Firestorm - Ellie Masters Page 0,18

yourself from radiant heat.

The heat of a wildfire easily reaches several thousand degrees. It’s a death sentence for those caught out in the open, but place a few inches of rock between yourself and the flames and the deadly heat can be survivable.

After that, it’s all about whether there’s enough oxygen and minimizing the damaging effects of smoke inhalation.

This woman has her entire head covered in wet cloth. She’s a damn survivor and I find that not only impressive, but insanely attractive.

A woman with a head on her shoulders?

How often does that happen?

I’m nearly done clearing the rock from her legs when she wakes up, bucking and screeching at the top of her lungs.

“Get off of me!” The woman turns feral, fighting me off as if I’m attacking her rather than saving her ass.

I lift my hands and back off.

“Miss…Miss!” I try to break through her panic.

She crawls further into the tiny cleft, but there’s no place to go. Her panic is palpable as her breaths deepen and the pitch of her voice rises.

“Miss! I need you to calm down. I’m here to help.”

My shout stills her frantic movements and I don’t know if it’s because she’s given up, realizing there is nowhere to run, or because she realizes I’m here to help.

“My name is Asher, Asher La Rouge, I’m a member of a fire fighting crew. You fell into a ravine. I’m here to rescue you.” My words are slow, measured, and project calm.

Unlike my friend, Grady Malone, in my job as a wildland firefighter, we rarely run into civilians. Our job is on the front lines putting out forest fires. Grady knows how to talk to panicked civilians so he can get them out of burning buildings. This part of the job is very unfamiliar to me.

Fortunately, she stops struggling and peers up through the cleft. I remove my yellow helmet to let her see my face.

“Rescue me?” Her voice is soft, breathy, exquisitely feminine.

“Yes.” I flash a grin, it’s my best quality, and I hope it helps her to relax. “Are you injured? Do you need help getting out of there?” I’m still confused as to how she got in there in the first place.

“What…happened?” She’s a little out of breath.

“I was hoping you could tell me.” I glance up at the hill.

Did she start this fire?

Chances are good and my gut twists in anger. Too many people disrespect the wilderness, thinking they can do whatever the hell they want without regard to the consequences of their actions. She probably set the damn blaze. It’s all I can do not to reach out and strangle her, but I’m a fucking professional, a veritable saint, and right now, that means I’m her savior.

The strangulation can wait until she’s safe.

It’s fully dark now. The thick smoke blots out the moon and stars. Up and to my left, over my shoulder, a ruddy glow fills the sky. Yellow flames dance in the churning column of smoke.

For me to see flames, they have to be shooting thirty to forty feet in the air.

Maybe more.

Our little blaze is all grown up and now qualifies as a full-scale forest fire.

My headlamp provides the only illumination down in this ravine, accentuating the shadows, making things indistinct. But I can see what’s right in front of my face, in fact, I’m looking at something incredible right now, breathtaking even, as she squirms and wiggles her way free of her makeshift shelter.

“I think…” My jaw drops as the most perfect ass I’ve ever seen wiggles out from between the rocks.

Covered in dirt and soot, she’s a mess, but what a damn fine mess she is.

More than fine. The woman is stunning.

When she removes the mask and hands it to me, silky hair spills around her shoulders in flowing golden curls, but that’s nothing compared to the brilliant blue radiance of her eyes, or her full rosebud lips which I swear were made to suck dick.

Holy fuck, my mind twisted sideways fast.

I feel like a love-struck, horny, teen-aged kid who got his first look at a pair of boobs and doesn’t know what to do next. Swallowing thickly, I remind myself why I’m here, and it’s most definitely not for any of the fantasies spilling through my head.

Get a grip, Ace.

She struggles a little, which makes her ass wiggle. There’s no avoiding it. I lean in and steady her hips, planting my hands right above where my inappropriate thoughts want to put them.

Her ass is now front