Fearless (Pier 70 #2) Read Online Free

working a shift at the station, he was running his roofing business.
    First and foremost, Noah was a firefighter, and he lived for his job, having been on Engine 45 for the better part of the last thirteen years. Becoming a firefighter had been his lifelong dream, and it kept him on his toes, which was all that he cared about. He’d learned long ago that keeping busy was the best way to avoid what was lacking in his life.
    His last semi-relationship—more like friends with benefits—had detonated more than five years ago. He hadn’t been interested in repeating that anytime in the near future—his track record with relationships was rocky at best—so his social life was on the fritz. Which explained why he spent so much time at the station with the guys he considered family. They were easy to be around, so it wasn’t a hardship.
    “Pearson!”
    Sliding one eye open, Noah nodded his chin in a silent affirmation that he was awake as Captain Miller passed through the room once more, this time on his way to the kitchen.
    “S’up?” Noah met the captain’s dark gaze.
    “Now that I think about it, aren’t you supposed to be on vacation?”
    “Tomorrow,” he confirmed. If a seven-night cruise with his stepsister and her friends could be considered a vacation, then yes. Personally, Noah saw it as more of a favor, with the bonus of an all-expense-paid boat ride attached. The week following would be vacation.
    Since the day Milly had told her father about the trip, Larry Holcomb had been worried that his sweet baby girl—Noah knew Milly, she was mischievous and lighthearted, but sweet? Nah, he couldn’t see it—was going off into the great unknown without a chaperone. Didn’t seem to matter that Milly was thirty-one years old and had been on her own since she’d graduated from college at twenty-one. Larry was definitely a little overprotective of his daughter, at least from what Noah saw.
    He still remembered the night he’d been roped into going. He and Milly had been having dinner with the parents while she filled everyone in on the upcoming trip. Out of the blue, Milly had mentioned it would be nice if Noah went with her, that it would make her feel more at ease. An unabashed manipulation if he’d ever heard one.
    Of course, Larry had thought that Noah going along with her, to keep an eye on his baby girl since it was clear her best friend would be otherwise occupied getting married, was a brilliant idea. He had even offered to pay for the trip. Noah remembered the way Milly’s eyes had widened, her smile radiant as she’d pleaded with him to say yes. And because she’d asked so nicely, he hadn’t been able to tell her no. So, rather than work, Noah was being forced to relax.
    His phone chimed and he fished it out of his pocket.
    Speak of the devil.
    The text read: Please tell me you’re not planning on backing out on me.
    He wondered how many times she’d said that in the past two months. Eight? Nine? Twenty?
    Not planning on it. Flight leaves in the morning.
    Yay. Gonna need someone to drink with. Gannon’s a hot mess.
    Noah grinned as he typed, The guy’s getting married. What did you expect?
    Married. That was a word that sounded strange, even in his head. Not once in his life had Noah given serious consideration to settling down and getting married. Sure, he’d dated a few guys who had potential, but only once had he actually given it a fleeting thought—definitely not serious, though. Granted, at the time, he’d been young and stupid, so he’d done the only thing he’d known to do. He’d laughed off the idea of a happily ever after, effectively sending the only man he’d ever found himself in love with running for the hills.
    Noah tried his best not to think of that time in his life. He’d been barely twenty-three, and settling down hadn’t even crossed his mind. Sure, now, at thirty-eight, there had been a few times in the past couple of years that he’d wondered what it would be like.