Hot Nights with the Fireman (15 page)

F
riday night, Jason pulled into Valerie's parents' driveway feeling unaccountably nervous. He'd seen her less than forty-eight hours ago when she'd come over Wednesday, but there was something formal to tonight's date, and it wasn't only because they were in formal wear. Valerie's invitation meant this thing between them was serious. She'd trusted him enough to let him in, and now she'd invited him into her world. A world of graduate degrees from top-tier universities and six-figure Beltway jobs. He hoped he didn't embarrass her.

He hopped out of his truck and walked up the dimly lit path to the house. The address numbers on their door were in a shadow and hard to read. He'd have to tell the Wainwrights to fix it. It sucked when he was racing to a scene and was slowed down by having to hunt for house numbers. Most times the smoke pouring from the house was a beacon to firefighters, but he wouldn't want Valerie or her folks delayed in getting services if they needed the police or an ambulance.

The doorbell was barely finished chiming when the front door swung open and Valerie's stepmother stood greeting him.

He shook her hand as the petite, well-coiffed blonde smiled up at him. When he'd met her the first time, he hadn't paid much attention to her dissimilar looks to Valerie. Now he could see it was clear they weren't related by blood.

And then Valerie was gliding down the stairs and he forgot everything else in the world except the gorgeous woman in the silky reddish dress with matching stockings coming toward him. He swallowed, doing a quick check his tongue wasn't literally hanging down his chin.

“Jason,” Valerie said with a smile. “You look…great.”

“You, too. Seriously gorgeous.” He leaned down to brush her cheek with his lips and kept his palm on her lower back. He was going to have to keep her close tonight. One look at her in that dress, and the male population of the city was going to be fighting him for her.

He gave a quick glance around the house for her father, but he was nowhere in sight. A part of him was relieved. He understood Valerie was a grown woman, but most dads didn't want to shake hands with the guy sleeping with his daughter without the sanctity of marriage.

“Valerie?”

They both turned to her stepmother, who stood frozen staring at Val in her cleavage-baring dress. “Valerie,” she whispered. “That dress…it's not a work suit.”

“I know, Mom,” Valerie interrupted.

Jason was unprepared for what happened next. Only his firefighter training kept him on his feet when Judy leapt into his arms and planted a huge kiss on his cheek. “You're so good for her,” she whispered into his ear. “Keep doing whatever it is you're doing.”

“Mom. Stop mauling my date.” But Val was smiling when she said it. She turned to him. “Ready?” she asked, and he nodded. She stepped away for a moment to reach into a nearby coat closet for a sleek black coat that belted around her waist. Fall had hit officially and tonight was a bit blustery with the threat of rain.

Jason said good-bye to her stepmother and escorted Val outside to his truck. He glanced from her high heels to her outfit to the height of his vehicle. “I think we should take your car,” he said. “I don't want anything to happen to that dress. Talk about some serious gorgeous. But what was your stepmom going off about? Has she never seen you in a dress before?”

“Oh, not like this,” she said. “I've been focused on work for too long, and she thinks I need romance in my life.”

“Damn straight, glad to be of service. But you realize in that dress, I'm going to have to physically keep men from jumping on you.”

She let out a light laugh and dug through a tiny excuse of a purse for her car keys. She held them out to him. “You drive.”

He held them and frowned at her. “Why? I trust your driving.”

“I think I may have more than my usual one glass of wine. I want you to drive.”

He clutched her arm tightly so her heels didn't skid on the wet autumn leaves carpeting the driveway. He unlocked the German car and helped her in. He got in the driver's side and took a moment to adjust everything for his height. “I understand your plan perfectly now. You only wanted me to come as your designated driver. A taxi might have been cheaper for you. I'm going to demand a lot of you.” He gave her a meaningful look from her head to her lap then started the car.

She met his gaze. “I'm willing to pay. If I get a little tipsy, don't worry about taking advantage of me. You have my permission.” Now she gave him a saucy, seductive look. “You're looking rather good in that suit, Mr. Moore.” She licked her lips, letting her tongue linger on the top one.

