Controlled Burn (18 page)

“Hey, Rick,” she said, setting a beer in front of him, making the lights flash off her engagement ring. “How you been?”

“Not too bad. Looks like a slow night.”

“Trust me, that doesn’t break my heart.” He knew what she meant. This time of year kept first responders and emergency rooms hopping, so tending the bar on a slow night probably felt like a vacation to her. “You all alone tonight?”

“Everybody had plans or didn’t feel like going out in the cold, I guess.”

“It wouldn’t be so bad if the wind
would die down.”

“Let me ask you something. The day Joe and Marie were in the ER because he fell and you showed me your engagement ring, I said it happened fast. And you said ‘when it’s right, it’s right.’ What did you mean by that? I mean, how did you
know
it was right?” When she looked at him as if he just asked her something outrageous, like her bra size, he looked down and traced the
condensation on his mug. “Forget I said anything.”

“Rick Gullotti, if you just hinted around that you’re even
thinking
about settling down, this moment is unforgettable.”

“Exaggerate much?”

“No.” She tilted her head to give him a considering look. “I guess you asking that question when your landlords’ granddaughter just happened to return to Boston is a coincidence?”

“She won’t
be my landlords’ granddaughter very long since they’re selling the house.”

“Nice deflection, Gullotti. But I’ll let it slide. How do you feel about them selling? You put so much work into your apartment and now you might have to find a new place and start all over.”

He shrugged. “It’s just an apartment. And nothing says I’ll have to start over. Whoever buys it might want to keep me there,
although I’m sure they’ll raise the rent. Or there’s a possibility we can have the property deed changed so I can buy the apartment as a condo, separate from the rest of the house. I think. I haven’t really looked into it yet because I thought I’d have a little more time.”

And because it wasn’t something he’d wanted to deal with. Not only because he hated paperwork, but because he was afraid
if he broached the subject to Joe and Marie, they’d realize he really didn’t want to move and they might factor that into their own decision. Now that they’d made their decision, it might be time to look into it.

“So how long is Jessica in town for?”

“A couple of weeks, probably.” He took a sip of his beer. “How do you know so much about what’s going on?”

She smiled. “You think
Aidan catching you kissing a woman in the pool room isn’t going to get talked about?”

“It’s ridiculous. The city’s a little big for such a small-town grapevine.”

“The important thing here is that she came back. Focus on that.”

“She wants to check out the place Joe and Marie are considering moving into. I guess places like that sometimes tack on a shitload of hidden fees you don’t
find out about until you’ve already started the process. She wants to make sure they can afford it.”

“She could have done that by phone,” Karen pointed out.

He wanted to believe seeing him had factored into Jess’s decision to fly all the way across the country again to handle business that probably could be handled by phone and online. “She knows it makes her grandparents feel better
having her out here.”

“It’s nice of her to come all the way to Boston to help them with this. It must be a daunting decision for them.”

“Yup.”

“But she’s getting to know them, right? I mean, she’ll still come out here even after the business end is settled?”

Rick knew exactly where Karen was heading with that. “Yeah, she will. Though it’s hard to say how often.”

“You think
she’d consider moving out here? With the right incentive, of course.” And she tilted her hand again, letting the light refract off her diamond.

“I doubt it. She’s pretty thankful to have Joe and Marie in her life, but it doesn’t change the fact she’s spent her entire life in San Diego. She has a home and friends and not only does she have a job, but it’s a family business. That’s not easy
to walk away from.”

“You’re a great guy, Rick. You have no idea how much I used to wish we had that something special I was looking for. If you think she’s the one, you need to let her know that. How can she make decisions for her future if she thinks what you two have is just casual sex?”

Just the thought of having that conversation made his chest ache. What if she thought it
was
just
casual sex? He’d been told so many times that he wasn’t the marrying kind and he’d laughed it off. Hell, there was a time in his life when it had been some kind of misguided badge of honor. But he had a gut feeling hearing Jess say those words to him would hurt like hell.

“She knows it’s not just casual,” he said. Moment of panicked doubt aside, he was certain Jessica knew she was more to
him than a casual fling.

“Have you thought about moving to San Diego?” Karen asked.

“Maybe I should have gone to a different bar,” he muttered.

