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Cooper lifted his glass of iced tea. “Lucky you. You’re off duty.”
“You’re still in uniform,” Mike reminded Jared.
“Short stuff, here, can drive the rig back to the station.” Jared slapped Cooper on the back.
Cooper’s eyes lit up like the lights on a Christmas tree. The boy’s dream was to be the next man in line for driving the quint, so he jumped at the chance to drive one of the engines.
Cooper mimicked Jared and surveyed the two women. His eyes grew heavy-lidded and the boy’s admiring gleam drew Mike’s interest, finally making him curious enough to turn around and satisfy his own inquisitive mind.
A woman stared at him with a mixture of intrigue and apprehension. He shifted in his chair, just before her gaze darted away. The woman virtually had wrenched his gut. Jared was right. She was a looker. A beauty with blonde hair, a picture-perfect oval face, translucent eyes and full pouting lips. He guessed her to be in her late twenties, a few years younger than him. She didn’t seem to welcome the attention. If anything, she seemed cautious. Did she not know how striking she was? The look in her eyes said she did not. His libido gave a slight jump.
Damn.
“Get your own date,” Jared said with some potency and slid out of his chair.
Shit. Mike had been caught drooling. The redhead jerked with noticeable excitement and fluttered like a teenager. She said something to her companion. The blonde turned her disillusioned gaze to him. No invitation there.
But Mike had seen her earlier flicker of interest. She darted a glance at Jared, who, without wasting any more time and with the grace of a predator, swaggered across the floor to the ladies table.
Mike couldn’t hear their conversation from where he sat, but by their tone, and knowing his friend, there was a lot of flirting going on. With every moment that passed, he wanted to sneak another look, feast his eyes on the woman to see if he’d get the same reaction as before. He angled his chair so he could see them from the corner of his eye.
“She’s got to be the prettiest woman I’ve ever seen,” Cooper sighed with the admiration of a star-struck teenager. “She might be older than me, hard to tell with that ponytail, but—”
“Down, pup.” Mike’s voice came out more forceful than he’d intended. Shoving out of his chair, he stood and wondered what the hell he was doing.
“That’s right.” Jared laughed, entirely too cozy with the two women. He noticed Mike’s approach and waved a beer in his direction. “Hey buddy. Meet Tammy and Cassie.”
Mike gave a warm smile to an unmistakably delighted Tammy. “Hello,” he said, then turned to the golden blonde on the opposite side of the booth. Her smile was breathtaking. Maybe more reserved than her friend, but he’d bet this woman was not unapproachable. Her posture and keen scrutiny indicated she could handle anything and anyone. She’d evidently sized Jared up and was now doing the same to him. Her light green eyes sparkled and her lips curved in challenge. As if silently communicating, I know what you’re about.
Cooper was right. The blonde had to be the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. He allowed his gaze to roam lower. A tight shirt displayed full breasts with a hint of some serious cleavage. Not wanting to be rude, he allowed his consideration to linger only a moment before putting on his game face.
“Hope my friend, here, has been behaving himself.”
“He sure has. I’m Tammy.” The redhead waved a hand with bright-red tipped nails. “This is Cassie. Would you like to sit down?”
Cassie’s eyes flashed with surprise and possibly annoyance, but her friend ignored her. Jared slid into the booth beside the agreeable redhead. At the blonde’s reaction, Mike hesitated.
“Do you mind? We don’t want to interrupt your dinner.” He sure as hell wouldn’t move in where he wasn’t wanted. After a few seconds, Cassie slid over. It wasn’t the welcome he normally received, but he found himself relieved, so he scooted into the booth next to her. An alluring fragrance assaulted his senses. Not sweet, not floral, but damn … irresistible.
Out of consideration, he kept a suitable amount of space between them. The devil side of him threatened to squeeze closer and watch her squirm.
“This place sure livened up when you boys strolled in. How did so many uniforms manage to take a break at the same time?” Tammy asked.
“Training maneuvers this week. We deserve a treat at the end of a long day.” Jared eased back, propping one arm on the back cushion.
After the fiasco at the training site, they all needed a good stiff drink. At least they knew Ryan would be okay. The men were drained. Back at the fire house, they’d washed off the grime and hashed out the incident, going over the hellish episode again and again. The shaking of heads was getting them no answers, and the guys were hungry. No one had been in the mood to cook. They’d decided to go out.
“I see.” Tammy beamed.
Usually Jared went for the swimsuit-model type, but Mike could see the attraction. Tammy had a gleeful charm and a welcoming friendliness.
“What if there is a fire somewhere?” Cassie drew his attention. He took that as his cue.
“There are other departments and we left a skeleton crew at the station. Some of these guys are off duty.”
“Like me and Mike,” Jared said. “Since we have our trucks with us, if a call comes in, the guys are prepared to respond.”
“You must really like your job. I’m in awe that you risk your safety.” Her throaty voice swamped Mike’s nerve endings. And who could resist those compelling eyes?
