Burning Desire (Kidds Beach Fire Department #1)

Chapter One

Returning Home

Draven

It has been five long years since I stepped foot in the town of Kidds Beach, and things are just as I left them. Nothing much changes in a town this small. I am glad to be back, but I also wish I had stayed away. Driving through town to the firehouse, where I will serve my first day as fire chief, I take in my surroundings.

Memories flood my mind. From playing football in high school to my senior prom. My first kiss under the bleachers and the day I asked Aurora to marry me at the waterfall down by the lake. So many memories bombard me that I slow my truck to avoid causing an accident.

Most of the businesses I grew up with are still around. Dan’s Hardware is still on the corner of Main Street and Audrey’s Diner on the opposite corner is still painted that godawful dirty turquoise color. There are a few new businesses, though. A bookstore called Whimsical Words and what seems to be a bakery named Cake My Life. The latter seems to be a bakery and has a line waiting outside the door. I will have to stop there at some point to find out what the fuss is about. I may or may not have a major sweet tooth.

Down the road is the bar, Hair of the Dog, where I had my first beer. I wonder if it still belongs to Devon West. He was only two years ahead of me in high school. He was a great guy from what I recall, and it would be nice to see a friendly face again.

I don’t have time for that now. I need to make sure I am at the firehouse before any of the members on my shift, so I continue to drive. Three blocks further I pull into a parking spot and shut down my truck. Taking a deep breath, I grab my bag and get out. There is a pristine green lawn in front of the older red brick building that has been converted into the town’s fire station.

“Morning,” an older woman with graying hair and sharp blue eyes greets me as I enter. “How can I help you today?”

“I’m Draven Black—” I start but she cuts me off when she jumps up and comes around the counter.

“Oh!” She smiles broadly while clearly scoping me out. “We have been waiting for you. It’s about time we got some young blood back into this station. I’m Denise Ellis.”

“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am.”

“Oh, my.” She fans her face, a blush coloring her cheeks a light pink. “Why don’t you go through to the meeting room?” She points at a closed glass door. “The rest of the team should be here shortly.”

Nodding, I make my way toward the room she indicated but I don’t miss her muttered words as I walk away. “If only I was thirty years younger.”

I chuckle to myself and shake my head. I’m going to have my hands full around here if anyone else is like her.

It’s another twenty minutes before my team starts to wander into the meeting room. I wait patiently while each grabs a cup of coffee and a seat. One of the men nods at me indicating everyone has arrived.

Rising, I stand behind the podium and face the people I am now in charge of. This is a big responsibility. If I slack or shirk my responsibilities, I could cost one or more of them their lives. I take my job seriously, even more now that I am back in my hometown.

“Morning, everyone. I am Chief Draven Black,” I state making eye contact with Michael, the only person I know. “We will get to know one another as we go, though most that grew up here probably know me or know of me. But the most important thing to know about me is that I will always have your back. Do your job and stick to the guidelines and we will get along just fine. Let’s get to work.”

****

Harmony

As the last client leaves, I sigh loudly. I am tired beyond words and my feet ache like a bitch, but I can’t stop smiling. Cake My Life has only been open for two weeks but it is a roaring success. I love watching every face brighten with joy when they bite into one of my creations.

I love baking, I always have. From eclairs and croissants to full-on wedding cakes. You name it and I will bake and decorate it. Today has been extra busy with three custom cakes, but no one will ever hear me complaining.

I look around at what I have created. The pastel pink walls with puffy white clouds that I painstakingly hand-painted. Three chrome-top tables with chairs at the front and my gleaming display case and counter. It’s exactly what I have always envisioned.

Turning the sign on the door over, I officially close the shop for the day before heading to the back to clean up. I really need to consider hiring an assistant, but I hate not being one hundred percent in control of everything. I know it’s a bad habit and I need to learn to delegate, but that’s just not the way I am.

