Pulling my fire gloves off my hands as I stepped away from a firebreak we’d been working on, I spun around to scan the horizon. Smoke hazed the sky in this section of the forest, although the wind had finally slowed, so it was thinning out. I dragged my sleeve across my face and rested a hand on my hip as I caught my breath. The same fire we’d dealt with last week in a section of forest outside Willow Brook had kicked up again yesterday. It had originally been sparked earlier this summer after some campers ignored the no campfire rule. We’d largely contained it, but too many days of dry weather and wind kept fanning the flames.

We’d spent most of the day creating several new firebreaks on the outskirts of the area to help keep the fire from spreading if the wind changed direction. Though there were postings everywhere about the campfire ban, the wilderness in Alaska—even in areas with nearby towns—wasn’t like the manicured trails in the Lower 48. Hikers and campers often lost track of where they were, or didn’t take certain restrictions seriously. With a dry summer, we had to monitor for wildfires all season long.

I glanced over at Jesse Franklin as he approached. He set the chainsaw he’d been using down nearby and caught my eye.

“Think we’re done for the day?” he asked.

I nodded, leaning over to snag a water bottle on the ground. I took a long draw from it, wiping my mouth with my sleeve. “Damn good the wind died down this afternoon, and we had a chance to do this.”

“Too much dead spruce around here,” he added.

The forest had started to recover from the spruce bark beetles, which had decimated entire swaths of this area a while back. Even though there was new growth, it would be another few decades before the forest recovered.

“Yeah, we’ll post some more signs later this week, especially in the busier areas. That should hopefully prevent another entirely unnecessary fire.”

Jesse nodded and spun to scan the horizon, replying to something another crewmember approaching us said.

Cade’s crew was out here with us as well. For a few years, I was a foreman on his crew, but I’d taken over as superintendent for another crew last year. I’d barely spoken to Cade today, if only because we were working hard. Even in downtimes when we weren’t actively fighting a fire, hotshot firefighting was damn hard work. Today had been filled with hours of clearing trees, downing dead ones and creating firebreaks along streams, using the landscape to our advantage.

I spun around, looking in the distance as the smoke cleared. Denali was visible through the haze, rising tall in the sky. Denali was the tallest mountain peak in North America. All of the central towns in Alaska were within view of Denali. I took a deep breath and let it out as my eyes traveled away from Denali through fields of fireweed, a bright fuchsia weed dotting the Alaskan landscape in the open areas.

A ribbon of river wound through a valley, leading to Willow Brook. The river in question was our town’s namesake, laughingly called a brook. It was wide and shallow, and ran down from the mountains, feeding into Swan Lake.

My mind spun to Lucy. She’d become the touchstone for my thoughts at all times lately. She’d insisted this morning that she didn’t care to try to gloss over her tipsy announcement to Amelia and Cade last night. I knew how private she was, so I knew she wasn’t enjoying the spot she’d put herself in. Yet, it was so like her to insist on facing it head on. I loved how she never backed down from anything. That look of vulnerability had flickered in her eyes. Just thinking about it now, my heart squeezed again. I had stared into her gorgeous blue eyes and considered that I’d happily cart her back to bed and stay there all day.

“Let me handle it, but do me a favor and don’t take this as permission to announce it to the world,” she’d said.

“Hey, I wouldn’t have said a damn thing,” I’d countered with a wink.

“I was a little tipsy,” she’d replied, a slow smile claiming her lips.

I’d grinned, relieved she wasn’t cranky about the whole thing. We didn’t speak of what passed during the night. The moment her bottom wiggled against my cock, I’d come out of my half sleep, already rock hard and ready. It seemed as though we weren’t going to talk about the fact we couldn’t keep our hands off of each other.

I supposed we didn’t have to talk about it. I knew I needed to wait and bide my time. Because if there was one thing I knew about Lucy, she did not like to be pressured into anything.

* * *

Later that afternoon, I leaned my head against the wall behind me on a bench in our locker room. At the sound of footsteps, I glanced up to see Cade approaching. He sat down across from me.

“So any comment on that little convo last night?” he asked, the hint of a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth.

I shrugged. “Nothing to add,” I offered.

He held my gaze for a moment and then nodded. “Wasn’t trying to gossip. If you need someone to talk to, I’m here.”

I leaned my elbows on my knees. “Why would you think I needed to talk?”

He was quiet for a beat. “Seems to me you kinda have a thing for Lucy. Have for a while.”

It was easy to forget how perceptive Cade was. I’d known him for years. He tended to be low-key and quiet. Damn if he hadn’t honed in on exactly what was going on with me. What I had for Lucy was a hell of a lot more than a thing though. Problem was I had to be patient. I sure as hell knew she would not appreciate anything even remotely resembling gossip about us. But Cade wasn’t one to gossip.

So, I held his gaze and nodded slowly. “You might say that. I know you won’t talk but I’m gonna have to ask you not to say a damn thing. Lucy will tear me a new one if she thinks anyone more than you two hears about us.”

He chuckled. “Oh, I know. Amelia figured Lucy was pretty upset about saying anything last night. You know you don’t have to worry about us.”

“I know.” I paused, chewing on my thoughts. “Look, Lucy’ll run for the hills if she gets wind I might be hoping for more than a little fun between the sheets.”

Cade was quiet before his grin stretched slowly across his face. “That she will. You’d best know what you want.”

“I do,” I said, my heart giving a hard thump as I spoke.

“Hey guys, what are we dealing with now?” Beck asked as he rounded the corner into the locker room.

Beck’s crew was picking up where we left off this afternoon out at the fire site. He slid onto the bench across from me and glanced between Cade and I.

Cade replied first. “We established the perimeter on the far side of that tricky ravine and by the river. If you guys take care of the opposite side, we should be good.

“Anything else my guys should know?” Beck asked.

“Don’t think so. The wind died down, so the fire’s not spreading anymore. Fred’s doing a flyover to check the perimeters,” I offered, referencing one of our local pilots who often helped fly our crews out to fires.

Beck stood. “Got it.”

My cell phone rang, and I slipped it from my front pocket, glancing down to see my dad’s name flash on the screen. “Gotta take this guys,” I said as I stood and stepped away.

“Hey Dad, what’s up?” I asked.

“Hey son, could use a little help this afternoon if you’ve got a few minutes,” he replied quickly.

“Just finishing up at the station. Whaddya need?”

“Looks like some rain might be rolling in tonight, and I need a little help getting the firewood we had delivered put away.”

“Sure I’ll be by. Give me a half hour or so, okay?”

I left the station wondering if I should let Lucy know I would be home later than usual. I laughed to myself. Before a few days ago, I wouldn’t. She was so insistent that I just live the way I would normally even though she was staying with me. Yet, if any other friend were staying with me, I’d likely let them know. It was simple courtesy.

Yet, now that I’d been buried deep inside of her, as close as we could physically be, every simple action felt loaded. I knew my parents would offer me dinner. The natural extension of that circumstance would be Lucy eating canned soup. Because she did not cook. I’d noticed that unless I cooked something, she grabbed whatever easy thing she could. I contemplated inviting her to my parents, yet I didn’t know how much she’d read into that.

I didn’t let myself think too much. Before driving out of the parking lot, I texted her quickly.