Wilde Heat

  It killed Logan not to thrust high and hard into her slick heat. Finally--Lord, it couldn't have been soon enough--she settled down onto his base, her soft, round butt cheeks pressing into the tendons across his hips. And then she was lifting herself nearly all the way, only to come crashing back down, over and over, harder, faster each time.

  She threw her head back and arched her spine as she rode him, her breasts bouncing in rhythm to her thrusts. He slid one hand to her ass, the other to her tits, and stroked her, groaning his encouragement. He was unable to hold back his orgasm until she'd found her own pleasure.

  Gripping Maya's hips hard with both hands, he held her hard against him as his shaft twitched and jumped within her tight canal. She ground her hips against his groin as she cried out his name, her inner muscles squeezing him.

  She collapsed onto his chest and he wrapped his arms around her rib cage and waist. They were still catching their breath when he said, "I don't want there to be any secrets between us anymore, Maya. I want to tell you about the reasons I used to play with fire." He hoped that if he opened up completely, she would too.

  Maya shifted slightly to look at him. "I'm listening," she said, her eyes soft, already filled with under standing.

  "I was ten years old the first time I lit a fire." He remembered that hot summer afternoon well, when a pile of leaves and a match became an epiphany. "My father was a difficult man to be around. A grade-A asshole, actually."

  "I can't imagine that. It must have been hard for you."

  "Harder for my mother. She cried a lot. I figured out pretty early on that sticking up for her only made things worse. I was hiding from them, kicking through piles of dry leaves, when I found a box of matches on the ground. I'm not going to lie to you. That first fire was awesome. Dangerous. I felt like a goddamned superhero."

  "Any boy would have."

  Her insight, the fact that she wasn't judging him for what he'd done, meant the world to him. "That first fire didn't last long. Thirty seconds, maybe a minute. But it was just enough smoke and flame to make me excited. And a little nervous."

  "What if your father had found out? What would he have done?"

  Logan hadn't spoken to his father in over a decade, not since he'd convinced his mother to get the hell out. "Beaten me to within an inch of my life. But he didn't find out. And when I got away with it, I did it again."

  "Risk was the reward, wasn't it?"

  Logan nodded. "Exactly. How long could I let them burn? How big could they get? It didn't take long for things to escalate. I hung out with the older kids in town, the ones who didn't give a shit what happened to them because their lives were already crap. They liked having a guy like me around who wasn't afraid to create diversions with fire. They stole stuff, then I lit fires in Dumpsters and garbage cans. Guess what got more attention?"

  "I imagine store owners thought it was better to lose a couple of things off the shelves to pickpockets than watch their businesses go up in flames. How old were you when you finally got caught?"

  "Barely seventeen. I was stunned. Couldn't believe it, even when I was in handcuffs. In my head, I was completely invincible."

  She gave him a crooked smile. "Some things don't change much, do they?"

  He covered her hand with his own. "It might look like I take crazy risks, but I know damn well that I'm not invincible. My crew isn't invincible, either. I've relearned that lesson every single day on the mountain, every time I have to go to the hospital to visit one of my men."

  She brought his hand to her lips and pressed a kiss onto his knuckles. "That didn't come out right. I meant it as a compliment. I think you're incredibly brave. In fact, I think you're just plain incredible."

  He brushed his fingers against her lips. "Joseph taught me about bravery. He showed me that an arrogant seventeen-year-old kid was pretty much worthless unless he did something good for someone else. I owe him everything."

  "I know he feels the same way about you. I didn't talk to him for very long on Friday, but he couldn't stop talking about how great you are. How proud he is to know you."

  "He liked you, too. Quite a bit."

  She brushed aside his compliment. "He only met me once."

  "Doesn't mean you didn't make a hell of an impression."

  Maya grinned, obviously pleased by Joseph's assessment. "I liked him too. Does he have a girlfriend? A wife?"

  "No. He always said his wife was the only woman he'd ever love. She passed away the year before I came to live with them."

