A Firefighter in Her Stocking

He shook his head. “Not even on days when I’m most frustrated with my family.”

“How did you end up running into buildings on fire? I doubt you just woke up one day and realized that’s what you were meant to do in life.”

“When I was fifteen I lived at the private school I was attending. One of the kids in my dormitory decided to give smoking a try late one night and ended up setting the building on fire. The place was old, couldn’t have met fire codes, and went up in flames.”

“Oh, no! Was anyone hurt?”

He shook his head. “Because of where the fire had started, everyone on my floor was trapped. Even now I remember the terror of my classmates, and how, when the fire department rescued us, I was fascinated by those who risked their lives to save others. From that point on, much to my family’s disappointment, fighting fires is the only profession I can imagine making me happy.”

She took his hand and squeezed it. “For whatever it’s worth, I’m very proud of you and what you do, Jude.”

He didn’t say anything, just stared at her in a way that made her feel as if he were trying to see inside her head.

Trying not to be overly self-conscious at the intensity of his stare, she finished her dessert.

After he’d paid for their lavish meal and their coats had been brought to them, Sarah was still fighting self-consciousness.

“Don’t do it,” Jude said from beside her.

“What?” she asked, letting him help her into her coat.

“Whatever it is you’re thinking.”

She turned, met his gaze, and felt her tension ease at the sincerity she saw there. Goodness, he was unlike anyone she’d ever known. In a good way.

She arched her brow and gave him what she hoped was a flirty look. “Fine. I won’t, but it’s your loss.”

He gave a wry grin. “Because you were going to throw yourself at me in the foyer of an exclusive French restaurant?”

Pretending shock, she covered her mouth with her fingertips. “How did you know?”

His eyes darkened and he took her hand into his. “You win

,” he conceded, pressing his lips to the top of her hand, as he continued in a tone that was only half teasing. “I take it back. Do it. Please, just do it.”

The fact his words tempted her to do exactly that, that his lips were soft, warm, electrifying against her fingertips, should probably worry her. But at the moment she just felt glorious and as if she was the envy of every woman who’d seen them that night, as if she were floating through some amazing fantasy that was too good to be true.

“Too late,” she teased. “The moment is lost forever.” But as she stared into his sparkly blue eyes, she mentally corrected herself.

This moment was forever.

CHAPTER NINE

JUDE MIGHT BE in over his head.

Way over his head.

He’d never told anyone, not even Nina, about how he’d felt about his family, about why he’d become a firefighter. Why had he opened up to Sarah?

He’d not even thought about it, just answered when she’d asked, as if what he was saying was no big deal.

What was it about Sarah that made telling her things easy? As if spilling his guts to her was the most natural thing in the world?

That she hadn’t judged him, hadn’t found him lacking for not embracing what it meant to be a Davenport, surprised him. He was used to women who were with him as much due to the Davenport name as they were for him.

Not that there weren’t advantages to being born wealthy and a part of the Davenport clan.

For instance, Sarah’s surprise.