Hearts on Fire 8: Saving C.C. (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  Frank washed his hands and then walked over to the refrigerator to take out the cold cuts.

  “So we have a renter then, huh?” Frank asked, trying to act casual. Meanwhile he couldn’t help but to think about what Jake had told him about C.C.’s landlord and why Kyle hadn’t mentioned it.

  “Yes. C.C. came by this morning around eleven and then started moving in about thirty minutes later. I was kind of surprised.”

  “Why is that, considering what her landlord did?”

  “I know he gave her short notice and all, but still it was fast like she was desperate for a place.”

  “Of course she was after what the landlord tried.”

  “What are you talking about, Frank? The landlord said he put a notice under her door about having to leave the apartment and she never got the notice. He basically was kicking her into the street, so she called Burt, and he mentioned the house we have for rent.”

  “That’s what she told you?” Frank asked as he set the cold cuts down on the counter.

  “What’s going on?” Kyle asked him.

  Frank explained the whole story about Jake stopping by and telling him about the incident at the apartment and her landlord trying to break in while she was showering.

  “What? Holy shit, no, she didn’t tell me that, nor did Burt. What the fuck? What did Jake do to the guy?”

  Frank explained.

  Kyle looked as if he wanted to head next door.

  “She lied to you.”

  “I don’t know why. I’ve been honest with her. In fact, I’m attracted to her.”

  “I kind of figured that, but you don’t know anything about her. Just that she came from New York. She’s already lying about her life, so don’t bother.”

  “Were you pissed off when Jake told you what really happened?”

  “Does it matter?”

  “I think it does. I think if I mention it to Mercury and Jenks, they’ll probably be pissed off, too.”

  “What the fuck are you thinking?”

  Kyle stood up. “I’m not thinking anything. I’m sure she had a reason for lying.”

  “I’m sure, too. Like maybe telling the truth would reveal who she really is, and that’s not trustworthy.” Frank instantly felt guilty for it but went about making his sandwich. When was the last time he’d had a home-cooked meal and they’d all sat down as a family? Maybe it was a good thing their parents were visiting after all. At least their mom would cook. He’d focus on that. It should help him survive the weekend.

  Chapter 3

  “Look at this shit. Have you heard about this?” Brandon Polaski asked Jenks St. James as they sat on the couches in front of the TV. in the firehouse. The news was reporting about an SUV exploding in a small town in Upstate New York. A detective working an arson investigation had been killed.

  “This happened yesterday, but they thought that something was wrong with the SUV. When did all this other stuff come out?” Jenks asked as he leaned forward in his seat.

  That was when the reporter began to speak.

  “It has been confirmed by News 7 that a 911 call came into the local sheriff’s department dispatch approximately ten minutes before the explosion. A threat was made against Detective Plank, stating that he was going to be the next to die. Currently, all of Detective Plank’s open and closed investigation files are being reviewed. We are waiting for the chief of police to update us on further information in this case.”

  “Jesus. What the hell is this world coming to?” Polaski said aloud, and Jenks shook his head.

  “Hopefully they find the guy responsible,” Jenks said, and then Rusty McQuinn walked into the room.

  “Hey, losers, where the hell were you two last night? The Station was hopping.” They fist-bumped hello before Rusty plopped down onto the couch with a bag of pretzels.

  “We were doing equipment checks, which is what you’re on in a few days,” Polaski told him in a sarcastic tone.

  “Shit, I’m not staying late on Wednesday night. It’s wing night and two-for-one beers at The Station.”

  “That’s not the only reason you keep going there,” Polaski told him.

  “Why else?” Jenks asked with a chuckle.

  “He thinks he’s got a chance with C.C.”

  Jenks swung his head toward Polaski and then looked at Rusty. “That’s the new blonde waitress, right?” Jenks asked. He barely went into the Station. Every day off he had, he hung out with friends doing fun stuff. He hated sitting around doing nothing but drinking.

  “Like you don’t know who she is,” Rusty said to him.

  “He should, well, at least his brothers know her good. I was thinking maybe Mercury and Kyle were taking a chance and winning her over. She talks to them a lot,” Polaski said.

  Jenks found that information to be pretty interesting.

  “Is that so? Jenks, your brothers making a move on C.C.?”

  Jenks shrugged and leaned back into the seat. He would find out in the morning when he got off his shift and they were headed to work.

  “What the hell is this? Don’t you have shit to do other than hang around and watch TV and stuff your faces?” Mercury asked, joining them in the living room, along with another firefighter Vetter O’Harra. Jenks gave a nod, and his brother nodded back.

  “Hey, this is good timing. What do you know about Kyle and Frank trying to get with C.C.? Rusty here thinks he has a better shot,” Polaski said to Mercury as a couple of other guys joined them. They all started talking about C.C. and her body.

  Mercury crossed his arms in front of his chest and looked pissed off. Jenks caught his expression, and then he stated.

  “Doubt any of you have a chance with her. She says no to every guy,” Vetter told them.

  “What does anyone know about her other than she came from New York?” Kefer, the other firefighter, asked.

  “She has an apartment over the bridge, last I heard,” someone else said.

