Fighting for Love

  The left corner of his mouth rose into a half smile, and my heart melted.

  “Yes. Kiss you.”

  What harm would come from one kiss? As long as my father didn’t find out I was with Finn…alone in his condo. One little kiss. I deserved it, after all.

  “Yes,” I barely spoke.

  His hand moved to the back of my neck and he took a step closer to me. Tilting his head and giving me the cutest damn look I’d ever seen, he asked, “Was that a yes to you wanting me to kiss you?”

  Slowly nodding, I replied, “That is most certainly a yes.”

  When his lips pressed to mine, it felt like an explosion. His tongue moved across my lips, prompting me to let him have more. I didn’t even have to second-guess it. I opened my mouth to him.

  Our tongues mingled together, slowly at first, until Finn’s other hand moved to my hip. He dug in and pulled me flush against his body. The moan that slipped from my mouth must have been his sign to pick it up. The kiss intensified. The heat between us was undeniable.

  I grabbed onto him and held on tight as the kiss turned more passionate. I’d never in my life been kissed with this much passion.

  Does he feel it too or is this my inexperience?

  When I couldn’t take not having air any longer, I pulled back and stared into his green eyes. My chest rose and fell heavily while I attempted to sear this moment into my memory. I’d never experience a first like this ever again. I was positive.

  Finn leaned his forehead against mine and softly spoke my name.

  “Rory.”

  Closing my eyes, I fought to ignore the tightness in my chest. It was almost as if I could hear it in Finn’s voice. The doubt. The uncertainty of there ever being an us.

  I was positive he knew who I was, and now that I knew he worked under my father, this could never happen.

  Could it?

  Chapter 5

  Finn

  Dates and bad dogs

  Rory walked next to me in silence. That kiss blew my fucking mind, and I knew it did hers as well. I knew she’d also figured out what engine company I worked for.

  The one where her father was captain.

  “Are you sure you want to help me get all of this stuff?”

  She glanced up at me and grinned. “I’m positive. This has been my first weekend off in a few years. This is fun.”

  “A few years?” I asked with a horrified expression.

  She chuckled. “I know. I know. Classic workaholic here.”

  “Do you have a dog?”

  Laughing, she replied, “No way. I work long hours and am never home; I’d kill the poor thing. You’re lucky—you get to take your dog to work.”

  I sighed as we walked into the little mom-and-pop pet shop.

  “Yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s the Cap’s way of telling me he dislikes me. The station dogs usually stay at the station, not go home with one of us.”

  She stopped walking, and I wanted to punch myself.

  “What? Why doesn’t he like you? What did you do?”

  Trying to play it off, I shrugged. “It’s nothing. He thinks I’m something I’m not.”

  Following close behind me, she asked, “What does he think? Tell me.”

  I stopped in front of the bowls. What in the hell? Why are there so many bowls? Which one do I get?

  “So it didn’t take me long to find out you’re the daughter of my captain, Rory. And I’m guessing by the way you reacted when you saw what station I’m assigned to, you figured out I worked under your dad.”

  She swallowed hard. “You’re with Engine 33.”

  Smiling, I nodded in reply. “I am.”

  She pointed between us. “So you understand why this…could never work.”

  “Shopping for dog supplies?”

  Her smile about blew me off my feet. Hitting me on the chest, she shook her head. “No, Finn. I’m starting to get a bit of a clear picture here. My father’s been bringing Flash home from time to time to let him run around his and my mom’s yard. Flash has a lot of energy, so he needs to be exercised. My dad’s telling you to take him home seems like more of a punishment than anything else. So I’m going to guess you’ve gotten on the wrong side of my father. Since he already forbids me to date firefighters, imagine his surprise if he finds out I’ve kissed a firefighter I’m attracted to who’s in his company. One he already had a beef with.”

  I grinned from ear to ear. “You’re attracted to me?”

  She rolled her eyes and punched my arm. “Will you be serious?”

  “Rory, I’m not asking you to marry me. We’re shopping for the stupid dog’s supplies.”

  With her hands on her hips and a cute pout, she said, “Don’t call him that. He’s a sweetheart.”