  She frowned. "It must be hard for him to live alone. I don't know many older men who know how to keep up a house by themselves. They came of age in a different time." She tightened her grip on his hand. "Has he seen a doctor?"

  "I can't even get him to talk to me about it. There's no way he's going to walk into his doctor's office and tell them he's losing his mind."

  Maya covered his hands with her own. "My best friend's father went through this. I have some idea what kind of specialists Joseph needs to see, the questions that need to be asked. I'd like to help you, Logan. Joseph is a fine man. He deserves to live a long, healthy life."

  Logan placed his hands on either side of her face and simply held her. She covered his hands with her own. He was about to kiss her again, taste some more of her sweetness, when a flash of color outside the bedroom window caught his attention.

  He jumped from the bed, his chest clenching with dread and foreboding. "Quick, get dressed."

  Maya obeyed his sudden order without a word, her movements efficient as she found one of his T-shirts and put it on, along with her jeans.

  "There's a fire extinguisher on the wall next to the door in each bedroom. Grab them all, then wait at the top of the stairs for me."

  He took the stairs three at a time and what he saw out the windows on the main floor of his house confirmed his worst suspicions. Smoke was streaming in under the doors, and the redwood decks surrounding his house were completely engulfed in flames.

  There was nothing wild about the fire surrounding his house. The blaze had been set deliberately to make sure they couldn't get out easily--if at all.

  He ran back up the stairs and found Maya standing by a window, surrounded by fire extinguishers, her expression fierce.

  "Your beautiful house," she hissed in anger. "I'm going to make the arsonist pay for this."

  Most women would be worrying about saving their own lives right now. Not Maya. If he hadn't already figured out that he loved her, he'd have known it now as she faced the deadly danger utterly unafraid.

  From what he could tell, the fire was moving fast around the base of the house and up the surrounding trees. They didn't have much time to get out. He cupped his hands and held them out. "We've got to go through the attic to the roof. Hop on and I'll hoist you up."

  Her natural athleticism showed as she easily pushed the cover off the ceiling and pulled herself up into his attic. He grabbed an axe from a closet then jumped and grabbed on to the edge of the two-by-four with his fingertips, lifting his body up into the peaked, unfinished space.

  "Move back," he said, then swung the axe over his shoulder into the roof. He closed his eyes as shards of wood splattered. "Cover your face with your hands."

  Her voice was muffled as she said, "Anyone ever tell you you're kind of bossy? And that it's pretty hot?"

  Rather than replying--but appreciating her good humor in a supremely shitty situation--he swung again at the wood, finally seeing a patch of blue sky. It didn't take many more hits to open up a big enough hole in the roof for them to squeeze through. He shoved a metal storage trunk under the opening.

  "Time to go."

  She hurried over, and before he could warn her to be careful on the steep pitch of his roof, she was gone. He held on to the axe as he followed her out. She was walking along the slate tiles as if she'd been born balancing in precarious situations. Still, Logan held his breath until she made it to the more level section, over his kitchen.

  Fr
om the roof, they could see the carnage all around them. Logan's barn and garage were heading the way of the house, as was his truck. Everywhere they looked, they saw fire.

  They stood beside a skylight and weighed their options, which were getting slimmer by the second. Logan walked the perimeter of his roof, looking for an escape route. While he hunted for a way out, he talked to keep Maya calm.

  "One time, Dennis dared me to jump off Joseph's roof."

  "Teenage boys are so stupid."

  She didn't sound worried about the fact that they were stuck on his roof, surrounded by a ring of deadly fire, even though he knew she had to be.

  "Who broke what?"

  He found himself grinning amidst the danger. "A finger for me. An arm for Dennis."

  She grabbed his arm. "I can't believe I forgot to tell you. I talked to Dennis."

  Shit, he'd wanted to get to Dennis first. "He can be a loose cannon," he said, and when she nodded her agreement he asked, "What did he tell you?"

  "He was visiting doctors last week. For Joseph."

