The entire time, he just lay there with the duvet pulled over his private area, one arm cocked up under his head. He didn’t seem to notice or care that they had scattered the pillows and knocked the lamp over, or that the TV remote had been kicked across the room and was by the bathroom door.

When she had the bow tie in place, she buttoned the single fastening on the jacket.

“It doesn’t have to be like this, Anne,” he said in a low voice.

“Yes, it does—”

“Will you cut it out about my reputation Jesus, at least give me a chance to prove you wrong on that one.”

Anne crossed her arms over her chest. “Even if you were a model of monogamy, it still wouldn’t work.”

“I don’t care what people say down at the four-nine-nine and neither should you.”

“You don’t get it.” She shook her head. “There are rules for firefighters. If we were to get into a relationship—and that is a big ‘if’—I’d have to transfer out of the station.”

“No, you wouldn’t—”

“Yes, I would,” she interrupted. “I checked the regulations. We have a duty to disclose personal relationships, and I have less seniority than you so I’m the one who’d get relocated—and no matter where they sent me, it would be a step down. The four-nine-nine is the best