Page 49 of The Triple Play

I straighten, my pulse speeding up at the merest mention of Denver and Griffin. I close my eyes and breathe to calm it down. Once I’m sure I won’t reveal the way I’m affected, I answer my brother.

“Sure, that’s fine. When do you want to come?”

While Kyle and I work out the details, a tiny corner of my brain starts spinning. Rationally, I know there’s no sense in overthinking this. What happened is over and will never happen again. Cedar Creek isn’t a huge town, and chances are, I’m going to see them soon, so I might as well get used to pretending that nothing has changed between us.

But since when has rational thought held any role when it comes to emotions?

21

FOXXY

I’m just shutting the door on my now-empty locker at HQ when one of the volunteers who came out to the cabin to get us walks into the bunk room.

“Your girl is here.”

“My who?” I say, whipping my head around.

“The chick you were with when we came to get you the other day. She’s here to pick up her car. A volunteer crew brought it back to town yesterday.”

I slap his shoulder as I stride out of the locker room with my bag over my shoulder. “Thanks, I’ll deal with it.”

I pass Griff, who’s just returning from taking his shit out to his truck. “Pixie’s here to get her car,” I say, grabbing his arm and forcing him to turn around.

“What? Liv’s here?” he says as we hurry to the front of the building.

“Yeah. We need to talk to her.” There’s urgency in my voice that surprises me, and this time it’s Griffin who grabs my shoulder, pulling me to a stop.

“Hold on, Foxxy. Slow down. What are you thinking?”

I grin. “I’m thinking that she’s here, and I want to see her again.”

He stares at me for a second, and I see the indecision warring in his mind. It’s written all over his face.

“Okay, let’s go.”

We find Olivia standing in the lobby with her arms folded across her stomach. She’s favouring her one foot, but I’m glad to see she seems to be walking okay.

“Hey, Pix,” I say. She startles, turning around to see the two of us walking toward her. Her eyes widen, and that tongue that I remember tracing over my skin darts out to moisten her lips.

“Denver. Griffin. I…I wasn’t expecting to see you.”

Is it just me, or does she sound a little breathless saying our names like that? I smirk, closing the distance between us. But I don’t touch her. No matter how desperately I want to.

“We’re just cleaning out our lockers for the season. But we can help you get your car.” I turn and look over my shoulder at Griff. “You wanna grab the keys?”

He nods and heads behind the desk to where we keep any valuables found at rescues. I look back at Olivia, letting my gaze drop down to her ankle. I can tell it’s wrapped, and I frown slightly.

“Did you get that foot looked at yet?”

She shakes her head and my frown deepens. “Not good, Pixie girl. You should really have it assessed.”

Something flares in her eyes. Fire. I love to see it. “I’m fine, Denver. I just need my car.”

I gesture down at her foot. “How are you going to drive? Your right foot is injured, and it isn’t safe. There’s no way you can control the pedals.” Not fully meaning to, I step in closer, crowding her space. It’s as if being around her has my body acting on its own accord, drawn to her like a bee to honey.

My hand slowly drags up her arm, and as I do, her breath catches. My lips curve upward, noting how pretty her throat looks when she swallows, and the way her pupils dilate when I graze my fingers over her shoulder.

“You should let us drive you home.”