To Kiss a Flame

By Yvette Hines

Can either of them walk away when the heat of the flame enticing and hot?

 

 

The one thing Aubrey Carsen always wanted was to be a firefighter with her two friends. She returns home to her small town and new firehouse, with secrets following her, only to prove herself like a proby. But, she can take it. Soon she discovers that a man from her past, an old high school crush—a man too sexy to be wrapped up in a suit all day—is too close for comfort. The day she rescues a little boy from a tree, things begin to unfold in a way she never expected. Now, being back in town has a whole new outlook. Is it possible that her time has finally come and everything she's wanted will fall in line? Even as she is afraid to believe it.

 

Pierce Emory, the bank loan manager, has been burned by love for the last time. His ex-fiancé walks out on him the week before their wedding, and he can't see himself getting lost in love again. Then his beautiful, curvaceous, and tough neighbor comes knocking at his door in a storm.  She's sexy as hell, but there's something about her he can't place. When he discovers the pretty woman was the good girl from high school, the home before dark, and straight A's, quiet type, he can't believe her transformation. Now, she's back in town, and the old spark between them has ignited into a flame that threatens to scorch them both.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Romance Management, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 4, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201664770

Yvette Hines

USA Today Bestselling Author, Emma Award winning "Author of the Year" 2013. I’m just Yvette Hines. An erotica author who loves pleasurable hours between the sheets, whether it is a blended tale of interracial lovers, the clandestine bite and wicked passion of a paranormal lover or the sting of a commanding whip against tender flesh. Even better, make my day and toss in two gorgeously decadent men who only want to pleasure their woman. Oooh, yeah, now we’re talking. I write erotica because I love it. I’m a Scorpio, so I’m sensual by nature and that just makes me naughty. I’ve been penning erotic tales, on the hedonistic side of romance genre, since 2007. I’m married to my best friend. A guy who makes me laugh ‘til I can’t breathe. A man who steals my breath every time he walks into a room. I enjoy long walks on the beach... Well, I do, but really I love meeting readers, going to conferences, writing with my fellow authors in a coffee shop, attending BDSM events and Christmas. What do I write? Short and Sexy, Sensual Erotica. Yup, that’s me, SASSE Yvette Hines.

Book preview

To Kiss a Flame

USA Today Bestselling Author

YVETTE HINES

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission by the author.

To Kiss a Flame

Copyright © 2021, Yvette Hines (second edition)

Cover Artist: Cover in Color

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Chapter One

Pulling up alongside a motorcycle at Station 5, she parked her truck. Taking a deep breath, she stared at the tall, wide double bay doors and the bright red trucks parked on the other side. The men weren't rolling on a call, and she allowed herself the feeling of joy at seeing old faces soon. She hadn’t told anyone she was coming back to town. Partly, she wanted it to be a surprise, the other reason she wanted to deal with as little as possible. It had been too long, too many years. But she was back now. The only hitch to her joy was the weight of sadness she carried inside of her. Reaching over, she grabbed her duffle bag and got out of her ride. She headed toward the door when shouts got her attention.

Let's go, let's go!

She pivoted and turned toward the loud voices and grunts coming from the far side of the building. Moving closer to the open field, she spotted the practice and training grounds. Men sprinkled the area in assorted stages of gear. Some of them stood next to an older man holding a clipboard and stopwatch as they were bent at the waist, sucking in gulps of air. A few others were hustling from a smoke-filled building with a weighted dummy in a primary carry over their shoulders. It was evident to her that they were the ones the Captain, most likely, was yelling at to get a move on.

Get the lead out your ass!

Remaining back, she noted the tightness of her shoulders and the tingling along her spine as she observed silently. A part of her wanted to drop her bag and gear up for the testing. Instead, she turned and went back to the station. The men would be in soon enough, and it would give her a chance to prepare herself for what was to come. The Battalion Chief from her old station had spoken to the one here and had approved and handled her transfer. She only hoped the message had gotten down to the Captain.

When she got inside, her body felt a quick chill from the cool interior. It was like coming home. More home than the house in the town she was returning to but had yet to see in town. She’d only been in this place a couple of times on school field trips and once while in training before she had to leave.

