6. Sam

“Is everything ready to go?” The mischievous glint in Brody’s eyes makes me grin.

“Natalie’s mom, Katherine, is bringing the cake. I’ve got the banner stuffed in the cleaning closet. Taylor is in charge of getting the candles lit. I think that’s everything.” Rodney and Katherine have been dating for about as long as Tucker and Natalie have been. The whole house was happy for Katherine and Rodney because they both lost their spouses years ago, and seeing them find happiness after going through that is beautiful.

“Nice. They’d never look in there.”

I laugh. “I thought it was clever. And I’ve got these.” With a quick look around the station to make sure Rodney and Rick aren’t nearby, I pull out a handful of confetti poppers.

Brody throws his head back with a laugh. “Brilliant. They’re going to hate this so much.”

“That’s the goal.”

We walk down the hallway toward the kitchen. The noise level is intense compared to normal. All three shifts are here for the fundraiser today, making the small space feel overly crowded. Everyone’s moving in and out of the building as we get the tables and booths set up.

The Café, our local bakery, donated carafes of lemonade and tea along with a bunch of snacks for everyone to eat. We’re very grateful for the donation because it means we don’t have to muddle our way through trying to make everything ourselves. Each crew member has to take their turn on kitchen duty, but not a single one of us is good enough to create something worthy of sharing with the public.

I pick up a box of individually wrapped cookies to carry outside. It’s a perfect day. The sun is warm without being stifling, and a few clouds are floating by to offer a break from the sun now and then.

The pavement in front of the firehouse has been transformed into an inviting gameland. We’ve parked the trucks around the outer edge of the lot for both the best visuals and safety. If we get a call while the fundraiser is going on, we’ll be able to take off without being blocked in by people.

In the middle, we’ve got cones outlining our game booths and random tables set up to hold equipment and food.

Our goal for the fundraiser is not only to collect money but to show the town what we do and how we do it. It gives the kids—and the adults—an opportunity to learn about fire safety in a fun environment.

“People are going to start showing up soon,” Charlie says as she carries a box of candy to hand out as prizes for the games.

I flick my watch up to see if she’s right. The event starts in half an hour, which means we only have about fifteen minutes before people start arriving. Most everything is ready to go, except the food. We didn’t want to put that out too soon.

I drop my box onto the table and head back inside to grab the remaining items. The minute we get everything outside, people start showing up, and for the next hour, I’m distracted by leading one of the game booths.

The kids are hilarious with their plastic fire hats falling over their eyes. They’re loving every minute of today. My favorite part of hosting this fundraiser is watching the adults let go of their reservations to act like kids again. They participate in the games just as voraciously as the kids, cheering when they win and feeling bummed when they don’t. It’s only when the line at my booth finally dissipates that I notice Carter still hasn’t shown up.

I scan the crowd to see if I missed him, but after a few sweeps, I know he’s not here. I can see Tucker and his wife, Natalie, with their son, Noah, at the food table. Her pregnant belly is on full display in her sun dress, and it’s the cutest thing. Nolan and Adam are over there, too, with a woman I don’t know. Wouldn’t he have come with the rest of the family?

“Are adults allowed to play, too, or just the kids?” Carter’s voice sends shivers down my spine, and I spin around to see him standing behind me. How he snuck up on me, I’ll never know, but I don’t particularly care. All that matters is he’s here. And he looks fucking delicious.

His light grey T-shirt is stretched across his chest in a way that makes me want to run my hands down him to find out just how many muscles he’s hiding under there. When my gaze meets his again, I realize he is checking me out at the same time. Score one for the suspenders.

I scoop up the rings and hold them out to him. “Give it your best shot.”

His crooked grin flashes as he takes the rings. He analyzes the cones laid out in front of him before he tosses the ring. It hooks onto the furthest cone without a wobble. Carter proceeds to toss the next three rings, snagging them on each cone as if he’s done this a thousand times. The game itself isn’t inherently difficult, but to have the precision he shows on each throw is a little surprising.

When the final ring lands around the cone, I turn to look at him with my eyebrows almost in my hairline.

Seeing the bashful smile on his face makes me laugh. “I feel like my candy prize isn’t sufficient enough for that display of expertise.”

“The suspenders would be enough without the candy.” He grins.

I run my thumbs down the textured material holding up my turnout pants. It isn’t a requirement to wear our gear, but the kids love seeing us in it. I also knew I’d be able to wear my suspenders without it being weird.

“Is it all suspenders or just mine?” My voice deepens with the lust rising in me. Carter’s eyes scan my body. The desire in his eyes is clear, and I want nothing more than to pull him close to my body and kiss the hell out of him.

He steps closer, as if his thoughts are mirroring mine. “It’s just you wearing those.”

