Flashpoint Read online

  Flashpoint

  By

  Desiree Holt

  Chapter 1

  Six years ago

  The only light in the room came from the soft amber glow of the bedside lamp. The only sound came from the couple on the bed, sprawled naked on the rumpled bed sheets. A nearly empty bottle of wine sat on the nightstand, its companion glasses empty. But the couple on the bed couldn’t have cared if there was wine or not, or how good the light was or anything else. They were totally, completely, intensely focused on each other.

  “You taste absolutely delicious,” Noah Cutler murmured to the woman beneath him.

  “I love when you taste me,” Randi Alexander told him in a breathless voice. “Don’t stop.”

  “No intention of it.”

  He slid his lips across the line of her jaw, down the column of her neck and over one breast to capture a nipple between his teeth. Randi moaned with pleasure as a jolt of electricity shot through her body directly from her hardened tip to the moist heat of her pussy. Any place this man touched her made every single one of her nerves ignite and sizzle.

  “Delicious,” he murmured as he sucked her nipple harder into his mouth.

  Randi arched up into his touch, her body pressing against his. She loved the feel of his toned muscles against her, the soft scratch of the hair sprinkled on his thighs and his chest, the grip of his fingers squeezing the breast he was tormenting with his mouth. Every point of contact was like the burn of an erotic torch.

  Finished with the one breast Noah shifted his mouth to the other. Randi threaded her fingers through the thick chocolate silk of his hair, using the grip to hold him closer to her and firmly in place. The suction of his mouth pulled hot feelings up from deep inside her ad she lifted to him again. She pressed the heel of one foot into the back of his calf to lock herself to him, silently begging him to suck harder, to never stop.

  Their bodies were already slick with sweat, the result of an earlier, frantic coupling. It seemed whenever they were together, alone, her place or his, their insatiable need for each other pushed everything else to the side. That first orgasm was always a killer, so intense, taking barely minutes to achieve. Then they took their time savoring each other, tasting and touching and exploring all their favorite places. Not that she’d been with all that many men, but Noah Cutler made her felt things no one else ever had. With him it was way more than sex. There was something a lot stronger brewing between them that made every touch, every kiss, every action so much more incredible.

  Just as it was now, with him moving his mouth lower on her body. He grazed his lips down between her breasts to the slight swell of her tummy, using his tongue to trace the circle of her belly button. When he reached the top of her mouth and coasted his tongue over the smoothly waxed area a shiver raced through her. Deep inside her inner walls she could feel a shower of tiny spasms.

  “Mm, good,” Noah murmured, paying careful attention to her mound, her outer lips, her drenched slit, every bit of her sex. “God, you taste like pure heaven.”

  As if to prove his point he shifted so he could part her thighs, bending her legs so her entire pussy was exposed to him. He dragged the tip of his tongue slowly from the top of her slit to the bottom and back up. The second time he did it he paused long enough to swirl it around her swollen clit, even scraping it lightly with his teeth.

  Randi whimpered with need, lifting her hips to thrust herself closer to his marauding mouth. He licked with long strokes, caressing her throbbing wet flesh, her body screaming for more.

  Noah lifted his head and looked up at her, his lips curving in he smile of a devil.

  “Somebody wants more.” When she nodded, he said, “And she’ll get it, but not until I’m finished having my fun here.”

  The stroke of his tongue set up tremors in her internal walls. Randi closed her eyes and gave herself over to the sensations cascading through her. By now Noah knew exactly where to touch her and how, what gave her the most pleasure, what drove her wild and what brought her the most intense pleasure. With his educated tongue he lapped and licked, used his teeth on her clit then sucked it into his mouth. When he slid two fingers into her, she automatically clamped down hard on them, close to exploding.

  “That’s it, sweetheart,” Noah urged, his mouth on the lips of her sex, the words vibrating against her flesh. “Come on. Come for me.”

  He added a third finger, curling the tips so each time he tugged them forward he scraped against her hot spot. When he sucked her clit into his hot mouth again and bit down gently on it, that was the trigger that set off her release. Spasms rocked her as her climax burst up from deep inside her, shaking her body. Her hips jerked as she rode his hand, the orgasm gripping her body and shaking her.

  Tremors were still sweeping through her when Noah withdrew his hand, eliciting a groan of protest from her. But in seconds he’d sheathed himself with a condom, lifted her legs to give himself better access and plunged into her with one swift stroke.

  “Oh, god!” Every nerve in her body sparked as his thick, hard cock filled her completely.

  “Look at me, Randi.” His voice was husky with passion. “Open your eyes and let me see the heat in them.”

  She did as he asked, and when she looked into his own eyes she saw such emotion and need it nearly undid her. He was so large, always filling he completely and stretching her flesh to the maximum. Locking her legs around his waist she dug her heels into the small of his back and held them tightly bonded together as he set up the thrust and retreat steady movement that pushed her up the erotic wall again. The spasms that had never completely abated inside her pussy grew stronger with each plunge of his cock inside her.

  “Hot,” he growled. “She kept up a litany of erotic expression while he continued to ride her, so hot. God, I love fucking you. You’re the best. The best ever.”

