Only Her Smokejumper Firefighter - Cami Checketts Page 0,1

men. This isn’t the safest spot for anybody, but especially not a beauty in a flimsy dress and heels. If the winds making this fire a nightmare shift direction, you’ll die without the protective equipment we have on, and some of my men will be in danger because they’ll try to protect you.”

That was blunt and terrifying. “I think you could protect me,” she said saucily.

His gaze traveled over her face. “I would die trying,” he admitted.

Mavyn froze, captured by the depth of his gaze and his words. This was a real man. An honorable, committed man. He put the lives of others first and was true to home and country. Meeting him for dinner might be dangerous for her closed-off heart.

“Now, Miss …?”

She swallowed hard. “Mavyn Vance.”

“Miss Mavyn Vance. Avatar’s at seven. In return, you protect yourself and my men by getting away from the front lines.” It wasn’t a question.

Normally Mavyn would tell Mr. Firefighter Captain that nobody ordered her around, but she couldn’t resist the power of that blue gaze or his sincere plea. He wanted her safe and he wanted his men safe. It would be incredibly selfish of her to continue prancing around their camp. “I’ll see you tonight,” she said.

“Thank you.” He tilted his chin to her and strode off toward the helipad. He cut the finest picture of a tough firefighter she’d ever seen. She couldn’t resist snapping several pictures of him. When he glanced back over his shoulder and gave her a look that was smokier than the air around them, her heart caught in her throat.

Wow. He was really something.

He disappeared into the smoke and she felt an intense letdown. As if they were in love and she’d just sent her warrior off to battle. Goodness, that was silly and dramatic. She forced those feelings away and took more snapshots of the camp as she walked to her car. Not a fancy sports car like he’d intoned, but a sensible Hyundai Sonata.

Tonight would be interesting. She’d need to stay strong. She’d ask Cora to pray for her. Mavyn believed in her Father above, but she trusted her own instincts, not Heaven. She knew He didn’t want to hear what Mavyn had to say anyway.

Mavyn waited just outside of Avatar’s at six-fifty-nine p.m. that night. She was definitely overdressed in three-inch heels and a pale blue dress that accentuated her figure and contrasted nicely with her dark hair and skin. The restaurant was in a small strip mall within sight of the bay. Peering through the window, she could see a clean, small space with nicely set wood tables. It was busy and the patrons were devouring delicious-looking food.

It was hard to think of food when she was going to meet the incredible man from this morning, and she didn’t even know his name. He’d said “his men” so she assumed he was a captain—or some kind of supervisor, since her research showed that wildland firefighters didn’t have captains. Whatever his rank, he’d been impressive and fun to flirt with.

Minutes ticked by and she worried he was going to ditch her. That would be a first for her. She was always the one doing the ditching. Maybe he’d been caught in a fire and couldn’t come. Maybe, even as she sat here waiting, he was being burned to death. The thought made her throat tighten and her stomach ache. She didn’t even know him and already she felt emotionally invested in him. She needed to stop those feelings, pronto. If she couldn’t stay detached from him like she did all other men, maybe she needed to run now, ditch out before she became emotionally invested.

A nice black quad cab truck pulled into the parking lot before she could act on her fears and run. She watched, hoping it was her man. Rolling her eyes at herself, she had to keep remembering that he wasn’t her man. Not even close. The door to the truck flung open and a fit body climbed out, sucking the oxygen from her lungs. He was dressed in a gray Henley shirt and black chinos. He wore them well. Extremely well.

When she looked into the man’s handsome face and those blue eyes twinkled at her, she felt the world settle. This may be the man who would change her opinions about never settling down. She tried to mentally slap herself, but it wasn’t working as his grin showed that dimple in his left cheek. At that moment, she