All Fired Up (Green Valley Heroes #7)

Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

MADELINE

“ L ook at you, Miss Muscles.”

I laugh at Adelaide over the screen and flex my biceps. “You like that?”

I’m pretty sure my arms don’t look any different. It’s only been three weeks since I’ve started seriously training with Hunter. But they do feel different. And I’m only mildly sore now compared to being on my deathbed when we first started exercising together.

She flutters her hand in front of her face, as if she’s impressed. “It may be an unintended consequence, but you’re going to have an amazing beach bod this summer if you keep up this training.”

I snort. “What beach? Tennessee is a land-locked state.”

She waves her hand in dismissal. “You know what I mean. And if I was working out every day, I’d look amazing for beach season.”

She lives in New England. Isn’t it too cold to swim in the ocean up there? Admittedly, I know nothing about that area, having lived in Tennessee my whole life.

“You don’t seem like the beach type to me.”

Adelaide’s not an outdoorsy kind of girl. And though I’ve only known her for about a year and we’ve never met in person, I can say that with a pretty high level of confidence. Thinking about it, she’s actually become my closest friend. As an introvert who rarely leaves the house, the bar is pretty low, admittedly.

As the only other woman on our web development team, she’d suggested when she joined that we share a virtual celebratory drink at the end of every work week, as a way to get to know each other better, vent about our week, and support one another. We’ve made it a standard Friday afternoon thing over the last year, and lately I’ve been telling her all about my firefighting training.

“Well, I don’t go in the ocean,” she says, taking a sip of her martini. Her drinks are always of the alcoholic variety. “Beaches are for showing off bikinis, not swimming.”

That sounds more like her.

“But they have lake-beach things in Tennessee, right?”

“Around here, people go to Bandit Lake. But I’m not really a strut around in a bikini kind of girl.”

Adelaide bats her eyelashes. “Maybe you would for Hunter.” She draws out his name in a singsong way.

I shake my head, willing myself not to smile at her antics. “I never should have told you he was cute.”

“No, you shouldn’t have,” she agrees.

It had been a slip of the tongue, I swear. She should have been focused on the parts where I ranted about what an ass he was. Although, he hasn’t been like that lately. Now that we’ve set aside our previous rivalry, he’s almost like a different person. Not that he’s a saint, by any means. The teasing and smirks are still in full force, but it’s good-natured now. Like we’re on the same team. And out of the two of us, he might actually be the one taking the training more seriously now. He’s really starting to understand the material we go over at the library, now that I’ve made a few adjustments to how I present it.

Speaking of, I still need to talk to him about that. I think I finally figured out what his problem is.

“I’m just saying,” Adelaide continues, interrupting my train of thought. “In the year I’ve known you, I’ve never heard you talk about a guy. And now, in the last month and a half, he’s all you’ve talked about.”

“Yeah, because he was annoying me. And you’re a good listener. And you always bully me into giving you every last detail about everything.”

“So sue me for being interested in your life. And, to be fair, you usually have nothing going on. No offense.”

None taken. She’s right. This volunteer firefighter training program has been the most exciting thing I’ve done in probably...ever.

“Why don’t we talk about you?” I ask. “How’s your sister’s crazy wedding drama going?”

“Don’t try to change the subject. I’ll get to her and how she ruined my grandma’s veil soon enough. I want to know what’s going on with you and Hunter. You’re seeing him tonight, right?”

I shrug, not sure what she’s getting at. “I see him every night. We either go running together or to the library to study. And there’s nothing going on.”

That’d be...crazy. Even if he’s been nicer lately. And we both apologized for past misdeeds. But that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten everything that’s happened.

Her lips purse. “Okay, fine. But you tell me the minute anything does happen. I have this feeling...Like psychic intuition or something.”

I roll my eyes, chuckling. “You are not psychic.”

“I could be. My grandma was psychic, you know.”

“The one with the ruined veil?”

“Girl, let me tell you.”

I get lost in her family drama for the next twenty minutes, then have to excuse myself to get ready to go running.

“Say hi to lover boy for me,” Adelaide says, blowing a kiss to me.

I ignore her comment and wave goodbye, not taking her bait.

After getting dressed in workout clothes, I drive over to Hunter’s house, surprised when he answers the door without his customary smirky smile. Hmm. I didn’t realize that had even become the norm until he didn’t do it.

“Everything okay?” I ask, setting my purse on the entryway table like I always do.

He rolls his shoulders back, tenseness still lingering. “Just a shit day. My boss was up my ass about one thing or another. His wife is leaving him, so he’s taking it out on everyone else.”

“Oh. Well, we don’t have to go running today if you’re not up to it.”

He squints at me. “You trying to weasel your way out of it?”

“Me? Never.” I infuse as much levity into the words as I can, hoping to cheer him up.

It seems to work as he finally smirks back. “Come on. We’ll kick it up a notch tonight.”

Though he usually runs behind me, today he takes the lead, setting a faster pace than I’m used to. I don’t say anything, trying to keep up, but less than ten minutes in, there’s a stitch in my side I can’t ignore.

“Hold up,” I call out, slowing until I can rest my hands on my knees, bent over and breathing heavily. “I can’t do anymore. You’re too fast.”

He rubs at the back of his neck. “Shit. I wasn’t thinking. Sorry.”

I nod, still catching my breath. At least I didn’t get shin splints. It happened once during that first week, and I nearly asked Hunter to carry me home it hurt so bad.