“In other words, you have.”

“I don’t really see myself doing that. I love it here. I can’t imagine leaving Ladder 37. My family’s nearby. And there’s Joe and Marie. Just because they’re moving into a smaller place doesn’t mean they
don’t need somebody looking after them a bit.”

Karen shook her head, tossing her bar towel over her shoulder. “You sure are full of reasons why a relationship with Jessica won’t work.”

“It’s called being practical.”

“Or being scared.”

She walked away before he could argue with that, which was probably a good thing because the words to deny it wouldn’t come to him.

Chapter Seventeen

The next Monday, Rick looked around his apartment and decided it was as good as it would get. He knew the real estate agent was already downstairs with Joe, Marie and Jess. It was only a matter of time before they’d make their way to his place, so he’d given it a quick cleaning and made sure there was no clutter lying around.

The agent would need to take
pictures, he supposed. And probably a ton of notes. And he still hadn’t decided if he wanted to broach the subject of restructuring the property so he could buy the top floor. The more he thought about it, the less attractive an option it seemed.

Sure, he’d sunk quite a bit into the renovation. He could afford to since the Broussards lowballed his rent. But he wasn’t sure he had the heart
to live there without them. Another family living under him wouldn’t be the same, whether he liked them or not. And he’d renovated this apartment to suit his taste. There was no reason he couldn’t do it again.

When the sliding door opened, he looked up from his seat at the island, expecting to see all of them walk through the door. But it was only Jess and she hurried to close the door behind
her. They were heading into a deep freeze, weatherwise, and it was already bitterly cold.

“She didn’t leave, did she?” That wouldn’t make sense, since the property couldn’t be listed without mentioning the third-floor apartment.

“I don’t think she’s ever going to leave, to be honest. Joe and Marie are really taking her request to give them some history of the house seriously. Every room
seems to have a dozen stories.”

He opened his arms so she could step into his embrace, then wrapped her in a warm hug. She was shivering a little, just from the walk up to his apartment. “Why didn’t you use the inside stairs?”

“I had an opportunity to escape and I took it. I was closer to the back door and was afraid I’d get sucked into another description of what kind of wallpaper was
in the kitchen forty years before I was born.”

He laughed and kissed the top of her head. “Driving you a little crazy?”

“A little? Measurements. Photos. Facts. I thought it would take maybe half an hour, tops.”

“Marie doesn’t do anything in a half hour. You should know that by now.”

“Are you okay with this?” she asked. He wasn’t sure what she meant by that, so he frowned. “The
real estate agent, I mean.”

“Oh. It would be awfully hard for her to list the house with an entire floor of description missing.”

“I’m not asking if you know the logical reason for her presence. I want to know if you’re okay with it. I know I focus on this being Joe and Marie’s home, but it’s your home and it can’t be easy.”

“The difference is that Joe and Marie own the house and
I rent an apartment. It’s the chance you take if you don’t buy.”

She backed away from him so she could see his face. “That can’t be how you really feel.”

He shrugged and moved around the island to put the roll of paper towels he’d been using back on the counter. “I love this apartment. And I love the house and I love Joe and Marie. But they’re moving on and I will, too.”

She looked
at him for a long moment, and he could tell she wanted to poke at feelings about the house more. But she must have decided against it because she smiled. “It’ll be a shame to give up that master bathroom. Especially the shower. It’s so big two people could have sex in there.”

The thought of Jess naked against all that white tile made him instantly hard as a rock and Rick was glad he was standing
on the opposite side of the island. “Yes. Two people
could
have sex in there.”

She shivered and rubbed her hands on her arms. “I bet it’s warm in there, too. I think I caught a chill coming up here.”

“I’d take you in the bedroom and warm you up, but you know the second I get my hands on you, they’ll walk through the door.”

“I’d rather not take the chance of getting caught naked
by my grandparents and a very nosy lady with a camera, thanks.” But she gave him a smile that just intensified the ache. “Rain check.”

A few minutes later they heard Joe’s heavy tread on the deck and Jess went to open the slider for them. Once they were in out of the cold, Joe introduced the real estate agent to Rick.

“We’ll be quick,” she promised, and he saw Jess—who was standing behind
the trio—roll her eyes.

