First Class Rescue (First Class Novels) (9 page)

Beth hugged her little sister goodbye and then watched out
of the window as she disappeared into the black town car parked at the curb.

“He didn’t get out of the car for me,” she muttered to
herself when she watched Gerald hold the car door for her and then slide in
behind her.

Beth crawled back into bed, Cleo sitting on the floor with
her snout resting on the bed next to Beth. Before the benefit, Beth thought
she’d been doing pretty well getting on with her life…not thinking about Tim…
too
often, anyway. As she lay staring up at the ceiling, the memory of that
night…that
one
night came flooding back. Although the sex had been
incredible, the best she’d ever had or would probably
ever
have, it
wasn’t just that that had made it so special. It was the conversation at
dinner, the ease she felt in his company, the fact he loved Cleo, and his
attention to her needs and desires that he put before his own.

Her mother’s voice interrupted her thoughts. “Get out of bed
and act like a Collins,” she’d said a hundred times while Beth had been a
teenager. “Sulking will get you nowhere.” Beth hadn’t been a teenager in many
years, and her mother was thousands of miles away, but the words still
reverberated in her head.

Thirty years old and still letting my mother tell me what
to do
, she sighed.

“Not anymore!” Beth said out loud. Cleo’s ears wiggled and
she tilted her head. “Nope! Not anymore.
I
get to live my life the way
I
want to live it. I’m not going to marry a man because my mother likes
him! I’m going to marry the man that
I’m
in love with. I’m not planning
on going back to England to live anyway. I’m staying
here
, in New York.”
She jumped from the bed and walked into the closet looking for something to
wear. “White collar – blue collar – barrister – fireman - I don’t care! I’ll
marry a garbage man if he loves me and I love him.” Cleo tilted her head again
as if trying to understand Beth’s words.

“My mother will no longer dictate what I do with
my
life.
I
am in charge!” She pulled a lightweight sweater and some jeans
from a shelf and grabbed a pair of teal colored sneakers from the shoe rack.

She showered and dressed and put her hair in a loose braid.
She used some tinted moisturizer to smooth out her complexion and added a swish
of blush and some mascara.

“Let’s go find our destiny,” she said to Cleo as they left
the apartment.

*****

Tim sat in his apartment flicking through channels on the
television. He couldn’t concentrate so he pushed the OFF button and browsed the
internet. That didn’t hold his attention either, so he closed his laptop and
went through to the spare bedroom where he had his Bowflex set up. He changed
into shorts and a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off and began his routine. He
began with his upper body and then worked down. It was the same routine he did
all week. It kept him strong and lean and able to do his job to the best of his
ability. After sixty minutes the sweat was dripping off him like he’d just
stepped out of the shower. He grabbed a hand towel and wiped down his face and
arms then threw the towel around his neck and walked to the kitchen to get a
tall glass of water.

Every time he closed his eyes he could still see her face.
He could see her eyes squeezed shut and her biting her lower lip as he brought
her to orgasm. He saw her laughing as they sat eating dinner and sharing stories
of their wild antics as children. He saw her hurry out of the ballroom.

He was still in shock she was there. If she hadn’t made a
spectacle of herself as she knocked over the chair, he would have never seen
her. Did she run because of him? Where did she disappear to after? He had tried
to forget her over the few months and it hadn’t worked and seeing her again had
only intensified the feelings he had.

Matt’s words rung in his ears. “I was scared. A woman had
never made me feel the way I felt about Janie and it fucking scared the shit
out of me. I couldn’t risk that she didn’t feel the same way so I protected
myself by letting her walk away.”

Tim had known the general story of how Matt and Janie had
gotten together, but Matt had never shared with him how vulnerable he’d felt.
Tim had never known his brother to be unsure of anything, so to have him tell
him how he’d almost screwed up his entire future because he was afraid really
sank in. Tim didn’t want to find himself regretting not going after the women
he wanted.

“I’m just glad that when I finally had the balls to tell her
how I felt, she felt the same, although she rightfully punished me for a few
hours before she told me so. You’ll never know until you tell her,” Matt had
told him. “And isn’t it better to tell her and have her tell you there’s no
future for you together, than to spend your future without her wondering
if
you’d
had a future together? At least you’ll know…one way or another.”

Tim headed for the shower. He needed to grow a pair in the
next thirty minutes because he was going to tell Beth how he felt…it was by far
the scariest thing he would ever do…and he wasn’t going to wait.

*****

Beth stood on the corner across from Ladder 5 holding Cleo’s
leash. Cleo wanted to run into the station but Beth held her firmly in her
grasp. She’d walked her with the purpose of seeing Tim…of telling him how sorry
she was for ignoring his calls…to tell him she was an idiot and to beg for his
forgiveness. But now that she was there, just feet from him, she lost her
nerve. It was dark so she stood in the shadows and waited nervously, waited to
build up the courage to do what she’d come to do.