Shit, he was going to have to lose the erection before they got to wherever this shindig was tonight. He hoped Bermuda. It was going to take a dip in a large cold body of water to cool his racing blood. “If you keep looking at me like that, I can't guarantee we won't end up at my place instead of this party.”

For an amazing moment, she looked intrigued, then she slumped back against the gray leather of her car seat. “No, I have to go.”

He reversed out of the driveway, enjoying the smooth difference between the feel of her car and the in-your-face power of his truck. “Where to?” he asked once they were moving forward on the main road.

“Downtown,” she said, naming a large chain hotel near the city's convention center.

He knew the way from there, so they rode in companionable silence for a while until she leaned over to turn on the radio. Her car handled well on the slick highway and they made good time for a Friday evening when they were driving toward the city along with loads of other people heading in the same direction.

“Tell me more about tonight. Am I walking into friendly fire?” he finally asked.

“It's a charitable dinner and silent auction,” she answered. “The founding partner of my firm sits on the board of this children's foundation and he's being honored tonight. It's one of those subtly required events. No one told me I had to be there, but it would look pretty bad if I weren't.”

He nodded as if he could relate to living in a world where going to a fancy charitable dinner was required. “You seem nervous. Is it because you're bringing me?”

“I am nervous,” she confessed. “I'm not sure how to answer questions about us.”

He took a hand off the wheel to caress her bare forearm. “If any asshole actually asks, relax and tell the truth. We have nothing to be ashamed of. I'm not the client. The county is.”

“I guess, but that's splitting hairs. There could be some good stuff for auction,” she said, changing the subject. “Last year my date bid on a private catch with the pitcher from the Nationals and an autographed baseball.”

He took his eyes off the road to look at her. “For real? Did he win?” He hated the casual mention of last year's date, even as he knew it had only been a casual date. He was the first man she'd slept with in a long time, something she'd admitted one night. He wished he had the vocabulary to express how it felt to be her chosen man. So of course, he hated any reference to even a casual date she'd had. Despite himself, he was interested in the auctioned item. If he had the money, he'd totally bid on something like that.

“I think he wanted the bragging rights more than the game, but it didn't matter. Some dad spent thousands to buy it for his kid.”

“Lucky kid,” he commented.

“Yeah. Way luckier than the kids to whom the auction money goes.”

Finally they arrived at the hotel and handed over the car to the valet. Similarly dressed couples were alighting from their own cars under the canopy over the hotel entrance. Valerie waved at another woman, but clung to Jason's hand as they entered the building. Their heels alternately echoed on the marble floor and were muffled on the plush area rugs.

A tuxedoed greeter waved them down the stairs to a huge ballroom that was all gold at first glance. As Jason looked around, he could see it was a carefully crafted illusion. The tablecloths on the large round tables were shimmery gold. On top of the tables, low wide bowls painted gold held orange flowers. He didn't know the name of what kind. He bet Valerie knew. This was her kind of event and she fit in perfectly, whereas he felt like an imposter.

Large posters framed in gold stood on gold easels. Black-and-white images of children in hospital gowns or obviously ill were the only decoration that wasn't gold. It made for a powerful contrast. Hell, he was already preparing to pull out his credit card and bid anything to help these kids.

Beside him, Valerie stood tensely with her nails digging into the fabric of his sleeve. “I'm ashamed to admit it,” she said, “but I'm nervous.”

“We're fine. And whoever did the decorations did a hell of a job,” he said.

“A woman named Claire did them,” she said. “We should go congratulate her.”

He shrugged and allowed himself to be dragged to the center of the room, where a forty-something woman was holding court. The crowd seemed to magically part as Valerie pushed their way to the center.

“Valerie,” Claire said, opening her arms to embrace Valerie, who dropped Jason's hand to hug back.

“Claire, everything is beautiful. You outdid yourself this year.” Her compliment was smooth and gracious.

