I tipped my head back, took a sip of the wine, and watched her do the same before I plucked some grapes off the stem.
“Grape?” I offered.
“Yes, please.” She leaned forward and opened her mouth, capturing it between her teeth.
Why is her eating so dammed sexy?
“Tell me something I don’t know about you?” I caught her off guard by asking.
“Something you don’t know, hmm.” She pondered for a minute. “I’m obsessed with watching panda videos on TikTok.”
“Seriously?”
“If I could have a pet panda, I totally would.”
“Don’t they just lounge around all day, eating, pooping and napping without a worry in the world?”
“Yes, but it’s their personalities that make me smile.”
“So that’s all it takes?” I tilted my head with a smirk.
“The videos I watch literally have me laughing out loud. They have the quirkiest personalities; they flop around, fall off swings, perform somersaults in circles or down hills, and splash aroundin the water like a little child would. It’s like they’re just bored and willing to do anything to keep themselves entertained.”
“Have you ever seen one in real life?”
“No, I hope to one day.”
“Do you have a bucket list of places you’d like to travel to?” I asked.
“Honestly, there are so many. Although, I’m not sure how I feel about flying.”
“You’ve never been on a plane?” I was surprised.
“No, you?”
“I’ve flown with my dad a few times for work and school, just never for vacation.”
“What was the fire academy like?”
“Brutal!” I replied without question.
“Tell me a story.”
Wanting her close, I reached over and, with my hands on her hips, moved her to sit between my legs, her back to my chest, and wrapped my arms around her middle.
“I had barely been in the fire academy for two weeks when I questioned if following in my dad’s footsteps was the right choice for me. The term ‘miserable’ doesn’t even begin to describe how unhappy I felt. It didn’t help that the main instructor made it his mission to single me out whenever the opportunity presented itself. I wasn’t stupid; I grew up around the firehouse, heard the stories, and witnessed how the probies were treated, so I was prepared. My dad always taught me and my brothers that when you fall down seven times, you get back up eight. Failure wasn’t an option; it wasn’t in my blood. But man, that instructor pushed my limits and patiently waited in the wings for me to crack under the pressure.”
Reflecting on my time at the academy took me back to a period of mental struggle. However, the soft circles that Ari’sfingertips traced on my arm filled me with waves of warmth and comfort, bringing forth a profound sense of peace within me.
“There was a training exercise where we had to rescue a dummy and carry it to safety through a maze in a building. Except when it was my turn, the victim wasn’t a dummy; it was the instructor, the same one who was hell-bent on seeing me fail. While the other trainees fumbled the ball, so to speak, on how to complete the task, I threw myself on the floor beside him, hooked a leg between his, snagged an arm, rolled us into a piggyback position, and jumped to my feet. Once I had him outside, I was cocky and wanted to shout, ‘F yeah, take that.’ I felt like I’d proved my worth, then I turned around and got all tangled up in a rope and pulley system, and suddenly, I was upside down and needing a rescue of my own.”
“Oh my God.” She gasped in a fit of hilarity.
“And everyone simply stood there laughing under their breath. No one, not even the instructor, moved to help. So I thought, ‘fuck it,’ got myself upright, untangled my foot from the rope, and propelled down. Teamwork is a major part of firefighting, but being resourceful and adept at problem-solving are equally important. While that day was not only humbling, it served as confirmation that I was built for this job, and I wasn’t going to let the attitudes of others derail my focus.”
“I can picture that, you’ve never taken shit from anyone.”
“Present company excluded, right?”
