STORY EXCERPT

Thank you, Mrs. Witherspoon.”

The woman gave her a haughty, curt nod. “You’re welcome, child. Now, let the nice men of the fire department do their job and get your girl down so you can take her inside where she’ll be safe. We have some fine men protecting our city.”

Sydney just bet they did. There was one fine man in particular she had never been able to get out of her head or her fantasies.

Pushing all thoughts of Carter Devereaux and the few shorts weeks she’d spend in the man’s arms eight years ago from her mind, Sydney gave Mrs. Witherspoon another smile. “Yes ma’am.”

She turned her attention up and shot a scathing look to the branch a good ten feet off the ground where Ember sat terrified and meowing her furry ass off. She planted her hips, her gaze narrowing on the cat as she heard the fire truck pull to a stop in the street in front of the house. “If you think you’re getting snacks tonight after this stunt, you better think again.”

Ember gave her most pitiful sounding meow yet and dug her claws deeper into the tree branch.

Sydney pushed a hard breath from her lungs, squared her shoulders, and prepared to start rattling off apologies as she turned to face the firefighters. Her gaze sliced over the ambulance that pulled to a stop behind the fire truck first and her mortification deepened. She slid her attention to the fire truck, read the words Cherish Fire Department in bold letters along the back upper part of the rig, and then the Squad 14 printed on the passenger door. The door opened and a set of fire boots hit the pavement. Her heartrate rose with her gaze as her attention skimmed up a pair of long, strong legs even the baggy bunker pants hanging on narrow hips and held up by red suspenders failed to hide. A navy blue T-shirt stretched tight over a torso ripped and toned enough to make any woman around want to bite him.

Sydney clamped her teeth tightly together and dragged her gaze up his thick neck, over the strong line of his jaw, skipped across a truly too-kissable set of lips, and focused on pale green eyes. Those eyes were locked on her and damn if the intensity she saw in them with each step he took that brought him closer didn’t bring a little zing to her girly parts. Girly parts she’d nearly let rust. Holy smokes! The man was supposed to fight fires, not start them.

“Miss.” Firefighter Hottie greeted her with a nod, never once moving his eyes from her. He stopped close enough for her to see flecks of dark jade accenting the pale green and something that looked suspiciously like heat in their depths. “We received a call about a trapped victim.”

He had a voice to go with the rest of him—sexy, deeply hot, and melodic. Sydney felt a stirring in her belly along with an instantaneous heat that sparked between her legs. What the hell? She’d lived in Hollywood for most of her adult life, a place where gorgeous men were a dime a dozen, a place where she’d learned to calm the lusty effects looking at them could have on her, and a place where she had learned to never judge a book by its cover. She’d even gotten to a point where she often ignored the covers of the men she encountered.

There was no ignoring Firefighter Hottie’s cover. No, this man and his impressive blessings from the gene-pool Gods demanded and claimed a woman’s full-blown attention.

“Yeah, um, about that. I’m sorry Mr….firefighter…”

“Lieutenant,” he supplied. “Rhett Cox.”

“Lieutenant Cox,” Sydney said quickly, even as her mind tripped and stumbled over what to say next. It was amazing. Usually she was a master at opening lines, but for the life of her, getting a conversation going with this guy was taking every bit of her effort. “I’m sorry.”

“You already said that.” The calm, cool arrogance that resonated from him had the butterflies in her belly dancing a different jig. Her bodily reaction to this man was astonishing and a bit unnerving.

“Right. My neighbor, Mrs. Witherspoon…” She shot a glance at the yard next door to see the elderly woman had conveniently gone back into her house. Great. She was left out here to handle this alone.

The idea of handling Firefighter—no, Lieutenant Hottie—had the heat between her legs spreading to every erogenous zone in her body. She doubted there was a woman on the planet that could handle this man, but she didn’t doubt he could sure as hell handle a woman.

Her traitorous gaze decided to find more proof of that as it dropped from his eyes to one broad shoulder and down a strong arm. A sizzle erupted in her waist, desire to feel that arm locked around her.

Christ, Sydney. Get a fucking grip!

She ruthlessly pushed aside the realization that what she wanted to grip were his broad shoulders and somehow managed to get a grip on her senses instead. “It’s a false alarm, Lieutenant. I’m really sorry to have wasted your time.”

One dark brown brow lifted high enough to nearly touch the matching strands of hair falling over his forehead. “There isn’t anyone trapped anywhere?”

