Reaper's Fire

“Oh my God, is that Joel Riley?” Carrie shouted in my ear during the first set, clutching my shoulders for support. I swayed, blinking at the small stage. There were three guys, a drummer and two guitarists, and sure enough one of them was Joel Riley.

“Wow,” I said. “He looks even better than he did in high school.”

This was truth.

Joel had been a year ahead of us, and I’d spent two full years deeply in love with him. So had Margarita, although her infatuation had faded after he’d invited her to prom our junior year. Specifically, things had fallen apart at the after party, where he’d chugged a bottle of tequila then barfed on the side of his car.

Still, the man looked good now. Damned good.

“Joel!” Margarita shrieked, jumping up and down and waving wildly. His head turned to us, a broad smile crossing his face. Carrie screeched and jumped up next to her, crashing into me and knocking me over. Big hands caught my waist, pulling me to my feet as the people around us pushed us together.

Cooper.

He stared down at me, eyes dark and hungry. My body recognized him, responding instantly, my common sense safely anesthetized by the vodka I’d been drinking all night. His arms wrapped around me, pulling me into his body as my legs clenched. I wondered what it’d feel like, that hard body pushing deep inside. Then he leaned forward, speaking directly into my ear, his voice rough and sexy. I didn’t even register what he said. I was too busy imagining him catching my earlobe between his teeth and sucking on it for a while.

His hold on me tightened. Someone bumped into us, and then he was pulling me off the dance floor in the darkness next to the stage, right behind one of the big speakers.

“Are you all right?” he asked. I nodded, staring at his mouth. For such a big, scary guy he had gorgeous lips. They looked soft, but they’d been hard and strong when he’d kissed me. Hard and strong and demanding, just like I imagined they’d be if he fucked me up against the wall right next to the stage. I leaned forward without thinking, mesmerized. Cooper’s hand slid up my spine and then—

“Tinker Garrett?” I looked up to find Joel standing next to us, grinning like a crazy man. Apparently the band had stopped playing somewhere along the line but I hadn’t even noticed. I’d been too busy . . . Holy crap, you nearly kissed Cooper!

Jerking away from him, I turned to Joel, thankful that he couldn’t see me flushing in the dim light. Thank God he’d interrupted us before I’d done something really, really stupid.

“Hey, I haven’t seen you in years,” I said brightly. “Love the music.”

“Thanks,” he replied, grinning. “I heard you were back in town. Who’s your friend?”

“Cooper Romero,” I said. “Cooper, this is Joel Riley. We went to high school together.”

“Nice to meet you,” Cooper growled, dropping a heavy arm over my shoulders. Joel raised his brows and grinned before holding his hands up in surrender.

“Peace, bro,” he said. “I’m not trying to steal your girl. Just hadn’t seen her since high school.”

“I’m not his girl,” I said forcefully, shoving Cooper’s hand off my shoulder. Joel raised a brow.

“Cooper, what are you doing?” Talia demanded, pushing between us. She slid her hand through his arm possessively, and I wondered how something as simple as a night out dancing could get so complicated so fast.

“Nothing,” Cooper replied shortly, eyes snapping between me and Joel, who took a step closer.

“You wanna grab a beer, Tinker?” he asked me, ignoring the big, pissy biker standing next to us. Cooper’s jaw tightened. I turned my back on him and Talia, offering Joel my best smile.

“Sure. I’d love to catch up with you.”

“Marsh wants to talk,” Talia said to Cooper. Catching Joel’s arm, I tugged him toward the bar, leaving Cooper and Talia behind us, because whatever drama might be in Cooper’s future, I wanted nothing to do with it.

“Interesting dynamic,” Joel said as we found a couple of stools at the far end of the bar. I rolled my eyes.

“You could say that.”

“So, is that Cooper guy a factor or not?”

“Definitely not,” I told him. “Not even a little bit.”

He cocked his head at me, raising a brow. I shrugged and smiled.

“Okay, it’s complicated. But he’s also trouble and I’ve got no time or patience for that. We’re not in high school anymore and I’m well and truly over relationship drama. What about you? What’s going on in your life?”

“Well, I got divorced about three years ago,” he said. “Kaci and I got married a couple years after high school and things were good for a long time. Then they weren’t. I’ve got no regrets, though. We had two great kids together—and I wouldn’t trade them for anything—but by the time it was over, we both just wanted to move on. She lives in Wenatchee now, and we share custody of the kids. How about you?”

This was always the awkward question.

“I’m mid-divorce, no children,” I told him. “I’m living at home with my dad right now. Mom passed earlier this year. Wow, on paper that sort of makes me sound like a loser.”

Joel smiled, and I swear—the man really was rather beautiful. Tousled brown hair with a hint of light from the sun, blue eyes. He had a nice build, too. Not as big as Cooper, but he gave off very good vibes.

“You don’t look like a loser,” he said, taking in my low-cut top and tight pencil skirt. I crossed my legs self-consciously, then felt even more self-conscious because it felt like an obvious ploy to draw attention to them.

But what the hell? I had great legs.

“So what do you do?”

“High school band teacher,” he said, grinning at me. “Gigs like this help me keep my sanity on the weekends. You?”

“Gourmet chocolates,” I said. “I started out as a private chef, but then I started making caramels and things just sort of took off. Now I have clients all over the region.”

“And you do all that from Hallies Falls?”

“Yup,” I said, reaching for the drink the bartender had set in front of me. Joel frowned.

“Did you order that?” I paused, confused. “No . . . I didn’t.”

“And I didn’t order mine,” he said, eyes narrowing at the beer in front of him. Looking up, I saw Margarita and Carrie across the bar, waving at us maniacally. I sighed.