Page 45 of Heat Advisory

“You have two seconds to take your hand off my fiancée, or I’ll do it for you.” Jay’s menacing voice was crystal clear and caused Darren’s body to jolt like he’d been electrocuted.

The second he let go, Jay stepped in, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me flush against him. He was solid and steady. A wall of muscle and restrained violence at my back.

Darren blinked up at him. “Your what?”

What was Jay doing here?

“I’m her fiancé,” Jay replied evenly. “And you shouldn’t put your hands on someone without permission, especially when you don’t know them.”

I knew exactly what was going to come out of Darren’s mouth next, but I wasn’t quick enough to stop him.

“I do know her,” Darren shot back. “Quite well, actually. Intimately.”

That last word was said low and slow to make his point.

It was at that very moment that I wished the earth would just swallow me whole. Alas, it was just not my day today.

Jay didn’t respond right away. But I felt it—the tension coiling through him and the rigidness of his body.

“Well,” Jay said at last, his voice low and deliberate. “Now I’m the one who knows her quite well…and intimately. So, you will refrain from touching her again.”

His words rolled out like thunder as he made his point to Darren.

“Everything okay here?” a man I didn’t recognize asked as he approached.

“All good now, Trent,” Jay replied without looking away from Darren. “I was just explaining to this man that he needed to remove his hands from my fiancée.”

Trent. So this was the guy who was in the running for the same job as Jay.

Trent’s expression morphed as he assessed the situation. It wasn’t openly hostile, but it wasn’t friendly either. It was best described as sharp and calculated. What I couldn’t tell was whether the shift was meant for Darren or Jay.

“So, you are the lucky woman we’ve heard nothing about,” he said to me, curiosity clearly piqued. “Congratulations to both of you on your fast engagement.”

The words were polite, but the tone was not.

“Oh! Is this your fiancé, Cora?” Jade’s voice chirped as she returned, camera strap now secured around her neck. “I’m Jade. It’s so nice to meet you. You should come by the office sometime and meet the rest of Cora’s coworkers.”

I closed my eyes briefly.

“So…you aren’t the only one keeping secrets,” Trent added lightly, glancing between Jay and me.

“Oh, I think it’s very romantic that they got engaged so quick,” Jade chimed in a super sweet voice, completely unaware of the fire she was fanning. “Especially since they hadn’t seen each other in years. They just met up…and boom…they got engaged!”

Oh God. I felt panic beginning to creep up my spine.

Despite her chipper voice, I knew how her explanation sounded, especially to someone who already appeared suspicious.

At work, I’d kept the explanation simple when coworkers noticed the ring on my finger. Jay had been my high school crush. He’d moved here, and we’d reconnected. End of story. It would make the potential eventual breakup easier.

I hadn’t considered how that simple story might seem to someone like Jade and others.

My gaze moved to Trent. He was now studying Jay with an intensity that could have scorched the Earth. Jay had said Trent was competitive about the job, but I didn’t understand the wickedness that seemed to be raging on his face.

“So, this is the lucky lady, eh?” another man said as he stepped up beside Jay.

“Yes, sir. This is my fiancée, Cora,” Jay introduced immediately. “Cora, this is Hal Thompson—Division Chief of Investigations.”

Ah, the T in the BLTS sandwich of hierarchy at the fire department.