When I am satisfied that everything is clean, I take off my apron and hang it on the hook behind the back door, grab my shopping list, and lock it up. I need to head to the grocery store to stock up on some items. And the fridge in my apartment is in desperate need of restock.

Outside the air is warm from the last rays of the summer sun. I love living in Kidds Beach. I love the sense of community and being able to greet almost anyone without them thinking I’m some crazy weirdo. I grew up here and I honestly have no intention to leave. My sister wanted out of here as fast as her slim legs could carry her and I never understood why. Who wouldn’t love to live and raise a family in a close-knit community?

Of course, there are some drawbacks, like having Mrs. Niedermeyer in my business and trying to set me up on random dates, but I know she means well.

She isn’t wrong either. I do need to find a man before I can even consider the idea of babies and a family. Which makes living in a small town a little harder. Everyone here has known me most of my life and has seen me fail and succeed. It makes dating a little weird.

Humming to myself, I push my cart down the perfectly stacked aisles, grabbing items not only for the bakery but for myself. My mind is full of all the things I still need to do this week, like the three-tier gender reveal cake I need to finish before Saturday. I love doing them. No one knows the sex of the baby except for me and the doctor. It’s fun to plan something special for each couple.

With my mind going through all the options I have, I don’t see the massive man in front of me until I ram him with my cart.

“Shit,” I curse before looking around to see who heard me but find us alone in the aisle. “I am so sorry—” I start to apologize.

“Harmony?”

The man’s voice flows over me, coating me from the inside out. I would know that deep baritone anywhere. My gaze clashes with his as I try to form words, but my brain is fried. The man is gorgeous, no lie. Then again, he always has been.

He has dark hair that’s not too long with dark grey eyes that bore into my soul, stealing all my darkest, innermost hidden secrets. And he is fit with a capital F . As a fireman, he takes excellent care of his body, but I swear he is bigger than he was the last time I saw him, five years ago.

“I don’t know if you remember me?” He looks a little sheepish.

“Really?” I laugh. “Of course, I remember my sister’s ex-husband. I was just shocked to see you. I thought you had moved to San Francisco.”

I’m rambling. I know it and he knows it. But it has always been this way. Draven makes me nervous and verbal diarrhea just spills out of me. I thought it would change when I was older or maybe even when he married my sister, Aurora. But it never did. Seems this crush is never going to fade away.

“Right.” His features harden, and he goes stoic.

“Shit. Sorry!” I slap my hand over my mouth, and he chuckles. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“I know.” Draven nods. “I think I forgot that everyone here would remember that. I also forgot that you can be brutally honest.”

“What are you doing back in town?” I try to change the subject and hopefully wipe the frown from his face.

His chest puffs out slightly with pride before he answers. “I’m the new fire chief.”

“Congratulations! That’s amazing. You always said you wanted to be Chief,” I hug him, but he goes rigid. “Sorry. Seems all I can do is put my foot in my mouth or make you uncomfortable.”

“I just wasn’t expecting…” he trails off.

“I know, right? I’m not supposed to be nice to you. I mean, with Aurora being my sister and all. But you didn’t do anything wrong, even if she wants everyone to think that. And I’ve known you for years.” I’m rambling again.

Why won’t the earth just crack open and swallow me, for crying out loud?

He tilts his head to the side, studying me, like I’m some damn insect. “Thanks for that, Harmony. It’s good to know not everyone thinks I’m the bad guy.”

“Well, it’s true.” I nod as if trying to reinforce my words. “Anyway, I will let you get on with your shopping. It was good seeing you.”

“You too,” Draven murmurs. I turn my cart around and haul ass as far away from him as fast as I can before I say or do anything else to embarrass myself.

The damn man turns me inside out every single time. I feel like I am eighteen years old all over again. Sister’s ex-husband or not, I still want to know what it feels like when he turns his full, undivided attention on you.

Shaking my head, I let my feet carry me back to my bakery. No sense in dreaming about something that’ll never happen.