“It’s fine. We don’t have to do this.”

  “But I—”

  “Really, let’s just pretend last week never happened.” Her words sounded a little brittle.

  Blake had only been sticking by her side as a favor to her brother. He probably wouldn’t have even slept with her if she hadn’t damn near thrown herself at him.

  “All right.” James’s tone was cautious. “How are you doing?”

  “I’m good.” It was hard to muster the energy to make that statement sound authentic, though.

  “Yeah?” He sounded dubious. “Hey, did you have that interview?”

  “Oh yeah. It, um, didn’t work out. They went with someone else.”

  Probably because she’d bombed the interview. Which she should’ve expected after walking into that office just a few days after leaving Seattle. She’d been so tired, distracted, and found herself fighting back tears more than once during the process.

  “Damn, kid. Sorry to hear that.”

  The tears that seemed to prick more often threatened again. She blinked rapidly. “There’ll be other interviews.”

  “Yeah? That’s actually why I’m calling.” James paused. “Mom’s itching for you to move back to Washington and has been stalking the online job postings.”

  Her breath caught, and something light and warm gathered inside her.

  The idea of moving home had been flittering around in her mind more often. Most of her good friends around here had moved home or taken jobs elsewhere after graduation.

  There would be obstacles to overcome—the cost of living and avoiding Blake completely being two—but the upsides seemed to be outweighing the bad.

  Seattle was her true home. She had friends and family there. Trees, mountains, and large bodies of water. And she hadn’t realized how much she missed it all until she’d visited last week.

  “Has she? Maybe I’ll glance at some listings. That doesn’t mean I’m promising to come back.”

  “Understood.” Still there was a note of surprise and pleasure in her brother’s voice. “So, do you ever hear from him? Blake?”

  Her stomach sank. “No. Why would I?”

  “He seemed to really like you.”

  And there went her heart clenching again.

  If he liked her, he would’ve come after her. Called her. Anything. But it’d been radio silence.

  Besides, there was liking someone and then there was just wanting to fuck someone. She was pretty certain where she fell with Blake. Not like she was going to spell that out to her brother, though.

  “I don’t think so.” It was hard to keep the pain out of her voice. “Everyone knows he’s not really the relationship type anyway, right?”

  “I got the feeling he was willing to try with you.”

  “Please, let it go.” Damn it, her voice had wobbled.

  “Are you crying?”

  “No, of course not.” Or maybe she was. She brushed away a tear from the corner of her eye. “Enough about me, how are you and Hannah?”

  “Still broken up.”

  Shock momentarily robbed her of her own sadness. “What? When did this happen?”

  “You don’t know?” James seemed dumbfounded. “Tori didn’t…? Never mind.”

  “What does Tori have to do with this?”

  “I, um, actually need to head to bed.” His tone changed, became more clipped. “Class in the morning.”

  “James.”

  But he’d ended the call.

  Just as quickly, she dialed Tori.

  “Hi,” her friend answered cheerfully. “It’s about time. I need to hear how that date went tonight.”

  “Awful. Now answer me this. Why would my brother mention you after telling me he and Hannah broke up?”

  Silence.

  Oh, this can’t be good.

  Premonition had her gut twisting.

  “Please just tell me.”

  “Yeah.” Tori sighed. “It’s probably time we talked. About a couple things, actually…”

  *

  “See you in a few days.”

  Blake glanced up at Reggie, who’d tossed out the curt words on his way out of the station.

  “Hang on a second.”

  Reggie stopped, sighed, and turned to face him. “What’s up?”

  “It’s almost been two weeks. Are we cool?”

  Even though he’d already apologized to the other man, Reggie had been keeping to himself.

  Reggie’s lips twisted in part grimace, part derision. “Yeah, we’re cool. But only because I’ve never seen you look so depressed. I don’t know what you did to screw that one up, but sucks to be you.”

  It was hard to know which insult to address first. Damn, he’d thought he’d kept his feelings pretty tightly under wrap. “I’m not depressed, I’m moving on.”

  “I’m going to second that you look depressed.” Amber, another firefighter, approached, fixing her blonde ponytail.

  “Damn. You’ve got Amber piling on me too now?”

  “Just making a remark. See you guys at poker this weekend?”

  “I’ll be there.” Reggie grinned. “Bringing my famous ribs.”

  “God, I love your cooking.” Her gaze lingered a bit longer on Reggie before she glanced at Blake again. “Hope you can make it, too. Anyway, watch a funny movie or something. Maybe it’ll help.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Poker night at Amber’s was routine and happened at least once a month. She’d easily solidified her status as one of the guys.

  “See you guys later.”

  Once she’d disappeared, Blake turned his attention back to Reggie. “Can I just apologize again that you got stuck in the middle of all that stuff with Kristen?”

  “It’s all good. I’ll meet the one when the time’s right.” Reggie laughed and lifted his palms up. “No hurry.”

  Reggie really was a genuinely nice guy. And clearly a romantic.

  “When you do, she’ll be damn lucky to have you.” Blake clapped his friend on the back, just as his pocket buzzed with a text. “I’ll catch you next shift.”

