Beautiful Burn Read online

  "Okay, so the only thing we're taking slow is telling people about our relationship. Everything else, we did pretty quickly."

  The laughter died as she pulled to the curb. The neighborhood was starting to get dark, the sun dipping behind houses as a small group of kids flooded into the street a few doors down, their laughter clear for the whole neighborhood to hear.

  The house they parked in front of was bright yellow with a picket fence surrounding the front yard. "He lives here?"

  "Yep," Kennly confirmed. "According to my research, he grew up here. When he was released from prison, he came home to dear old mom and has been here ever since."

  "It looks so normal."

  Kennly snorted. "Autumn, what did you expect it to look like?"

  "I don't know. Run down, shitty, maybe a few bullet holes. Not like this."

  Gwen looked between the women she shared the car with. "I'm not sure about this. Jensen said it wasn't too late, and we could go back to the house. Forget all of this. Tell the cops how good he is with computers and let them decide if they want his help or not."

  "Are you kidding?" For the first time, Autumn turned away from her window. "We already talked about this. We decided this was the best option."

  "Yeah, but that was before. The guys know now; they can help us, and we can save our asses. Not only that, how exactly are we going to get the information to the cops, if we get any? We can't just walk up and hand it to them. What we're doing is illegal. It's a crime."

  "But we are trying to help."

  "It doesn't matter."

  "Guys," Kennly's call from the back seat was ignored.

  "It is still a crime, Autumn! Starling will arrest us so fast, our heads will spin."

  "Then we don't take the information to him. We find someone else. We'll give it to Atticus, he's invested in this now. He'll help."

  "Guys, he's coming."

  "Who is?"

  "Holy fuck!" Autumn screamed as a man's knuckles bounced off her window.

  There was a tall, thin but muscular man with black hair and dark eyes standing outside the car. Gwen swallowed nervously. He was pissed.

  "Roll down the window."

  "What are you doing?" Autumn's window continued it’s decent. "Stop!"

  "Gwen, we've come this far, we're not turning back now. We're here, he's here, we may as well talk to him."

  "At least you have the decency to look a little sheepish, Autumn." He looked around the car. "Gwen, Kennly, nice to be able to put a face to the names."

  Gwen narrowed her eyes at the man. "How do you know our names?"

  "Well, I dated Autumn once, not that I would recognize her on the street now, but the three guys who showed up at my door this morning were nice enough to tell me the names of the women who would be visiting me today." All the women groaned at the same time. "They said that would be your reaction when I mentioned they had already been here."

  "We're so fucked," Kennly whispered from the back seat.

  "Did they tell you why we were coming?"

  "They did." He looked around the neighborhood before handing her a small file. "This is all the information I could dig up. I tracked the IPs as best as I could, but I'm afraid they are still not going to be of any help to you. This guy is good. Every time I got close, he disconnected, and I lost it. I was able to narrow it down to some place in Hill City, but that was all."

  Gwen stared at the papers as defeat settled into her bones. All this and they were still no closer to knowing who the arsonist was. "Thanks, Colt," she managed as she shifted the car into gear. The sooner they faced the music, the better.

  "I will dig into it as often as I can, but I'm on probation. Not even supposed to have a computer in my house, let alone internet access, so it will be slow going."

  "If you find something, you'll let us know?"

  "No, those men of yours made it perfectly clear that any information I find goes to them." Autumn, throwing herself against the back of the seat, had Colt chuckling, "Yeah, he said you would react like that." He slapped the top of the car and took a step back. "Good bye, ladies. Have a good evening."

  As soon as they pulled into Jensen's drive, the other women peeled off in different directions, leaving her there to deal with the none too pleased man standing in the open garage door with his arms crossed over his chest. "Chicken shits!" she yelled at them as they all but tripped over themselves to get to their cars before Jensen could lecture them. She straightened her spine then walked to Jensen and let him take her in his arms.

  "Don't worry, bellissima, they won't get far."