  He kept up a steady litany of erotic expressions, telling her in graphic detail every dirty thing he enjoy doing to her and with her as he plunged inside harder and faster. Just as he always did, he sensed exactly when she reached the crest, the precipice, ready to fall over. And took her over with him.

  Everything disappeared except the intense tremors shaking both of them, the hard clenching of her inner walls around his shaft, the shaking of their bodies as the orgasm claimed them both and shook them like a giant fist.

  It seemed forever before everything subsided and her body became quiet again. Her heart was beating so fast she was sure it would shake itself out of her chest and she couldn’t seem to get enough air in her lungs. This wasn’t a new experience. Every climax with Noah was this intense, an experience that reached into every corner of her body and drained her completely.

  When she could catch her breath, she eased her legs from around his hips and stretched them out on either side of him. She could feel his heat thumping against her breasts, a steady beat that was her anchor. Sliding his hands up to cup her cheeks he pressed his mouth to hers in a long, slow kiss. She could taste herself on his lips and his tongue. He took his time with the kiss, so thorough about it she was sure it was the most intense kiss she’d ever shared. No, wait, he always kissed her that way after they had sex, as if he was cementing the bond between them.

  Finally, with a slight look of regret on his face he eased his body from hers and padded to the bathroom to dispose of the condom. Randi watched him walk away, enjoying the flex of muscle in his very fine ass. She was sure she’d never get tired of watching him, of absorbing the sight of every part of his body. From the very beginning she and Noah Cutler had discovered a connection that only grew more intense every time they were together.

  She sighed, hoping that what she had to say tonight wouldn’t permanently change that. Despite the fact that he told her he love
d a strong women, that he admired her intelligence and other skills as well as her body, he had some pretty determined ideas that she was afraid were about to be a problem. It was the only thing they’d ever really fought about and she wasn’t going to give in.

  “I don’t think I like that look on your face,” Noah said, easing back into bed beside her and pulling her against his side.

  Randi leaned against him, sliding her hand across the hard plane of his abs, hoping the contact would ease the tension gathering in her body again.

  “What’s up, babe?” His fingers danced idly up and down her arm. “I can smell something brewing in your brain.” Suddenly his fingers stilled. “Wait. You’re not still thinking of taking that job, are you?” When she didn’t answer him he sat up, pulling her to a sitting position with him. “Randi?”

  Oh, god. I knew this would happen.

  “You’ve known for a long time, every since I got my EMT certification, that what I really wanted was to be a firefighter.” She studied his face, looking for some clue that he would at least listen to her. “It’s what I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember.”

  “And we discussed the dangers of it,” he reminded her. “We talked about getting married, Randi. About having a family. Why would you want to put yourself in the line of fire, literally, when you’re a mother? Or would be.”

  Randi could feel the anger boiling up inside her. “You were plenty supportive of me when I got this job as an EMT.”

  “Because it doesn’t require you to walk into burning buildings,” he ground out, a muscle jumping in his cheek.

  Randi forced herself to remain calm. They’d had this argument so many times, but she thought they’d already settled it. And not once, but twice.

  “I will be trained to do it,” she reminded him, a sentence she was getting tired repeating. I will take classes and have drills. Fire departments don’t let you just put on the gear and haul ass into a blaze.”

  “Even if they train you,” he persisted, “the danger is always there.”

  She looked at him, her temper fraying. “Is that any worse than running all over the globe covering stories in hot spots?” she asked.

  “We’ve discussed that.”

  His voice had that concentrated patience that indicated she was on his last nerve. Well, fine, he was getting on hers.

  “No.” She shook her head. “You talked and I listened. You never heard one thing I said.”

  “You didn’t hear what I said, either,” he pointed out. “I explained to you I wanted to do the hot spot stories for a wire service to build up my creds. Then I could be in a position to do freelancing and we could live wherever we chose. That’s what I wanted all along.”

  “And what was I supposed to do in the meantime?” she demanded. “Just mark time?”

  “I wanted you to come with me, or did you forget that little thing. Honey, you love being an EMT.” His tone of voice had softened. “You told me so. I’ll bet New York has a crying need for people with your experience and training.”

  “I don’t want to go to New York.” She was really having a hard time keeping it together. “I want to stay here and I want to take that firefighter job. The battalion has an opening and the chief offered it to me. To me!” She stabbed herself with her thumb. “It’s what I’ve been aiming for all this time. Besides, you’ll be gone half the time on assignment.”

  “I told you I wouldn’t be traveling all the time. I’d be home between assignments. By the time we decided to have a family I’d hardly be traveling at all.”

  She snorted. “Yeah, right. I know you, remember? You’ve got it in your blood, just like my desire to be a firefighter is in mine. Are you saying you won’t get the job unless you move? What happened to the digital world and airplane travel?”

  “New York is where it’s happening right now,” he told her. “It’s a place for me to make contacts for stories, for sources for the things I need.”

  She shook her head. “This is getting us noplace fast.”

  “So you’re saying if I really love you I’ll give up my career for you?” he asked.

  “Aren’t you asking the same of me?” she demanded.

