When the Smoke Clears (Interracial Firefighter Romance) (14 page)

“You’re persistent, Lorenzo.”

“I am.”

“That wasn’t a question, Mr. Ego. It was a statement.” She glanced back at Richard as he sat in the car. “I have to go.”

“I will see you at the beach, then?”

And then that sexy woman sighed and moaned my name, “Lorenzo.”

“Hmmm.”

“Hmmm?” She raised her eyebrows.

“Trust me. You want me to behave. You want me to be good. So when I say
hmmm
, just go with it.”

“And would I like what’s behind that hmmm?”

“Yes, very much. So much, you’d beg for it every night.”

Her gaze danced around my body. Heat warmed her eyes.

Yes, sexy. My hose isn’t sounding like such a bad idea. Is it?

“I don’t know about the beach,” she whispered to me. Fear dangled on each word.

“You would be in public. Safe. Our kids would be there. Mine, as well as my friends’. We’re all trained in mouth-to-mouth—”

“I bet you are,” she blurted out and then hid her face. “I’m sorry.”

“No. That’s good.”

“I have to go.” She backed up and couldn’t keep that silly grin off of her face.

You’re fucking sexy and adorable.

“Kassie, I swear I will behave. It’s a family event and a great way to meet new people in the community. Good people.”

She looked off in the distance as if she was seriously thinking about those last statements. It signaled to me that she probably hadn’t made friends yet.

She nodded. “Maybe.”

I guess that’s better than nothing.

“Okay. I’ll text you the information and then, wait out by the lonely ocean, hoping for my maiden to come to me.”

“Just because I write romance, doesn’t mean I’ll fall for any corny line.”

“I’m corny?”

She looked me down from head to toe and licked her lips. “You’re definitely something.”

You’re playing with fire. I really hope you want to be burned. Fuck. I’m about to explode myself.

Forgetting about what the towel was holding, I slung it over my shoulder, trying to look cool. Instead, I displayed my massive hard-on. At first, I was going to mumble about several apologies, but then she just. . .stared. Dear, God. She just gazed at my dick like she would beg for it, if she had to. It made me crazy inside. Even more erect and out of control. My hands hoped to grip that ass. My tongue drooled at playing with her clit. I bet she got real wet. Creamy. Dripping and juicy. I had to have her.

Then her nipples poked out from her shirt.
Damn.
I couldn’t turn away and licked my lips. She followed my gaze’s direction and guarded them with her arms. “Yeah. I have to go.”

A dark grown escaped me as I made no move to hide my erection. “Have a good day, Kassie.”

Quickly, she bobbed her head without saying anything and rushed away--like I’d told her I had a gun and wanted to rape her.

You had better run. I didn’t think I could keep my hands away from her breasts or ass any longer.

I bet her pussy was wet in her panties, just yearning for me to taste her. She hurried away and her ass jiggled more.
Damn, you.
My dick stayed brick hard and I had to guard it with the towel while she and her son drove away.

I’m a fucking degenerate. Every time I see her I get a hard-on like a teenager. And now she probably thinks I can’t control myself. Well. . .I can’t.

Chapter 9

Kassie

R
eally
, Lorenzo? Was showing me your erection necessary? Did he mean to do that? What is wrong with him?

I kept picturing it in my mind.
Must he be so. . . so fucking irresistible.
The length looked nice and long. There was also a pleasant thickness. I imagined gripping it in my hand and stroking the tip to his balls.

How do they look? Really? Why would I care how balls look?

Still, I painted them in my head and right under I traced my opened mouth, lifting up to them and sticking out my tongue.

Must I be so nasty?

I didn’t write anything new that day.

“You would be in public,” he’d said. “Safe. Kids would be there.”

His words and his erection played in my mind while I sat in my home office.

Rich ducked his head inside. “Mom?”

“Yes?”

“Are you going to write all day?”

“Uh. . .no.”

In fact, I haven’t written at all. I’m just sitting here thinking of bouncing up and down on your favorite fireman. I’m so freaking twisted. What’s wrong with me? I’m horny -- that’s what it is.

“Can we go out to the park or something later?” Rich asked.

“Sure.” I returned to my computer and typed some things, but nothing really worked.

My phone buzzed. I checked the number and rolled my eyes. My ex-husband had texted me.

Ellis:
What’s the address?

Me:
When are you coming?

Ellis:
Do you have something to hide? What’s the address?

You fucking asshole.

I set the phone back down on my desk and tried to returning Luna.

“Mommy, which park?”

“Huh?” I went back to Luna and played with a few scenes. Nothing really worked.
Anger over Ellis rose in me a little. My fingers started to touch the wrong keys as the annoyance continued to surge through me.

Rich tapped the side of my doorway repeatedly. “Which park?”

My phone buzzed again. I checked it.

Ellis:
You’ve got twenty-four hours to give me your home address or I’m calling the cops to report that you’ve kidnapped our son. I know you don’t want that.

What the hell is wrong with you?

I set the phone back down. I’d gone to law school, too. Granted, I was on probation, but Ellis had no claim to call the cops and bother me up in Sarasota. I laughed a little.

I bet it’s eating you up inside that I can ignore you because you’re a non-factor in my life. Okay. Now, back to Luna.

I went back to that damn fire circle and still there was nothing.

“Mommy?” Rich’s tapping shifted to bangs.
“Which park?”

Will no one leave me alone for a few minutes?

“Which park what?” I paused and turned to him.

“Which park are we going to?”

“Jesus! I don’t know. I’m writing.” I tried to reign in my attitude, but it must’ve still shown.

Rich frowned, turned away, and headed off. “Okay, Mommy.”

