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Sweet Southern Nights
Liz Talley
One kiss can change everything Eva Monroe is always cool under pressure. As a firefighter, it's part of the job. But after kissing Jake Beauchamp in a moment of confusion, she's struggling to keep it together. Jake's her best friend and coworker–two very good reasons why crossing this line is a bad idea.Yet something between them must've changed, because one kiss isn't nearly enough–for either of them. But Jake is haunted by a past tragedy and isn't the commitment type. With more than just Eva's heart on the line, she needs to end things now before this fire burns out of control.
One kiss can change everything
Eva Monroe is always cool under pressure. As a firefighter, it’s part of the job. But after kissing Jake Beauchamp in a moment of confusion, she’s struggling to keep it together. Jake’s her best friend and coworker—two very good reasons why crossing this line is a bad idea.
Yet something between them must’ve changed, because one kiss isn’t nearly enough—for either of them. But Jake is haunted by a past tragedy and isn’t the commitment type. With more than just Eva’s heart on the line, she needs to end things now before this fire burns out of control.
Eva sat up.
“It was a dumb kiss,” she said. “I don’t know why I did it. Just drop it.”
Of course she knew why she’d kissed him. She’d dreamed about doing just that for three years, yearning for his body against hers, almost desperate to take one little taste of Jake.
But he didn’t have to know that.
“No,” he said, wiping his hands on a napkin.
“No? What do you mean, no?”
“See, thing is, that was a crappy kiss. How can I let you walk around thinking that subpar kiss was indicative of what I’m capable of? That would be...a travesty.” He reached over and dragged her into his lap, turning her so she tipped à la Scarlett O’Hara into his arms.
“Jake,” she said struggling against him even as something way deep down inside her screamed, “hell, yeah.”
Dear Reader (#ulink_9dd1c3da-e8f8-57db-8bf7-d19903910920),
I’m so happy to be back in Magnolia Bend and giving that rascal Jake Beauchamp a bit of a comeuppance with a woman so suited to him. Of course, ol’ Jake never thought about how perfectly his best friend fits him. Eva’s such a strong woman, fearlessly stepping in to take care of her younger brother and determined to prove to everyone she’s tough enough to be the MBFD’s newest captain. And Jake has to make amends with a past he’s run from for all too long, finding the courage to break out of being the man he created long ago. There is danger, excitement and passion within the pages of this story, and I think you’ll like catching up with the rest of the Beauchamp gang.
So come back with me to the sweet Louisiana town where love, life and the good stuff all meet up.
I love hearing from my readers. You can stay in touch with me through liztalleybooks.com (http://www.liztalleybooks.com) or find me on Facebook at liztalleybooks (https://www.facebook.com/liztalleybooks).
Happy reading!
Liz
Sweet Southern Nights
Liz Talley
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
After being a finalist for RWA’s prestigious Golden Heart Award in Regency romance, LIZ TALLEY found a home writing sassy contemporary romance. Her first book, Vegas Two-Step, starred a spinster librarian and debuted in June 2010. Since that time, Liz has published fourteen more Superromances. Her stories are set in the South where the tea is sweet, the summers are hot and the men are hotter. Liz lives in North Louisiana with her childhood sweetheart, two handsome children, three dogs and a mean kitty. You can visit Liz at liztalleybooks.com (http://www.liztalleybooks.com) to learn more about her upcoming books.
The book is dedicated to the men and women who face deadly fires in order to save lives and property. A special thank-you goes to my childhood neighbor, Captain Guy Mandino, and the Minden Fire Department who so graciously gave me a tour, answered questions and modeled what it is to be an everyday hero.
I would also like to thank Bora Sunseri, who helped me in regards to Child Protective Services.
And finally, the person who gave me a chance to blossom into the writer I am today. I will forever be grateful to Wanda Ottewell for guiding me, teaching me and being my friend.
Contents
Cover (#u22564cec-cfe6-5d28-ba4f-2f18bdf4ddb0)
Back Cover Text (#u37f6b875-a0ee-5968-9a20-e574d2ac60ee)
Introduction (#ud2f615b0-850c-57d7-9d32-4f1f40264c14)
Dear Reader (#u89ff2743-f584-50cb-8aa5-61ad97677957)
Title Page (#uffea7c56-0f85-5ca7-b51e-3889f85e3326)
About the Author (#u5e33d5a2-022f-5fa4-bd60-a3adca1412ee)
Dedication (#u44b19542-ca7e-5967-aa4c-26878154b452)
CHAPTER ONE (#ub2709079-b877-5ba7-90bb-f8303b74cc1e)
CHAPTER TWO (#u3e437e8b-fcbc-5980-9607-3a7de85d027f)
CHAPTER THREE (#ue1c132a9-6238-5925-a16f-7b6c5d48c64c)
CHAPTER FOUR (#u117dfe10-6976-5839-a756-dbd04ddb1e86)
CHAPTER FIVE (#ua55d5f78-f071-59a1-9577-edcbacc5c4f5)
CHAPTER SIX (#ubac703ea-224c-56fd-964f-7bd39a1dc2e6)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIXTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINETEEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_cd62b8f0-8371-5946-98fa-1ab275d9b907)
EVA MONROE ADJUSTED her helmet as Engine One roared up to the Magnolia Breeze residential complex.
“You ready?” Jake Beauchamp asked her, his blue eyes intense.