  “She has an apartment in town now,” Mercury said and then nodded at Jenks for him to get up and follow him. Jenks wondered what was going on.

  “What? Where? Can we do a drive-by?” Polaski asked, and they laughed.

  “You guys are obsessed with her. Where the fuck is she living, Mercury? Come on,” Rusty asked.

  “She’s renting the house on our property. Get it now?” Mercury asked with attitude. The place went silent, and then Jenks stared at his brother.

  “Since when?” he asked and then heard the guys making fun of Rusty and saying that C.C. was going to belong to the St. James brothers. His stomach tightened up, and he felt shocked.

  “Mercury, what the fuck is going on?” he asked as they went into the main garage where the trucks were.

  “I met up with Jake a little while ago on his way home from work. Turns out that C.C.’s landlord, the scumbag, attempted to break into her apartment while she was showering. But she’d been smart enough to put on a deadbolt. Basically, from what Jake gathered, the landlord wanted her to pay for the rent in other ways than cash.”

  “Fucking pig. Is she okay?”

  Mercury took a deep breath, and Jenks could see his brother was upset.

  “She’s fine, Jenks. She called Burt for help, and he called Jake, and they got her out of there. Then Burt called Kyle to see if our place was still available, and she took it immediately.”

  Jenks ran his fingers through his crew cut. “Why do you look upset then?”

  “She’s a beautiful woman. Sweet, really nice.”

  Jenks squinted at his brother, not understanding what he was getting at.

  “Yes, I’ve heard, although I only saw her a couple of times from a distance.”

  “Kyle likes her, too.”

  He widened his eyes. “Kyle? Who doesn’t talk to any women and basically, like Frank, avoids communicating and socializing unless it is completely necessary?”

  “Yep. I think Frank likes her, too, and hell, I know I do.”

  Jenks thought about
that a moment. He opened his mouth to speak then closed it, looked around them, and stepped closer, whispering. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying to me?” He stood with his hands on his hips, staring at his brother, who was only about a half an inch shorter.

  “Kyle and Frank met her first when her car broke down on the road in front of the shop. Then I met her and talked with her a few times, this landlord shit happens, and she calls Burt, who tells her about our place that we haven’t been able to rent for months. Now she’s right there, on our property, our neighbor. We’re all attracted to her.”

  “I don’t really know her.”

  “You will, and you’ll see what we see in her. Something is there. She even lied to Kyle about her landlord and what he did. It was like she didn’t want him to know and, instead, said she was told to leave without fair notice.”

  “Her lying should not be considered a good thing, especially in Frank’s eyes, nor in mine, after what Felicia did.”

  Jenks knew how hurt Mercury had been over Felicia cheating on him and just wanting to be shared by all of them like some orgy.

  “I think you’re jumping to conclusions,” Jenks said to him.

  “How did you feel when you found out she was renting our house?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Liar.”

  Jenks thought about it. Of course he was excited, interested because every damn single guy around talked about C.C. and hit on her. She denied every invitation for a date. Something was up with her.

  “Listen, her landlord hit on her and wanted sex for rent. Don’t you think we should all give her space and not make her think the same about us?”

  Mercury gave him a punch in the arm. “You’re such a dick.” Just then the fire alarm blared and a radio call came over the loud speaker.

  “Back to reality, bud, but don’t give up hope. Maybe she’ll give you a shot,” Jenks teased his brother as the rest of the crew came in and they all grabbed their gear.

  A few minutes later, as the fire trucks rushed down the road to a fire, the wind blowing in their faces with the widows opened and his mind drifting to his conversation with Mercury, he wondered if they could ever like the same woman and want to share her for life? Would they even be capable of such a relationship? Who was C.C. anyway, and how come she was so special, even though his brothers knew very little about her? Maybe they were just looking for something new and exciting, and C.C. had been in the right place at the right time.

  * * * *

  C.C. finished taking another round of drink orders from a set of guys who worked for marine patrol. It was Saturday night and crazy busy. She looked forward to tomorrow and going for a run then trying to wash the curtains and dry them instead of buying new ones. She’d gone through her money last night and set aside rent for the next two months. If things continued to go well with waitressing, she would be fine and could handle the rent for a while. She worried about the off-season and wondered how busy the Station would be then. She should ask Burt or even some of the regulars.

  As she headed toward the bar, she saw Mercury with a few guys and one tall muscular guy with brown hair. He was sporting a tight T- shirt and dark jeans and was making the group laugh louder and louder.

  “Hey, C.C., how’s it going?” Mercury asked her as she squeezed by him and the bar.

  “Busy. How about you?” She held his gaze. She stared up into his dark brown eyes, and he winked.

  “You look good. How is everything with the house?”

  “Oh, it’s great. I love it, and it’s perfect for me.”

  “Wonderful,” Mercury said then turned to look at someone behind her.

  She gave her drink order to Jerome and then turned back toward Mercury, but now another guy was there, and she thought he looked familiar.

  “Have you met our other brother Jenks?” Mercury asked her over the loud music.

  She leaned closer, but then Jenks was holding his hand out to her, and she went to shake his hand as laughter erupted behind Jenks, sending him into C.C.