“How about we walk back?” he asks.

“Okay.” It’d be embarrassing if I was with anyone other than Hunter, but the man’s seen me at my worst in the last few weeks—a red-faced, sweaty mess who stinks to high heaven after our workouts. A little side stitch as I limp home is nothing. “That way’s a shortcut.”

His gaze follows where I’m pointing, and his brows punch down. “Not that way.”

“Why? It’s faster.”

“Because I don’t want to.”

I roll my eyes and head that way, anyway. “You have to give me a better reason than that.” Sure, the neighborhood’s not that nice, but who cares?

“Madeline.” He tugs at my arm, and not gently, either.

“Hey, what are you?—”

“I don’t want to go that way, okay?”

I stare at him, his face somehow both begging me to understand and not giving anything away.

“Okay,” I whisper, and follow him, holding my hand to my side until the stitch fully disappears.

What was that all about? What’s down that street? It looked like residential homes. Does he know someone who lives there? Does he not want to be seen with me?

The silence stretches between us as we backtrack our steps to the street we just turned from. I’m normally comfortable with silence, but this feels different. Like there’s something itchy under my skin. Like I did something wrong by even making the suggestion in the first place. Well, how was I supposed to know it would set him off? I made a perfectly reasonable suggestion?—

“I can hear your brain working from here.”

I glance over at Hunter, his expression one of bemusement.

“Are you done being mad, then?”

He sighs and laces his hands behind his neck, causing his biceps to pop in his sleeveless muscle tee.

No, don’t look at that.

“My parents live that way.”

Oh. “I didn’t know.”

Nodding, he explains, “I didn’t want them to see me out running.”

I swallow, the question I was thinking earlier coming out whether I want it to or not. “With me?”

He looks over at me sharply. “It has nothing to do with you.”

Jesus, Madeline. Self-centered much?

“Well, maybe a little to do with you.” He sighs again, releasing his hands from behind his neck to rest them on his hips. “I don’t want them to ask what I’m doing.”

That day, nearly a month ago at this point, when we’d been in Chief McClure’s office, he’d said he didn’t want to be like his family. We’ve had countless conversations since then, but anytime the topic of his family even remotely veers close, he changes the subject.

“They don’t know you’re part of the training program?”

He shakes his head. “Somehow—I don’t know how—they haven’t got wind of it.”

“And you don’t want them to?”

“No.”

There’s a finality in his tone, but I can’t help but push a little.

“You think they won’t like it?”

“I know they won’t,” he mutters darkly.

What’s not to like? Firefighters are community heroes. And this is something we’re volunteering to do, pro bono. They should be proud.

Then again, his family are Iron Wraiths. And I get the sense his family dynamics are very different from my own.

He scrubs a hand down his face. “I need a drink. You want to go get one?”

He’s asking me out for a drink? No, not asking me out. That’s ridiculous. We’re...friends now. Sort of. This is a friendly invite. Because he’s had a shitty day and needs alcohol to make it better, apparently.

“Um, sure. Where?”

A ghost of his normal smirk returns. “How about the Pink Pony?”

“Hunter.” I shove at his arm. “Be serious.”

“What? They serve drinks there.”

His too-innocent act doesn’t fool me. “I’m not going to a...” I glance around us, but there’s no one within earshot, only an elderly man sweeping his driveway across the street. “A strip club,” I whisper, just to be safe.

“Have you ever been?”

“No. Have you?” Wait. I don’t want to know the answer to that.

He shrugs, like it’s no big deal. “Yeah. A few times.”

Right. Of course. Why wouldn’t he? He’s a guy. That’s what single guys do...I guess. But that doesn’t stop a growing ball of disappointment from bouncing around in my stomach.

God, I’m stupid. Why should I care at all if he pays to go see naked girls? Actually, I don’t know anything about the Pink Pony. Is it full strip? Topless? Bikinis? The only thing I do know is that it’s better than the G-Spot, that place over by the Iron Wraiths’ biker bar. I’ve heard the girls there are all strung out.

I give Hunter a fake sympathetic smile. “Can’t see girls any other way than by paying them?”

He barks out a laugh, no trace now of the crappy mood he was in before. Well, this convo accomplished something, at least.

“I’m not some sad man going there by myself and paying for lap dances. I went there once for a bachelor party and twice for coworkers’ birthdays.”

Are strip clubs the venue of choice for adult get-togethers now? What happened to places like the bowling alleys or skating rinks we went to as kids?

“You know, maybe you could get some lessons from the girls there,” he says, unsuccessfully keeping his grin at bay.

Where is he going with this? “On what? Pole dancing?”

“Yeah, for sliding down the fireman’s pole at the station.”

I shove at his arm again, but he’s too quick, dancing away as he laughs.

“What? It’s a solid idea.”

I point my finger at him. “No Pink Pony.”

Mirth lingers in his gaze. “Fine. How about Genie’s?”

“I’ll do Genie’s,” I agree. “I just need to go home and shower first.”

“How about I pick you up in an hour?”

He wants to ride together? “Um, okay.” I guess that makes sense, since we’re going to the same place and all.

Adelaide’s voice rings in my mind. Tell me the minute anything happens .

No, this isn’t anything. It’s going out for drinks. The only reason I had any other kind of thoughts in my head was because she put them there to begin with.

Hunter and I are training partners.

End of story.