Her feet wouldn’t move and her heart was beating so hard it
was almost painful.
What if he’s dating someone else? What if he doesn’t
even remember me?
The thoughts made her chin quiver.
Have I blown my
chance?

Cleo barked and made her look down at her faithful
companion. It was as if she was giving words of encouragement, something Beth
sorely needed. She’d come this far. She could walk a few more steps and cross
the street. She straightened her spine, lifted her chin, waited for a break in
the traffic and marched into the firehouse.

According to the fireman wiping down the truck, Tim wasn’t
working today.

*****

Grabbing the door as a couple of teenagers walked out, Tim
entered Beth’s building and took the elevator to her floor. With a determined
walk he made his way down the hall and stood in front of her door and knocked
three times. After waiting several seconds he knocked again, a little harder.
There was still no answer, but the door behind him swung open. He turned to see
Beth’s neighbors looking at him.

“I’m looking for Beth. Do you know if she’s home?”

“Oh I remember you,” Vince said as he pointed at Tim.
“You’re the dishy fireman that Beth likes.”

Tim had to break that statement into two parts. First, Vince
thought he was cute.
No thanks
, he thought. But secondly, they thought
Beth liked him. That made him happy…gave him hope that perhaps...

“I am a fireman and I hope I am
the
fireman,” he
chuckled. “Do you happen to know where she is?”

“Emma left today, didn’t she?” Jerry asked Vince.

“I think you’re right,” Vince replied. “So she could be at
the airport.”

“It’s after eight though,” Jerry wrinkled his nose. “She
would have been back hours ago.”

“Why don’t you come in and wait with us? We’ll keep you
company,” Vince grinned.

Tim chuckled again. “Thanks for the offer, but I’ll come
back another time.”

“Please?” Vince begged. “We don’t get many visitors.”

“You’re very kind, but I’m gonna get going.” Tim headed back
to the elevator.

“Drat,” sighed Jerry. “I could just sit and stare at him all
day.”

Tim grinned as the elevator doors closed and it began moving
down to the lobby. Jerry and Vince seemed to be nice old guys. He guessed they
were in their sixties and he wasn’t at all threatened or unnerved by their
offer. In fact, he probably would have had a great time hanging out with the
old broads, but he was going to watch for Beth. He wasn’t leaving the building
until he’d had the chance to talk to her. He sat on the bench by the glass front
door and waited. He’d stay all night if he had to.

*****

It took a lot to wear out Cleo, but Beth had finally succeeded.
They’d stopped at the park on their way home and Beth had found a tennis ball
next to one of the benches. She’d thrown it over and over again, and Cleo had
raced after it and returned it to her only to do it again…and again. Beth had
purchased a bottle of water and drank half of it and then Cleo had lapped up
the rest. They’d sat in the park, Beth on the bench, Cleo at her feet on the
grass, ‘til it got dark and then they started the walk home.

Punching her access code into the keypad, the front door
buzzed open and she ushered Cleo inside. As the door shut behind her she
screamed as a voice called her name. She jumped back and hit the door as Tim
appeared in front of her.

“Bloody hell!” she gasped. “You scared the life out of me.”

“Sorry,” he frowned. “I didn’t mean to.”

“I know,” she conceded. “What are you doing here?”

“Waiting for you.”

“Oh.”

There was an uncomfortable silence as Beth looked away and
Tim scratched Cleo behind her ears. Finally Beth spoke.

“Would you like to come up?”

“Yes,” he said too quickly, almost cutting her off. “I
would,” he smiled.

Beth figured Tim was about six feet and an inch or two tall
and probably around two hundred pounds. Beth’s apartment was about twelve
hundred square feet, a rather large space in New York, but Tim seemed to
overwhelm her apartment as he followed her inside. She couldn’t breathe.

“Make yourself comfortable,” she said as she unhooked Cleo’s
leash. “I’ll be right back.” She heard him talking to the dog as she hurried
down the hall to her room. She shut the door behind her and leaned back,
inhaling deeply and trying to calm her rapid pulse.

As she tried to wrap her mind around him being here, waiting
for her, she realized she shouldn’t be nervous.
I was going to see him
,
she told herself.
I wanted to see him.
Beth walked into her bathroom and
splashed cool water on her face and neck. She couldn’t hide in there all night,
however. She needed to say to him the things she needed to say. Whether or not
he felt the same, she had to tell him she was sorry. Sorry for not returning
his calls and sorry for being a coward.

Tim was sitting on the floor leaning back against the arm of
the sofa with Cleo lying on her back next to his legs. He was rubbing her tummy
and the expression on Cleo’s face was priceless.

“She looks stoned,” Beth laughed.

“I think she’s enjoying it,” Tim replied. His attention was
now solely on her.

