That Hot Night: A Firefighter Romance Read online

  That Hot Night

  A Firefighter Romance

  Piper Sullivan

  Copyright © 2020 by Piper Sullivan

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  Also by Piper Sullivan

  Small Town Protectors (Tulip Series)

  To Catch A Player

  Reese

  I’m capable, not cute.

  Practical, not precious.

  Yet I have it bad for a gorgeous Detective.

  I knew better. Really.

  A player like Jackson was bad news for a Small Town girl like me.

  Still, I couldn’t quite resist his smoldering, intimate glances.

  Worse… I’ve succumbed once already.

  And I have NO intention of repeating that mistake, thank you very much.

  If only I could just convince myself of that...

  right.

  But am I too late? I seem to have a rival…

  Cold Hearted Love, Book 10: A Sheriff Romance

  Hero Boss, Book 9: An Office Romance

  Dr's Orders, Book 8: A Single Mom Romance

  Mastering Her Curves, Book 7: A Curvy Girl Romance

  Kissing My Best Friend, Book 6: A Fake Relationship Romance

  Undesired, Book 5: A Best Friend's Brother Romance

  Wanting Ms Wrong, Book 4: A Second Chance Baby Romance

  Loving My Enemy, Book 3: An Enemies to Lovers Romance

  Bad Boy Benefits, Book 2: A Roommate Hero Romance

  Hero In My Bed, Book 1: A Roommate Hero Romance

  Accidental Hookups

  Accidentally Hitched: An Accidental Marriage Romance (Accidental Hookups Book 1)

  Accidentally Wed: An Accidental Marriage Romance (Accidental Hookups Book 2)

  Accidentally Bound: An Accidental Marriage Romance (Accidental Hookups Book 3)

  Accidentally Wifed: An Accidental Marriage Romance (Accidental Hookups Book 4)

  Boardroom Games

  His Takeover: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Boardroom Games Book 1)

  Sinful Takeover: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Boardroom Games Book 2)

  Naughty Takeover: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Boardroom Games 3)

  Standalones

  Stranded: A Mountain Man Romance

  Dating the Doctor: A Single Dad Romance

  Dr. Daddy Next Door: A Single Dad Romance

  Cowboy's Fake Fiancée: A Single Dad & A Virgin Romance

  Cowboy's Barmaid: A Small Town Military Romance

  Let's Pretend : A Fake Fiancée Romance

  I’ll Pretend : A Fake Fiancée Romance

  Boxsets & Collections

  Misters of Pleasure: A Small Town Protectors Boxset

  Daddies & Nannies: A Contemporary Romance Boxset

  Cowboys & Bosses: A Contemporary Romance Boxset

  Kiss Me, Love Me: An Alpha Male Romance Boxset

  Accidentally On Purpose:An Accidental Marriage Boxset

  Small Town Misters: A Small Town Protectors Boxset

  Contents

  1. Janey

  2. Rafe

  3. Janey

  4. Rafe

  5. Janey

  6. Rafe

  7. Janey

  8. Rafe

  9. Janey

  10. Rafe

  11. Janey

  12. Rafe

  13. Janey

  14. Rafe

  15. Janey

  16. Rafe

  17. Janey

  18. Rafe

  19. Janey

  20. Rafe

  21. Janey

  22. Rafe

  23. Janey

  24. Rafe

  25. Janey

  26. Rafe

  27. Janey

  28. Rafe

  29. Janey

  30. Rafe

  Preview: To Catch A Player

  1. Reese

  2. Jackson

  3. Reese

  Also by Piper Sullivan

  About the Author

  Janey

  “Everything is fine here Janey, and it will be even better with you gone for a few days.” Eddy’s sarcasm wasn’t lost on me, but she was a friend of sorts, more like a naughty grandma, so I held my tongue.

  “Then why did you call me Eddy?” She was an older woman, probably in her sixties, but she was sharper than most people half her age, so I knew she was up to something. The question was, what? “Well?”

  She sighed down the line, and a small smile curled my lips for the first time since the plane landed in Santa Fe. “I just wanted you to know that if you find yourself in trouble or in need of company, Rafe is in the area for a Firefighters Convention. Can you imagine, a whole room or a whole convention center filled with firefighters of all ages? I wish I was in your shoes honey.”

  I waited a few more seconds just to be sure Eddy was done talking while I searched my mind for an answer. “I won’t be in trouble or in need of company Eddy. There’re plenty of photographers here. You know, the reason I’m here in the first place?”

  Eddy huffed out her displeasure, just in case I had any doubts how she felt about photography. “I still don’t understand why you can’t just buy your equipment online like everyone else, and who needs to hear some fancy picture taker drone on and on about composition and aperture?”

  “Somebody’s been reading up on photography,” I teased.

  “Gotta make sure our resident artiste doesn’t up and leave us for the big city.”

  As if that would ever happen. Tulip was my home, where I was born and raised, and I always knew I wanted to live there. Work there. Get married someday and raise my kids there too. Photography gave me a way to support myself without going too far from home, at least not too often.

