Lighting the Alpha's Fire: 4-Book Steamy Romance Bundle

Chapter 1
Matt

“Atta boy, Torch. You got this,” I call out to one of my fellow firefighters as he crawls through an entanglement box in his turnout gear. A couple of the guys and I set up the obstacle course this morning and now the whole crew is competing for the fastest time. In addition to the box filled with wires, the guys have to crawl along a hose line, make their way through a mock ceiling collapse, breach a freestanding wall, carry a fifty-pound bag of rock salt across the apparatus bay, do twenty-five pushups, and drag a dummy to the finish line.

Easy? Hell no. But no one said being a firefighter was easy.

The rest of the crew and I continue to holler out encouraging words to Torch as he proceeds through the rest of the course. When he drags the dummy across the finish line and slams his palm down on the buzzer I set up at the end, his chest is heaving.

“Nice work, man,” I call out.

Torch pulls off his helmet and his mask and continues to draw in deep breaths. “Talk about a freakin’ obstacle course. Damn, Blaze.”

When I joined the station last year and the crew found out it had only taken me five years to climb the ranks from probie to captain, they nicknamed me Blaze. They also started immediately joking around about me vying for the chief’s job. And it’s true; I do have my heart set on eventually being fire chief. But if it doesn’t work out to become chief here, I’ll find another place to do it.

As another member of our crew launches into the course, two new sets of footsteps—two heavy ones and four light ones—approach from behind. A moment later, Chief Adams is standing beside me and his German Shepherd, Atlas, is sitting on his hindquarters beside him. Atlas is essentially the station dog, although he doesn’t do much aside from follow the chief around.

The chief crosses his arms as he surveys the obstacle course.

“Looks good,” he says after several seconds.

I nod my thanks. “A few of the boys and I beefed it up this morning. Best time so far has been just under five minutes.”

“Let me guess. Your own?”

I laugh, then tell him he’s guessed correctly. I can’t escape my reputation for being the fastest one around here. I don’t do it to show off, though. I’ve trained myself to get things done quickly because it can make the difference between saving a life or not.

When the buzzer goes off again at the end of the course, I clap and let out a loud whoop.

“Who’s next?” I call out to the guys. “Bruiser?”

“You bet, Captain,” he calls back.

Beside me, the chief clears his throat. “Don’t forget,” he says to me. “We have that class visiting in half an hour.”

I nod. “Yep. This’ll all be cleaned up by then.”

“Good.” He runs a hand over the salt-and-pepper stubble on his chin. “It’s my daughter’s class, by the way.”

By that, he means the class of first graders his daughter, Brooke, teaches. I knew Chief Adam’s daughter taught at one of the local elementary schools, but he hadn’t previously mentioned that it was her class coming in today.

“Looking forward to meeting her,” I tell the chief.

He nods, gives my shoulder a friendly slap, and walks off.

***

I make good on my promise and the guys and I have the area cleared and the floors swept clean by the time the school bus pulls up outside the station. As I glance out through the garage door window panes and catch a stream of wide-eyed kids disembarking the bus, I can’t help but laugh at how awestruck they look. But, hey, I get it. I was once that age, too.

I take my spot next to the chief as footsteps and chatter approach the front door of the firehouse.

“Remember what we talked about, okay?” a woman’s voice—Brooke’s voice—says on the other side. “We’re all going to stay together as a group, and we won’t touch anything without asking permission first. Everyone ready?”

There’s something about her voice that resonates deep in my chest. But it’s when the chief opens the door and I see Brooke for the first time that it really feels like the wind’s been knocked out of my lungs.

Brooke is a vision of beauty like I’ve never seen before in my life. The funny thing is, she’s just wearing plain black pants and a simple blouse, and there’s nothing flashy about her hair or makeup. It barely even looks like she’s got lipstick on. But there’s just something about her. She’s naturally stunning.

And those curves of hers…they’re enough to drive a man insane.

“Hi, Dad,” she says to the chief, giving him a grin and a hug. Then she sets a hand on his shoulder and turns to speak to her students.

“This is my dad, everyone. He’s the chief of the fire department. Isn’t that cool?”

“What’s the dog’s name?” a boy calls out.

When Brooke laughs, it’s like everything around her glows.

“This is Atlas,” says the chief, reaching down to scratch behind the dog’s ear. “Come on in, kids. Let’s show you around the firehouse.”

The kids stream in, chatty and giddy as they follow the chief and Atlas. I stay near the door—near Brooke—welcoming them in. After the last kid makes his way into the station, I shut the door and look at the goddess standing before me.

“Hey,” I say. “I’m Matt.”

Her gaze meets mine, and it’s like the heavens open up above us and the angels sing.

“I’m Brooke,” she says. “Although you should probably call me Miss Adams in front of the kids.” Her head tilts a little to the side. “You’re the captain, aren’t you?”

“At your service,” I say.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Captain Matt.”

The way her eyes glitter at me tells me nothing’s ever going to be the same.