Page 3 of King

Then, as if remembering, she straightened her shoulders. “I’m Ella, by the way. Ella Carter.”

King glanced up, meeting her gaze. Something in his chest tightened.

Ella.

He didn’t know why, but the name settled over him like something familiar. Like something important.

He gave her palm one last careful swipe before nodding. “King.”

“King?” Her brows lifted. “That’s your name?”

“Yeah.”

Her lips quirked up in a smile. “Strong name.”

King felt the corner of his mouth twitch, but before he could respond, the mayor started introducing Ella to the rest of the firefighters.

King released Ella’s hand, but the entire time the mayor spoke, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. Even when they disappeared into the firehouse, he couldn’t stop thinking about her.

One thing he knew for sure was that he had no idea how he was going to work around Ella and be able to concentrate.

THREE

ELLA

Ella tried to focus as Mayor Winslow guided her through the firehouse, explaining where the food drive tables would go and how they would organize donations. She nodded at the right moments, took mental notes, and even managed to ask a few intelligent questions. But if she were honest, she only absorbed about half of what was being said.

The other half of her attention? Completely tangled up in thoughts of King.

The name suited him for some reason. He had a commanding presence. But it wasn’t just his name that had left an impression. It waseverything. The deep reassurance of his voice, the rough warmth of his hands as he cleaned her palm, the contrast of inked skin and a gentle touch.

She had never reacted to a man like that before.

Sure, she’d been attracted to men in passing, admired them just like she’d noticed them admiring her. But this? This was different.

This was a wildfire in her veins and heat between her legs.

King was intimidating in the kind of way that made her pulse flutter unpredictably. The tattoos that peeked out from beneath his sleeves, the sheer size of him. Tall, broad, powerful.He was nothing like the polished men in pressed suits she was used to working with or that she’d grown up around. He was different, which she liked. It was the exact reason she’d moved to Shadowridge. To experience something new in her life. She just hadn’t expected it to be a hot fireman who got her all flustered and fidgety.

And yet, it wasn’t only physical attraction that had her mind spinning.

It was the way he’d taken care of her so effortlessly. He hadn’t laughed when she tripped. He hadn’t made her feel small or ridiculous. He had simply helped her, steady and unshaken, cleaning her wound like it was the most natural thing in the world while trying to reassure her that it wasn’t a big deal. That had made her heart react in a way she wasn’t sure she was ready to admit.

She stole another glance at King as they moved through the bay doors at the end of the tour.

He was standing near one of the engines, talking with a few of the other firefighters. The navy-blue fire department T-shirt stretched over his chest, his arms crossed over his broad torso, muscles flexing as he shifted. Compared to her, he was so big. The contrast made something warm and unfamiliar coil low in her stomach. Ella had been aroused before, but this was on a whole other level. She was pretty sure she was going to need to change her panties when she returned to the office. Too bad she didn’t have a spare pair with her. At least the ladies’ room at City Hall had a blow dryer in the cabinet. She may not be drying her hair with it, but it would definitely be useful.

She tore her gaze away quickly, hoping no one had noticed her staring.

The mayor gestured toward the car waiting out front, and Ella smiled, smoothing down the front of her dress.

All right, time to go. Stop thinking about tattooed firefighters and get back to work.

But just as she stepped toward the car, King moved. In a blink, he was there, striding toward her with long, purposeful steps. Before she could even think to fumble with the handle, he pulled the door open.

His gaze flicked down to her feet, then back up, the hint of a smirk tugging at his lips. “Figured I’d make sure you didn’t trip this time.”

Ella’s breath caught. The teasing warmth in his voice sent a fresh wave of heat to her cheeks and between her legs.

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