  "Why the hell didn't he tell me? I would have gone with him."

  She squeezed his hand. "He wanted to do this on his own. To give his father a reason to be proud of him." She pressed her lips together. "You were right all along about Dennis. I don't think he did it."

  A loud crack sounded from the first floor and Logan pulled her to the other side of the roof. They'd have to finish this conversation later.

  "We need to get out of here. Fast. And it looks like there's only one way out." He pointed at the swimming pool off of what used to be his back deck. "We're going to need to jump into the water."

  She took a deep breath. "Okay."

  He put down the axe and squeezed her hand. "We'll go together."

  She looked up at him, trust blazing from the depths of her eyes. "Let's do this."

  Maya was the equal of any man on his crew. She didn't let fear stop her. Even when it was a life-or-death situation. And she was right. It was better to act first, before thinking--and fear--got them in trouble.

  "On three. One, two, three."

  Even one moment of hesitation would have been deadly as they sprinted across his roof and leapt into the air. Releasing each other's hands and curling into balls, they hit the water in a perfect bull's-eye.

  The force of hitting the water temporarily knocked the air from his lungs. He smashed his knees into the cement bottom of the pool and the water swallowed his roar of pain. His legs and tailbone hurt like hell. But he was alive.

  An instant later he was able to open his eyes and look for Maya in the churning water. She wasn't moving, she was simply floating facedown in the middle of his pool, her limbs limp.

  He prayed that she'd simply been knocked unconscious when she hit the water. What would he do without her?

  Logan swam to her side and yanked her unmoving form out of the water. As soon as her head was above the surface, he confirmed her pulse, then hit the heel of his palm between her shoulder blades in a steady motion.

  Her sudden coughing was the most beautiful sound he'd ever heard. He held her close in the water, rubbing her back, whispering "It's all right. We made it. Long, slow breaths." Her inhalations slowed and he murmured, "That's it. Just like that."

  She clung to his neck, her legs wrapped around his waist.

  "Do you think you broke anything?"

  "No," she rasped out, then coughed hard several times in rapid succession. "We're not dead, are we?"

  "Not yet."

  She pulled back slightly to look at him and he was so happy to see her eyes open and bright with life that he kissed her hard, then soft and slow.

  "See," she said, "what did I tell you? Invincible."

  He hugged her tightly, then said, "We've got to figure out who the next target is going to be. Who else could the arsonist want to destroy?" One name immediately popped into his head, and when Maya looked at him, he knew she was thinking the same thing.

  "Joseph."

  He nodded. "For some reason, he and I were both set up to look guilty. Now that the arsonist thinks he's got you and me, I'm afraid he'll go after Joseph."

  Maya started to swim for the edge of the pool. "We've got to get him out of his house, move him somewhere safe." But when she saw that the shrubs all around his pool were encased in flames, which rose to twice the height of the plants, she stopped midstroke. "Oh God," she said, "we're trapped in here."

  They were surrounded by a five-foot wall of flames on all sides. It didn't help any that the morning was breezy and the flames reached out in all directions. There wasn't a single safe place to exit.

  Logan moved to her side and pulled her close, needing to reassure himself yet again that she was okay. "We'll have to wait it out in the water."

  Of all the things he thought he'd be doing in a pool with a beautiful woman, he'd never thought it'd be watching the house he'd built burn down.

  "This really sucks," Maya said, putting his thoughts into words. "I wish we could do something to save your house."

  "The arsonist can have my house. But he can't have the woman I love."

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  MAYA WHIPPED her head around and stared at Logan.

  He loved her.

  She'd been a constant thorn in his side, an utter pain in the butt, and more prickly than a porcupine.

  But he loved her anyway.

  He put a finger on her lips, then kissed her gently. "Let's get out of this alive. Then we can talk."

  Neither of them spoke again as they waited for the flames to die down. Fifteen long minutes passed before the fire pushed away from his pool and met up with the fiery ball of what had once been his home.

