Page 32 of Falling for the Playboy Pilot

JANNA

I didn’t even know what to say. I felt horrible.

I stood there, frozen, as the chaos unfolded around me.

My heart pounded in my chest, and my stomach churned with guilt.

Tyler and Marcus were both on the ground, groaning, and Dalton had stormed off like a tornado leaving wreckage behind.

The tarmac felt eerily quiet now, except for the whispers of the crew gathered nearby.

I could feel their eyes on me, their judgmental stares making my skin itch.

I knew what it looked like. Hell, a blind person could see what it looked like.

Cheryl put her hand on my arm. “Janna, are you okay?”

I shook my head, because I honestly didn’t know if I was. “No. Cheryl, I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. Those guys were just talking to me, and Dalton, he just lost it.”

She sighed, placing a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “I know. But right now, we need to focus on damage control. Tyler and Marcus are pissed, and rightly so.”

I nodded. “I will. I’ll apologize. This is all my fault.”

“It’s not all your fault, Janna. Dalton’s got his own issues, and he’s the one who threw punches. But you’re part of this now, so we need to clean it up.”

“Yeah,” I muttered, glancing over at Tyler and Marcus, who were being helped up by a couple of other firefighters.

Tyler was clutching his ribs, his face twisted in pain, while Marcus dabbed at his bleeding lip with a cloth.

They both glared at me. I felt like shrinking into the ground.

If I had known Dalton would react like that, I never would have poked the bear.

“Go wait for me in the kitchen,” Cheryl said. “I’ll handle the guys first, then we’ll figure out what to do next.”

I hesitated, my pride warring with my guilt. “Are you sure? Maybe I should?—”

“Trust me,” she interrupted. “Right now, they’re not in the mood to hear anything from you. Let me calm them down first.”

Everyone was going to blame me. I was the new element. I was the one that disturbed their happy little family thing they had going.

I nodded reluctantly and turned toward the main building. My feet dragged as I made my way inside. The kitchen was empty. I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and slumped into a chair at the table, resting my head in my hands. I was so embarrassed. How had I let things escalate like that?

It felt so childish. I was one of the youngest people in the business. They already saw me as the newbie with zero experience and now they were going to think I was playing high school games.

Tyler and Marcus had been flirting, sure, but it hadn’t been anything serious. Just harmless banter. Then Tyler had pulled me into his lap, which I wanted no part of, and suddenly Dalton was there, fists flying. I hadn’t even seen him coming. Chaos had erupted around me.

“No.” I shook my head. “Bullshit!”

I jumped to my feet. I was not taking responsibility for Dalton’s choices. He was the one that lost his shit. And he was the one who made it clear he wasn’t interested in anything but a little sex here and there.

I went upstairs and changed into another pair of shorts and a T-shirt. When I returned downstairs, Cheryl and some of the others were making lunch.

“Cheryl, can I borrow your car?” I asked.

She raised her eyebrows. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

She knew exactly where I was going. “I don’t want this to fester.”

She laughed softly. “Yeah, probably good idea. He’s undoubtedly up there tearing more shit up.”

I walked up to her and turned my back to the guys at the table. “Is this normal?” I whispered the question. “The fighting?”

She sighed. “Yes, but usually it’s because someone looked at somebody the wrong way or insulted their dog.

And usually the tussling doesn’t start until the end of the season when everyone is burned out.

But when you have thirty to fifty guys working and living together day in and day out, yeah, it happens.

Testosterone and all that. All of these guys are badasses that thrive on adrenaline.

But I think you definitely need to get this shit handled now.

It’s not a good look and it does not bode well for the rest of the season. ”

“I need to talk to him,” I said.

“Yeah, you do. Keys are in the car.”

“Thanks.”

“Good luck,” she said with a laugh.

I walked out, passing Chief, who was still talking to the firefighters. Thankfully, I remembered the way up to the cabin. My heart pounded because I had no idea if he even wanted to see me.

Once I arrived, I knocked on the door and waited. His truck was parked out front, so I knew he was home. If he didn’t answer the door, I would kick the damn thing in.

He opened the door with a glass of amber liquid in his hand. He looked at me like I was a salesman interrupting his dinner.

I wasn’t sure what I expected to find when I showed up, but I was suddenly relieved. I had actually been worried about the asshole. He stormed off before I got a chance to see if he was okay. Although he definitely kicked their asses.

And that was kind of hot.

“You stupid man. What the hell were you thinking?”

The words were out of my mouth before I could think twice.

He turned and walked back into the cabin. “Doesn’t matter.”