And the Best Mother award goes to anybody not named Kassandra Jones.

I went back to my computer and stared at the screen. Guilt hit me, and then it went away as Lorenzo’s face flashed in my head.

My phone buzzed again, and this time I was ready to unload all my anger onto Ellis. If he wanted to battle, then, baby, I was ready. Fuck Luna and writing. Time to curse out my ex.

I picked the phone up and checked the text.

Lorenzo:
I enjoyed our conversation this morning. You’re an amazing woman.

I smiled and texted him back.

Me:
Thank you.

Lorenzo:
Please, come to Siesta Key. I swear. I’ll be on my best behavior.

I pictured his sexy face and sighed.

“Yes, Kassie. Pursue. Hunt. Catch. Seek. Follow, track, and chase. Let me decide, when I should stop.”

I glanced to the screen at my heroine. My poor Luna remained in that fire circle. Unsure if she should let her walls down. The creature was too evil to give him a second look, but still, deep inside of her core, she begged for a second look. A longer one. A moment at least filled with the demon slipping in and out of her.

“I wanted to invite you both to the beach. The guys and I get together with our families on our off days. Today, it’s the Siesta Key.”

I didn’t know how I could give Luna her happiness. Surely, my heroine couldn’t go after the villain.

“Hey, Rich,” I yelled out.

A bored tone followed the word, “Yes, Mommy?”

“Do you want to go to the beach?”

The next word sliced through the air. “Yes!”

“Okay.” I tapped my feet over and over, unsure if I was making a crazy mistake. “Get ready. We’re going to the beach.”

I stared at the blank computer screen for another few minutes, before I finally decided to get dressed and head to the beach.

Okay. Mama Ganga says I’m fearful. Time to try being fearless. It’s just the beach. Sand. Water. Sky. And no demons. . .I think.

It took us an hour to get ready, packed, and on our way in the car. Another hour, after driving in the wrong way and messing up a turn. One should never text while driving, and I proved that point several times as I typed to Lorenzo I was coming. He proceeded to carry on a long conversation and I continued to get lost.

By the time, we made it to the beach Richard had been close to dozing off and nervous jitters swarmed in my gut.

Oh shit! What am I doing? I’ve lost it. I’ve really lost it this time. Can I cancel? No. Rich already thinks we’re going. Maybe I can say I’m sick. Oh shut up and just do it! Just. . .freaking Nike shoe you’re way through the situation.

Sighing, I jumped out of the car and waited for Rich to get out on the other side. During the ride, he’d been talking about a movie he’d seen. I’d appointed him my official fantasy and science fiction researcher. He had to keep up with all of the new and intriguing worlds and plot lines, letting me know about any of the cool ones to trigger some inspiration in my head.

“Mommy, you really have to see it,” he yelled from the other side.

“It sounds interesting.”

I quickly checked my reflection in my car window and hoped I looked like the woman I saw.

I am beautiful, right now. I am worthy of success. I am love.

I wore a black crocheted swimsuit. It had a low-rise bottom, but with great rear coverage. One of the biggest things I needed, when buying anything was something to conceal my bottom. The garment had to hide some of it, at least.

I look good.

The crocheted fabric created a swirled pattern from the bottom to the top, providing bits of skin when possible. I’d spent a lot of gym time trying to get into that little thing. I’d worked hard for that right. Today would be a great debut. A flirty sundress finished off the look. I wasn’t even sure if I would take the dress off. I think I just wore the swimsuit underneath to give me a bit of sexy courage.

I hope he likes it. Wait. No. I don’t. I couldn’t care less. Yes. I don’t care. This Lorenzo is not important, at all. I merely want to go to the beach and see a bomb sunset. Who cares if he’s . . .oh who am I kidding?

Stress bit at my shoulders as I drove us to Nokomis beach.

What the hell am I doing? Okay. He’s hot. I’ll admit that. I think he would be great to date. Sure. But. . .He wants me to meet his twins? What is that all about? Maybe, I’m worrying too much. How would I know how normal people deal with each other? I’ve been out of the game for so long.

“. . .and then the dragon blew away the girl and it was like boom!” Rich screamed.

I jumped. “Okay. So cool.”

“And the princess was like, “Oh no you didn’t, big guy!”

“Cool.” I hoped that Rich said nothing too important, because my mind remained on Lorenzo. A black Irish firefighter who hoped to douse out my flames with his hose. And oh, boy did I wonder about that hose, so much that I took a few turns and might’ve ignored the GPS.

“Wow!” Rich stepped on the powdery white sand with me. “I love it here.”

“Already?”

“Yes. I think the beaches here are better than Miami.”

“Me too. Is this city growing on you?”

“A little. I just wish I could be in the same place with daddy.”

The nervousness over Lorenzo switched to stress over my son. “Don’t worry. Your father is getting it together. Soon, it won’t matter what city you live in, he’ll make sure he sees you all of the time.”

I hoped my words would be true one day.

Just as I was about to text Lorenzo and see where they’d camped out, he messaged me.

Lorenzo:
Please, tell me that’s you in the white sun dress.

I laughed.

Me:
Yes, that’s me. I think.

Lorenzo:
Ur so beautiful. Even far away, you made me turn my head.

Me:
Where are you?

Lorenzo:
I’m coming to you.

Nervous giggles fled my lips. He was so dramatic, even more than me. Wasn’t it bad enough that he could see me, but I couldn’t see him? Wasn’t it bad enough that I’d been claiming that I was done with men, but now excited to be around him for a few minutes? Wasn’t it bad enough that he made me giddy and intrigued, horny and fearful all in one huge swoop?