Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 113(@200wpm)___ 90(@250wpm)___ 75(@300wpm)
“Thank you,” I said as I followed her.
Stopping at a door, she motioned for me to head on in, then cheerfully said, “Happy planning!”
“Thank you!” I said as I opened the door and stepped inside. A woman was bent over looking at something that was spread out over the table. The pencil skirt showed off her back side, and I nearly moaned at the sight in front of me.
Clearing my throat, she stood, and I caught a quick glance of her hourglass figure. My heart dropped to my stomach. I’d know that luscious figure anywhere.
When she turned around, her smile dropped and mine grew bigger. It wasn’t Pricilla. It was Emma.
Smiling, I tilted my head and said, “You’re not Pricilla.”
Her eyes went wide as she let her gaze travel over my body. “You’re…you’re a…um…you’re…”
“A firefighter I believe are the words you’re looking for.” I folded my arms over my chest. “And you’re sure you have a master’s degree?”
Blinking a few times, Emma finally found her voice. “You never told me you were a firefighter.”
I shrugged. “You never asked.”
“Why in the world would I ask that?”
“Maybe instead of jumping to conclusions about people, you should take the time to talk and get to know them instead.”
Emma tossed her hands up in the air. “I said I was sorry. What do you want me to do? Get down on my knees in front of you.”
I had to hold back the comment I wanted to make, but Emma clearly saw the dirty thought that had rushed through my head.
She snarled her lip. “Ugh. Seriously?”
“What? I didn’t say a word, it was your dirty mind that went there.”
Spinning around, she started to pace. She looked so freaking beautiful I couldn’t pull my eyes off her. Her brown hair was pulled up and piled on top of her head in some weird twist. I liked it when she wore it down and her crazy curls had a mind of their own. I couldn’t see her eyes since she was pacing, but I could imagine they were on fire.
“This is not happening. You’re going to ruin the whole thing, and I’m going to be made a laughingstock and fail!”
“Excuse me?” I said as I walked more into the room. “You automatically assume I’m going to ruin this for…you?”
She stopped walking and slapped her hands down on the table. Fuck if she didn’t look stunning in that moment.
“You’re a firefighter. The last one ended up hiding from Anna every chance he got. The one before that showed up for the first meeting and never came back to help. The one before that spent more time flirting with everyone than he did helping. You’re just here to appease your captain. What could you possibly know about planning a Christmas fundraiser dinner?”
I took a moment to let her words settle between us. “Wow. Okay, wow. There you go judging me once again, Emma. You don’t know anything about me.”
She lifted her chin. I could see the regret in her eyes, but she was too proud to back down. “Fine. Then tell me something about you, because the only thing I know is your name is Harrison, you have a daughter, and you’re a firefighter.”
I pulled out a chair and sat down. “Where do you want me to start?”
Emma leaned against the window, both hands on the long windowsill. “Tell me what makes you think you’re able to help with this fundraiser. And don’t forget, I know you didn’t volunteer for this, your boss made you do it.”
Drawing a slow, deep breath, I exhaled. “My father was a Senator for twelve years. My mother used to throw a lot of parties. Some were fundraisers, some just to gain supporters for my father when he was running for re-election. I’m an only child, so I often helped because I loved spending time with her. Next to my father, I was her only concern, and we were close. I enjoyed helping her with things like that, as well as helping her in her garden, so if you need to know what flowers are best to use this time of year, I’ve got you covered. The hardest thing I ever had to do was leave my parents. I was close to both.”
“Why did you have to leave?” she asked.
“I joined the Navy, because that was what my father did. And I always wanted to be like my father. I was in the Navy for ten years as a Navy SEAL.”
Her eyes went wide again.
“Then life changed. A woman I had dated a few times knocked on my door one day and handed me a baby. My baby. Told me she didn’t want her, and if I didn’t it was my problem to deal with.”
Emma’s hand came up to her mouth. “That’s terrible, Harrison.”
I rubbed at the back of my neck. “The timing was good and bad. I had found out a few months before Nicole showed up with Noel that my father had cancer. Stage 4 lung cancer. I decided not to re-enlist and was due to leave for Boston the next day. I had to change everything and showed up at my parents’ house with a one-month-old baby.”