  Noah didn’t answer. Instead he threw back the rumpled sheet and climbed out of bed, stalking over to the window. They’d left the curtains open and the moonlight slanting in outlined his finely honed body and scattered glints of light on his disheveled. He wasn’t handsome so much as ruggedly good looking, with a square-jawed face, dark eyebrows, and eyes a brown almost as deep as the hair on his head. They’d taken one look at each other and it had been lust at first sight. That lust had morphed over time to a deep friendship ad unexpectedly into love. Randi had dreamed of a future together, a family, building memories through the years.

  Who knew he’d be so adamant about her dream job? So unbending. At first when she brought it up he hadn’t said much. Probably because it was just a maybe at the time. There had been no openings in the San Antonio Fire Department at the time and she thought now he’d been thinking there never would be. She hadn’t rained on his parade. Why did he want to rain on hers?

  He stood there without speaking for so long Randi couldn’t stand it.

  “Noah? Aren’t you going to say anything?”

  “Like what? My opinion hasn’t changed and neither has the situation. You know how important this is to me.”

  “Same goes,” she reminded him, trying to speak over the stabbing pain in her heart.

  “Really.” His tone was flat, uninflected, a sure sign that he was dealing with a lot of anger over this.

  “Okay, let’s talk about my job for a minute. What if I went to New York with you and was able to get hired on as a firefighter there. Would that make this work?”

  “Did you hear what I’ve been saying?” He practically vibrated with anger. “This is not a job for a woman no matter where we live, especially one who says she wants to get married and have a family.”

  She scrambled off the bed and went to stand beside him. “There are plenty of men who are firefighters. They have strong marriages and great family lives. And I’m sure their wives worry about them, but they accept it, because it’s part of the men they love.”

  “That’s different.”

  “Different? Different how?” Anger suddenly shot through her. “Wait a minute. Is this because I’m a woman and you don’t think women should be firefighters?”

  “It’s not…exactly like that,” he protested. But he still didn’t turn to look at her.

  “Then what exactly is it? Because I have to tell you, that’s how it looks from here.” She dropped her hand and took a step away. “Holy crap, Noah, I never took you for such a chauvinist.”

  “I’m not.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “ You know that, babe.”

  “Yeah? Just exactly how do I know that?” She stamped her bare foot. “And don’t call me babe.”

  At last he turned to her, his naked body so glorious it took her breath away as always and nearly distracted her from the conversation. He put is warm hands on her shoulders and gave her a penetrating look.

  “You think I’m a bad person because I think the work is too hard, too demanding and too dangerous for someone your size?” he asked. “Because I would be afraid for your life every single minute you were on the job, no matter where we lived?”

  “Firefighters work together and take care of each other.” She was trying not to be irrational about this. That wouldn’t win her any points. “Besides, what does my size have to do with it? I’m not exactly a skinny Minnie and I’m in damn good shape. Plus they put the trainees through grueling courses. ” She looked directly into his eyes, catching them in the moonlight. “There’s always the chance I could wash out, you know. But at least I’d have tried.”

  “If you went for it I don’t think you’d fail.”

  They were getting nowhere here. And her temper was sizzling through her no matter how much she tried to tamp it down.


  “Somehow I don’t think you mean that as a compliment,” she snapped and turned away from him. “Well, fuck, Noah. Just fuck.”

  “That seems to be your favorite word lately,” he told her.

  “It fits just about any situation. Fuck, fuck, fuck.” She glared at him, her hands fisted on her hips. She tried not to think how ridiculous she might look in the semidarkness, naked, cursing at Noah.

  “Randi,” he began.

  “You know what this is?” she interrupted. “It’s a flashpoint?”

  He scowled. “Flashpoint?”

  “Uh huh. It’s the temperature at which a particular organic compound gives off sufficient vapor to just ignite in the air.”

  “And that pertains to us how?”

  “This situation is like an organic compound for us. It hit the air and boom!” She made an exploding gesture with her fingers. “Flashpoint.”

  “I might have known you’d use firefighter terms.”

  “Why not?” she snapped. “You’re plenty damn hot under the collar.”

  “Ditto,” he threw back at her.

  They stood there facing each other for a long, heated moment. Finally Noah reached for her but she took a step backward.

  “Don’t touch me.”

  “Randi, if we can just discuss this rationally I’m sure you’ll come to the same conclusion I did.”

  If only he didn’t sound so damn condescending, she thought. At first she’d been hurt that he gave so little thought to her career goals, but now she was getting mad. And madder by the minute. Flashpoint didn’t begin to describe this situation.

  “Don’t patronized me,” she snapped. “I’ve wanted to become a firefighter for years. That’s nothing new to you. It was on the table from our first date. Did you think I’d just change my mind?”

  “I thought you’d be able to see reason,” he snapped back.

  “Reason? Reason? Is it reasonable for you to be able to follow your dream but not for me to follow mine? What the fuck is reasonable about that?”

  Noah raked his fingers through his hair again then turned back into the room. He grabbed his boxer briefs and jeans from the chair where he’d tossed them in the heat of sexual frenzy and yanked them on.