Slow Burn: A Colorado High Country Novel (24 page)

She realized the two interns were now babbling excuses and apologies. She cut across them. “You’re not going to get anywhere in the business world with that kind of attitude. And, by the way, my boobs are real.”

People were staring now.

Vic didn’t care.

She made her way over to Abigail, cutting her off mid-conversation. “I’m sorry to interrupt, Abigail, but I needed to let you know that I’m resigning, effective right now. I’ll email a letter of resignation as soon as I get home. Jeff worked as hard as I did on the Merced campaign. He deserves the promotion.”

Abigail gaped at her. “What? Has something happened?”

“Yes.” Vic couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “I just realized I don’t want to be here any longer. I want to
live
my life, not work it away. I don’t care if it’s a big mistake; I’m moving to Colorado to be with the man who loves me.”

Ignoring Abigail’s stunned expression, she turned and hurried away. She had some calls to make—and, hopefully, a plane to catch.

* * *

E
ric sat
at the bar in Knockers working on his second whiskey. The place was almost empty apart from Joe and his staff—and, well, Hank, who’d just gotten out of jail a few days ago.

“You’re in a fix.” Hank looked over at Eric, sipped his soda. He was on probation, so Joe refused to sell him anything harder. “I never seen you drink like this, Hawke—sitting at the bar by yourself.”

“Yeah?” Well, he’d never been in love before either.

Being in love sucked.

“You got woman troubles. I can tell. That’s the worst kind of trouble for man—not counting being arrested, of course.”

“I suppose it is.”

Hank sipped his Coke. “You want to talk about it? You sure helped me out. If you need a shoulder, I’m here.”

Eric looked over at Hank, then down at the whiskey in his hand. Here he was at almost midnight on a Friday night drinking and looking pathetic enough that Hank, of all people, was on the brink of offering him advice.

Jesus.

He was a rock-and-roll man, but his life had turned into a country song. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

“Hey, Joe, hit me again.” Hank pushed his soda glass across the bar as if it were a shot glass.

“The bar’s closed, Hank. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Hank got down from his bar stool, pointing to Eric with a sideways jab of his thumb. “Why doesn’t he have to leave?”

Joe cleared Hank’s glass. “He’s not done with his drink, is he?”

“I guess not.” Hank shuffled off, clearly pissed at being told to go.

Eric tossed back the rest of his drink, set the glass down on the bar. “Since you haven’t kicked me out, can I have another?”

“Nope.” Joe took his glass, then pulled his cell phone from his pocket to read a message. “You’ve had enough.”

“Oh, come on. Two shots won’t even put me over the legal limit.”

“Exactly.” Joe leveled his gaze at Eric. “That’s why we’ll stop at two. We need a sober fire chief.”

Eric knew Joe was right. He needed to be able to respond in case the Team got called out tonight—or something crazy happened at the firehouse. In his profession, he just didn’t have the luxury of getting shitfaced.

He got to his feet. “Well, goodnight.”

“Sit down.” Joe’s tone was so stern that Eric’s ass hit his seat immediately. “I know what’s eating you, but I don’t think you have to worry. Victoria loves you.”

Perhaps Eric had had too much to drink after all. That would explain why he started babbling. “I’m trying to give her the time she needs, but this is harder than I thought it would be. I love her and want to be with her. I don’t understand why she’s not here if she loves me.”

Joe looked over Eric’s shoulder and smiled.

“I
am
here.”

Eric got to his feet so fast that he knocked his chair over. “Vicki?”

“Hi.” She stood there, looking like a dream in a short black dress, purple fleece jacket, and heels. Then she was in his arms.

He held her tight, some part of him wondering if he was drunk or dreaming or just out of his damned mind. “Vicki. Jesus. I can’t believe you’re here.”

“God, Eric, I missed you so much.”

“I missed you, too.” He ended the hug without letting go of her, his mind racing with questions. “I thought you had to go to some kind of dinner with your boss.”

“I quit.”

“You …
what
?”

Words spilled out of her. “I went to the dinner because I really had no choice, but I felt so out of place. The view from the penthouse didn’t even matter to me, and these two interns started talking behind my back. One said I was a bitch, and the other said my boobs were fake, and then it just hit me. I don’t belong there anymore. I belong here in Scarlet with you. So I quit my job and bought a plane ticket and called Joe. I wanted to surprise you, but he couldn’t pick me up, so he called the Team, and Sasha and Nicole came to get me.”

Her words came out so fast that most of what she’d said went over his head—except for the most important part. She’d come back to him. “You’ve decided you belong here now?”

“If you still want m—”

He cut the question short, answering it with a long, hard kiss, blown away by the goodness of just being near her, the weight of missing her and worrying that she might not come back lifted off his shoulders so suddenly that he was floating. He only stopped kissing her when he heard laughter.

He and Victoria looked toward the bar and saw Joe, Rico, and Rain standing there, together with Sasha and Nicole, who waved at him.

“Hi.”

