Chapter 12

Millie

Why the hell did I spend hours going over my potential outfits with Jamie, after showering to shave, scrub, polish, and moisturise everything, when apparently all I needed to do to get a firefighter’s attention was engage in an involuntary wet t-shirt competition? Make that three firefighters’ attention. Each man stared at me with equal fascination, and while a voice shrieked inside my head that I needed to go and find a towel and a change of clothes, stat, I didn’t. Instead, I just stood there, pinned to the spot by their gaze.

Deep masculine laughter filled the training area, making me think this was all part of the plan, but if that was the case, why weren’t Noah and his team laughing? Charlie’s smile faded so quickly it was like it wasn’t there in the first place, and Noah? He was pale, too pale, as red spots formed in his cheeks, but it was Knox’s expression that hit me the hardest. I knew that intense gaze, because just like the night we first met, those grey eyes burned into me. No, more than that. As he took in every inch of me, it felt like his eyes left searing trails behind. That should’ve warmed me through, but instead, I started to shiver.

“Shit, shirt.”

Noah went to unbutton his, but the fabric made that weird sucking noise wet shirts do when they cling to your skin. He shook his head in frustration, then looked to the others for something to give me. Nope, we were shit out of luck, because each one of us was damp as hell, which prompted my own little inspection.

Noah didn’t have those abs when I knew him, and while I assumed Charlie was jacked by the way he handled the pole, I hadn’t realised how much. Knox? It became immediately apparent how he’d carried me around with ease. The firefighter tunic hid a body made up of heavy slabs of muscle. My hand slid down to my bag, wanting to grab my phone out and snap some photos, because one, no one was ever going to believe me about this, and two, I now had that spank bank material I was looking for during the fire safety training. I shivered, but not for the reason they thought.

“Towel.”

Knox said that with all the authority he used during an emergency I was willing to bet.

“Right, towel.” Charlie agreed, but made no effort to move, which earned him a slap upside the head. “Ow, what the hell was that for?”

“Towel and a dry uniform.”

Knox shot him a meaningful look, and that seemed to push Charlie into action.

“Right, yeah, of course. I think we’ve got some women’s uniforms in the storeroom.” Knox just glared at him. “And I’ll go get them.”

His expression didn’t lighten up until Charlie walked off.

“Noah, show Millie the changerooms and get her a towel.”

“Towel.” Noah nodded dimly, then shook his head. “This way.”

“And what’re you going to do?” Where the hell had that come from? Shit, me apparently. Knox’s lips twitched, that was the only warning I got as his hands went to the hem of his shirt and he pulled it up over his head.

Staring at a pin up of a hot firefighter in a calendar and seeing one in the flesh was a completely different experience. Having a discreet little perv on a thirst-trap photo was a guilty pleasure, but this was a visceral one. Muscles, brown skin, tattoos, and scars, it was like my brain couldn’t take all of Knox in. It kept fixating on one detail then the next, not able to resolve them into a whole.

“I’ll pack up here,” he announced before nodding to Noah. “Don’t worry about this mess. I’ve got it.”

And Noah had me.

My breath was coming in too hard, too fast, so I jumped when Noah’s hand landed on my shoulder. Just like before, it burned my skin. There was no way not to feel it now, the thin, wet material of the dress providing no barrier at all. I couldn’t have told you where we went or how we got there, I just knew we stopped out the front of the changeroom doors.

“Women’s bathroom is in there,” Noah told me, barely able to meet my eyes. That at least was familiar, but this impulse wasn’t. I’d only had a couple of drinks, so why was I thinking about righting some wrongs? When I took a step backwards towards the changeroom, he followed, forcing me to consider some entirely inappropriate scenarios. “You should find some towels…”

He was trying hard to be professional, helpful, pointing to the doorway with one hand, but his words died in his throat when I took the other. I wanted to feel him, just for a second, my grip shifting so my fingers pressed into his wrist. Either he really, really liked playing with hoses, or Noah was into this.

I watched him lick his lips; his eyes boring into mine the entire time. His head dipped lower by fractions, so slowly I could barely track its progress, which gave me time to think.

He was going to kiss me, now?

If he was any other guy, I’d have been certain, but Noah had taken that from me. If the guys I dated off the apps gave mixed signals, he was that staticky noise you got when between radio stations, making my teeth set on edge. I had choices here, that was something I needed to remember. I could grab him by the neck and drag him down, pressing my lips to his and finally claiming the mouth I’d watched so closely as my own.

Or I could pull away, leave him hanging like he did me.

“Uniform?”

In the end, I didn’t get to choose either, because Charlie turned up with a pile of clothes. He looked at me, then Noah, seeming to put two and two together, and that’s why I moved to take them from him.

“Thanks. So towels are in here?”

“In the cupboard.” Noah barely croaked that out. “Just inside the door.”

“Drop it in the laundry basket when you’re done.” Charlie was shooting his friend meaningful looks. “The uniform should fit, but if you need help at all?”

That caught Noah’s attention. His brows jerked down as he shot Charlie a look of pure venom right now.

And that was the gift I’d hoped for.

Charlie made clear he knew exactly what he was doing, ignoring Noah and then winking at me. My lips twitched without thinking, threatening to break into a smile.

“I’ll be fine,” I told him. “I’ve been dressing myself since I was a year old. I’ve got this.” But as I turned and walked through the door, I couldn’t avoid one last parting shot. “I usually only need help getting out of my clothes, not into them.”

I didn’t wait for a response, walking into the changerooms and finding those towels before drying myself off.