“I wanted…”

“I saw you…”

They both began speaking at the same time. They both
stopped.

“You go first,” he offered.

She took a deep breath and began again. “I wanted to
apologize for not returning your calls. That was rude and I’m sorry.”

“Thank you. I figured that you weren’t interested.”

“No! I mean…I should have called you.”

“Then why didn’t you?”

Damn! This is hard.
“My family, well, they have
certain…expectations of me and…” She sat in the chair opposite him. “My mother
believes that when I marry…” She crossed her legs and tucked her hands under
her thighs. “My parents would consider it to be lowering my standards if…”

“Hold on!” He held up his hands to stop her. “Are you trying
to tell me that your family does not consider me good enough for you? They
don’t even know me! They’ve never even met me!” He was irritated, and in his
mind for good reason. “Oh,” he continued as the realization dawned. “
Emma
doesn’t think I’m good enough.”

Beth closed her eyes. “Yes…but I don’t care anymore. They do
not
have control over who I fall in love with or who I choose to date. I
am no longer going to be beholden to their outdated and ridiculous notion of a social
status.”

“So if you marry someone that they deem inappropriate, what
will they do?”

“It doesn’t matter because I don’t care.”

“Humor me. What will they do?”

“I guess I will become the black sheep of the family
and…well, I’m not
really
sure,” she admitted.

Tim couldn’t believe what he was hearing. In fact, it was
downright ludicrous!
What fucking century do they think it is?
he
wondered. But the reality was clear. If he was to pursue her, she could quite
possibly lose her family, and he wasn’t going to be the cause of such
heartache. He loved her too much to inflict on her that kind of pain.

Tim stood and took one last look. He drank in the sight of
her and then he walked around the sofa towards the door.

“I saw you last night,” he said softly. “And I wanted to
make sure you were okay.” He continued walking to the door. “I hope you find
what you’re looking for, Beth. You deserve to be happy.” He opened the door and
left.

As he walked down the hallway to the elevator, he knew that
Matt would tell him he’d been a coward not to lay his heart out and tell her
how he felt, but how could he after hearing about her parents’ expectations for
her? How could he put her in a position to make such a difficult choice; him or
her family? He couldn’t do it. He wouldn’t do it. He loved her enough to let
her go.

Matt could call him a coward, but it didn’t matter. He
punched the elevator button and waited…and waited…and waited for the doors to
open. When they finally did, he stepped inside.
Goodbye Beth.

*****

Did he just leave? DID HE JUST LEAVE?
Beth’s mouth dropped
open as the door clicked shut.
He left!

“I
do
deserve to be happy!” she told Cleo. ”I deserve
to get married and be happy! And not with someone like
Gerald
.” His name
was even difficult to say.

Cleo didn’t respond.

“You like him, right?”

Cleo tilted her head.

Beth ran to the door and flung it open. She ran down the
hall as the doors to the elevator began to slide together. Tim saw her and threw
his arm up to stop them from closing.

“Don’t go!” she pleaded.

“Beth,” he sighed. “I don’t want you to have to choose
between…”

“There’s no choice,” she shook her head.

Tim stepped out of the elevator and the doors closed behind
him. “I’m not going to come between you and your parents.”

“I think I love you Tim. I shouldn’t say that but I do. We
hardly know each other but it doesn’t change the fact that when I’m with you
I’m more myself than when I’m alone. It doesn’t even make sense but it’s how I
feel. I know that the last few months have been unbearable for me and I don’t
want to experience that again. I want you in my life. Please don’t go.” A small
sob escaped her lips as a tear spilled down her cheek.

Tim wiped away the moisture with his thumb and stepped
toward her. “I came here to tell you that I was in love with you. I was going
to tell you that my life was without meaning unless you’re beside me. I was
going to tell you that I want to be the only man that you kiss from now on. I
want to be the only man that touches you. I want to be the only man you think
about. I want to be your only man. I love you Beth.”

His lips grazed hers and he caught her sob as it escaped. He
pushed his fingers into her hair and held her held close to his and kissed her
again. A bark jerked them apart as Cleo stood next to them wagging her tail.

“I love you too girl,” he laughed and scratched her ears.

“Let’s go back inside,” she said as she took his hand in hers
and laced their fingers, leading him down the hall.

The door opposite flung open and there stood Jerry and Vince
beaming with joy.

“That was beautiful,” sighed Vince.

Tim chuckled. “Goodnight guys.” They walked into Beth’s
apartment and he shut the door behind them.

*****

Her skin was as soft as he’d remembered. He lips were as
warm as he remembered. Tim held her in his arms and breathed deeply, relieved
that she had been the one to take the ultimate risk, but he uneasy with her
decision to put him before her family. Tim knew what his family meant to him
and it was crazy to him that she would be willing to give up that bond for him.
However, he’d met Emma, and wondered if the family dynamic she’d grown up in
was not the same as his.

