take her dad’s secret to her own grave. She'd told no one about it; not her mother, her sister, nor Derrick.
She had changed during that time, she knew it, but Derrick had supported her through it all—even as she pushed him away and refused to tell him why. Of course, that was when the trouble had begun. He’d started an affair of his own.
Later, Jessie had discovered he’d been cheating with a woman from his office—a woman Jessie had considered a friend. She’d frequently gone out to dinner with her, helped her move into her apartment, and even watched her dog while she was on vacation.
Jessie still felt like a fool.
He’d been with this woman for months and she’d had no idea. But as hurt and as livid as she had felt, a part of her understood why. It didn’t excuse his behavior at all, but she had certainly done her part in pushing him into the arms of another woman.
And, she had to admit that Derrick had been the one who had seen her through her darkest days—even when she had tried to shut herself off from the world. How do you just walk away from the person who helped you so much? She hoped a summer on her own, away from him, might help her to change her outlook on things.
Derrick had begged her to stay, to forgive him and give him another chance. He swore he’d change and that she was the only woman he loved. When she'd been getting ready to leave, Derrick showed up and proposed marriage. He’d cried and pleaded when she first refused, imploring her to reconsider. Finally, Jessie had taken the ring, but hadn’t put it on her finger. She had made it clear that she would spend the summer at the beach and think about his proposal. When she returned, she’d give him an answer.
In the meantime, they were both free to do as they pleased. Her gut told her to run far and fast from Derrick. But he still held a piece of her heart. She loved him. He had been her whole world for a long time.
“Need some help?”
Jessie spun around at the sound of a deep male voice behind her. “Excuse me?”
He chuckled. “I’ve been watching you from my porch over there,” He nodded toward the house next door. “I thought you could use some help.”
Jessie smiled. She was both thankful and mortified. “Thank you.” She must have looked like a hot mess—messy hair, dirty clothes, sweating. She was also surrounded by the distinct smell of old garbage.
None of that seemed to matter to Ryan though. They finished cleaning together, and then he took her to dinner. From that point forward, they spent every free moment together. They spent their days at the beach, sunbathing and swimming, or driving up the coast, sightseeing and shopping. He showed a keen interest in learning about her photography hobby, and she listened for hours as he shared stories of daring rescues and other acts of bravado that he regularly engaged in as a fireman.
Jessie held out for a full two weeks before giving in to the intense desire that was palpable anytime they were together. From that moment forward, their nights were spent making love. Tonight was no different.
“Hey, Jess, baby.” Ryan gently shook her. “You awake?”
“Hmm?” She forced her eyes open, one at a time. “Yeah, I’m awake.”
Ryan brushed the hair from her face and planted a soft kiss on her forehead. “You seem a million miles away.”
She rested her chin on his chest and looked up at him. “I was just thinking about the day we met.”
No matter how often she looked at him, he always managed to steal her breath. He was the most handsome man she had ever met.
“Yeah?” He smiled.
“Yeah.” She smiled in return. Things had been off between them all night. Sexually they’d connected—they always did, but there was an elephant in the room and one of them had to put a voice to it and deal with it. “I’m leaving tomorrow.”
“I know.” They were both silent for a few moments. “I’ve been thinking about it all week.”
“You have?” That surprised her. And warmed her. And concerned her. She was leaving, end of sentence. What could h e possibly be thinking about?
She had been trying to avoid letting her thoughts flow that way. Instead, she’d focused on spending every last moment she could with him before she left, making beautiful memories.
“Yes.” He adjusted his body so that they were face to face. “I want you to come home with me, Jess.”
She pulled the sheet tightly around her, as if protecting herself from the intensity of his words. “What?”
Ryan took both of her hands into his. “I’m in love with you, Jess. The thought of not waking up next to you every morning and falling asleep with you in my arms every night is killing me. Please. Move to Silver Creek with me.”
She looked into his gorgeous green eyes, her heart expanded and burst into little pieces. It would be so easy to throw her arms around him and say yes, but they’d agreed from the beginning that this was nothing more than a summer fling. They’d been living in a bubble, away from real life and the day-to-day grind that reality presented. There were no doubts that she loved him. She’d loved him from the moment they’d shared their first kiss. No man had ever made her feel like Ryan did and she wasn’t sure how to handle it. It terrified her and she didn’t trust it… or herself.
“Jess?”
“It’s just so sudden.” Her mind and her heart were in a tug of war. She wanted to be with Ryan, but there were loose ends at home she had to deal with; namely Derrick and his marriage proposal, which she had conveniently forgotten to tell Ryan about.
“Maybe, but you can’t tell me it doesn’t feel right.”
“No, I can’t.” She shook her head. “Everything with you feels right.”
He grinned that sexy boyish grin that she’d never been able to resist. He raised her hand to his lips and asked, “So, is that a yes?”
Head or heart? Both were screaming at her, encouraging her, judging her, criticizing her and reminding her of the past. As she processed through all the right and wrong reasons, her heart won out and she simply said, “Yes.”
