One Hot Secret (Love on Fire)

His words are a stark reminder of how little I really know him. I remember Isla’s words of warning, and my blood goes cold. Is Jack someone I can trust? Why does he keep so much of himself hidden away? So many things about him don’t make sense. Like his bike. I know when someone is passionate about something, they can spend a lot of money. But a Harley Davidson?

And what about our relationship? A week and a few days have already gone by. He doesn’t talk about us and what will happen after he leaves the station. I know it’s too soon.

“Hey, you look like you have the world’s problems on your shoulders,” Jack says, drawing me back to the present. “What were you thinking about?”

“Us and what will happen when your three weeks are over,” I say.

He reaches across the table and covers my hand with his. Heat whips through me at the contact. I marvel at how easily my body responds to him. I’ve never had that with any other man.

“Don’t overthink it. Things will work out. You’ll see. All I know is that I’m not letting you out of my life,” Jack says.

Emotion grabs me by the throat. Relief floods me as his words wrap around me like a warm blanket. “I’m not going anywhere either.”

“Is that a promise?” he asks in a playful tone.

I nod. “You bet.”

The waiter brings our dinner and the rest of the evening is fun, magical, and the perfect date. Jack is charming and funny. He also has a gift of imitating people perfectly. He does one of the chief, and I laugh so hard that tears fall down my cheeks.

“You’re really gifted, you know.” I wipe off the tears from my cheeks. “You’re wasting your talent at the fire station. You should be on stage.”

Dinner was my invitation and treat, but Jack won’t let me pay for it. Afterward, we leave the restaurant, and I remind Jack about his promise to take me to the canyon for a night ride.

“I was hoping you’d forgotten,” he mumbles as he slips the helmet over my head.

I laugh at the tone of his voice. “Home will still be there after the ride.”

“If you say so.”

Chapter 10

Grace

“Oh wow,” is all I can say as I climb off the bike and remove the helmet. “We must be on top of the world.” The view from the top of the canyon is magnificent. Below us, the city lights sparkle like a thousand stars. LA is spread below us, so close yet so far.

“Come, there’s a nice spot with some boulders where we can sit,” Jack says and takes my hand.

We follow a path that leads to the other side, and just as Jack said, there are comfortable boulders jutting from the earth. He helps me up and then sits down beside me.

“This reminds me of a spot in Newtown where we used to go as teenagers,” I tell him, memories of my youth coming over me.

“A make-out spot,” Jack says.

I laugh. “More or less.”

“Did you let some ugly pimply boy grope you?” Jack says.

“Ha ha, very funny. I went once. I never got invited again.” My chest constricts as if my painful teenage years were happening all over again.

“Why?” Jack asks softly.

I’m standing on the edge of a cliff with two options. To jump and trust that everything will work out as it should and I’ll find my footing, or to retreat and keep myself safe. I inhale deeply.

“Everyone found out who my real parents were, and they treated me differently after that.” My voice is calm, hiding the avalanche of emotions whirling inside my chest.

Jack’s voice cuts through the memories. “I don’t understand,” he says softly.

I swallow hard. A wave of dizziness comes over me, and my legs feel as if they are made of jelly. Am I really going to tell Jack my deepest secret? My mouth starts to move of its own volition.

“My biological parents were famous musicians two decades ago. You might have heard of them.” I haven’t said their names in so long that it takes a few seconds before I can gather the courage to say it out aloud.

“Who were they?” Jack says.

“Ricky and Ivy Ross. My father was—”

“One of the greatest rock stars of our time, and your mother was an awesome singer too,” Jack says.

“Yes.” I turn to face him, and what I see in his eyes is not shock or disgust but understanding. “So now you know my deep dark secret.” I smile, but it comes out like a grimace, I’m sure.

He frowns. “How did you come to be adopted by Nora and John? I remember reading the news of your mother’s death. And your father’s.”

“Suicide, you mean. My father drank himself to death a few years later, but by then, Aunt Nora had taken me to live with her and my uncle. She was my father’s older sister.”