  Logan was so strong, amazingly stoic as he watched his beautiful home burn down. Yet again she understood exactly why he was such a phenomenal leader: No matter how bad things got, he was a lone spot of calm in the midst of the storm.

  They swam to the edge of the pool and Logan pulled himself out first, giving her a hand up, lifting her into his arms.

  "I'm okay," she protested. "I can walk."

  "The soil's too hot. The soles of your shoes could melt into your skin."

  He didn't put her down until they were at least a hundred yards away from the flames, even though his own feet had to be burning up. She didn't protest--she was enjoying the strength and comfort of his touch too much. When he finally released her, she had to work like hell to ignore the aches and pains that accompanied standing.

  She was alive, none of her bones was broken, and she was with Logan. Which meant she didn't have a single thing to complain about.

  "What's the fastest way to Joseph's house on foot?"

  "The deer trails behind my house."

  Maya didn't hesitate. "Let's go."

  "It's hilly terrain," he warned. "We'll go at a pace you're comfortable with."

  "You lead and I'll keep up."

  Thirty minutes later, Maya's calves burned, her quads felt like jelly, and although the hot summer sun had quickly dried her clothes from the unexpected dip in Logan's pool, she was soaking wet from head to toe with sweat. She'd thought an hour at the gym four days a week kept her in good shape. She was wrong.

  Even though they were jogging up steep, rocky slopes, Logan was barely exerting himself. Considering he wasn't wearing 150 pounds of equipment, this was probably the equivalent of a stroll in the park for him.

  Without her, he could have gone at least twice as fast. But she knew he wouldn't leave her, so she saved what little was left of her breath.

  Finally, the deer trail they'd been following connected with a Forest Service-maintained trail. Logan waited for her to catch up.

  "We can slow down now. We're almost there."

  She managed to get the words "Which way?" out between gasps.

  He pointed down the hill and she didn't waste another second before running toward Joseph's house. A handful of minutes later, she saw the roof. Logan sprinted past her and was already insid
e by the time she caught her breath. She wiped the sweat out of her eyes and stepped inside the cabin.

  It was much tidier than on her previous visit. Almost eerily so.

  Logan walked into Joseph's bedroom, concern etched into his face. "Where the hell is he?"

  "Could he have gone on a trip without telling you?" Maya asked, working to mask her own concern.

  "No way. I offered to send him to Hawaii but he refused to leave."

  "Are you sure he didn't decide go stay with someone until the fire stops spreading?" Lord knew, that would have been the smartest thing to do.

  He opened closet doors, one after the other. "All of his things are here." And then Logan's tanned face went white as he stepped away from a freestanding armoire. "He's out there."

  Maya hurried across the room, saying "Where?" even though she was afraid she already knew the answer.

  "His gear is gone."

  "He's trying to fight the fire, isn't he?"

  Logan nodded. "It's possible that he forgot he retired. He probably heard the wildfire was spreading."

  "And he decided to go help fight it."

  She'd never seen Logan's eyes look so bleak, even in the hospital with Robbie. She knew how horrible it was to lose a father. She didn't want that to happen to him.

  "Go find him," she said. "Go bring him back."

  "I can't leave you alone. You've got to come with me."

  "I'll only slow you down. I can take care of myself until you get back. You can't be in two places at once. Joseph needs your help more than I do." She wrapped her arms around him. "I promise I'll be waiting for you when you both return."

  Going on her tippy-toes, she kissed him with all of the love she felt but couldn't say aloud. He kissed her back, hard and sure, and then he was gone.

  She wouldn't let herself go to the window and watch him disappear into the hills. That was the kind of a thing a desperate, clingy girlfriend or wife did. Even after everything, she still didn't know what to do. Yes, she loved him. But was love enough? Would love prepare her for a dreaded phone call, for word from the Forest Service that Logan had been injured or, worse, that he was gone forever?

  Again, it struck her that Joseph's cabin was oddly quiet. Goose bumps dotted her arms. The room was warm, but there was a chill lingering in the air.