  “He’s a maniac who tried to pull my arm out of my socket today. And back to you being attracted to me.”

  Rory let out a groan. “Ugh! I regret saying that.”

  I took her hands in mine, and couldn’t help but notice her breathing pick up when I lightly ran my thumbs across the back of them. I hoped like hell she didn’t see mine do the same in reaction to simply touching her.

  “All I’m asking for is dinner.”

  Pondering what I said, she finally answered me. “Let’s see how our doggy shopping trip goes first. Then we’ll take it from there.”

  I nodded. “I can live with that. Now what in the hell does that mutt need?”

  —

  “Why did I let you talk me into all this shit?” I said as we walked back to my place. Rory just giggled. When we got to my door, I juggled the four bags I had in my hands and the large dog bed stuffed under my arm.

  Four bags filled with useless stuff, if you asked me.

  “Oh, you have to have training treats. He needs a bed. Snacks are a must. That bowl isn’t cute enough. He needs lots of toys.”

  “He’s going to love it. Besides, it’s important for him to have chew toys to keep him occupied,” Rory said with a cute smile.

  Unlocking the door, I motioned for Rory to go first.

  “That way when you leave him alone he doesn’t—Oh. My. God.”

  “What’s wrong?” I asked, coming around to her side.

  Sitting in the middle of my brand-new leather sofa sat Flash. Feathers were floating in the air as my eyes scanned the room.

  “Okay. Take a deep breath, Finn.”

  All the bags in my hands dropped to the ground along with the bed.

  Flash lay down on the sofa and then flipped over onto his back and stared at me. I could have sworn he was smiling at me.

  “Wh…wha…wha…what did he do?”

  Rory quickly ran over to him. “I’m going to take him out for a bit. Why don’t you go into the kitchen and grab something to drink. Hard liquor, if you have it.”

  I was in a daze as Rory and the evil dog rushed by me and out the door. I stumbled farther into my condo and gasped.

  “My sofa,” I whimpered. The arm had been chewed to hell. Turning, I threw my hand over my chest and tried to get some air.

  “It’s gone,” I whispered. I glanced down to the floor, then dropped to my knees.

  “No!” I cried out as my chest squeezed in pain.

  The autographed football I’d received personally from Tom Brady was chewed to pieces and scattered all across the living room.

  My eyes caught something strewn about the mess.

  Dirt? Is that…dirt? Where the fuck did he get dirt?

  Turning, I saw the potted tree my mother had insisted I needed. I stood and walked over to it. Leaning down, I pulled out the chewed-up remote the little bastard had tried to bury.

  “I’m going to kill him. He’s dead.”

  Stepping over the torn-up sofa pillows, I rubbed the bridge of my nose. I walked around the island, and my eyes nearly popped out of my head.

  The kitchen was covered in a white powder. Somehow, that little bastard of a dog had jumped up and knocked over the flour container, then successfully op
ened it. I walked farther into the kitchen, and something crunched under my shoe. With a whimper, I glanced down at the sugar on the floor. He’d got the sugar open too.

  Mixed in with all that was my garbage.

  Dragging my feet through the mess, I opened the refrigerator, grabbed a beer, and headed to the balcony. Before stepping onto it, I pulled out my phone and took a video of the damage.

  I sat down in a chair and pulled up Colton’s number.

  Me: We no longer have a firehouse dog.

  Colton: Holy fuck. Dude. What did you do with the dog?

  Me: I’m going to throw him off my balcony.

  Colton: Cap might frown at that.

  Throwing my head back, I let out a loud, long yell.

  Me: He knew….

  Less than thirty seconds later, my phone rang.

  “Hello,” I bit.

  “Yeah, he knew all right. And do you know what he would do if he knew his daughter was out walking said dog and heading into your condo building as we speak? He’d fucking cut your dick off. What in the hell are you doing with her, Finn?”

  My hand pushed through my hair. “It’s a long story. Nothing happened—she helped me out with the little bastard. Why are you outside my place?”

  “That girl Melissa I met a few weeks ago lives in the same building as you.”

  “Oh, that’s right,” I mindlessly replied. Taking in a deep breath, I was hit by the smell of the ocean.