“I’m always ready,” she said, fitting the Nomex hood over her braided hair and securing the Velcro on her bunker coat. Her heart galloped in her throat. Didn’t matter that she’d done this hundreds of times. Preparing to battle a fire always felt the same. Like sex. Didn’t know how good or bad it was going to be, but you were going to get hot and sweaty either way.
Captain Sorrento crossed himself as he shifted the engine into Park alongside a curb grown wooly with overgrown crabgrass. A string of tired duplexes squatted next to the one smudging a sky the color of Cozumel Bay with dark smoke. “Check your radios. Everyone safe.”
“Everyone safe,” she and Jake repeated the department mantra.
Eva fitted her SCBA, strapping the air tank securely before pulling her mask over her mouth. She glanced at Jake, who’d done the same, his eyes crackling with intensity and focus.
Jake was always focused.
“FD2, go to C and give a status. FD5, start initial attack at A.” Captain Hank Sorrento already stood at the helm, flipping levers and barking directives at the engines pulling in behind. “Catch me a hydrant, Engine Four.”
Eva bailed out after Jake, just the way she liked it. When she first joined the squad, one of the older guys tried to let her out ahead of him saying “Ladies first.”
It had pissed Eva off...and Jake must have noticed because he said, “You kidding? She ain’t no lady. She’s a goddamn fire swallower, ready to put this bitch out.”
His words had made Eva laugh...and Dutch Rinaudo frown. Dutch was a home-grown Louisiana boy who still struggled with the fact Eva was his equal on the squad. Jake had grinned at Dutch and then pushed Eva back, bailing out before she could.
Later when she rolled the scene around in her mind, she wondered if his charging in first was because he couldn’t wait to face death or because he wanted to protect her.
Probably the first one.
Though she’d been friends with Jake for years, she didn’t doubt that embedded deep within his modern brain was the masculine desire to protect the weaker sex.
She snorted at the thought of her being weaker.
Weaker, her ass.
Jake hooked his accountability tag on the large cone designed to help keep track of who had tanks and was active on the scene before jerking back around to face her. “Want me to get the beast so you can break the window?”
Eva gave him the look, and Jake grinned. Ever since she’d nearly broken her hand trying to break a thick plexiglass window with the Halligan tool, Jake had given her grief.
Her heavy gloves prevented her from giving him the finger.
Smoke poured from the upper right corner of the freestanding, single-story apartment building. When Eva reached the backside as the captain instructed her to do, she called in her position and assessment. The captain barked commands, and Eva noted Moon Avery attaching the LDH to feed the pump.
“FD5, get the front door. Start initial through A. Let’s push this back. FD2, report to front.” Jake would go through and attack, while Eva headed back to the front to assist...or whatever the captain wanted her to do.
Moon set a ladder against the front side of the building and started securing the hose straps. Moon drove Engine Four and had worked for the department for almost twenty-three years. Martin drove the snorkel truck, which idled behind the two pumpers, the aerial bucket dangling like a forgotten toy.
Moon looked at her and jerked his head to an older woman huddled with a young girl, both crying.
Eva’s stomach flared aggravation. She shook her head.
Her radio crackled and Captain Sorrento said, “FD2, interview residents.”
“Shit.” Eva gritted her teeth, pissed that once again she wouldn’t be part of the attack and that she’d been relegated to deal with the teary-eyed while Jake and Martin smashed in the front door and knocked down the fire.
But then Eva looked at the older woman standing in a striped housecoat, dampness streaking her cheeks, anguish in her eyes, and softened as she headed toward where the pair held each other. Chief Blume met her there.
Eva pulled off her mask. “Anyone else in the building, ma’am?”
“Just me and Kiki. The people next door are at work. Ollie puts Zeke and Zara on the bus at ten to seven before she leaves for the day,” the woman said.
With sad eyes, the woman watched the hoses begin to pump. “They gonna ruin my mama’s quilt.” The girl she held to her looked about ten or eleven years old, and she watched stoically as the other firefighters scrambled to get into position.
Eva slid off her gloves, hooking them on her bunker coat. “We have tarps, and once we access the apartment we’ll do our best to cover your furnishings.”
The chief leveled bushy eyebrows at Eva. “I’m not assuming command, but I’ll send Martin next door to clear the apartment.”
“I can go,” Eva said.
“No, you stay here with Ms....”
“Glory Mitchell,” the woman managed, wiping her eyes with one hand.
“Ms. Mitchell,” the chief repeated, glancing back at Eva. “Take care of things here, Eva. Thanks.” The chief walked away before Eva could protest. She snapped her mouth shut, tamping down the sour taste of disappointment.
Over her shoulder, she heard Jake burst into Glory’s apartment using the battering ram. The older woman sucked in an injured breath before moaning and turned away. Her threadbare cotton robe swished against the tall hitchhiker grass peppering the yard.
“Oh, Jesus, they broke the door,” Glory said, her shoulders shaking. “I can’t believe this. I just can’t believe this.”
“It’ll be okay, Ms. Mitchell. You’re safe, and that’s most important. Doors can be fixed.”
The older woman nodded, trying to staunch the emotion shaking her.
“So, can you tell me what happened?” Eva asked.
“When I saw those curtains on fire, I grabbed Kiki and we ran out the back door. She had her phone so I called 911.”