Jessie tossed and turned, trying to find sleep, but it wasn’t coming. Tomorrow she would leave with Ryan. Tomorrow she would move to a new town and start a new life with a man she was hopelessly in love with, a man who, for all practical purposes, she knew almost nothing about. Her mind was racing. She always thought she’d been a good judge of character, but after what had happened with Derrick and her so-called friend, she wasn’t so sure anymore. She would never have suspected them of being so deceitful and her inability to pick up on the affair left her filled with self-doubt. How could she be sure Ryan was any different? And what about her dad? She didn’t even want to go there!
But then, who was she to judge? What about her deceit, she thought, the guilt tying her stomach in knots. Ryan had no idea Derrick even existed. What would he do when he found out? How could he trust her again? The questions kept tumbling around in her head.
Who was she kidding? She couldn’t go with him.
Throwing the covers off, she got out of bed and quickly dressed. Her stuff was already packed and in her car. The plan was to leave first thing tomorrow morning. What was she thinking? She’d only know this man for a couple of months and now she was willing to uproot her entire life, surrender her independence and follow him anywhere?
Panic sent a rush of adrenaline through her veins. She’d done that once, trusted her life to another and had her heart pulled out of her chest as a result.
Not again.
No matter how she felt about him, she just couldn’t place her future in the hands of another man. There were too many unknowns, too many unanswered questions. Her heart was already breaking with what she was about to do. But it was on her terms. She couldn’t risk her heart any more than she already had.
Jessie knelt on the bed and gave Ryan’s cheek a kiss. Tears burned her eyes as she pulled a folded piece of paper from the bedside stand and placed it on her pillow. “I’m sorry, Ryan,” she whispered. “Please forgive me.”
TWO
The saltiness in the early morning air greeted her as she quietly opened the door. Those ten agonizing steps to reach her car felt like a million, but she took them, one foot in front of the other. Was she really going through with this? Was she really walking away from the most beautiful experience of her life? Walking away from the man of her dreams?
Yes, it appeared like she was. Jessie’s hand on the handle of her car was evidence. She was running… again.
Perhaps Derrick was right. He had told her she was the problem, but she wanted to place all the blame on him. Now, the pattern of her insecurity was right in front of her. There was no one to blame but herself. Certainly, this wasn’t Ryan’s fault, just Jessie’s fear of being burned one more time.
For some odd reason, she used the key to unlock the car door instead of clicking the little button on the key fob. Why, she had no idea… it seemed everything she was doing this morning was ass-backwards. She knew it was a sign to stop doing things the hard way, but she ignored it and sank into the seat of her car. She held her breath as she started the engine, not wanting to wake Ryan. There was no need to worry, the soft purr of the hybrid motor was quieter than the harsh beating of her heart
Her trembling hand reached for the gear shift and pulled it into drive. Her whole body was shivering, as if it was the dead of winter when, in reality, fall and its dying transition hadn’t even arrived. But it would. Fall would be here soon and the new life around her would wither and die. It was part of life, the mourning of what was.
She needed to get going before she lost her nerve. It would be so easy to sneak back into the house and lie down on the bed, all snuggled up and ready for another bout of morning sex. She already missed Ryan’s warmth, the way he reached for her in his sleep, the way her head felt as if it were designed to fit on top of his muscular bicep.
All that was an illusion, she told herself again. Just part of the fantasy summer she would remember fondly. And it was better this way… better to have beautiful memories of the way it was. Not the way it would become.
No memories of him sick and throwing up all night. No memories of him on “his” side of the bed because his arm fell asleep when she snuggled next to him. No memories of fights. No memories of feeling taken advantage of. Nothing bad.
No, this was better. Her leaving blessed them both with only memories of a perfect summer. A never-ending summer abruptly cut short by her selfish indecision and an obligation to an old flame.
She pushed the accelerator down, ignoring that last thought, but it triggered the hurt she still felt from Derrick’s betrayal.
They were watching a movie just three months ago, Jessie snuggled into his side. She grew annoyed by his constant texting, the incessant buzzing of his phone. He said it was work, a problem he was trying to solve, but she knew he was lying.
Later, after he fell asleep, she picked up his cell and opened it. She did the one thing she had sworn she’d never do; she slid her thumb across the numbers to enter his password. "Incorrect password" was the response. She tried another, then another, until the system finally locked. She laid the phone down before she was tempted to throw it against the wall.
He’d changed his password and Jessie knew what that meant. Cheating 101—change passwords frequently. He’d also been leaving his phone face down, another sign of secrecy. All the changes he’d been making to his appearance began to make more sense.
Jessie recalled how stunned she’d been. She couldn’t believe it. She didn’t have proof, but she knew it was true… Derrick was cheating on her, but with who? Faces of his co-workers floated through her mind. Could it be one of them? Or perhaps the overly friendly teller at the bank? Hell, it could be anyone, really.
