Free Picture Perfect (Butler Island) by Nikki Rittenberry Page B

sensitive area just below her ear. “I don’t know. It
depends, I guess”, she whispered.
    “Depends on…”
    Olivia tilted her head to the right
slightly, giving him better access. “What are ya offering?”
    “Well, I had a good time the other
night. I was hoping we could do dinner again… here.”
    “I thought you were working
tomorrow.”
    “I am.”
    Olivia placed her hand against his
chest and gently pushed him back so that she could look at him. “I’m confused.
If you’re working tomorrow, how are we gonna have dinner here?”
    Tucking a strand of hair behind one
of her ears, he answered, “I don’t work twenty-four hour shifts anymore.”
    “I don’t understand—Ty does.”
    “That’s because he’s a lieutenant.
Last year the city was having a budget crisis. They were looking to eliminate
four firefighter positions and three at the police station. So to prevent
lay-offs, we all bound together and came up with a solution: work twelve hour
shifts. Everyone pretty much agreed that cutting back our salary was better
than no salary at all.”
    “Okay, so, what happens if there’s an
emergency after seven o’clock?” she challenged.
    “Well, in the evenings I’m on call.”
    “On call…”
    “Yeah, we all
have an on-call phone. When we’re needed, dispatch alerts us and then
we either head back to the station, or meet the fire engine at the determined
destination.”
    “Oh. I guess that’s why the bunk room
looked like a ghost town when I visited the
station last week.”
    Grant nodded in
agreement. “So about dinner…”
    Staring into her coffee cup, she
smiled. “You just don’t give up, do you?”
    “Not when I see something I want…”
    Olivia gnawed on her bottom lip for a
moment.
    This is a bad idea, girl.
    Yeah, she was aware of that—their
chemistry was on the verge of combusting. Having dinner wasn’t necessarily the
issue. Her concern was what came after. But somehow, telling him no didn’t sit
right with her either.
    They had fun. So what if they
acted on their mutual attraction? She wasn’t going to sleep with him—she didn’t participate in casual sex. Control was her middle name.
    No way was she going to lose it.
    Surely she could stay in control and still have fun…
    “What time?”

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER 7
     
     
     
    Clutching a bottle of pinot noir,
Olivia raised her free hand and firmly knocked on the front door. She inhaled a
deep, calming breath and then slowly exhaled. She’d had reservations about
tonight. Yes, it was just dinner. But she was beginning to see a pattern: every
time she was around Grant she tended to lose
her self-control. It was like the pleasure side of her brain overpowered
the logical side.
    She’d been so indecisive about
tonight. Numer ous times she’d dialed his
number to cancel, but hesitated .
    Why? Well,
unfortunately that was an easy question to answer: He showed a genuine interest
in getting to know her — the real her .
    And the fact
that his lips ignite an internal inferno had nothing to do with it?
    Okay, so that probably played a role
in her decision to keep their dinner plans, too. But, damn it, tonight she was
going to practice some restraint. The logical side of her brain had to remain
in charge because if she lost control again, she was in big trouble.
    “Hey, beautiful”, he said as he
answered the door, although “beautiful” couldn’t even begin to de scribe how amazing she looked. She wore a deep green blouse that buttoned down the front, mirroring the intensity from her
emerald eyes. A pair of black jeans hugged her soft curves, daring his eyes to
trace her sensual silhouette. Stepping forward, he wrapped his arms around her
narrow waist, filling his lungs with the scent of her floral shampoo.
    “I hope I’m not
late”, she said as she gently leaned into him.
    “Nope—you’re right on time.”
    After their embrace, Olivia followed
Grant inside. He took the bottle of wine from her grasp