Page 29 of Burning Obsession

I close my eyes, centering myself as I take deep breaths, then exhale slowly. I repeat this over and over until I hear a familiar throat clearing. My eyes pop open to see him standing there, hand on the back of the chair and a smile on his face.

“Again you’re lost in thought. You better be careful, anyone could sneak up on you.” Victor lets out a soft laugh as he pulls the chair out and sits down across from me.

“Well, lucky for me, it was you.” I can feel my face heating up as I speak with him. My eyes drift over to the counter where the barista is standing, gesturing toward Victor. I know she’s asking if that’s my date, and I give a gentle nod. She replies with a thumbs up and my attention returns to Victor.

“Do you have a signal set up to ditch our coffee date?”

I cough, caught off guard by his question and the utter absurdness of it. If anyone would have a ditch plan it would be him. Well, in my mind anyway. I always think of the worst case scenario. Some call it a character flaw but I call it being realistic.

“No, not at all.”

I bite my lip as I gaze across the table at him. He just sits there with a smile that makes every crazy thought in my head vanish.

His eyebrow raises. “Then what is it?”

Before I can answer, I’m saved by a metaphoric bell. “Good morning , gentlemen. Here you go.” She sits another coffee in front of me, then places Victor’s matcha in front of him, along with a plate of pastries consisting of blueberry muffins, coffee cake, and croissants.

He just smiles at me as he picks up his drink and takes a sip. “That’s what the questions were for last night. And you remembered exactly how I liked it.”

I shrug. “Maybe.”

“Did you order this before I got here? Because how did she know to bring it over?”

I just nod, my mouth somehow forgetting how to form words.

“Earth to Jake. Are you okay? Cat got your tongue?” he asks, playfully.

“Sorry, umm, yeah. I ordered it when I arrived and asked for it to be brought over when you got here. You know, trying to impress you.”

Victor reaches across the table, taking my hand in his, letting his thumb stroke across my skin while his fingers press into my palm. “I like it. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Instantly, all the self doubt I was having starts to fall away and I feel more in the moment than I ever have.

He doesn’t let go of my hand and I don’t pull it away either. We just sit there, hand in hand, as we sip our drinks.

“So what’s it like?” he asks.

“I need more than that, Victor. I can’t read minds.” I give him a wink as I pick up the blueberry muffin with my free hand and take a bite. It’s warm. Just the way I like them.

“Sorry,” he says, his eyes fixated on my mouth. “Being a firefighter. Running into burning buildings, saving lives. Bringing people back from death.”

I sit there for a minute. Trying to compose my thoughts.

“Rewarding. Scary. Stressful. But I love every minute of it. There are days I come home utterly exhausted. Not just physically but mentally as well. There are days when in the heat of the moment I question why I chose this profession. But then after it’s over and I look around at the people and the scene, I know I wouldn’t want to do any other job.”

“You really love it. I can see the way your face lights up.” He’s right, I do. It’s all I ever wanted to be growing up. “Have you ever met with any of the people you rescued?”

I take another sip of my coffee.

“I’ve had them stop by the station after they’ve recovered and thank me.” I lift my hand and rub it along the back of my neck.

“You don’t like hearing them thank you. Do you?” He tilts his head to the side as he studies me.

“It’s not that. I just don’t need to hear it. Seeing the look in their eyes after they’re safe tells me all I need to hear. It’s when it goes past the simple thank you. Like now. I have someone, no clue who they are, and for months they’ve been sending gifts to me. They know so many details from my order at my favorite coffee place, my favorite snack to my favorite author to read. It’s past thank you and moved on to crazed stalker.”

He swallows, his Adam’s apple moving up and down as he does. “Crazy. And all you want is for it to stop?”

“Yeah. But, I will say thanks to them for stalking me. I bypassed my favorite place and came here yesterday. Because of that, I met you.”