Sydney hadn’t heard a peep out of Ember since the fire truck pulled up, but the cat chose that moment to let out her most pitiful meow yet. She watched as a slow realization moved through Lieutenant Hottie’s eyes. His chin lifted as he tipped his head back and a low chuckle escaped his too-kissable lips.

“It’s been a long time since Squad’s been called out to rescue a cat from a tree,” he commented as he righted his head and met her gaze again.

ADULT EXCERPT

“Devereaux, keep her worked up,” Rhett told him. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Startled, Sydney shot a look over her shoulder in time to see Rhett disappearing into the master bathroom. She saw the door close, heard the water come on in the sink, and the forgot all about wondering what Rhett was doing when Carter lifted his head in front of her and licked one beaded nipple into his mouth. Her head rolled on her shoulders, her eyes closing as sheer erotic bliss traveled a flaming path straight to her clit, pussy, and ass. She sucked a breath through clenched teeth when his closed around that nipple, bit, and sent darts of pleasured-pain shooting down that same path. He worked the other nipple the same way, then alternated the attention until both were throbbing with a dark erotic pain that had her whimpering, panting, and on the verge of begging. Behind her, she heard the bathroom door open, felt the mattress dip, and shivered when Rhett’s large hands gently came to rest on her shoulders.

The minty scent of toothpaste drifted to her when he spoke. “Are you still on the edge for me, baby?” His low, melodic voice was huskier with his own needs as he dragged his callused palms down her back.

Sydney writhed, her body bucking against Carter’s hold on her waist, trying desperately to lower onto his cock. “Please. God, you’re killing me.”

Rhett chuckled as his hands turned to glide over her ass. “Can you lean forward for me?”

Sydney flattened her good hand on the front of Carter’s shoulder as Carter’s hands adjusted their hold on her to keep her steady.

“That’s it, Syd. Lift your sexy ass so Rhett can pleasure it.”

She opened her eyes and stared into Carter’s, heard the soft snap as Rhett popped open the cap on the lube Carter had given him, and shivered when the cool gel met with the flaming flesh of her ass.

“You’re going to tell us how it feels.” The calm authority in Carter’s voice left no room for argument. “We want to know how much you like having that sexy ass of yours fucked.”

She did like it. She knew that. At least, she’d enjoyed it when Carter had taken her there. He’d started off surprisingly gentle, a contrast to the way he usually made love to her. That gentleness hadn’t lasted long. He’d well and truly fucked her ass, making her scream, and causing her pussy to plead for a cock. That had been one of the times she’d allowed herself to fantasize about having Carter and Rhett inside her together.

Rhett worked a well-lubed thick finger into her ass, spreading the cool gel deep, and wiggling the digit to coax her inner muscles to relax.

Her pussy flamed, her hips attempted to push back on that finger in a quest to draw it even deeper. Carter’s hold remained firm.

“Please,” she panted, barely able to breathe around the bittersweet pain exploding through her system. “It feels too good. I want more.”

Rhett gave it to her, though not as much as her body craved. He added a second and then a third finger, twisting and pushing them into her most sensitive entrance until she was crying out, begging, and ready to scream.

“Christ!” Rhett growled as he continued to work her ass to a frenzy of crazed need. “You’ve never made those sounds for me before.”

“You…never…teased…me so much…before.” Every word was labored. She had push them out of her mouth as her very soul filled with so much ecstasy she was almost certain it might kill her.

“I’m not teasing you now, baby. I’m just getting you ready.”

“I’m ready!” The words gushed from her lips as he pumped his fingers in her ass in a slow rhythm she had come to know so well with him. “Please, Rhett! Carter! My pussy. I need your cock inside me.”

“Ask correctly and I might give it to you.”

Right. She was talking to Carter now. God, she loved their little games, but it was hard to keep things straight when they were scrambling her mind and tormenting her body.

“Please, sir. Will you fuck me now?”

Carter chuckled. “That’s not exactly how I expected you to ask, but it works.”

“Oh, yesss.” It did work. He used his hold on her waist to draw her body down, sheathing his cock into her flaming pussy in a single, vicious thrust that drove him balls deep inside her. He stopped there, his hands still controlling her movement, and she felt tears of sheer frustration burn the backs of her eyes. “Please, sir. I can’t take much more of this.”

“You want Rhett inside you, too, don’t you?”

Unable to speak, she rapidly nodded.

“He needs to hear you say it, Syd.” That calm authority was back in Carter’s voice.

Sydney opened eyes she hadn’t realized she’d closed and managed to find the strength to look over her shoulder and meet Rhett’s gaze. “I want you inside me, Rhett. I’m ready for you now.”