  “I’m just here to learn Eddy, and to connect with others in my field.” It was kind of sweet, her concern.

  “If you say so,” her tone was thick with skepticism.

  “As long as you don’t tie me up in your matchmaking schemes, I’ll stay right where I am.” The truth was, I wouldn’t mind being matched, if it was the right guy. The problem was, I knew all the guys in Tulip, had grown up with most of them, and even the hot ones weren’t what I was looking for in a husband.

  “Maybe we won’t need to match you, ask Rafe to introduce you to some of his firefighter friends.”

  “Eddy,” I laughed. “Don’t you have a fake book club to attend or something?”

  She giggled. “Tell Rafe I said hello.”

  “Tell him yourself,” I told her. “I don’t imagine we’ll cross paths at all this weekend.” She laughed until the call simply ended. That was Eddy for you, crazy and crafty all rolled into one pint-sized package.

  And I’m sure the entire reason for her call was to let me know Rafe was also in Santa Fe. As if I didn’t know that already. And I knew because Betty Kemp had told me when she dropped me at the airport. I knew I should have been suspicious when she volunteered for the job. Elizabeth Vargas had casually dropped the same info when she offered to feed my pet turtle, Stromboli. It seemed that the fire chief’s travel habits were of great concern to the matchmakers. Maybe they figured I knew a sexy photographer to hook him up with, someone who shot artistic nudes and maybe even did a few of herself.

  I knew for a fact they weren’t trying to match Rafe with me. Not because I’m so
me bridge-dwelling troll or anything, I’m not. I know what I look like, and it’s a look best described as cute enough. My thick black hair that only stayed straight for about two hours each day was the most noticeable thing about me. My green eyes weren’t bad, but they were usually hidden behind a camera or my beloved tortoise shell eyeglasses. My body was petite, as in short, not as in tiny. Short and cushy. The dimple in my right cheek could be considered cute, but rarely hot, and never ever, sexy.

  Yeah, I was cute enough and that was fine by me. But a guy like Rafe Montgomery, well he needed a woman who stood out. A knock out who’s very presence forced people to notice her. That wasn’t me, which was ok, because Rafe was good looking. No, he was too good looking for anyone’s peace of mind, mine especially, so I kept my distance.

  And I wasn’t in Santa Fe to meet up with Rafe or anyone else for the matter. The only man I was interested in was the keynote speaker Michael Stromberg. A guy who’d managed to win a Pulitzer Prize, shoot more than a dozen different photo series in war torn areas around the world, and recently he’d been instrumental in uncovering a scandal in the fashion world. He was the only man I was after right now.

  Stromberg’s speech was the kickoff event, followed by a cocktail hour, where hopefully I could talk to other photographers, mingle and network. Ignoring Eddy’s attempt to addle my brain, I dressed in a simple black dress that was comfortable and appropriate for the evening ahead, slipped on my favorite pair of shock red heels and grabbed my small digital camera.

  “No thoughts of Rafe,” I told my reflection and left my hotel room, happy the event organizers had reserved a block of rooms in the same hotel for easy travel to and from the convention. “None at all,” I said again because now that Eddy was in my head, so was Rafe. I didn’t need to keep my eyes on the lookout for his dark mahogany hair or midnight blue eyes, or the way his jaw always seemed to sport a five o’clock shadow.

  I wouldn’t think about Rafe, but maybe I did need to start looking for someone. Just because the man I fell for didn’t live in Tulip right now didn’t mean he wouldn’t someday. I could meet someone tonight, date him and fall in love. Then I could convince him move to Tulip.

  When the elevator doors slid open I stepped out jauntily, feeling confident after my little pep talk and daydreaming session. After Stromberg’s speech I would be fired up enough to talk photography for hours with just about anyone. Armed with a plan, I squared my shoulders and walked across the lobby towards the big conference rooms, dodging what seemed like thousands of wide-shouldered, broad chested men. It would be heaven on any other occasion, but right now it was just an endless sea of obstacles.

  “Whoa, what’s the hurry darlin’?”

  I froze at that deep velvety voice. It was familiar, a little too familiar considering I was so far from home. Don’t look up, I told myself at least five times as my gaze crawled up his narrow waist that led to a wide chest and even wider shoulders, but if Rafe’s body was divine, his face was, well it was fallen angel gorgeous.

  “Rafe.” My tone was breathless, though I couldn’t say why.

  “That happy to see me?” His lips quirked into a smile, drawing my gaze to his soft lips, and especially that bottom lip that was just a little bit plumper. So dang enticing.

  Oh God.

  “Ecstatic,” I deadpanned. “Well, it was good to see you. Enjoy your weekend,” I told him and hurried towards the open conference doors, hoping that was my one and only interaction with him this weekend.