  She gasped at the simultaneous reaction from Jenks. First his touch confirmed an attraction to brother number four, and then she acknowledged the feelings when his body pressed up against hers and the bar, one hand on her hip and one behind her, bracing the bar so she wouldn’t hurt her back.

  She had grabbed onto his arm and his waist and then went to pull back.

  “Sorry about that,” he said, their gazes locked.

  “No problem. Nice meeting you,” she whispered, and he gave her a smile that simply warmed her heart and wet her pussy.

  Quickly, she turned around to face the bar and then felt the loss of his touch as his hands glided slowly from her body.

  “I told you,” she thought she heard Mercury say, but she focused on the drinks and balancing them as she turned around.

  “Excuse me.” She headed out to deliver the drinks.

  The rest of the night she tried her hardest to avoid Mercury and Jenks, but it seemed that the two of them didn’t want that to happen. Before long she was only going to that end of the bar to get her drink orders and avoiding the other side entirely. She didn’t know why she was so attracted to the men or why this town and the abundance of ménage relationships aroused her, enticed her, and made her curious. Especially when she felt so fearful of opening up her heart and letting another human being in. It just hurt so much when you lost them.

  * * * *

  When she exited the bar, it was pouring out. Burt wanted to give her a ride home, but then a truck pulled up, and when the window rolled down, she spotted Mercury driving.

  “You are not riding that bike in this downpour.” Jenks got out on the passenger side, lifted her bike out of Jerome’s truck, transferred it to their truck, and then told her to move her ass because they were getting soaked.

  She hopped into the passenger side of the truck after waving to Burt and Jerome, and then Jenks slid in and bumped into her.

  She shivered, and Mercury lowered the air conditioner but kept the defrost on in the front window.

  “I think there’s a towel in the back seat, Jenks,” he said and then Jenks leaned his arm over, bumping her shoulder and causing her to move to the side and press against Mercury.

  “Damn, you’re all wet.” Mercury headed down the road.

  “I can’t believe it’s raining like that. It was gorgeous all day and night.”

  “Well, it is almost four o’clock in the morning,” Jenks barked and handed her the towel fist.

  She used it to wipe her face and then her hair before she passed it to him. He wiped his hair and then he folded it over and placed it over her thighs.

  “To keep the chill out,” he said to her as their gazes locked.

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  “What are you guys doing out so late?” she asked, and both were silent.

  “What?” she asked.

  “We wanted to be sure you got home okay. Jenks saw the weather forecast, and we know you ride a bike home, so we waited.”

  Her lips parted, and she looked from Mercury to Jenks.

  “Really? You didn’t have to do that but thank you. Don’t you both have work tomorrow?”

  “No, we’re off. We just have our parents coming for a barbecue,” Mercury told her.

  “Oh, that’s so nice.”

  “How about you, any family?” Jenks asked her.

  “Back in New York I have a sister and my mom.”

  “What made you leave there?” Mercury asked.

  She was silent a moment. She had to be careful how to answer this one, or it would lead to more questions. She wasn’t ready to talk about her life and what had happened. Then the whole feeling-sorry-for-her thing would happen again. She didn’t want sympathy. She wanted to forget.

  “I needed a change.”

  “So you just pack up a car and go?” Mercury asked.

  “Yup. Pretty much.”

  “That’s not too smart,” Jenks informed her. />
  “I was fine.”

  “What if that car of yours had died on a highway during the night and no other cars were around?” he pushed.

  “I would have locked myself in the car and waited for light or walked in the dark to the nearest gas station. Believe me, Jenks, I can take care of myself.”

  “Like you took care of that landlord who wanted to hurt you?” Mercury asked her.

  She widened her eyes at his comment and felt the twinge of insecurity about her statement she just made to him. She didn’t think anyone knew about that and her shock was apparent.

  “It’s a small town, sweetheart. Lies are revealed pretty quickly,” Jenks said in an accusatory tone.

  “I only lied to Kyle because he looked so serious and angry when I said the landlord hadn’t given me notice. I figured he might really flip out if I told him what actually happened.”

  “Maybe he would have surprised you. He was looking out for your best interests,” Mercury told her.

  She lowered her head.

  “I’ll apologize to him tomorrow. I didn’t want it to be a big deal. Guys can be such jerks more often than not. I don’t really know any of you that well, and even tonight, the only reason I’m in this truck accepting this ride is because Burt said it was safe and you’re my landlords. God knows I don’t want to piss off any of you guys.”

  Mercury chuckled, but Jenks let his thigh press against her thigh. “I guess not,” he said, and then Mercury pulled into her driveway and Jenks got out to get her bike out of the back. He ran it up along the side of the house where it was covered.

  “Thank so much. If you ever need a favor just ask, okay?” she told him, and he nodded.

  “See ya around.”

  They waited in the driveway until she fished out her house keys and got inside. She leaned against the door and sighed.

  Holy shit, those men are fierce. They had me shaking in my shoes. My God, the muscles, the size of them, and their hard personalities are so sexy.

  She pushed off the door and waved her hand in front of her like a fan.

  “I so need a cold shower.”