TONY: Slow Burn (Raging Fire Book 1) by Kallypso Masters (the false prince TXT) 📕

spending the night with one of the older ladies who’d been eyeing him and the other bachelors. They made him nervous. Most were older than Mama—some by more than twenty years. What if one of them set her sights on him?

If Tony was lucky, they’d choose Rafe, Matt, Franco, or any of the other firefighters he’d roped in for tonight’s gala instead. At least Carm had promised Tony would go up for bidding last. Maybe everyone would be tapped out for funds after the other guys were auctioned off.

Then there was that Nick guy from New York. Was there something going on between him and Carm? The man had flown all the way from New York to participate in this event, which was more of an effort to be near Carmella than Tony had made in the past six weeks. Tony had only managed to see her twice since their dive in September—and here they were at the second weekend of November already.

Whenever Tony spotted Nick talking with Carm across the room, they seemed almost conspiratorial. She’d laughed about something Nick had said. Once, Tony had locked gazes with her, and she’d acted as if she’d been caught in the act of doing something she was embarrassed about. He surveyed the room just now but couldn’t find either one of them.

Shit.

Tony couldn’t believe it, but he was jealous. Not wanting to be that guy, he shook off the unfamiliar feeling. Nick seemed like a good guy and probably only came here to help her with her fundraiser, just as Tony had.

That the proceeds would go to the local fire department made it worth it. More people should step up and support the men and women who gave so much of themselves to keep their communities safe. Carmella was a hero to him for taking the time to do this. And from what he could tell, this event would raise lots of money. She had a way of getting shit done when she put her mind to it.

Of course, he’d have been here to support Carm no matter what cause she championed. The woman had taken up permanent residence in his heart.

Maybe you need to prove it.

The dive shop had closed for the season, so work with his budding dive team had moved to indoor lectures and swimming pool practices mostly. Several of the team had talked about taking a trip to the Caribbean to get in more dive time.

Tony didn’t want to think about returning to the islands without Carmella. He vowed to spend more of his days off with her—at least until the ski season kicked off, which was only a couple of weeks away.

Even after that, he could come to Aspen and prepare her some nice meals so she could relax and avoid the crowds after a long day’s work. He enjoyed cooking with her.

“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for joining us tonight and for supporting such a good cause.” Tony’s gaze moved to the stage where Sandro had drawn everyone’s attention. “As most of you know, my sister has been working tirelessly for the past two months on this gala. Let’s give Carmella D’Alessio a round of applause in appreciation for all she’s done!” The room erupted with clapping and shouts of praise, and Tony’s chest swelled. He was so proud of her. She truly was amazing. He scanned the room again, but still couldn’t find her.

Or Nick.

“I want to remind you that the silent auction will continue in that corner of the ballroom for another hour or so.” He pointed to the area to Tony’s right. “If you haven’t placed your bids yet, be sure to lock them in soon. But don’t worry! We’ll give you one last chance to contribute to the cause after the bachelor auction ends.”

Tony would be glad to have that over.

“Before we move on to that portion of the evening’s festivities, though, I’d like to invite Carmella up to tell you more about why this cause is so important.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of red and turned to watch Carm approach the stage. The formfitting dress hugged her body like a second skin, and he couldn’t wait to get his hands on her during their first dance tonight—not to mention help her get out of that dress later on.

Sandro placed a kiss on Carm’s cheek, and she laughed at something he said then turned toward the audience. Her gaze scanned the room until she found Tony, then she locked her eyes with him momentarily and smiled. His heart beat a little faster, anticipating the night ahead.

Her attention returned to the others in the room. “As many of you know, our brother Marc is an EMT training to be a paramedic with a nearby fire station. This past June, Marc married into a family of firefighters. All four of my sister-in-law’s brothers went into the fire service to give back to their community and inspired by and to honor their papa, who, unfortunately, made the ultimate sacrifice more than nine years ago while a member of the Aspen Corners Fire Department’s search-and-rescue team.”

Tony wasn’t sure why she focused on his family, although all who served in their fire departments were part of the larger firefighting family.

“In June, the Aspen Corners station had a tragic call involving the loss of a mother and child in a swift-water accident. One of the firefighters involved has made it his mission to start a dive team for the department that may one day lead to a water-rescue squad. And that’s what brings us here tonight—to raise money to help this new dive team.”

Tony’s heart thudded to a stop before pounding again. This was a fundraiser for his dive team? How’d she kept this a secret? God, he didn’t think he could love this woman more, then she went and did something like this.

Again, the word love had crept into his thoughts about Carmella, but this time he refused to deny