Vivian Arend - High Passion

The arrival of his Lifeline teammates had never been so welcome, even if it seemed strange to see Lana as a part of the group. Devon acknowledged their wave before handing his pool cue to the pouting brunette. “You can take over my spot. Gotta chat with the team for a bit.”

“I could get you a drink,” she offered, pressing her breasts against him before he backed out of groping range.

“Thanks. I’m good.” He twisted away, ignoring the woman. He gave Luke a frustrated glance before descending on Xavier and Lana. “Tell me you’ve got room to hide me.”

“Awww, are the dulcet darlings on the prowl again?” Xavier slid behind the table and shrugged. “No objections from me. Tripp’s joining us in about an hour—Lana wanted to do the wing thing, and I said I’d show her around.”

Devon waved at one of the servers to get their attention. “The wing addiction already reared its head, did it?” he teased.

“I fought valiantly as long as I could, but some cravings are too strong to be denied.” Lana sighed dramatically before grinning at him. “Only, if I’m going down, I’m taking the lot of you with me.”

“It’s an honest way to go.” Devon ordered a round. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he scrambled to pull it out. It wasn’t Alisha’s number on the screen, but his sister’s. He offered a quick apology to Xavier and Lana, then turned to the side to answer it. “I thought I’d made this number unlisted. Damn, how did you find me?”

His sister’s familiar laugh carried over the line. “You’ll never escape. Face it, little boy, we have ways to track you down.”

Devon accepted a glass from Xavier. “What’s up? I can’t talk right now.”

“Short and sweet. Two weeks from now you’re expected for Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday. I’ll be nice—you don’t have to bring anything if you bring a girl.” Sandy hummed. “Or, if you plan on showing up solo again? Check the list of wines Dad posted on the family Facebook page. Shouldn’t set you back too much.”

The constant taunting from his siblings to grow up, get a real job, and find a one and only hadn’t diminished over the years. Gotten worse, in fact, as they’d partnered off with true loves and started producing a copious number of rug rats. He loved his family, he really did, but there was no way he was bowing to the god of marital bliss even if they had all fallen victim.

It was his life, dammit. None of them seemed to have realized that yet. To them, he was still the little boy. The one who couldn’t figure out what needed to be done.

The one who couldn’t be trusted.

Frustration washed over him before inspiration hit hard enough to brighten the bleak prospect of an extended family dinner. This time he might pull one over, especially if it meant not having to put out for the outrageously expensive wines his father liked to try at holiday dinners.

He pictured Alisha’s bright smile and the way she could work a room. The woman was seriously talented when it came to public speaking—he bet he could persuade her to come home with him and pacify them all. “I’ll raise the stakes. I bring a woman to face the lot of you, and you have to make pecan pie.”

Sandy paused. “You’re not serious. Are you seeing someone?”

Devon didn’t comment. “You set the rules. I’ll talk to you in a couple days. Gotta run. Later.” He hung up feeling damn good about the possibility of hanging out with Alisha and pulling a fast one on his perfect family.

Beer and wings had arrived, and the look of ecstasy on Lana’s face as she licked the sauce off her fingers brought a reluctant smile to his face.

She moaned happily, slipping her tongue over her lips. “Whoever came up with the idea of coating wings in sauce should be canonized. My mouth is in heaven.”

“It was probably someone in the heart and stroke profession.” Xavier leaned in and nudged the basket of teriyaki closer. “Try these. They’re my favourite.”

She pulled one out, chatting easily with Xavier as the paramedic slowly decreased the distance between them until he was right next to her. Devon watched in amusement as Tripp arrived, and Xavier took total advantage of adjusting the chairs to place Lana’s within crowding distance.

Lana smiled and flirted, her cheeks brightening as the evening continued. She twisted toward Devon, a huge grin shining out. “I like working with Lifeline. Three hot guys to hang out with in the evenings? I could get used to this.”

She bumped her water glass and it tipped toward Devon. He caught it before it completely went down, about half the water sloshing over the table edge and into his lap. He swore under his breath but kept his smile in place.

“I’m so sorry.” She had her hands in his lap, mopping up the moisture with her napkin.

Devon caught her wrists, pulling her fingers off his groin and back to the top of the table. “No harm done. It’s only water.”

“Good thing it wasn’t the beer,” Tripp teased before changing the subject. “Lana, tell us about yourself. Marcus introduced you and all, but I don’t remember him saying specifically where else you’ve worked?”

She gave Devon another apologetic glance before facing Tripp. “I was on a few volunteer search-and-rescue squads before I went to school. Haven’t been able to find a full-time team yet, so I thought doing the call-out desk for Lifeline would be a good change of pace. I can still be involved in an active group and maybe . . .”

Xavier nodded knowingly, glancing at Devon and Tripp. “Maybe get a shot at joining the team down the road?”

Lana hid behind her glass for a moment. She lowered it, smiling brightly. “Well, not right off, you know. You’re a pretty amazing act. I need to do a lot more training to match your skill levels.”

“If you ever want to join in, let us know,” Xavier offered.

Devon resisted giving Xavier a kick under the table. Not only was Xav pushing it way too hard to try and impress Lana, now he was dragging the rest of the team into it? Like hell. She might have been hired for call-out duties, but that was a far cry from working a rescue. He already had Alisha to double-check on for a bit; he didn’t need to babysit anyone else.

Unfortunately, Lana latched on to the suggestion like Velcro. “Anytime. I’m available, and I’d love to join you.”

Tripp was making peculiar faces. Devon had to look away to avoid bursting out laughing. Instead he tried to turn the conversation to more generic topics than the meet-up times and workout suggestions Lana pushed forward in an attempt to pin them down.

Xavier topped up everyone’s glass. “Important topic of discussion. I want to know. If Erin is getting a bigger bird, what equipment improvements are we getting?”

“My vote is for a hot tub at HQ. Or maybe a flat screen,” Tripp said.

“For what? You want to hang around HQ and watch movies?” Devon shook his head. “Get a life.”

Tripp lifted a wing and shook it at Devon. “I heard a rumour Marcus was considering setting up housing for us. Now tell me you wouldn’t enjoy that as a bonus? Rent-free living.”

“Hell, no.” Devon shook his head. “Maybe the price is right, but I already train with you, eat with you, and hang out in the evenings with you when I can’t find anything better to do. Why would I want to sleep with you as well?” Not to mention that would totally make the current list of activities he wanted to go through with Alisha a hell of a lot harder.

“You’re afraid that you’ll have to stop hauling home all the women.”

Good grief. “Yeah, I use a bucket truck to scoop them up on a daily basis. Give it a rest, guys.”

“I’m sure you don’t,” Lana objected on his behalf. “You’re a type of shining prince in knightly armour. The kind to sweep the princess off her dragon and kiss her until she falls asleep.”