He’d come downstairs in a fitted black t-shirt that did absolutely criminal things to his shoulders. The fabric stretched across his chest when he reached for a coffee mug, and I caught myself staring at the way his biceps flexed.
Firefighter arms. The kind of arms that hauled people out of burning buildings. Carried unconscious victims down ladders. Swung axes through doors.
The kind of arms that could pin a woman against a wall without breaking a sweat.
I looked away before he caught me.
The way Solomon moved was actually odd. It was too quiet. When he’d reached past me for a dish towel earlier, I hadn’theard him coming. I’d jumped. He’d apologized, but there’d been an unexplainable glint in his eyes.
What kind of person moved that silently?
I filed it away with all the other strange things I’d noticed since moving in. The way Percy had heard a car horn from three blocks away. The way Lucian’s eyes sometimes caught the light wrong, flashing gold instead of gray.
The way all three of them moved with a coordination that felt almostsupernatural.
I was probably imagining things. Maybe it was the stress lately.
But still. I had a feeling something was off about these men. I don’t think it’s dangerous… just that unusual thing I couldn’t quite name.
“Ready?” Solomon asked.
I pulled the casserole from the oven. “Ready.”
The drive to the firehouse was quiet. Solomon didn’t seem to mind silence, which I appreciated. Although I had a separate problem.
His hands on the steering wheel. Long fingers, the kind of grip that suggested he’d held things far more dangerous than leather. His thumb shifted against the wheel. And I couldn’t tell if he knew I was staring or if Solomon just moved through the world unhurried.
Either way, my thighs pressed together and I turned to stare out the window.
The bookshop had been my fresh start but now it was a pile of ash and police tape.
What was I supposed to do in the meantime? Keep living in their cabin? Keep pretending I wasn’t developing wildly inappropriate feelings for three men who had zero business being that attractive?
“You’re thinking too loud,” Solomon said.
I startled. “What?”
“Your thoughts.” He glanced at me sideways. “They’re loud.”
“Well, genius. You’re wrong because you can’t hear thoughts except if you’re a mind reader.”
“You and I both know it’s a figure of speech.” He sighs. “Whatever’s eating at you, it can wait until Hudson’s dealt with.”
Hudson.I hate hearing his name.
“It’s not just Hudson,” I said quietly. “It’s everything. What comes next. What I’m supposed to do when this is all over.”
“You rebuild.”
“With what? My savings are gone. I don’t have anyone.” I picked at a thread on my sleeve. “I just have this gaping hole where my entire life used to be.”
Solomon was quiet for a moment. “I told you. You have us.”
It took me a moment to reply and I avert my eyes to the road. “For now.”
“For as long as you want.” His hands tightened on the steering wheel. “You’re not a burden, Mira. You’re not a project. And you’re not going anywhere.”
My throat went tight. I blinked against the sudden burning behind my eyes and continued staring out the window so he wouldn’t see.
