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

had that kind of response to a female since middle school. The speed with which she yanked her hand away made him wonder if she’d felt something too.

“Good night, Tony.” He watched her turn and walk away. The blanket hid her ass from view, but he imagined how it would look bare as she strutted from his bedroom to the bathroom or kitchen.

So much for getting any sleep tonight. This attraction could go nowhere. Carm was way out of his league and not the kind of no-strings woman Tony usually messed around with. She had commitment written all over her face, but he wasn’t the kind of guy to settle down.

So why did she make him wonder what it might be like to at least date her more than twice?

Chapter Ten

All through dinner the next night at her condo, while trying to enjoy a salad from her favorite Greek restaurant, Carm couldn’t stop thinking about Tony. No, worrying about him. Ryder had said he’d make sure Tony talked to a professional about what he’d experienced—both during the bad call and in the aftermath at the campground. That alleviated some of her concern, but not all of it. And then there was that talk outside their tents.

She couldn’t stop thinking about that moment when she thought he might kiss her. The fact that she’d wanted him to shocked her. Tony Giardano? The two had rubbed each other wrong since the night they’d met.

She remembered back to that night at the café near the resort. She had been talking with Angelina after a spat with Marc had nearly sent her running when Tony came barging in to rescue his sister. Carm supposed their loyalty to each of their siblings had been the initial reason for the friction between her and Tony. It had just been perpetuated throughout the months of wedding planning.

But maybe she needed to let go of that first impression and take a closer look at the man. Yesterday had shown her that Tony wasn’t the carefree ladies’ man she once thought he was. Not that he was her type.

I mean, Tony as serious family-man material? Not a chance.

Well, he certainly loved his mama and siblings.

But Carm would be lying to herself if she didn’t confess she had wanted him to kiss her last night. Maybe his vulnerability during the flashback had brought out her protective instincts. Surely that’s all it was.

Yet, when he’d touched her, it had felt as if a lightning bolt coursed through her body, much like it had during that stupid garter reversal Saturday night. Tony wasn’t her type by any stretch of the imagination, and yet she couldn’t deny the spark of physical attraction.

The man was built like a linebacker with his broad shoulders and muscular arms and legs. His face was nice to look at too. But at this stage in her life, she wasn’t interested in hooking up with a man who couldn’t commit to more than a date or two. Carm wanted to build something long-lasting with a man.

You’d do well to keep that in mind when your libido tries to get the best of you next time.

After finishing dinner, Carm stretched out on the couch and picked up the first of four daily newspapers that had been delivered while she’d been on the mountain. Below the fold in Monday’s edition was a photo of Aspen Corners firefighters with a ladder truck parked along a riverbank. She looked more closely to see if Tony was among them, but couldn’t tell with all their gear.

We had a bad call Sunday.

Oh God, no! A mother and her young child had drowned! She sat up and pored over the article about the drownings, certain this is what had triggered Tony. It had to still be so raw. What a heavy burden, one he’d probably carry for the rest of his life.

Nothing could be more devastating to a first responder than losing someone, but to lose a child had to be the worst of all. Had the mother been wearing a Broncos T-shirt like the one Ryder said Tony had seen before being triggered at the campground?

Carm picked up Tuesday’s newspaper only to learn that Tony and Ryder had been the two SAR volunteers who’d found the victims the next day. Dear God! As if Sunday’s tragedy hadn’t been bad enough to witness. Those poor men!

What on earth was he doing responding to the call on Capitol so soon after that tragedy? Was he trying to push himself over the edge or simply wanting to replace the tragedy with a positive rescue? First responders wanted to save everyone. Was he blaming himself for not being able to do so this time?

She wished she’d known about all this yesterday. If anyone needed a comforting hug, it was Tony. Ryder, too, although he seemed to be handling it better, outwardly at least, and he liked to keep his distance. Ryder had been on that rooftop in Iraq where Marc and Damián had been injured and their sergeant killed. Still, how much death and destruction could one person be exposed to before cracking? Both men had their coping mechanisms and support networks in place, but thank God Marc hadn’t gone on that run Sunday. Regardless, he’d eventually have bad calls like this one that would haunt him the rest of his life too, but she hoped it would be many years from now.

Marc and Ryder had strong, supportive women at home to keep them from suffering in silence, but Tony lived alone. Would his family and friends watch for changes in him and be there when he needed someone to talk to?

Of course, all three were grown men who had chosen career and volunteer paths that would result in hits to their mental and physical well-being. There wasn’t a damned thing she could do or say to change that.

But as she prepared for bed later that night, she hoped that Tony’s brothers, mama, or sister would notice