  "I don't doubt that." With her forehead resting on his chest, her words were muddled and muted. "How much trouble am I in?"

  "Enough. Did you just growl at me?"

  "No, Sir, just groaned. He didn't have anything for us."

  "So, the three of you snuck around and kept things from us for nothing?"

  Gwen turned to Zander as he joined them.

  "Yeah."

  Leland huffed a laugh as he took up his position on the other side of the couple. "Subbies."

  "You're not just going to let them drive away, are you?"

  "No, we disabled their cars." At her look of shock, he explained. "Simply loosened a battery cable."

  She pulled out of Jensen's arms, looking into his dark eyes. "Can we get it over with, Sir?"

  He took her hand and led her into the house and straight to his room. He shut the door before sitting on the bed and pulling her onto his lap. "Right now, the only thing I care about is why you didn't come to me. I gave you plenty of opportunities to do just that. The guys and I would have helped. You wouldn't have had to sneak around, and Colt could have started searching for information weeks ago. Now, you're facing a punishment that could have easily been avoided, had you only trusted me."

  "I do trust you!"

  "Then, why?"

  A long, suffering sigh passed her lips. "At first, it was just an idea Autumn had. I didn't think it would go anywhere when we first talked about it. Then Kennly had all the information we needed, thanks to her dad, and next thing I know, we're pulling up in front of his house."

  He pulled her head to rest on his chest, forcing her to breathe in his fresh, soapy scent with just a hint of the smoke smell he never quite got rid of. "The three of you are in so much trouble."

  "I know, Sir." She eyed the paddle lying next to his thigh. "That's for me."

  "It is." She shifted uneasily, as if it had already been used. "You will be fine, bellissima. Your ass will hurt, but you'll survive."

  "I know." She forced herself to relax and bask in the feel of his arms wrapped around her, the feel of his warm breath rustling her hair—safe, loved.

  They sat there for a few minutes before they heard a door in another part of the house slam shut. "Let's get this over with?"

  She shivered as she stood from his lap. "Yes, Sir."

  "Take off your pants and panties, then bend over the bed."

  She worked quickly to do as he said, kicking the clothes to the side as soon as they pooled at her feet. With a deep breath, she took up the required position. "Spread your legs. I want to see that beautiful, glistening pussy." She groaned, his words creating more of the wetness he was referring to. "Spread your checks."

  The three words had her head snapping up. "Sir?"

  "Get back into position and do as you're told. If you make me repeat myself, I will add to what I'm already going to give you."

  She swallowed hard, already knowing what was to come. With her head resting on the comforter, she reached back and pulled her ass cheeks apart, exposing her darkest secrets. "This is harder to do than I thought it would be."

  "How so?"

  "It's embarrassing and hot at the same time, but it's also a physically awkward position to hold." The cold dribble on her anus had her jumping and her hold slipping. "See what I mean, Sir?"

  "Don't worry; you won't need to hold it for long." He worked the lube with his finger,
making sure to coat her both inside and out. When he slipped the finger into her tight rosebud, a whimper fell from her lips. With each movement, he pushed it further into her, until her whimpers had morphed into moans.

  "Ever worn a plug before?"

  "Yes, Sir."

  "How long?"

  "An hour or so." She moaned, letting her eyes drift shut, hating how his playing with her ass made her feel so good.

  "You will have this one in all evening." She looked over her shoulder. "Eyes forward. Good girl. You will also be expected to do things as you normally would."

  "Sir?"

  "That means no standing all night while we watch TV or eat dinner. You will sit as you normally would, paddled ass, plug, and all."

  A surprised cry passed her lips as his warm finger was replaced by the cool of the metal plug. The joy he took in torturing her was evident. He pushed it in a bit before pulling it out, only to repeat the process. Her plea fell from her lips without thought. "Sir."

  His weight settled onto her back as the fingers of his free hand honed in on her clit, alternating between taps, rapid flicks and pinches. "You're dripping. Do you like me playing with your ass?" A whimper was the only response she could muster.