He looked into Beth’s eyes and realized that she was willing
to accept the possibility. She was prepared to give everything up to be with
him, and he loved her all the more. He swept her up into his arms and carried
her down the hall to the bedroom. The walls were a shade of dusty pink and the
bed was covered in a maroon satin duvet.

“Emma’s idea,” she whispered as Tim laid her gently on the
bed.

“I don’t care what the color is,” he said softly. “I won’t
be looking at it. I have eyes only for you.”

Beth chuckled.

“Too corny?” he grinned.

Beth nodded and laughed and pulled him down to her so she
could kiss him. He lay down beside her and pulled her into his arms and they
kissed each other tenderly. Beth laid her head on his strong chest and listened
to the beating of his heart. Tim stroked her hair and closed his eyes, truly
understanding Matt’s words.  
A woman had never made me feel the way I felt
about Janie and it fucking scared the shit out of me.
He understood. It had
scared him, but it didn’t scare him anymore and the woman lying in his arms was
his future. Of that he had no doubt.

“What are you thinking?” she asked.

“That my brother is a wise man.”

Beth pushed herself up on her elbow and looked down at him.
“I don’t know much about you at all,” she admitted. “I mean, I know who you are
as a person…who you are in here,” she placed her hand over his heart, “but not
about your family. In fact, I don’t even know your last name.” That realization
startled her. “What is your name?”

“You know my name,” he said.

“Tim. I don’t know your last name!”

“Really? My name is Timothy Ward Lathem, named after my
uncle, my mother’s brother. He is my mom’s only sibling and…” he trailed off as
he saw her face. “What is it?”

“Your last name is Lathem?”

“Yeah…is something wrong?”

“So Matt Lathem?”

“Is my brother,” he answered.

“Bloody hell!” she exclaimed and laughed.

“What? You know Matt? You’ve heard of Matt… probably,” he
answered his own question. “Everybody’s heard of Matt.”

“Emma said just last night she’d love to marry a Lathem and
I told her we didn’t know any!” She laughed some more.

Tim thought about her statement. Emma wanted to marry
someone based on their name and reputation. Beth, on the other hand, had fallen
in love with him only knowing he was a fireman and that she knew him to be a
good man. The knowledge only confirmed what he already knew. This was the woman
for him. She was his future.

“Matt is the oldest and I’m the youngest of seven boys.”

“Seven?”

“Yep,” he nodded. “My parents are still together and still
in love and there’s just two of us left that aren’t hitched…yet.”

Beth looked away.

“And I want you to meet them all,” he smiled. “But I’ll make
sure you’re well prepared first. They can be a bit…a bit overwhelming.”

“I’d like to meet them.”

“And I’d like to meet your family.”

Beth squirmed a little. “You know, we don’t have to think
about that now. Let’s just enjoy this moment, right now, without spoiling it
with talk of my family.”

Tim let it go…for now, but he decided he
would
meet
her family and he
would
protect her from them, if necessary.

He linked his hands at the back of her neck and pulled her
to him. As his lips touched hers he whispered “I love you,” and then showed her
just how much with his body. He rolled her onto her back and kissed her more,
his tongue darting in and out of her mouth. Then he moved his way down her neck
and over her sweater to her breasts. He nipped at her nipples under layers of
fabric but felt them harden in his mouth.

“Let’s get rid of some of this,” he said and pulled her to a
sitting position. She held her arms over her head as he lifted the sweater from
her. As he gazed at her teal blue bra, he gasped at the swelling flesh spilling
over the lace trim and he lowered his head to kiss the temptation before him. His
hands slid around her and flicked open her bra and with his teeth he pulled it
from her body. The straps slid down her arms and he tossed it on the floor.

“You’re beautiful,” he said as he took one perfect little
rosebud into his mouth and sucked gently.

Beth arched her back to him and let her head fall back,
silently giving him permission to take all he wanted, all he desired. She was
his to do as he pleased. He rolled his tongue over her distended nipple and he
heard her gasp. He moved to the other nipple and gently pushed her backwards
‘til she was again flat on the bed.

“Let me love you,” he begged. “Let me love you forever.”

It took little time for all their clothes to be on the floor
and Tim sliding inside her. She was slick and ready for him and he began
slowly, savoring every inch of her and she every inch of him. The thrusts
became quicker and more determined, both of them wanting, desiring, needing
release.

Beth squeezed her eyes shut as she climaxed. It was perfect
– exceptional in every way. Her muscles constricted around his shaft and the
sensation pumped through her body with every heartbeat and left her breathless
and spent. Her spasms sent him over the edge and his control was shattered as
his orgasm pulsed inside her.

Physically drained, they lay in each other’s arms and gasped
for air until their breathing returned to normal. Then they slept with their limbs
entwined and hearts joined and dreams of a future together.