  Rafe

  The shock of seeing Janey last night hadn’t worn off by the time I woke up the next morning, leaving the hotel room with just enough time to make it to my skills panel with a cup of hot coffee in my hand. She hadn’t been surprised to see me though, well not that surprised. Like maybe she expected that I was around, but she didn’t expect to see me.

  The look of shock on her face and that sexy little gasp she let out that was so low, only I could hear, it had me all twisted up in a way I couldn’t understand.

  It was Janey. Pesky little Janey that I had known pretty much my whole life. She was a few years younger than me, a little too peppy and bubbly for my tastes, but she’d been a nice girl who turned into a nice woman. A nice looking woman, at that.

  But I didn’t mess around with women from Tulip, and especially women like Janey with forever scrawled across their foreheads. Not that there was anything wrong with forever, but that wasn’t in my immediate plans and it seemed every woman over the age of twenty-five was hunting for a husband. Took all the fun out of dating and dancing, figuring out what would happen from one date to the next.

  What fun was it when you already knew how everything would turn out in the end? No, I kept my affairs brief and confined to the bedroom, that kept things from getting too messy or complicated. And keeping those activities away from Tulip meant I could keep my life nice and tidy.

  “That was a riveting presentation, Chief Montgomery.” Jessica Linwood was the deputy chief of fire at her house in Oklahoma, one of the few women around the country to rise in the all male ranks. She was smart and capable. She was also attractive. And aggressive. “Maybe you can give me some private tips for my panel? It’s later today.” Make that super aggressive.

  I looked around in search of an escape, but three other firefighters, men I shared a meal with last night, looked on in amusement, offering smiles and thumbs up in encouragement. I didn’t need encouragement; I needed a crowbar to get out of Jessica’s grasp.

  “Sorry Jess, I signed up for a few panels and since the department is paying for it…,” I finished the statement with a sorrowful expression that I didn’t feel.

  Jessica shrugged, her gaze already looking around for her next target. “Maybe next time,” she said when her gaze landed on a young hot shot from California. “Maybe later tonight?”

  “Maybe,” I told her, my tone noncommittal.

  She got the hint and flashed a smile. “If you change your mind.”

  I wouldn’t. Jessica was nice and any other time I would have taken her up on what she was offering, but today I wasn’t in the mood.

  “What the hell was that, man? How does a dude with that face manage to screw it up with Jess?” Connor Sullivan clapped me on the back and shook his head in disappointment. “What a waste of pretty boy good looks.”

  I shrugged off his touch at the pretty boy comment. Yes, I was good looking, some would say it was more than that, but it was just a face really. The rest was a result of all the hard work I put in. And reeling a woman in was only half the job.

  “I didn’t screw it up,” I grumbled, my pride a little stung by his assumption. “I wasn’t interested.”

  “What? You’re kidding! Why not?” His blue eyes went wide with genuine surprise. “Everyone in this whole damn room is interested,” he said and leaned in with a smile. “Even the women, which you could probably get her to work with.” Connor wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, just in case I didn’t get the hint.

  He was right, of course. Jessica was a woman who went after what she wanted, and she’d made it clear she wanted me, and if I was interested it would be whatever I wanted. But for some reason I couldn’t muster up the proper energy to fully enjoy the attention from Jessica. I had a feeling I knew the reason why, but as Connor and I walked towards the bank of elevators, I knew that couldn’t really be it. Not completely.

  “Not in the mood today.”

  “Can’t you get in the mood for an old married guy like me? Please.” He turned and clasped his hands together, pleading.

  “Old? You’re not even thirty and you’ve been married what, ten minutes?”

  “Two years,” he clarified with a proud smile. “But Clara is shy, so we’ll work our way up to the kinky stuff. Hopefully.”

  “Too much information,” I growled and punched the call button. Hard.

  “Excuse me.” The voice was soft and feminine, and that familiar huskiness drew my attention.

  I stepped to the side auto
matically and looked at the woman in purple pants that hugged her body in all the right places. “Janey. You following me, sweetheart?”

  “Rafe, is that you? So many hot firefighters around here, you hardly stand out.”

  “Hardly standing out is still standing out, Janey, and you’re standing out quite nicely in those pants.”

  Her skin flushed pink all the way down to her neck and even the skin barely covered by the black lace shirt she wore. “Thanks, I think.” She tucked a thick black curl behind her ear and turned her gaze to Connor. “Fire Chief convention?”

  Connor snickered and shook his head. “Something like that. How do you know Rafe?”

  She smiled up at me before turning back to Connor. “We live in the same town. I’m here for the photography event down the hall.” The doors slid open and she stepped inside first. “Enjoy your weekend fellas.” She flashed a wide smile and gave a small finger wave as the doors slowly slid closed.

  “Who would have thought the girl next door thing would do it for you?” Connor shook his head. “I mean she’s a wickedly sexy girl next door with that thick black hair, but damn, no wonder you gave Jess the brush off.”

  “I didn’t,” I insisted, but not all that much because it was the truth, even if I didn’t want to admit it to myself. “But those pants were hot, right?”