Page 2 of Rekindle My Heart

Her heart stopped. Erica had been in the fire business long enough to know it wasn’t furniture.

She signaled her crew mates and finished their area before heading outside to find the chief.

Marc Rivera was huddled with several police officers. Perfect.

She pulled off her helmet. Several wet strands of hair had slipped free from her flame-retardant hood. Erica tucked the usually reddish-blonde hair, now dark with sweat, back in and crossed to the men. “Chief, I found something. You won’t like it.”

Rivera and the others turned to face her. She nodded to Sergeant Johnson and Officer Brannon. The fourth man stopped her cold. Detective Ryan Daniels.

“What do you have?” Rivera asked.

“We’ve got a body.” She turned to her boss, but her gaze bounced back to Daniels.

Daniels swore under his breath. “Are you sure?”

Did he just question her? Erica felt her spine snap ramrod-straight, not a slow stiffening of her vertebra one-by-one, more like a whip, fast and sharp. Daniels had that effect on her.

“Well, being I’ve been doing this for twelve years, and unfortunately, it’s not my first body… Yeah. It’s pretty charred. I mean, the blaze was really hot, but we were on it quick enough that the form was still intact.”

Rivera grabbed his radio and relayed orders to the crew. This long night just got longer.

The last thing she wanted to do was stand here with Ryan “Fucking” Daniels. His dark hazel eyes scrutinized her. Some things never changed.

On a sharp turn, she pulled back. Not retreating. No. She wasn’t running. At least that’s what she told herself.

“Erica, wait a minute.” The splash of him charging through the puddles reached her ears a second before he grabbed her arm.

She whirled and pinned him with a move-it-or-lose-it look.

He released his fingers. “Can you tell me anything else about the body?”

“Nope. That’s for the medical examiner.”

She started walking again. He fell into step with her.

Of course, he did. The man had long legs, and while she wasn’t short, he had a good four inches on her. Which, in some ways, was perfect.

She swept the thought from her mind.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to question your job ability.”

She spun to face him. “Really? Because that’s what you did. In front of my boss, no less.”

“I can fix this.” His hands flew up in surrender.

“I don’t need you to fix anything. Rivera knows I’m competent.” She started walking again. If her stride happened to be a little faster, so be it.

“Okay, well if you need—”

She cut him off, her tongue sharp and quick. “Listen, Daniels. We have successfully avoided each other for over a decade. It’s working. Let’s stick to that plan.”

“Fine, but it’s been thirteen years.”

Oh no, he did not go there.Blood flooded her face. It had nothing to do with tonight’s fire and everything to do with the rage simmering inside her. She couldn’t believe he wanted to have this discussion now, in the middle of a fire.

“Don’t you dare. I know exactly how long it’s been.”

“I didn’t mean…” He backpedaled, and the spark of victory flared in her chest. Not that anyone could win in this situation.

“It doesn’t matter what you meant. I need to get back to work. Goodbye, Daniels.” She started shoving her gear into one of the truck’s compartments.

She didn’t look back, but she knew he’d left. Electricity lit her body whenever he was near. That started in high school and unfortunately, hadn’t changed.

The more space she could put between herself and Ryan Daniels, the better.