It bothered him more than he thought, watching the woman take pictures of his home so they could sell it to somebody else. He stayed where he was behind the island, only moving when she wanted to take a shot of the kitchen. Not only did he not care to follow them around the apartment, but every time he looked at Jess, he got that mental flash of her naked and slick
and soapy in his shower again.

As Joe and Marie took the agent into his bedroom, Jess joined him at the island. “You okay?”

“Sure. Do I not look okay?”

“You’re usually a sociable guy, so it’s weird you’re not talking.”

“They’re busy and, unless they want to know what kind of marble vanity top that is, there’s nothing I can really add.”

She looked at him for a long moment,
and then blew an exasperated breath at some hair that had drifted toward her face. “Fine. Don’t tell me.”

“Okay. It’s not fun watching people get ready to sell the place I’ve made a home, even if I think it’s the right thing to do. And I also want to fuck you in my shower. So, yeah, there’s a lot going on in my head right now.”

She tried unsuccessfully to stifle a chuckle, and then she
slid her hand into his. He interlocked their fingers and squeezed as she rested her head against his arm. “I know the house thing is hard. It is for all three of you. The shower thing I might be able to help you with at some point, though.”

At some point
was going to be about forty-five seconds after the door closed behind her grandparents and their real estate lady, but he didn’t bother
to tell her that. She’d figure it out when he locked the door and got her naked.

From the other room, he overheard the woman asking about the crown molding and groaned. Assuming he—and his throbbing erection—survived that long.

* * *

Jessica stood at the window, watching the real estate agent leave, and she could still hear the engine out on the road when Rick’s arms looped around
her waist and he kissed the back of her neck. She shivered and leaned back against him.

“I feel dirty,” he said. “We should take a shower.”

She laughed, but he didn’t. “The lady just left, Rick. Joe or Marie might come up to talk about what she said.”

“I locked the door. They’ll figure it out.”

“Or we could wait until a normal time to take a shower. It’s barely evening.”

“The thought of you in that shower made my dick so hard I’m afraid I’ll be permanently damaged,” he said, and she giggled. “Why do you think I stayed behind the kitchen island while they roamed around taking pictures?”

“I thought you were staying out of the way.”

“I was. I didn’t want to alarm anybody.” He nipped at her earlobe, and she felt herself caving.

“I do love that shower.”

“Let me give you a really good tour.” Sliding his hand under her shirt, he ran his fingers up her spine and then tucked them under her bra strap. “Unless you have something you’d rather be doing.”

“Something I’d rather do than be naked with you?” She turned in his arms and, after locking her hands behind his neck, hopped up to wrap her legs around his waist.

He caught her, supporting
her ass with his hands, and kissed her before carrying her into the bedroom. There was definitely something to be said for having a guy who had to stay in good physical condition for a living, she thought.

Once he’d set her on her feet, he wasted no time stripping down. “You weren’t kidding.”

He looked down and then laughed. “I never kid about permanent damage to my dick.”

“You’re
not going to turn that shower on cold, are you?”

“How hot do you like it?”

She pulled her shirt off and tossed it aside. “As hot as you can stand it.”

He opened the wide glass door and walked into the massive shower. Jessica continued to strip as he turned the water on, so by the time it was running hot enough for him to step under the stream, she was ready to join him.

After
pulling the door closed behind her, she grabbed the bar of soap off the shelf and lathered her hands. He started to turn, but she stopped him with a hand to the shoulder.

“You should let me wash your back.”

“Okay, but then I’m washing your front.”

She laughed and set the bar back on the shelf before touching him. Her fingertips, slick with soap, glided over his shoulders and down
his arms. Then she looped her hands around and washed his chest. Her breasts were pressed against his back, almost aching with the need for him to cup them in his hands.

But she wasn’t done with him yet. She slid her hands down his stomach, feeling his abs tighten as her touch skimmed lower.

“Jess.” He growled her name, but whether it was a plea or a warning, she couldn’t tell. And she
didn’t care.

She closed her hand around his cock, stroking the hard length of it with her slick hand. He dropped his head back as his hips rocked slightly, but after only a few strokes, he grasped her wrist and stilled her hand.