He fixed an accusing gaze on Joe. “You all knew she was on her way here and didn’t tell me?”

Joe shrugged. “Victoria wanted to surprise you, and since she’s going to be my business partner …”

Eric’s gaze snapped to Victoria. “His business partner?”

“I’m starting a deep-dish pizza business. I’ll work out of Knockers, serving pizza to Joe’s customers, but the home delivery part of the business will be mine alone. We haven’t worked out the details yet, but I’m really excited about it. I think I’ll call it ‘Victoria’s Chicago-style Deep-Dish Pizza.’ What do you think?”

“Wow. Yeah. Good.” He couldn’t seem to manage more than single syllables.

“You okay, Hawke?” Joe asked. “You look a little stunned.”

Everyone laughed.

But, hey, could you blame him? His entire world had righted itself in the past five minutes, and it was taking a moment to sink in.

He looked into Victoria’s beautiful brown eyes. “I’ve never been better.”

* * *

T
he ten-minute
drive to Eric’s cabin seemed to take an eternity. The kiss at Knockers had ignited a spark in Vic, and she wanted him.

“Hurry,” she said. “It’s been so long.”

“Tell me about it.”

Then she remembered. “I’m on the pill, so no more condoms.”

He moaned. “Don’t tell me that while I’m driving. We’ll end up in a ditch.”

She pressed her thighs together to ease the ache and tried to think of other topics besides how horny she was. She ended up telling him again, more slowly this time, how she’d walked out of Abigail’s dinner party. “You should have seen the look on her face. I almost feel sorry for her.”

“I don’t.” He pulled into the driveway, handed her his keys. “I’ll get your bags.”

She walked up the porch steps, slipped the key into the lock, and stepped inside on a rush of happiness, her gaze moving over the familiar space.

He walked in behind her, set her bags on the floor, and locked the door, shutting out the night. “Welcome home.”

She turned to face him. “I like the sound of that.”

And then they were on each other, kissing deep and hard. Eric’s strong body surrounded her, his erection pressing against her belly. “
Vicki
.”

He grasped her buttocks, lifted her off her feet, and carried her to the kitchen table, not once breaking the kiss. “I need to be inside you.”

“Yes.
Now.
”

He rucked up her dress to her hips, yanked off her panties, then pulled down his zipper, freeing himself. The breath left his lungs in a long exhale as he entered her, the two of them moaning together at the pleasure of it.

His eyes drifted shut, a look like pain on his face. “
Jesus.
God. Vicki. You feel too good. I don’t think this is going to last very long.”

She wanted to ask him what the difference was between sex with and without condoms, but the thought disappeared entirely when he began to move, his silky, sweet strokes filling her, answering that deep ache. “
Eric
.”

He reached down with one hand to tease her clit, stroking her inside and out now, sensation building thrust upon thrust, until orgasm carried them both away.

* * *

T
hey lay together
in bed afterward, Vic’s head resting on his chest, his arms around her, the sound of his heartbeat strong in her ear.

“What happened tonight to make up your mind? One minute, I hear you’ve got to go to some damned dinner, and the next, you’re here.”

Victoria wasn’t sure she could explain. “I was about to say something to those two interns, when it all became clear to me that I was in the wrong place. All my self-doubt just vanished. I realized I’d rather risk everything for a chance at happiness with you than waste another moment of my life there. I deserve to be happy, to live the life that I want. That life is here in Scarlet with you. I am a daredevil, after all.”

He chuckled, kissed her hair. “Yes, you are. So you just left everything?”

“Yeah. I figured we could work that out. I’ll need to break my lease and get movers to bring all my stuff here.”

“Does that mean my climbing gear has to move out of the closet?”

“I’m afraid so, babe.”

“I suppose you’ll want some kind of secret drawer for your panties.” His tone of voice—so serious—made her laugh.

“Absolutely.” God, she loved him. “I also need to hire someone to drive my car out here.”

He gave a low whistle. “That will be expensive.”

“You forgot something.” She lifted her head and looked up at him, unable to keep the smile off her face. “I’m rich.”

He laughed, flipped her onto her back. “That was my goal the whole time, you know—to marry a woman with money.”

“You’re such a liar.” Wait. “Did you just ask me to marry you?”

“What do you say we pick up Lexi and Taylor tomorrow morning early and drive to Vegas to get hitched?”

The vows Lexi and Austin had said to each other came back to her. “I, Victoria Christine Woodley, take you, Eric whatever-your-middle-name-is Hawke—”

He gave a little laugh. “Matthew.”

“—Eric Matthew Hawke, to be my husband in a marriage of equals.”

Eric joined her now, the two of them saying the words together.

“I commit to you all that I own and all that I am—body, heart, and soul. I promise that you will be the source of my pleasure—and my solace in times of pain. I promise to share your dreams and your fears, to comfort you and shield you from harm, and to show you respect, love, and devotion through all the joys and struggles of our lives together. Most of all, I promise to be your faithful and true friend, honoring you above all others, from this moment until my dying breath.”