It was quiet for the most part, but she could hear the squawk of the brick in the com room somewhere on the other side of the expansive lounge with the wide-as-hell flat screen mounted on the wall. She was sure there was someone in there staffing it, ready to push the alarm that would bring the men running if a call came in. It wasn’t much different than her old station set or most stations. She knew if she continued forward, she’d locate the kitchen and dining area, with a door to the left of it where the game room and gym would be. To the left of the kitchen, some stairs would lead to the quarters. She tipped her head back and recalled that the brass pole was at the other end of the sleeping bay. For a moment, the comments she’d heard so many times referring to her, specifically, sliding down the pole. What had started as a few jokes became something more...something vicious crept into her mind. The men at her old station were fucking dicks, with little dicks.

She shook the thoughts away. The pole didn’t get the use it once got in the past. Her old house had just gotten a slide put in a few months ago. Something so historical was becoming obsolete due to lawsuits and injuries. However, she thought like fighters; it came with the job. Increase safety measures, but don’t take it away.

Shifting from nostalgia, she turned toward the Captain’s office, went inside, and claimed a seat, waited.

~YH~

So, is everything a go for next week? He glanced around the table in the vacant community center where he’d gathered all the members of his impromptu committee.

Pierce, I’m good on my end, Seth began. He owned Pride Catering, a successful new company where he did all the cooking, and his husband ran the business side of things. Seth and his husband gave another bakery in town competition since their narrow-minded ways kept them from servicing all customers in the community.  I’ll make sure we have a gorgeous cake as well as cupcakes.

Sound is all set. I even commandeered Blake and Jazz K, the hosts from our morning show and their DJ for music. Craig was head of productions at the radio station in town.

There won’t be much time for most of the participants to dance. Most of them will be on duty just trying to get something to eat.

No worries, Pierce. It will be more for background enjoyment. We will perform the hosts' standup routine twice. To ensure anyone that comes later in the night will still get the same full experience.

Perfect. Pierce made notes on all of it.

My team will be here around noon to decorate, Sherry chimed in. She was a divorcee with two boys. Apparently, she received the crown for Homecoming Queen the last two years of high school when he had been away in Boston at college.  A detail she’d made sure he knew when he’d run into her in the grocery story his first week back in the area. He remembered that she was already a chesty beauty in school when she arrived at the high school her freshman year. All the guys wanted in her pants, but the quarterback had her on lock the first month of school. Pierce had been back in town for three years, and for some reason, Sherry still acted as if he were playing hard to get.

He wasn’t.

However, if you want to meet here the night before and go over where you want everything to be, I don’t mind. Sherry made a production of scrolling through her phone calendar. I’m free at eight.

Seth chuckled behind his hand as he arched a brow in Pierce’s direction.

Pierce cleared his throat. Um, that won’t be necessary, Sherry. I chose you on this committee like everyone else because you all know your jobs. You’re the best at what you do. He offered her a small smile to lessen the blow of rejection.

Of course. Her smile was wide as she batted her long lashes at him, not grasping the hint he wasn’t looking for a date now.

It wasn’t that he didn’t find her attractive or had an issue with single mothers. He didn’t. However, he knew this town was small enough that news traveled way too fast. He’d dated only one other person seriously in the last few years since he’d come back to the area. Nothing serious. Marriage wasn’t something he took lightly. Every one of his family members had found their one and stated they knew it instantly. He didn’t believe them. He always had it set in his mind that two people got married because their paths were headed on a similar course. They were compatible. When his ex-fiancé had left him at the altar in Boston because she got cold feet, he’d known love, romance, and marriage may not be in the cards for him. Now, he was single because he didn’t want the hassle. There was an occasional female companion, but they both knew the score.

Okay. We all know the plan. He started wrapping up the meeting and closing his planner. His brown leather bond journal was practically something from the stone age. People lived off their electronics the same way the body sustained itself on air. He was a dying breed. He did everything on paper, even his work he wrote out first and transferred it to the computer. He was as computer savvy as the next guy, maybe even more so, he just believed they all had a place, and it wasn’t controlling every aspect of his life. Let’s get it done. This is an important event, and I don’t want it half-assed.

Agreements went around the table as the small group dispersed.

You know, Pierce, you really ought to give Sherry a date before she dissolves into a puddle at your feet. Seth walked out with him far behind the others. "With you being so much older than us, I’m not sure if you remember she was something