Then he turned and backed her up against the shower wall. The tile was cold and she arched her back, but there was nowhere to go with his body pressed against
hers. He pushed her wet hair away from her face and then kissed her hard.

She opened her mouth to him, surrendering completely as his tongue danced over hers. Then he kissed her chin. The hollow at her throat.

The tile was already warming against her skin and she ran her fingers over his hair when his mouth closed over her nipple. He sucked hard, the sensation sizzling through her body.

Steam was filling the enclosure as the hot water beat down on them, rinsing away the soap and leaving their skin flushed. Or maybe it was his mouth on her body. She didn’t know and didn’t care. All she knew was the feel of his scruffy jaw on her delicate skin and his hand sliding up her thigh.

He stroked the soft flesh between her legs, and she sucked in a breath when he pressed the heel
of his hand against her clit. She ground against his hand, so close to an orgasm she could only whimper. Then he slid two fingers into her and his thumb replaced his palm. As his fingers moved, his thumb brushed over her clit and she dug her fingernails into his shoulders as she came.

When the shuddering stopped, Rick reached around her and turned off the shower. “We’ve done the tile thing
once already and you’re right. I’m too old for that shit.”

She expected him to grab them some towels, but he pushed open the glass door and lifted her into his arms. “Not on the bed! We’re so wet even changing the sheets won’t help because we’ll soak the mattress.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, setting her on her feet. After grabbing a condom from his nightstand, he kissed her.

She heard
the crinkle of the condom wrapper and then he was turning her so she faced the bed. When he put his hand on her back, she leaned forward and braced her palms on the edge of the mattress.

He entered her slowly, each stroke just a little deeper than the one before it. Her fingers curled in the bedspread and she tried not to hold her breath as his hands gripped her hips.

When she finally
took all of him, he paused, his breathing fast and shallow. He skimmed his fingers over her back, raking the skin lightly with his nails. She shivered and pushed back against him with a moan.

When his hand slid up her neck and his fingers curled in her hair, she gasped and jerked her hips against his. He jerked hard in response, and she cried out. Every thrust was deep, with one hand on her
hip and the other buried in her hair.

Then, just when she thought he was going to come, he stilled. After a few seconds, he withdrew and turned her around. “Screw the bed. We’ll sleep on the couch if it gets wet. I want to see your face.”

He picked her up and set her on the mattress, then settled himself over her. Brushing her hair away from her face, he looked into her eyes and smiled.
“I like that. But I like seeing your face.”

She felt a hot flush under his scrutiny, but she didn’t look away. Instead she cupped his face in her hands and lifted her head to kiss him. She’d never get enough of kissing this man, she thought.

Rick nudged her knees apart and she sighed against his lips when he filled her again. “I love the feel of you inside me.”

He grinned, his eyes
crinkling. “I love the feel of me inside you, too.”

Taking his time, he moved his hips in a steady rhythm that made her want to beat her fists on his back. But no matter how she raised her hips or dug into the backs of his thighs with her heels, he wouldn’t be rushed.

The entire time, he drove her crazy with his mouth, kissing her mouth and her neck. Kissing her breasts and sucking hard
on her nipples, almost but not quite to the point of pain. She squirmed and he reached between their bodies to stroke her clit.

The orgasm hit hard and she moaned as the tremors wracked her body. She clutched at his shoulders and he moved his hips faster. With deep, fast strokes, he pounded into her until his hips jerked and he growled her name.

When he rolled onto his back, they both
stared at the ceiling, trying to catch their breath. He captured her hand with his and brought it to his mouth to kiss her palm. “Damn, woman.”

She wasn’t ready to form words, so she made the same sound she made when she bit into a slab of exceptionally good chocolate cake and closed her eyes.

After a few minutes the mattress dipped and she heard him go into the bathroom. She thought
about moving, since she was sideways on the bed, naked with wet hair on top of the covers.

It didn’t happen, though, and when Rick came back, he just stretched out beside her again. He stroked her thigh and turned his head to kiss her shoulder.

“Stay with me tonight.”

Since she hadn’t even been able to muster enough ambition to turn the right way on the bed, it sounded like a great
idea. “You have to go to work soon, so you need to sleep.”