The Fighter's Block (9 page)

She moved so she was facing him and smiled. “
Two
hour
s
, huh?

He returned the smile and said, “I thought you had work to do on your computer?”

“Hmm
, that can wait.”

She slid her hands around his neck and pulled him close for a kiss.

Dani did open up her computer when Van left two hours later. She plugged it in and set it on the kitchen table, but five minute
s later
she found herself daydreaming about other things. It was really nice of Van to let her stay at his place while he was at work for the next three days. She would basically just be there at night, and she still felt a little uneasy about her inconsistent living arrangements, but Van had insisted, and she was very grateful for his generosity.

She thought about the conversation she’d had with him
two
night
s
before about his job. After the whole popcorn mess
,
they sat on the couch and watched a movie. There was a part in the movie where the girl
said
to the guy: “Fine, go to work; whatever it is you do.”

Dani
had
turned
to
Van and said, “That’s right! What
do
you do?”

Van thought it was kind of funny because he’d never known a girl for a week without her knowing what his job was.
But he supposed things were a little different these days. His
schedule—and his life—
wasn’t the same as it used to be.
“Well—”

“And don’t tell me to guess because that will really piss me off,” Dani interrupted.

“Oh, yeah? You get pissed off? Well maybe I should make you guess.”

“Don’t test me, Van.”

“But I’m curious. What
kind of job do you see me doing?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Oh? Now I’m even more curious.”

“Well, I don’t want to offend you.”

“Not possible. Just spit it out.”

She smiled but eventually replied, “Well, because you obviously have some sort of…fighting background…”

Van smiled. “You think I’m a fighter, huh? Not a lover?”

She chuckled.
“Yes you’re an excellent lover
but… Just watching you handle Brian… And the way you’re built… It was just my first thought,” she finished, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

“So… I go fight for three days, and then come home and rest my broken bones for three days?” Van teased her.

“See, now you’re making fun of me,” she playfully slugged him. “I don’t know what you would use such abilities for. The Marines? Secret Ninja Assassin?”

He laughed. “
Ninja Assassin?
That sounds cool. I’ll go with that one.”

“No, seriously!” she laughed. “Tell me what kind of job you have or I’m leaving.”

“Really?”

“Yep, I’ll just walk right out of here.”

“Well I don’t want that to happen. But you’re actually right on.”

“Right on what?”

“About being a fighter.”

“Really? I was only kidding, you know.”

“Well you were kidding just right.”

“Seriously? I mean…what do you mean, Van? Are you talking about, like, ultimate fighting or something?”

He nodded. “Yeah, for several years
it was my thing, b
ut
recently I kind of switched gears. T
hese days I’m actually
…”
He left it unfinished, completely satisfied by the beautiful curiosity on her face.

“A
ctually
what? You are torturing me!”

He laughed. “Okay, but I’m
also a
firefighter.”

She stared at him for several seconds. “What?” she finally said.

“A firefighter? You know, the guys that put on all the gear and run into burning buildings? We also drive these really big red
trucks that—”

“I know what a firefighter is!” she laughed.

“Why do you look so shocked?” he smiled.

“Well… I don’t know
. I mean…yeah, I can see that.” She visualized him in the gear and added, “Hot damn! Yeah, I can definitely see that!”

He laughed and said, “So it’s true? Firefighters automatically get thrown into the sexy category?”

“Well, I don’t know about all of them, but I will definitely say that you are way sexy, firefighter or not.”

Thinking back on that conversation made Dani smile again. Van surely was one sexy guy. And he was sweet, and thoughtful, and he seemed to care about
more than just her looks
.
He alm
ost seemed too good to be true, but s
he
wondered if something
special
was finally happening in her life.

She took a deep breath and went back to work on her computer. After an hour of changing passwords and looking things over, she finally opened up her latest project from work. She’d only be
en working at Flegal Design for two weeks
and she still had a lot to prove.
Her
former job had been going well
but the company was going through lots of cutbacks, and since Dani had the least seniority, she was one of the graphic designers that
was
let go. She was given a great letter of recommendation though, and fortunately she was able to snag a job at another company—even though it took almost
three
months. Now she was basically restarting the same job she’d started right out of college, but at least she was employed again.

She didn’t like to think about the “what-ifs” in life, although sometimes it was hard to avoid, but she knew that some of the trials in her life had definitely altered her course. Her brother was now doing better, which was a blessing. But after a serious car accident the year before, several surgeries to fix the damage and no insurance to cover it, the family really had to pitch in to help out. Dani didn’t think twice about raiding her savings for the cause because it was her brother, but if she just hadn’t lost her job right after it… She never would have lost her apartment, and she never would have moved in with Brian.

Things could have been so much easier.

