Hot Mess

1. Ward

Chapter One

Ward

I stared across the room, unable to keep my eyes off of Susannah Gilmore. She was leaning against the polished wooden bar, her strawberry blonde hair spilling out in a mass of curls around her shoulders. I didn’t know what the hell the bartender was saying to her, but I was instantly annoyed. The look in his eyes was one of blatant appreciation.

Not that I blamed him. Susannah was f*****g gorgeous. Strong as hell, feisty as hell, and so damn sexy, it was a miracle I’d managed to keep my hands to myself the last few days.

I was in Willow Brook, Alaska to meet the hotshot firefighter crew I was about to join as superintendent. I was only here for one more night before returning to visit my mother. I’d almost rescheduled this trip because the original plan had been for me to start this week. That was before my mother was moved into hospice care earlier this week.

In the meantime, I intended to do one thing before I left for the month tomorrow morning—have another night with Susannah, a repeat of our last night when we both finished our hotshot training in California four years ago. That night was seared into my memory. I hadn’t known what to expect when I learned she worked on the crew I’d be leading.

Four years was long enough for both of us to forget each other. Yet, I’d stepped into the station here and known she was in the room before I even saw her. My body was a tuning fork tuned solely to her. I’d been here for three days since, and the l**t simmered on high the entire time. We couldn’t be around each other without practically catching on fire.

I knew pursuing her wasn’t smart. Hell, I was about to become her boss. Yet, I didn’t particularly want to think smart right now. I wanted to forget everything else, and Susannah could help me do that.

I watched as the bartender turned away from Susannah to serve another customer. The crew had brought me with them to Wildlands Bar & Lodge, apparently a popular place, judging by how crowded it was. It was late, and most of the crew had left for the night. When it was clear the bartender was keeping busy, I took that moment to make my approach.

Leaning against the bar beside Susannah, I glanced to her. Simply being close to her, my body tightened further and my c**k twitched. She didn’t have to do a damn thing to turn me on. All she had to do was exist.

Her blue eyes caught mine as she looked over, a pink flush staining her cheeks.

“Ward, I thought you’d left for the night,” she said.

I leaned on the bar with both elbows, if only to mask my aching arousal. Shaking my head, I held her rich blue gaze. “Not yet.”

We stared at each other, the air humming around us, snapping and crackling with electricity. A few years back I’d been called up to help with a fire in the backcountry here in Alaska. I’d heard stories about the eruption of Mount Augustine back in the nineteen-eighties. According to a fellow firefighter I met, the ash had been thick and occasionally formed small clouds in the air where the particles from the volcano rubbed against each other, creating a mini electrical storm within the clouds.

I’d never seen anything like that myself, but the memory of it stuck with me. That was what it felt like when I was near Susannah.

She didn’t say a word, but she didn’t look away either. Her tongue darted out, swiping across her bottom lip.

After a moment, she spoke. “We’re gonna have to figure this out.”

“Figure what out?” I asked.

Her breath drew in sharply. I took the moment to just soak her in. She had freckles scattered across her porcelain cheeks, and her nose tipped up at the end. She was so damn gorgeous and endearing at once with this tomboy vibe I loved. I couldn’t say why she hit me so hard. Hell, it wasn’t as if I hadn’t met other beautiful women. There weren’t many female firefighters, yet she wasn’t a complete anomaly. For me, she was. One look at her, and it was like a swift kick straight to my gut and my heart. She was a living, breathing shot of adrenaline and l**t in my veins.

I understood her question. The bald truth was I was about to become the superintendent for her crew. As one of the crew foremen, she would answer directly to me once I was in my official capacity. Although I knew the reasoning behind her question, I wanted to make her say it. Because I wasn’t in my official position yet and wouldn’t be until I returned. I wasn’t above admitting that the knowledge I’d be her boss only made me want her more. The fact our attraction shouldn’t be happening only fed into its fire.

Susannah lifted her chin, not backing down or looking away. “You’re taking over as superintendent for my crew. We need to forget about that night.”

I held her gaze and shook my head slowly. “You can’t make me forget anything, and I know you haven’t forgotten either. In fact, I think maybe we should have another night like that. Tonight.”

Her lips parted and her breath hissed through her teeth. I suppose she expected me to be proper. f**k that. I knew who and what I wanted. Her. Bare n***d and tangled up with me.

Her eyes darkened as she stared at me. For a moment, I thought she was going to tell me to f**k off, but she didn’t. She nodded, just barely.

Snagging her drink off the bar, she downed it quickly. “Follow me.”

“Lead the way,” I replied.

She spun away, her cowboy boots striking on the hardwood floor as she strode quickly in front of me, her hips swinging with every step.