“You were interested though. I’m no expert, but you definitely liked what you saw when we met and tonight when I walked over.” I sound cocky, but I call things as I see them. That way, there’s never any confusion or miscommunication, whatever the situation.
She shrugs, her mouth curving into a half smirk. “There was. You’re easy on the eyes, Marco Rossi. I won’t deny that. Any red-blooded breathing woman can see that you’re hot. But if your ‘crew’ are all like Scotty, all swagger and ‘men about town looking for fresh meat.’” She turns toward me and this time she unabashedly runs hers eyes over my chest, down to my legs and slowly back up again. “It doesn’t matter how good you look, or how well you fill those slacks, or how well you can use your hose, I’m not interested in being a notch on any firefighter’s belt. Been there, done that, lived to tell the tale. Now, if you’re going to stay here, can you at least stop trying to charm your way into my pants? That ship has sailed, Lieutenant, so save your well-practiced moves for your next target because your aim is well off with me.”
I watch the words come out of her mouth, but the shaky resolve I detect underneath them catches my attention. This woman is a fighter, and god dammit, I’m always up for a challenge. Something tells me Renee will make a man fight for his right to stand by her side, but for a woman like her, you know the battle will always be worth it.
There’s a spark there. She wouldn’t still be trying to justify all the reasons she shouldn’t even be interested in me—in the possibility of us—if there wasn’t. It’s almost as if she’s trying to convince herself. There’s definitely a story there, and I’m more determined than ever to find out what it is.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m just going to the bathroom—I’m telling you this in case Hayley stops sucking face with the delightful Scottmeister and wonders where I’ve gone. If you’re still here when I get back, then maybe I’ll let you explain why you’re chatting me up when your wife/girlfriend/whoever she is stands over the other side of the room, grinning at us.”
“She’s my sister. Did you really think I would flirt with you in front of another woman like that?
“As I said, I have my issues with men in uniform.”
Then I see my in. “Yet when you met me, I was out of uniform and saving you from face-planting into the front lawn. And . . .” I step a little closer, not wanting to press my luck, but I do love keeping this woman on her toes. Her breath catches, her chest rising and falling a little faster now. I keep going, dropping my voice to a low whisper for her ears only. “And did you think I’d leave you my phone number, offering to catch you, if I was viewing a house with a significant other?”
She shakes her head and worries her bottom lip between her teeth.
“And would I be here, standing in front of you, asking you out on a date if Skye was anyone but my sister?”
“No . . .” she breathes.
I decide to make a move. It might earn me a slap in the face, or it might just give me one piece of heaven to end this exchange on a high. I close the remaining distance between us, sliding my hand onto her hip and resting it there. When she doesn’t push me away, I press on. “So, sweetheart, how about you give me your number and let me call you tomorrow?”
“Hmm,” she hums, sounding more than a little dazed. Fucking beautiful.
“Renee, will you go out with me?”
She seems to come back into herself. She takes a few steps between us and tilts her head, as if to study me.
“Maybe,” she says with a shrug, like I’ve asked her something bland like, ‘How’s the weather today?’ or ‘Do you like pineapple on your pizza?’
“Maybe not,” she says, winking at me before she straightens and heads towards the bathroom, leaving me standing there, suddenly alone and absolutely dumbfounded.
That’s not to say my eyes aren’t glued to her fantastic ass as she struts away.
Damn. That really did just happen. I was in, then she shot me down before I ended up with a maybe. I’m not sure whether to call that a win, loss, or draw.
Renee looks back over her shoulder, her eyes locking with mine. I don’t miss her slight smirk And I definitely don’t miss the extra swing in her hips as she disappears from sight.
I can’t wipe the grin off my face. The irony. She’s accused me of being a player when she was the one doing the playing all along.
One thing is for sure. That woman just got a lot more interesting. I was already intrigued to begin with, and now more than ever, I can’t wait to find out more about the brunette goddess.
I always said I wanted a show stopper.
Something tells me, I may have just found one.
3
Renee
Today is a big day. Word-of-mouth has me standing in the middle of a high-rise apartment in the Gold Coast neighborhood, being shown around by a woman named Gilly.
“Your place is beautiful, Mrs. Baker.”
She waves me off. “Mrs. Baker is my mother-in-law and as much as I love her, it makes me feel a lot older than I already do.”
I snort at that, because Gilly doesn’t look a day over thirty-five and has a body with curves for days that you can just tell her husband enjoys—especially if her slightly mussed hair is anything to go by.
Her husband, Ezra, shook my hand and introduced himself, then weirdly said Skye had highly recommended me.
It took me a few moments to remember where I’d heard that name before. Skye, sister of Marco. The woman he’d made sure I knew wasn’t his wife or girlfriend.
Then Ezra had kissed his wife in a far-from-appropriate fashion, and told me Gilly was the boss and it was her decision.
That was forty minutes ago.
“Sorry. Gilly, what do you think about my plan for staging and marketing the property? If you were to proceed, of course.” Please say yes. Mama needs some new Jimmy Choos.
She studies me for a few seconds. “I’m thinking it’s two o’clock, and we definitely need wine,” she announces, and my heart stutters for a moment. Then I can’t help the half smile that appears. “Will you join me?”
“If it’s to celebrate signing with me, then absolutely,” I say, jokingly.
She walks into the kitchen and pulls out a chilled bottle of white from the refrigerator, then pulls down two glasses from the overhead cabinet. “Of course it’s to celebrate.” I do a little jump for joy in my head. “But it’s also because my darling mother-in-law has both our two kids tonight, and I’m pre-gaming for a date with my husband.”
“Nice,” I say approvingly. “A woman after my own heart.”
She pours two very healthy doses of wine and walks around the kitchen island. She hands one glass to me and nods over to the balcony where there are two big outdoor couches facing the lake. Places like these make me love my job. Hayls would flip if she saw this apartment.
“We love this place. Ezra has had it ever since his second divorce.”
Internally, my eyes are bugging out of my head and rolling off the twentieth-floor balcony, but since I’m a professional, I don’t outwardly react.