  Maybe I could take Flash to the beach and throw a ball and then take off running in the opposite direction.

  “Dude, you know I never preach to you. But if you value your job, you’ll steer clear of her. No pussy is worth risking your job for.”

  I heard the door to my condo open and close. Flash barked, causing me to curse.

  “Oh, Flash boy. You’re a bery, bery bad doggy! Yes, you are handsome, boy. But look at this mess you caused.”

  I rolled my eyes and snarled my lip.

  “Dude? Is that her?”

  Closing my eyes, I answered with a sigh. “Yes. She’s the only thing between me and the dog right now.”

  “Look how smart you are! You kept the flour and sugar in the kitchen. Good boy.”

  My mouth fell open as I turned to look at her. She had a trash bag in her hand and was cleaning up. When she squatted down and Flash started licking her, she laughed and fell back.

  Something hit me hard in the chest. It was a feeling I’d never experienced before in my life. I couldn’t pull my eyes off her. As angry as I was, seeing her playing with the dog and hearing her laugh made me want to smile.

  “I’ve got to go, Colton. Hey, do me a favor—keep this thing with Rory between you and me?”

  “I will, Finn. But please think about what I said.”

  With a nod I knew he couldn’t see, I replied, “I will. Later.”

  Hitting End on my phone, I stood there and watched for a few seconds as Rory went about picking up the trash. I was stunned to see Flash putting pieces in his mouth and bringing them to her. Bastard was smart.

  “See! You’re a smart boy.”

  I walked back in through the sliding door. “He’s a dead dog. He ate my autographed Tom Brady football.”

  Rory tried and failed to hide her smile. “I’m so sorry, but he’s just a puppy, and this breed is really known for being destructive.”

  “And you told me this after we left him alone here?”

  She shrugged. “He’s been to my parents’ house and they’ve never had a problem. Oh no.”

  Furrowing my brows, I asked, “Oh no what?”

  Chewing on her lip, she mumbled something about a crate.

  Leaning in closer to her, I asked, “I’m sorry, what was that?”

  “A crate. I forgot my folks have a crate they kept him in.”

  My shoulders dropped, along with my head. Idiot! “We have one at the station we keep the beast in.”

  “You’ll probably want to get one. Soon.”

  My eyes narrowed as I took a step closer to her. She took a step back and bumped into the counter. “You don’t say.”

  With barely a nod, she swallowed hard. “I’d maybe order one on Amazon Prime, quick.”

  She covered her mouth, but lost it.

  “I’m glad you find this funny. This is your fault.”

  Her hands dropped, and the way she scrunched up her nose had my stomach dipping.

  “My fault? How is this my fault?”

  “You made us leave to go get all that shit!” I yelled.

  Her mouth dropped open while her eyes turned dark. “You mean the food he needs to survive?”

  I turned and walked toward my bedroom. Thank God the door had been closed. “He could have eaten the lunch meat in my refrigerator!”

  “Oh, that’s nice. And then have him poop in here like he peed.”

  I stopped walking and slowly turned around to face her. Her hands covered her mouth and her eyes widened with fear. Flash was hiding behind her.

  Coward.

  Pointing to her, I shouted, “I knew it! I knew I smelled cleaner!”

  She stood there with the cutest damn smile while Flash whimpered and lay down at her feet.

  I’m so screwed.

  Chapter 6

  Rory

  Zero distraction zone

  It took everything out of me to hold back how badly I wanted to laugh. Poor Finn. It was obvious he was a neat freak, and to come home with half his house in a mess really wasn’t funny.

  Dropping the last garbage bag into the Dumpster, I peeked over at him. He still looked pissed. Flash walked alongside him like he didn’t have a care in the world. Truth be told, I was a tad bit worried about leaving him here with Finn.

  “So, we worked good as a team. Got your place nice and tidy again,” I cheered him.

  Finn’s eyes twitched as he glared at me. “Yep. Except for my new leather couch that’s torn to shit on one arm.”

  Flash barked and jumped up at Finn.

  Is that a vein bulging from his neck? Gesh, I didn’t know a vein could engorge that big.

