Home > Up In Flames(12)

Up In Flames(12)
Author: Nicole Williams

“Sorry. Subtlety isn’t my strong suit. At least it isn’t anymore.”

I tried to ignore the way his gaze wandered over me, almost so imperceptibly I could have imagined it.

“What? You calling me every day and stalking me at work isn’t subtle?” I teased.

“It’s hard to be subtle when the girl you want to be subtle with won’t take your calls.” He shoved off his Land Cruiser and took a step my way.

Why hadn’t I at least redone my limp, flyaway ponytail?

“So you used to be subtle,” I said, glancing around the parking lot. It was empty. “But not anymore. Not right now.”

He nodded. “Yep. Used to be. But not right now. Not with you.”

He took another step closer, causing me to take one back. I wasn’t sure if it was because I was more scared of him touching me or smelling me.

“What are you doing tonight?” he asked, the low notes gone.

“I worked the dinner shift and closed the restaurant tonight,” I replied, knowing it was some time after ten. Tonight was already over. At least if you were the good girl Elle Montgomery.

“What are you doing right now?” he clarified, moving closer. Now I could smell him and yes, his damp hair was thanks to a shower. He smelled like soap and shampoo. And some other s-word . . .

“I’m going home.”

“It’s a Friday night.”

“It’s late on a Friday night,” I said, side-stepping my way to the Jeep.

Cole reached out and grabbed my wrist. His fingers wound around it gently, heating the skin all the way through. “You’ve got a couple options here, Elle. I can either throw you over my shoulder and kidnap you, or I’ll follow you to your place and hang with you there, or you can stop pretending like you’re not dying to spend a couple hours with me and get in my car.” Cole’s expression was so darn confident I almost wanted to tell him to get lost.

But I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

“I don’t have long,” I said, checking the time on my phone. “My dad will call an Amber Alert on me if I’m not home by midnight.”

“You’re eighteen and officially out of school. Isn’t it about time your dad eased up a bit?”

Of course it is, was my gut response, but if I gave him that one, Cole would turn that into one big carpe diem conversation I wasn’t in the mood for. I didn’t want to talk about life tonight. I didn’t want to think about it either. I wanted to live it.

“I’m still his little girl,” I said with a shrug.

“Daddy Montgomery sounds strict.”

“Like you wouldn’t believe,” I replied.

“Why?”

That was a Pandora’s box I didn’t want to touch with a ten foot pole.

“It’s his way of trying to keep me safe, I guess,” I said. “My mom died when I was four in a river kayaking accident, and I think he believes if he puts a short leash on me, he won’t have to worry about losing me like he lost her.”

Cole didn’t even flinch at my words, but I did. I never spoke about my mom or the way she’d died. Why was I now?

That was another Pandora’s box I didn’t want to be on the same planet as.

“So he’s willing to risk your happiness to keep you safe? Or at least as safe as a person can pretend to keep another safe?”

“He doesn’t know I’m not happy,” I said, trying not to let the sadness I felt show. He never asked if I was happy and I never told him I wasn’t. We both assumed what we wanted. “You’re kind of the only one I let in on that little secret.” I smiled sheepishly at Cole, feeling na**d again.

“Why?” Cole asked his favorite one word question again. “Why haven’t you told him you’re not happy?”

“Because I don’t want to rock the boat,” I said, hoping he’d accept that tip of the iceberg answer and move on.

“Elle,” he said, my name coming out of his mouth in a smooth caress, “you’d better start rocking that boat right now or else your life is going to pass you by before you even get started living it.”

Those words hit me hard. Because they were true. And because they were what I’d been living in fear of for a while. My entire life passing me by while I offered conventional smiles and washed dishes at the sink.

A car whizzed by us on the road in front of the diner. Shaking the dreary thoughts loose for the time being, I squared my shoulders and approached Cole.

This time, when I looked into his eyes, I felt strength instead of the swoon I normally did. “I’m ready to rock that boat whenever you are.”

“WHEN YOU SAID you were planning on taking me on a grand adventure, I didn’t exactly picture this,” I whispered as Cole led me down the dark hall.

“You know what they say. Every great adventure begins and ends at a smokejumper camp,” he replied back in a hushed voice.

I rolled my eyes. “Where is everybody?” I knew enough about the camp to know most of the smokejumpers lived, ate, and slept here, but I’d never actually been inside.

“It’s a Friday night and it was a long winter,” Cole whispered, his eyes gleaming when he glanced back at me. “If they’re not on call, they’re either at a bar or a party looking for a pretty girl with loose morals and looser standards.”

I made a face. It was the same story every year. “Then why are we whispering?” I asked, as we entered a large kitchen and dining area.

   
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