  A quick glance at his phone showed the text was from James.

  I’m outside the station.

  Blake’s stomach twisted, and that heavy feeling of desolation gathered again.

  What the hell was James doing here?

  When he stepped outside, he found James leaning against his SUV.

  “Hey, man. What’s up?” Blake kept his gaze cool and his words calm.

  James straightened. “Haven’t heard from you in a while. Figured I’d stop by and see how you’re doing.”

  “I’m great.”

  “You don’t look great. You look like shit.”

  What would be great was if everyone would stop remarking on how awful he looked.

  “Thanks, asshole.” His words held no hostility as he flashed his friend a hard smile. “I just got off a long shift and am pretty tired.”

  “Sure that’s the only reason?”

  “Whatever you’re passive-aggressively trying to get at—”

  “Why haven’t you called Kris? Texted?”

  It was like a punch to the gut. A raw, pained laugh escaped him, and Blake shook his head. “We’re really going to have this conversation? Look, when someone makes it clear they want nothing to do with you, then you leave them alone. Otherwise, it’s called stalking.”

  A look of confusion flitted across his friend’s face. “I don’t follow. Kris was really into you.”

  “If she’d really been into me, she wouldn’t have run back to Nevada and hooked up with another guy immediately.”

  “What?” James gave a terse shake of his head. “No way. You must be confused.”

  “Tori told me.”

  James’s laugh was harsh. “I wouldn’t trust a thing she—”

  “She also showed me a texted picture of the two of them.”

  There was a pause before he sighed. “Really? All I know is that when I spoke to Kris and then brought you up, I think she started crying.”

  A mingle of unease and doubt settled in his stomach.

  “Did you ever talk to her after she ran from the apartment?”

  No. He hadn’t. He’d been giving her space. And when she hadn’t replied to his texts and then when he’d seen that pic of her with another guy, he’d given up.

  He shook his head.

  Fuck.

  He’d given her up. He didn’t even try and fight for her. Like she was just another girl he’d slept with and intended to move on from. Because he didn’t do serious. Not after the accident.

  He closed his eyes, regret working a thorny path through his blood.

  “You said you spoke to her? Is she here?”

  “Here? No, man, she’s in Nevada.”

  Nevada. He nodded slowly.

  Maybe it was time for a big fucking Hail Mary.

  “You know, I have the next three days off,” he said carefully. “Might be nice to get away from the rain.”

  James blinked. “Or, you know, you could just call her.”

  “Not as romantic of a gesture.”

  “But cheaper.”

  “Undeniably.”

  Skepticism was clear on his friend’s face. “Can you even get a flight out today?”

  Blake pulled out his phone and did a quick search for flights. Not even a minute later, he nodded.

  “I can.” He winced. “Calling would definitely be cheaper, but I can. Will you give me her address?”

  James watched him closely and then sighed. “I’ll text it to you.”

  “You won’t regret it.” He slapped James on the back and jogged past him to his truck.

  “I’d better not, bro.”

  Blake gave him the thumbs up before climbing into his truck.

  The phone beeped, notifying him of a new text as he drove away. He glanced down at the phone and saw James had sent him her address.

  Growing resolute with his plan, Blake shook his head.

  By this evening, he’d be in Vegas trying to get the girl. There was absolutely no way he was going to screw this up again.

  *

  “Flying to Seattle?”

  Kristen nodded and adjusted her travel-sized duffle bag over her shoulder.

  Thank God, she was almost through the security line. She was cutting it super tight as it was.

  Maybe she was crazy to be doing this at all.

  Her stomach roiled, and a prick of unease hit as she was waved through to the screening section.

  Maybe she should’ve called Blake first? Texted? Warned him in some way or another that she was flying back to Seattle to see him.

  But go big or go home, right?

  Go home.

  That little voice inside her head spoke up again, but she silently called it a cowardly turd and stayed the course.

  She’d made the right decision.

  When she arrived at the gate, there were people unloading from the flight that had just come in.

  Made it with time to spare.

  She’d been worried for nothing.

  She watched the stream of people for a moment, hearing one of the debarking passengers mention the smooth flight from Seattle, and a sense of excitement filled her.

  Soon she’d be there. Soon she’d be laying everything on the line for Blake.

  Which reminded her. Since Tori was at work, maybe she could get her brother to pick her up from the airport when she landed and save her some money. Because, ouch, this flight had already cost more than she should’ve been spending.

  She turned away from the unloading passengers and went to find a seat back in the corner of her gate. After digging out her phone, she sent James a quick text to let him know what was happening.

  It was only when she was buckled into her window seat, the plane leaving the gate, that she realized she’d forgotten to put her phone on airplane mode.

  She went to do it and saw the return text from James on the screen. Her stomach clenched.

  “Oh my God.”

  She put her hand to her mouth and closed her eyes, but the words were still vivid in her mind.

  Don’t get on that plane. Blake just flew down there to see you.

  *

  After being crammed in the back of the plane for almost three hours, it was a relief when Blake finally stepped off the ramp and into the terminal.