But then again, would she have met Van? Those were questions she couldn’t answer, but Dani was willing to accept the previous struggles in her life if it meant a future with Donavan Kemp.

Brian
was obsessed—and he was tormented and unsettled. No, there was no way Dani would have gone home with that
asshole
after the night at the club. There was just no way. But the more he thought about it, the more
agitated
he became
. They seemed pretty comfortable around each other, like they were well acquainted. He couldn’t figure out where she was living, and then she shows up with this guy and two meatheads to help her move out? And Brian still couldn’t recall if the guy had a name. Surely someone had spoken it while they were clearing out Dani’s stuff, but nothing came to him.
If he could remember a name, maybe he could investigate the apartment complex again.

Ah, but he had a visual of the truck. It was the same black Ford the guy had parked at
Indigo
. That was the key, he thought. The truck.
He hadn’t been able to see the plates, but in time he’d figure out who this guy was.
He’d drive over to the apartment complex
to
look for the truck. He had nothing else to go on, but if he could just establish who Dani was staying with…

Brian did return to Van’s apartment
building
. But after a few trips up and down the street, and a drive through the alley where the tenants had park
ing spaces, he couldn’t find the truck
. He found Dani’s Honda on the street, but not the black Ford. He didn’t know what to think, but he was now sure that Dani was sta
ying in this apartment building
whether it was with Mr. Tough Guy or not.

He found a spot on the street to park and just sat there for a few minutes. He decided to call Dani, even if it was just to say she’d left a jacket
and a few other things
at his place, but she didn’t answer t
he phone. It went to voicemail and
he didn’t leave a message.

He got out of his car and walked toward the entry of the apartment
complex
. He paused for a second, debating which plan he was going to use. At the same moment, a woman came up from the opposite end of the sidewalk, her arms loaded with groceries.

“Here, let me help you with those,” Brian smiled.

Marnie paused
suspiciously
, but ultimately handed him the bags in her right arm
that were about to fall
. “Thank you. Just to the elevator is fine.”

“Sure.”

He held the door open for her
and then followed her into the building, pleased that things were going his way.

“You new here?” Marnie asked him as she pressed the button to the elevator.

“Uh, no. I was just here to see a friend, but I forgot which floor she’s on.”

“What’s her name?” she asked, pushing the button again. She hated it when the elevator was slow.
She hated it even more when it was out of order.

“Dani,” Brian replied. “Danielle.”

“You’re friends with Dani?” she asked. “Big blue eyes, long pretty hair… That Dani?”

Brian’s pulse quickened, unsure if he was about to make things worse. “Yeah, you know her?”

“Well I just met her this morning, actually. My husband was helping her move.”

The elevator finally arrived and Marnie thanked him for his help. “I’m Marnie,” she added, taking a bag from him and setting it on the floor of the elevator.
“And you are…?”

“Uh, Casey,” Brian
lied
. “Nice to meet you.”

“I’ll tell Dani you’re here if you want.”

Brian considered that and then said, “She’s expecting me if you could just remind me what apartment she’s in. I’d call
her but I forgot my phone at home
.”

Marnie’s pause was unsettling to Brian, like she was suspicious of him. But finally she said, “I’m sure that’s the easiest
way, but sorry, I don’t like giving out information to people I don’t know. Even though this isn’t a building of people anyone wants to
fuck
with, I still don’t do that. I’ll let her know you’re here.”

Brian was upset, but he only smiled and said, “Sure, that’s fine. It’s better to be safe. I’ll just wait down here for her.”

Marnie pressed a number and asked, “You said your name is Casey, right?”

“Yep,” he smiled.

Marnie
nodded as the doors closed, and a
s soon as she couldn’t see him
anymore
, he left out the front doors.

Chapter Five

Engine No.
46 returned to the f
irehouse after
midnight. Van and the
crew
unloade
d their gear
and then spent the next hour finishing up with things from the call. When he was showered and changed, he joined a few of the guys in the lounge
to play cards
. Usually after such a call
it took some time for everyone to wind down.

It wasn’t until three in the morning that he finally glanced at his cell phone before he climbed into a bunk. He’d missed a few calls, but there were only two messages. One was from Dani, letting him know that she already missed him. She’d called around seven, just after the call came in about the ballet studio.

He smiled at her message,
happy to hear her voice.

The next message was from Paul, and Van wasn’t very happy about it.

“I think that Brian guy was here earlier, looking for Dani,”
he
said.

Van
listened to the rest of the message
that described
Marnie’s interaction with the guy
. Dani had gone down
stairs
, excited to finally see
her friend
Cas
ey, but the lobby was empty. After talking to Marnie, Dani decided that it had to have been Brian, especially since Casey’s hair was jet black, and he was barely six-foot. That was definitely not the guy that Marnie spoke to
, and he smiled way too much
.