  He buried two of his digits in her core, the sudden invasion causing her muscles to flex around the pumping invaders. "Sir, I-I need."

  "Don't you dare." He continued her torment with the plug but stilled within her pussy. "You do not have permission to come, and you won't." He chuckled at her cry of disappointment. "Girls who misbehave do not get rewarded." With the last word, he popped the plug into place. "God, I want you."

  "Yes, please."

  He chuckled. "Don't you want to know the conditions?" At her nod, he continued. "You're still not allowed to come. This would be solely for my pleasure. If you come, I will repeat your paddling."

  It took a nip to her thigh for her to realize that he expected an answer. "Yes, Sir."

  "Paddle first. I want to feel your hot ass against me as I thrust into you." She watched him pick up the paddle and spin it in his hand a few times. "Do you like our new toy? Zander bought it for us, just for this punishment." She groaned at his declaration. "Yeah, he says that's how Kennly reacts every time he pulls it out, too. Five."

  She looked back at him, shocked. "That's it?"

  "They aren't going to be love taps, but, yes, only five." The first swat had her arching her back and a curse falling from her lips. "Five is plenty." His next assault landed directly below the first. "Three more."

  He didn't give her time to think, laying them down rapidly. The final swat landed across both of her sit spots, forcing her forward onto her belly as a sob fell from her lips. The sound of his zipper had her scrambling back into position. "Jensen."

  "I'm going to fuck you, Gwen."

  "Please."

  She groaned as the head of his cock bumped her entrance. "Ask for it."

  "Please fuck me. Please, Sir." In one solid thrust, he was buried to the hilt. "Fuck!"

  "Fuck is right." His thrusts were almost brutal, but she loved it.

  "Sir!"

  "Don't you dare." He took hold of her hips, making sure to hit the spot he knew would drive her to the edge.

  "I'm close. I can't hold it."

  "You will!"

  He pinched her clit hard before giving the ring embedded in her nipple a sharp tug, moves she would realize later were an attempt to help her hold off. "That's it, baby. Squeeze my dick." She did just that, and after a few thrusts, he buried himself deep in her core and let out a pained groan.

  Chapter 15

  "That man's sweetness is going to rot the teeth right out of your head one of these days."

  As she rolled her eyes, Gwen flipped on the turn signal and took the corner just a little too sharply. "Woops."

  "Woops, my ass." The other woman pulled on her seatbelt in an attempt to get it to loosen up as she flipped the other woman the bird.

  "Eventually you will learn not to tease me when I'm driving." Gwen shrugged before changing the subject. "Think this is his?"

  Autumn turned to look out the window, the flashing lights of the fire truck in front of them creating a soft glow of red around her dark hair. "Yeah, the marshal got a letter the other night."

  As she gripped the steering wheel tightly, she shook her head. "I don't get it."

  "You know no one but the firebug ever understands why they do it."

  "No, I don't understand why he is still sending letters?"

  "It's his calling card."

  "But why? He talked to us on a live video feed. Why go back to snail mail? It isn't guaranteed that it's going to get there when he wants it to or that it will arrive there at all. Then what? He wouldn't get the recognition he thinks he deserves. He's already warned us about following the rules." Gwen backed the rig in as they arrived on scene and leaned her head against the back of the seat. "Something is off." The relative silence of the ambulance allowed her mind to wander and a nagging thought to take root.

  "Are you ladies going to hide in that bus all night, or are you going to grace us with your presence on this active fire scene."

  Hand over her heart, Gwen glared at the man standing outside her window. "What the fuck, Starling!"

  "In case you hadn't noticed, we have a building on fire here."

  The door narrowly missed the arrogant man as she threw it open. "We just got here."

  "And were getting ready to what? Take a nap?"

  Toe to toe with the officer, she felt her control start to slip as Autumn came to her side. "You want to do my job? You go right ahead." When his only response was a narrowing of his eyes, she huffed a laugh. "That's what I thought. Get off our backs and give us time to do our job."