I marched in behind him, kicking the door shut. My hands went to my hips. “It damn well matters. You said we were casual. You said you didn’t want to catch feelings but then you deck firefighters who barely talked to me.”

He turned to face me and casually took another drink from his glass. “So you wanted to flirt with those guys? Were you planning on hooking up with them?”

I blinked, the absurdity hitting me full force. “No. I was talking to them, Dalton. A conversation.”

“That wasn’t a fucking conversation. That was foreplay.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re an idiot.”

“I’m not the one that let myself get felt up in front of the whole crew.”

My eyes widened. I couldn’t believe his reaction.

I stepped closer, hands still on my hips, glaring up at him.

“Felt up? Are you serious? It was harmless flirting, Dalton. Something you’d know nothing about since you’re apparently allergic to human connection unless it involves your fists and fucking! ”

He took another sip of his drink like we were talking about the weather. “Harmless flirting? He pulled you into his lap, Janna. That’s not harmless. That’s him getting physical.”

I threw my hands up in exasperation. “Oh, please! You don’t get to be territorial. You’re the one who said this was casual. No strings, no feelings, remember? Or did you conveniently forget that part while you were playing caveman?”

His jaw tightened, and I could see the muscle ticking there. “Maybe I don’t like watching other men put their hands on you. Ever think of that?”

I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest. “Oh, so now you care? Now you’re Mr. Protective? Let me guess. This is just another one of your rules, right? You get to fuck me whenever you want, but no one else gets to so much as look at me?”

He set his glass down on the counter with a thud. “That’s not what this is.”

“Then what is it, Dalton? Because from where I’m standing, it looks like you’re contradicting yourself. You want casual, but you’re acting like I’m yours. You can’t have it both ways.”

He stepped closer, his towering frame looming over me. “Maybe I don’t know what the hell I want, Janna. Maybe seeing you with those guys made me realize how much I—” He cut himself off, his jaw clenching.

I shook my head. “I need to know what the fuck you want. Because you can’t keep dragging me along on your emotional roller coaster.”

“I want you.”

That was the last thing I expected him to say. “What?”

“I want you, but beyond that, I don’t know. I thought I didn’t feel this kind of thing.”

He sounded like he was in pain, and given his hand, maybe he was. But I wasn’t going to let him off the hook that easily. I continued to stand there without saying a word.

“I’m torn,” he said.

“Torn?”

“I’m torn between doing the job that I’ve always done and this. My job is my calling. At least that’s what I’ve always thought. I don’t build relationships because what I do isn’t exactly conducive to that. I’m trying to figure out if it’s worth it.”

“You mean if I’m worth it,” I said.

“I don’t know if I can trust this . These feelings.”

I couldn’t help it. I actually felt bad for him. He seemed to be really struggling. “You’re an idiot,” I said again, this time with affection.

He smirked. “I know.”

“Come on, let’s get your hand cleaned up. Did you break it?”

“No.”

I walked into the bathroom and found a washcloth. I soaked it with warm water, wrung it out, and then returned to the kitchen. I gently cleaned the bloody knuckles without saying a word. He said nothing.

I grabbed the frozen peas and put it on his hand. “Go sit down. I’ll make you something to eat.”

“I’m fine.”

“Go sit down.”

After making him lunch, we sat on the back porch for a while. We didn’t talk much at all. It was as if his little revelation had stolen all his words. There was nothing more to say.

After making an early dinner, he grabbed my hand and led me to his bedroom. He undressed me and then himself before climbing into bed. He didn’t try to have sex. He simply held me. His arm banded around my waist with my ass snuggled against him.

What the hell?

I had a million questions for him, but I wasn’t going to ask just yet.

The man seemed to be in the midst of some serious internal turmoil.

I supposed I had to accept what he was able to give me for now.

And I honestly wasn’t sure what to say either.

I wasn’t sure I was ready for a relationship.

My career was just getting started. He wasn’t wrong about this whole thing being a giant distraction from the job.

I woke early with Dalton’s arm still locked around me. I smiled into the morning light. It was early and I wasn’t ready to leave his bed.

And then I heard the vibration from his phone on the nightstand. That must have been what woke me up. Concerned it could be work, I reached over and grabbed it. I hit the button, and a text was on the screen.

It wasn’t work.

Tanya: See you tomorrow at Martha’s at 3.

Every part of me froze. Tanya? Who the fuck was Tanya? Did he have a girlfriend? Was that what he was struggling with?

Oh god. I did not want to be the other woman.

I disentangled myself from his body and quickly dressed.

I left without saying a word. I didn’t know what game he was playing, but I was not interested.

Fuck that.