Read Online Bad Boy's Touch (Firemen in Love Book 3) by Amy Starling - Free Book Online
Authors: Amy Starling
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you'd have gotten bored of it either.”
“How do you know the right girl won't have the same effect on you?”
His question made me nervous. The very thought of falling in love terrified me – because that had happened once before, and all I got out of it in the end was heartbreak.
Madison was special, but so what? She was just another woman in a sea of thousands of others. If she didn't want me, then fine. I'd find someone else who did.
But even as I thought it, I already knew it was a lie.
Chapter 6 - Madison
Those words, soulless yet full of hatred, kept replaying in my mind.
This arsonist was sick in the head. Most of them probably were, but this? The note, the covering his tracks... It was almost the same behavior you'd expect out of a serial killer.
It was the day after we'd found the warning letter at Twinkles. I'd showed the paper to the staff, including the manager, Toby, but they all claimed never to have seen it before. I doubted any of them were lying.
I dusted the paper for fingerprints right away, but wasn't surprised when I found none. A guy this clever likely wore gloves. How in the hell were we going to catch him?
“Mad, you're getting way too skinny! You work so much, you don't make time to eat.”
Jenna, my roommate and little sister, burst into my office holding a paper sack. The odor of fryer grease and burgers made me kind of queasy.
“Here.” She plopped it onto my desk. “I knew you forgot to pack a lunch again, so I grabbed you some food on the way to school.”
“Thanks, I guess.” I peered into the bag. “But you know I'm trying to cut down on fried foods.”
She scoffed. “You're so uptight. What's the point of life if you don't live it a little?”
“I can live just fine without fast food.” I gobbled a french fry with a sigh. “Besides, I don't have time to eat. I'm trying to figure out a case.”
She got very excited. “Ooh, what is it? Is there a crazed murderer running around town? Jail break? Police chase?”
“That this kind of thing interests you so much is a bit disconcerting, Jen.”
“You're so lucky. Your job is much more fun than listening to boring lectures all day – and then serving food to irate asshole customers after that.”
I patted her hand. “I wouldn't call a lot of this 'fun.' And being a waitress sounds like a real adventure.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. I like to compare my shift with walking through hell. My boss is Satan, and the customers are a bunch of soul-sucking demons.”
“You honestly worry me sometimes.”
She pleaded with me again to tell her about the case, but I couldn't be honest with her.
Yes, she was an adult now. Nearly twenty years had passed since our house was destroyed in that blaze. I got over the trauma by shutting my emotions down and sort of acting like it never happened; or that's what the therapist told me, anyway.
But Jenna never quite healed from it. She was four years old when it happened. So young, so innocent. The blaze didn't hurt her physically, but it scarred her in other, more insidious ways.
So great was her fear of the flames, she avoided fireplaces and wouldn't stand near the grill at cookouts. If I told her there was an arsonist in town, she'd be petrified.
No, I would keep my mouth shut for her sake until this guy was caught.
“Come on, Mad! Who died? I can totally deal with it.”
“No one died,” I snapped. Not yet. “It's just... related to that gang shootout from the other night.”
She squeezed my arm hard. “Oh, I can't believe you got rescued by Brett Silver. He's so hot, he could be a movie star.”
And yet, for some reason, he chose to pursue me. He kissed me.
His pushiness annoyed me, but I would be lying if I didn't admit maybe I wanted more.
“He kind of asked me out,” I confessed. “He's not the kind to take no for an answer.”
She squealed. “Holy crap, tell me you said yes!”
“He's... not good for me.”
“Who cares if he's 'good'
“How do you know the right girl won't have the same effect on you?”
His question made me nervous. The very thought of falling in love terrified me – because that had happened once before, and all I got out of it in the end was heartbreak.
Madison was special, but so what? She was just another woman in a sea of thousands of others. If she didn't want me, then fine. I'd find someone else who did.
But even as I thought it, I already knew it was a lie.
Chapter 6 - Madison
Those words, soulless yet full of hatred, kept replaying in my mind.
This arsonist was sick in the head. Most of them probably were, but this? The note, the covering his tracks... It was almost the same behavior you'd expect out of a serial killer.
It was the day after we'd found the warning letter at Twinkles. I'd showed the paper to the staff, including the manager, Toby, but they all claimed never to have seen it before. I doubted any of them were lying.
I dusted the paper for fingerprints right away, but wasn't surprised when I found none. A guy this clever likely wore gloves. How in the hell were we going to catch him?
“Mad, you're getting way too skinny! You work so much, you don't make time to eat.”
Jenna, my roommate and little sister, burst into my office holding a paper sack. The odor of fryer grease and burgers made me kind of queasy.
“Here.” She plopped it onto my desk. “I knew you forgot to pack a lunch again, so I grabbed you some food on the way to school.”
“Thanks, I guess.” I peered into the bag. “But you know I'm trying to cut down on fried foods.”
She scoffed. “You're so uptight. What's the point of life if you don't live it a little?”
“I can live just fine without fast food.” I gobbled a french fry with a sigh. “Besides, I don't have time to eat. I'm trying to figure out a case.”
She got very excited. “Ooh, what is it? Is there a crazed murderer running around town? Jail break? Police chase?”
“That this kind of thing interests you so much is a bit disconcerting, Jen.”
“You're so lucky. Your job is much more fun than listening to boring lectures all day – and then serving food to irate asshole customers after that.”
I patted her hand. “I wouldn't call a lot of this 'fun.' And being a waitress sounds like a real adventure.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. I like to compare my shift with walking through hell. My boss is Satan, and the customers are a bunch of soul-sucking demons.”
“You honestly worry me sometimes.”
She pleaded with me again to tell her about the case, but I couldn't be honest with her.
Yes, she was an adult now. Nearly twenty years had passed since our house was destroyed in that blaze. I got over the trauma by shutting my emotions down and sort of acting like it never happened; or that's what the therapist told me, anyway.
But Jenna never quite healed from it. She was four years old when it happened. So young, so innocent. The blaze didn't hurt her physically, but it scarred her in other, more insidious ways.
So great was her fear of the flames, she avoided fireplaces and wouldn't stand near the grill at cookouts. If I told her there was an arsonist in town, she'd be petrified.
No, I would keep my mouth shut for her sake until this guy was caught.
“Come on, Mad! Who died? I can totally deal with it.”
“No one died,” I snapped. Not yet. “It's just... related to that gang shootout from the other night.”
She squeezed my arm hard. “Oh, I can't believe you got rescued by Brett Silver. He's so hot, he could be a movie star.”
And yet, for some reason, he chose to pursue me. He kissed me.
His pushiness annoyed me, but I would be lying if I didn't admit maybe I wanted more.
“He kind of asked me out,” I confessed. “He's not the kind to take no for an answer.”
She squealed. “Holy crap, tell me you said yes!”
“He's... not good for me.”
“Who cares if he's 'good'
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