  "Medics needed at the ladder truck."

  The radio crackled as she pressed the button and brought the mic up to her lips. "10-4, on our way."

  "About fucking time you did your job."

  The mumbled dig had Gwen turning back to argue, but a determined Autumn stepped in front of her. "Someone needs us." With a final glare, she followed her partner.

  No one was found at the truck. "Medic to radio with traffic." After a few minutes with no response, she tried again. "Medic to radio with traffic." With still no response, she switched to plan b. "Chief."

  "Go ahead, Gwen."

  "Patient at the ladder truck not found. Anyone know of an ETA or who requested us?"

  "Negative. I'll find out."

  With a sigh, she sat on the rough, grated chrome at the side of the truck. "An arsonist who is just not quite right and then ghosted by a patient. Perfect day."

  "At least it can't get—"

  "Don't say it!" Gwen clapped her hand over the other woman's mouth. "Saying that is almost as bad as saying the 'q' word."

  As she pushed her hand away, Autumn rolled her eyes. "That is an old medic wives' tale. You're not going to magically have more calls just because someone says the word quiet and something is not going to happen as soon as you say that it couldn't get any worse."

  "Firefighter Boisy to dispatch."

  "Go ahead, Firefighter Boisy."

  "We have a situation. I need PD to meet me at the ambulance."

  "See!" Gwen jumped from her perch, snagged the trauma bag and ran back to the ambulance. As soon as the rig came into view, she stopped in her tracks.

  The rig sat low to the ground, all four of its tires flat, but what caught her eye first was the bold black lettering adorning the once pristine vehicle. Whore. Tramp. Slut.

  "Looks like the arsonist is back to his old tricks again." Starling's strut brought him to her side.

  "Something's wrong."

  "No shit, Carlson. We have a sick and twisted arsonist in our city."

  "No, I mean something is off."

  "Bullshit!"

  "Let her talk," Atticus demanded as he and Jensen joined the small group. "Go ahead, lovie."

  "The arsonist wouldn't do this."

&
nbsp; "Bullshit! He has already done exactly this at one of his previous fires."

  "No, he didn't." Gwen's glare cut to the ignorant officer before she turned back to his superior. "Yes, the arsonist has painted the ambulance before, but it was nothing like this. It was a poem."

  Atticus nodded. "I remember, something about fire being brighter."

  "Yes! And why would the arsonist go from demanding that you protect the women of the station to calling us whores?"

  "This wasn't him."

  "What? You agree with them? They are glorified boo-boo kissers! Fuck, the only reason they are here is—"

  "Say it." The growl came from deep within Atticus's chest. "Please, for the love of God, say it! It would be all I need to take that badge from your chest." After a pause, he continued. "That's what I thought. While you didn't say enough for me to demand your badge, you spewed enough hate from your mouth for me to remove you from this case."

  "You can't fucking do this!"

  "I can."

  "This is the closest we have ever been to this guy; you pull me off now, and we will never get him!"

  "You're right, we won't." Atticus gestured between himself and Starling. "But we will." He tapped himself on the chest before throwing his arm out and turning to the swarm of officers, firefighters and pedestrians who had gathered. "This community deserves better than you half-assing your way through this investigation."

  "Did you get a plug put in your ass, too?"

  "Right after the ginger."

  "No ginger for me," Gwen said as she scrubbed at the side of the rig, determined to rid the vehicle of the hatred. "But then again, I am still not allowed to orgasm, so maybe I would have rather had the ginger."

  "Never used ginger before, I will have to do some research." As soon as her elbow connected with his abdomen, she was gathered in his arms. "You're lucky we have a meeting with PD, or I may just have to poke you back." She tensed within the circle of his arms.

  "Did you tell them about Colt? They can't know he was involved until he has information, maybe not even then. We can't risk it."

  "Relax, Autumn, we didn't tell them anything, and we won't until we all decide the time is right."