  His gaze absently drifted over the waiting area where people were waiting to board for the next flight before he adjusted his backpack and focused his attention on finding his way to the exit.

  By the time he climbed into a taxi and was heading toward Kristen’s house, he was jittery with anticipation and nerves.

  Were his palms sweaty? He wiped them on his jeans and shook his head.

  What the hell, he was like a kid going on a first date.

  Damn. Hopefully he was doing the right thing. Hopefully she wouldn’t slam the door in his face and tell him to go screw himself.

  Granted, maybe he deserved it.

  When the driver arrived outside Kristen’s building, Blake tipped him and stepped out of the vehicle.

  Well, here he was. This was happening.

  He drew in a slow breath, trying to get control of his nerves, before grabbing his phone out of his pocket to double check the apartment number. It was then he realized James had sent him a new message.

  Super shitty news, bro. Kristen is on a plane to Seattle right now.

  Blake froze. Unable to breathe. The blood drained from his head, and he swayed, grabbing the utility pole next to him. His teeth snapped together, and his breath hissed through them.

  This isn’t fucking happening.

  He started to text James back.

  “If you’re ordering an Uber, you’d better cancel it.”

  The sound of her voice made him go still.

  A car door slammed. He turned around slowly and found her standing on the curb as the taxi pulled away.

  The relief that soared through him had the phone slipping from his hand. He moved quick to scoop it up from the ground, not giving a damn if it was broken.

  “You’re here.” The two words he managed were guttural.

  “So are you.” She took a step forward and then hesitated. Her brown eyes were wide with uncertainty and anxiousness. “I thought…”

  Blake closed the short distance between them before she could finish that thought and pulled her into his arms.

  When she melted into his embrace with a sigh, all the fear left him, and he pulled her closer. Not sure he would ever let her go.

  *

  Kristen didn’t want to break the embrace.

  So what if they were on the sidewalk outside her apartment, traffic whizzing by?

  Her throat burned with the tears she held back.

  Oh God, it felt so good. To be in his arms again. With her cheek pressed against his chest, she could hear the fast pounding of his heart.

  When he pulled away slightly, she couldn’t stop the murmur of protest. It was silenced as his lips crushed down on hers.

  Heat, relief, and need rushed through her as she kissed him back. Winding her arms around his neck and meeting each stroke of his tongue with hers.

  The intimacy of the moment ended when a car drove by honking, its occupants yelling lewd suggestions out the window.

  “Maybe we should take this upstairs to my apartment?” Her suggestion came out husky.

  “Definitely.”

  She caught his hand and walked them toward the front of the building.

  “I thought you were on a plane.” He glanced down at her, his expression showing a hint of dismay. “James said you were on a flight to Seattle.”

  “I was. We’d just left the gate when we had to turn around. Someone started barfing all over the plane.”

  They got into the elevator together.

  “Was it you?”

  “Surprisingly, no.” She pressed the button for her floor and laughed. “I mean I wanted to barf when I saw James’s text that you’d just flown here when I was flying there. But I didn’t. It was some little kid.”

  “God bless puking children.”

  “Total blessing in disguise.”

  The doors opened on the elevator, and she led him down the hall to her apartment.

  “My roommate moved out last week.” She glanced at him from beneath her lashes as she unlocked her door, her pulse quickening again.

  “Yeah?” His gaze darkened as he stepped inside and closed it behind him.

  When he reached for her, she pressed her palm against his chest.

  “Wait. I need to say some stuff first.” She took in a deep breath and lifted her gaze to meet his. “I think I’m in love with you.”

  He stilled; the only other reaction was the flaring of his nostrils. She tried to read his expression, but it was impossible.

  Her stomach churned, and she swallowed hard before plowing on.

  “I’m not asking you to tell me the same. I understand you probably lost your heart to someone else who was taken from you tragically.”

  Blake made a choked sound before shaking his head. “I didn’t love Lindsey. We’d only gone on a few dates. Hell, I barely knew her.” He closed his eyes for a moment. “But losing her, along with several of my friends, tore me up completely. So maybe it was a subconscious choice, but I’ve never let myself care for any of the women I’ve been involved with after.”

  Her heart twisted. “Including me?”

  “Until you,” he rasped, reaching for her, sliding his hands to her hips. “That’s why I’m here, Kristen. You pierced that damn fortress around my heart.”

  Hope flared, and she pressed her palms against his chest. Was he saying what she thought he was?

  “I never planned to touch you, not with you being James’s sister. Wanting you was inconvenient. Caring for you made things even more complicated. But loving you…terrified me. Because I didn’t want that pain if something happened to you.” He gave a rough, humorless laugh and touched her cheek. “The thing is that devastation, that pain hit me anyway. Even with you being alive and well several states away.”

  “Well, alive, yeah. I’m not sure I’d go so far as to say well.” Humor had always been her default. “I’ve been miserable.”

  “Me, too.” He brushed a kiss across her lips. “I love you, Kristen. And I should’ve never let you leave Seattle without telling you.”