“Fuck,” I whisper. My chin drops to my chest, and I take a deep breath.

“Sorry.” Carter takes a step away from me, embarrassment flushing his cheeks.

My head snaps up. “Don’t you dare apologize. I just need to cool some things down while small children are running around.” I grin at him.

His shoulders soften, and a smile lights up his eyes. I’m about to ask him to grab dinner with me tonight when a kid comes barreling toward me, jumping up and down with excitement.

“Can I play again? If I get two rings this time, can I have two pieces of candy?” the boy asks. His parents walk up behind him with humor on their faces.

Carter starts to step away from me, and I stop him with an almost desperate demand. “We’ll talk later, yeah?”

He nods. “Yeah, we can talk later.”

With that, he walks over to the food table, where Nolan, Adam, and their sister, Sara, are standing.

I turn back to the kid who’s bouncing on his toes as he waits for me to collect the rings. He successfully lands two rings on the cones, and his whoop of excitement makes me laugh.

The next hour proceeds in much the same way until it’s finally time to bring out the birthday cake for Rick and Rodney. We have the crowd gather around the food table for a special announcement, and once they’re in place, Brody and I carry the banner outside as Taylor carries the cake.

The whole house begins to sing “Happy Birthday” as Rick and Rodney try to curse us out without actually using the words. The crowd cheers and joins in to sing, drowning out every protest they have.

Rick and Rodney work together to blow out the candles. Then a scoop of cake is suddenly shoved in my face, and an all-out war ensues until Tucker steps in to stop us from making a complete mockery of the house. We’re all dying of laughter by the end of it, and somehow, I’m the only one who ended up with cake actually on my person.

“Go get cleaned up, troublemaker. Then it’s time for the relay.” Tucker shoves my shoulder toward the house with a laugh.

“Hey, I’m not the one who started that,” I protest.

“Oh, trust me. Rodney will get an earful, too.”

Chuckling, I walk into the building to clean off the sticky cake. I’m glad Tucker wasn’t too mad at us. I knew Rodney and Rick would do something to get us back for surprising them. I just never imagined it would be the same day. Although, if I know them at all, they’ll do something else in a couple of weeks to get revenge.

Once I’m in the bathroom, I let out a laugh at the sight of my face. The white and red frosting is smeared across my cheek and covering my mouth. It’s even in my hair. I’d probably be better off taking a shower, but I don’t have time for that.

The door to the bathroom opens, and I speak before looking at who’s there, figuring it’s one of the guys. “Come to see the damage?”

“And to make sure you’re okay. Looked like Rodney smacked you pretty hard.”

I whip around in surprise. Carter’s blue eyes are scanning my face as an amused smirk quirks his lips.

“I’m okay. A bit of a mess, but unharmed.”

Carter steps closer to me and scoops a glob of frosting off my chin. He pops his finger into his mouth, and my body reacts instantly. Lust swoops through my belly, making my cock twitch with interest.

He reaches out a second time, gathering more frosting onto his finger, but I grab his wrist before he can pull away. With my gaze locked on his, I wrap my lips around his cake-covered digit.

Heat flares in Carter’s eyes as I suck the frosting off of him. Dragging my teeth across his skin, I pull his hand away from me.

“Fuck it,” Carter murmurs. And then he’s pressing his body against me, his lips crashing against mine in a demanding kiss.

Shock makes me freeze for half a second before I get myself together and take over. I palm the sides of his face and enjoy the fact that he’s only an inch or two shorter than I am. My lips devour his, savoring the taste of him. That spicy oak scent is colored by sugar, and with only one taste, I’m officially addicted.

His tongue wraps around mine. Each swipe is more tantalizing than the one before. God, if I’d have known it would feel like this to kiss him, I’d have done it so much sooner.

I drop a hand to his waist to pull him closer. The moment I feel his hard body against mine, I groan. Our cocks rub against each other in an erotic tease of what could be. He’s as hard as I am from only our kisses, and I know if I don’t pull back soon, I’m going to do more to him than I should.

I soften my kisses, moving to his chin and trailing my lips across his strong jaw. Carter shivers, goose bumps rising on his skin. Satisfaction pumps through me, knowing he’s as affected as I am.

“I always knew if I kissed you, it would surpass every fantasy I could conjure,” I say against his throat. “I just never imagined you’d be this addicting.”

“You fantasized about me?”

I pull away from Carter to take in his lust-drunk expression. “All the time.” Using my thumb, I wipe away the frosting I smeared around his mouth.

“I need to get cleaned up and head back outside. It’s time to start the competition.” I force myself to step back. “Will you stay to watch?”

Carter smiles at me. “I wouldn’t miss it.”