  Clearing my throat, I glanced between the two of them. I chewed on my thumbnail as I thought about leaving him with Finn.

  “Do you really think I’m going to hurt him?”

  Catching his eyes with mine, I nodded. “Yes. I do.”

  His eyes filled with hurt, and I instantly regretted saying that. “I’m not going to hurt the dog, Rory. I promise.”

  With a smile, I reached out my hand. “Well, it was fun!”

  Finn rolled his eyes and ignored the gesture as he replied, “Loads of fun.”

  I walked to the street and held my hand up for a cab. I didn’t live far from Finn, but it was dark and I wasn’t about to run home alone.

  “Hey, Rory?”

  I glanced back to him. “Thanks for helping. We on for dinner tomorrow night?”

  My body warmed when he flashed me that adorable smile of his. “You’re welcome, and I’ll see you around, Finn.”

  The cab pulled up and I hopped in. I gave the driver my address, dropped my head against the seat, and took in a few deep breaths. I’d never had as much fun as I had with Finn the last few hours, from shopping at the pet store to cleaning up the terrible mess Flash had made. Covering my mouth, I giggled. “Poor Finn.”

  —

  “Your mind seems preoccupied this morning.”

  Lifting my gaze to meet Clare’s, I grinned. “It’s nice to spend some time with you.”

  “I agree. You work too hard, Rory. You really need to learn to enjoy time for yourself.”

  With a nod, I agreed. “I know. It’s just so hard. When I started at the firm, I felt like I had to prove something to everyone. I volunteered for every case I possible could, even if I wasn’t lead counsel on it.”

  “Why?” she asked while taking a huge bite of her sourdough toast and fighting to keep her hair out of her mouth.

  Chuckling, I watched her struggle as the wind whipped her hair
about. The smell of fall floated on the breeze, causing me to take a moment to inhale and enjoy the aroma of cinnamon and musky leaves. I felt relaxed. This was my favorite time of year.

  “Hello? Earth to Rory?”

  “Sorry. I took them on to prove my worth. You know, with my mom owning the firm and all. Plus, I heard some girls talking when I first came on full-time. They mentioned how I would be shown special treatment.”

  She wore a thoughtful expression. “So you worked your ass off to prove a bunch of bitches wrong?”

  Laughing, I replied, “I guess so. Got a ton of experience, though.”

  “That’s good at least.”

  “Yep.”

  She took another bite of her toast. “But work is for sure not on your mind, Rory. Not with that goofy deer-in-the-headlight look on your face. You’re thinking about a guy.”

  My mouth dropped. How in the hell did she know that? “I am not.”

  Lifting her brow, she tilted her head and replied, “Really? Look me directly in the eye and tell me you were not thinking about a guy and I’ll treat you to a mani-pedi today.”

  “Oh, that sounds like fun! I haven’t done that in a long time.”

  “Stop avoiding the question, Rory.”

  Taking a bite of my parfait, I asked, “What was the question again?”

  With a huge smile, Clare pointed her egg-filled fork at me. “I knew it! I knew it….What’s his name?”

  I thought about lying and saying it wasn’t a guy who had my mind so damn preoccupied, or blurting everything out and asking Clare for advice. I was positive it would somehow involve his dick.

  “It’s Finn.”

  Her mouth formed an O as her eyes widened. “Finn? That sounds sexy as fuck.”

  Worrying my lower lip into my mouth, I clamped down on it and nodded. I closed my eyes and sighed. Opening them, I focused on Clare. “Oh, gosh, Clare. He is more than sexy. If you were to look up ‘hot-as-hell guy with the most amazing fit body’ in Webster’s, his picture would be there. He’s funny, has the most adorable smile, and when he’s really happy, his dimples pop out. He has crazy hair that looks like he runs his hand through it all…the…time. His condo is immaculate. Like you thought I was crazy weird about keeping stuff clean, this guy takes it up a level.” I stopped talking and thought about Finn’s eyes. “Those amazing emerald eyes of his are so easy to get lost in. They way he looks at me sometimes is so seductive I feel like I’m going to combust. And his kiss…Good Lord, his kiss left me reeling for hours.”