“Thank you. Of course I had a lot of help, as always.” She paused to look over Valerie's shoulder at Jason. Suddenly he noticed he was the only man in this crowd. Everyone else in the cluster had on heels, cocktail dresses, and a lot of makeup. He looked around, noting that most of the men were huddled in the corner near one of the bartender posts.

“And who is this?” Claire asked, in a tone that stated obviously she liked what she saw.

Valerie smiled and tugged him forward. “Claire, this is my…boyfriend, Jason.”

He held out his hand to shake Claire's and allowed himself to be inspected, not just by Claire, but by all the women in the group. He'd heard the hesitation in Valerie's voice before she'd publicly declared him her boyfriend. The label hadn't taken him by surprise. What was surprising was the deep satisfaction he felt at hearing her declare it out loud.

“I'm going to take Jason to get us something to drink,” Valerie said. “Excuse us.”

“I can handle getting drinks solo,” he said. “You can stay here and catch up with your friends.”

The look she shot him would've felled a lesser man. Hint taken. He wrapped an arm around her mostly bare shoulder. “Actually, I'm not known for my sense of direction. I could get lost without her.” The women tittered, but allowed them to step out of the circle. A hand brushed his ass as they left. He turned back, but Valerie's hand pushed his spine.

“Go,” she muttered. “Or they'll eat us alive.”

As soon as they were out of earshot, he looked at her. “What was that about? And did someone actually cop a feel?”

Val's red-painted lips parted slightly. “No,” she said on a gasp. “Did someone actually grab your butt?”

He nodded.

“Claire and her cronies run this thing as if it's a Cold War Russian military operation. Only the inner sanctum is allowed access.”

“They seemed to like you.”

“I'm tolerated,” she conceded, “because I write my checks, attend the events, and don't try to interfere.” They stepped closer toward the quickly moving drinks line. “But did you see how Claire looked at you?”

“No. How did she look at me?” He hadn't noticed anything amiss, and he was usually pretty good at undercurrents.

“Like she wanted me out of the way so she could take you to one of the upstairs rooms…”

“And have her wicked way with me?” he finished and started laughing. “You know, that's not a bad idea. I wonder if they rent rooms by the hour here or is this too fancy a hotel? I'm dying to know how that dress comes off. I can't see a zipper anywhere.” Discreetly, he slid his hand around her waist, cupping under her breast then around to a curvy ass cheek.

She shifted closer. “There's a trick to it, and if you're good, I'll show you later.”

“Well, well. Valerie. You did find a date.”

An unwelcome voice interrupted their private moment and had Valerie jumping away from him.

They both turned their backs on the bartender to greet a tall blond man.

“Brian,” Valerie murmured, then completed his introduction to her boss's son.

Jason tugged her closer while he was shaking Brian's hand. He knew he was acting like a possessive boyfriend, and in the face of Brian, it wasn't an act at all. He let his hands wander along Val's bare arm, the curve of her waist, and back to cup her rear.

Brian was everything he feared in a tuxedo that screamed designer and a haircut by a stylist, not a barber. He was exactly the kind of guy he assumed Valerie would normally date. Given the way Brian was eyeing him, he was exactly the kind of guy one assumed Valerie
wouldn't
date.

“Gonna bid on anything, Moore?” Brian asked and tossed back a mouthful of amber liquid.

“Haven't had a chance to look at the items yet,” he replied. “Got my hands full with my girl here.” He planted a tiny kiss low on Val's cheek. She turned into the kiss and let her hands do her own wandering over his body.

“I bid on a trip for two to Fiji,” Brian drawled. “I'll need a date. You free in March, Valerie?”

Jason removed his hands from Valerie as he straightened to narrow his eyes at Brian. “Did you just invite my girlfriend on a romantic trip?” He was already on edge, and Brian's lame joke didn't relax him. Regardless, Brian had stepped way over the lines of acceptable behavior. Valerie had trusted him as her escort tonight; the first time she'd gone public with their relationship. She trusted him to support her, and he was feeling possessive and defensive.