Title

Cullen

I married the love of my life the day we turned eighteen. She died two years later, and I vowed I’d never love another woman. I’ve kept that vow.

Until now.

When a series of unexplained fires start destroying my family’s constructions sites, the bossy but beautiful arson investigator not only gets down to business, she gets under my skin.

––––––––

Helena

I have one last chance to prove to my boss that I can keep my emotions out of my job. The problem is, the ‘job’ happens to be the gorgeous owner of a family construction company who someone wants to destroy.

I’m falling in love with a man who’s wholly unavailable and I must get to the bottom of who wants to ruin him and his brothers without losing myself, or my life, in the process.

CHAPTER ONE

Cullen

My phone buzzed on my nightstand, and I groaned as I reached for it. It was my first day off in three weeks and I was exhausted. I saw my brother’s number come up and swiped my thumb over the screen. “Someone better be dead, Cade.”

“First Street’s on fire.”

“What? What the hell are you talking about?”

“All three buildings at the First Street site are on fire.”

I knifed out of bed, banging my knee on the same nightstand as I did. “Fuck! God damn it!”

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” I grumbled, knuckling the sleep from my eyes. “What do you know?”

“Not a whole hell of a lot yet, just get your ass down here.”

He hung up and I pulled on a pair of jeans and a clean T-shirt, rushing out the door before realizing I’d forgotten my wallet and heading right back inside again.

I slammed the door behind me and let out frustrated growl. “Fuck!”

Dragging my hands down my face, I took a few minutes to breathe.

God, I miss you, Bethy.

It had been fifteen years since my wife, Elizabeth, had died, but I still missed her with every fiber of my being. We might have only had a few years together, but we’d made every second count. Times like this was when I missed her the most.

I grabbed my wallet and headed back out to my truck.

Arriving at the building site, a crew of firefighters dousing the last remaining embers of what was clearly a four-alarm rager.

I could see two of my brothers, Cade and Cameron, speaking to a uniformed firefighter, so I parked across the street and made my way to them.

“How did this happen?” I demanded.

“Chief Rawlings,” Cade said. “This is my brother, Cullen. He’s our third partner.”

I shook his hand and nodded. “Nice to meet you. What happened?”

“We’re thinking it was electrical,” Cameron said.

I shook my head. “All three houses are on completely separate circuits.”

“There could have been an electrical fire that started in one house and spread to the others.”

“I wired those goddamn houses myself. There was no problem with the electrical,” I ground out, glaring at Cade.

“Worksite fires like this can be caused by any number of things. There will be a formal investigation, and I assure you, we will get to the bottom of this,” Rawlings said.

“Thank you, Chief,” Cade said.

“My office will be in contact,” Chief Rawlings said, handing Cade his card. “Give me a call if you have any questions.”

Cade nodded, and the team wrapped up just as our eldest brother, Connor, rode up on his Harley.

Connor, or as his club brothers called him, ‘Hatch,’ was the Sergeant at Arms for the Dogs of Fire MC. He wasn’t part of our construction business, but our family unit, which included baby sister, Cricket, was as tight as a family could be.

Hatch climbed off his bike and jogged our way. “Holy fuckin’ shit. Hell, Cameron, I thought you quit smokin’.”

“Very fuckin’ funny,” Cameron snapped. “We don’t know whose fuckin’ fault it is yet.”

“Hey, who says it’s anyone’s fault?” I said. “Like the chief said, it could have been any number of things.”

“Well, fires don’t just start by themselves,” Cade said. “Regardless of how this happened, we’re fucked.”

“We have insurance,” Cameron pointed out.

“But we don’t have time,” Cade snapped. “This project was already a week behind, as is. Now we have to start from scratch.”

“Jacobs is gonna be pissed,” Cameron agreed.

“Pissed nothin’, he’s gonna shit a golden baby,” Cade said.

“I’ll talk to Jacobs,” I said. “You two focus on getting the site cleaned up and ready for the rebuild.”

“I can have a few prospects come out with shovels and shit,” Hatch said.

“Thanks, brother,” Cade said.

I hugged my brothers, then headed to meet with our boss.

* * *

Helena

I just sat down at my desk when my boss entered my cubicle.

“Lt. Bridges?” he said, handing me a file.

I glanced up at him, then at the file. “What’s this?”

“Building site fire on First Street. Happened early this morning. I want you to get right on it.”

“Those multi-million dollar homes being built across from the park?” I asked.

“One and the same,” he confirmed. “I’ve already heard from the builder, and I can tell he’s going to be a pain in the ass. I want this case closed and airtight, ASAFP.”

“So I’m not suspended?” I asked, trying to keep the sass out of my tone.

I had a habit of taking my work ‘too personally,’ according to the department. My last case involved a family home fire which resulted in the death of a six-year-old girl. All the evidence I had collected pointed to arson, but the department chiefs disagreed, pressuring me to close the case as an accident. I disobeyed direct orders and continued my investigation until I had irrefutable proof that it was arson.

Even though an arrest was made, and my initial findings were vindicated, by breaking protocol and going over my boss’s head, I had painted a target on my back. Now every move I made was being double and triple checked.

“Screw this one up, and it won’t be a suspension, it’ll be your ass out on the street.” He leaned in. “You got me, Lieutenant?”

I gave him salute. “Loud and clear, Chief.”

He frowned, then let out an irritated grunt. “Then what the hell are you still doing here?”

“Already gone,” I said, standing to grab my keys and the file off my desk.

After grabbing a coffee to go from the kitchen, I headed to my government issued truck, heading to the site.

* * *

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