Blaze looks like he’s more interested in helping to evacuate people out of the building than he is finding somewhere else to go, so I join him in knocking on doors and telling people they need to get out as the smell of smoke grows stronger.
Hours later, the building is evacuated, and the fire department has located and extinguished a small kitchen fire.
“You know what, I think we should just call it a night,” I say, exhausted, smelling of smoke and ready to go home and lie down. At the moment, I’m tired of looking at the motel.
“No, Ari. I’d love it if we could finally get the chance to hang out. We’ve been at this for the third night in a row, so let’s just do it. I’ll go and rent a car and drive us out of the city to somewhere more secluded.”
I would offer to drive my car, but I haven’t had a chance to remove anything from it that might link me to the FBI, so I agree to Blaze’s plan.
I yawn, the gravity of the day weighing down on me. “Sure, let’s do it.”
Not an hour later, Blaze pulls up to the still smoky motel building and picks me up in a blue SUV. We small talk as he jumps on the highway. At this point, I’m unsure if we’re on an official date, or if I’m still just doing my job, so I go with the flow.
“So, you’ve only been in New York for two months?” he asks as he turns onto the expressway.
“Yeah, two months. I came up from North Carolina chasing dreams,” I tell him. It’s partially true. I’m living my dream of taking down bad guys, but I have been here for years.
“Oh yeah? What’s your dream?” he asks.
“To be a Broadway actress,” I say. It’s cliché, but it also has some truth to it. When I was a little girl, I used to want to be an actress. My parents even contemplated sending me to theater school.
“I can see you doing that. You’re very dramatic at times,” he says. “Especially with your facial movements. You don’t have a poker face.”
If only he knew.
“Dramatic, oh, I can show you dramatics. If you keep shooting shots at me, I’m going to tell you about yourself,” I say huffing and crossing my arms.
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Look at how you’re pouting. Broadway, look out; here she comes!” he says like an announcer for a Broadway show.
“Whatever Big Blaze,” I say, and we both erupt into laughter.
Ten minutes after we get on the highway, we witness a five-car pile-up ahead of us, which backs up traffic for hours. We spend that time talking about life and what brought us both to the point we are now. I can’t believe how much I tell him about myself, mostly true, as he wades through the traffic.
Opening up to him about Tracyee is especially hard, knowing he’s the kind of man that keeps pimps and traffickers in business.
Five hours later, I’m convinced Blaze is just a man in need of a companion. He’s not some rude and dirty trick who tries to exploit a girl’s need for cash to fulfill all of his nasty desires. He’s, dare I say it, a gentleman.
He pulls into a nice hotel, and we check in. We crash onto the bed as soon as we enter the room. Within minutes, we are laying in each other’s arms talking about life. It’s not long before the weight of the long day overtakes us and we fall asleep.
The next morning, I awake to the sound of Blaze’s phone going off.
“Hey, Blaze…Blaze!” I shake him slightly as I call out his name.
“Huh?” he murmurs and sits up. “Where were we? My family is big New York Jets fans. We don’t support any other team,” he says groggily.
It’s funny to hear him pick up where we left off talking before we fell asleep last night. We were talking about sports, and he was telling me how much his family loved the Jets before his eyes fluttered and he was asleep.
“No, your phone is ringing,” I tell him, chuckling.
“Oh,” he giggles then rolls over and answers it, immediately swinging his feet to the floor and hopping out of bed. “Blaze speaking… okay… no, I checked on that yesterday, and she wasn’t there… Okay… Yes… No…Oh really? I’m on my way in now,” he says, hangs up, and sighs.
“Is everything okay?” I ask.
“Come on, we have to go now,” he says. He’s still half asleep as he begins to put on his shoes.
“Do I at least have time to shower?” I ask in a pout.
He looks at me as if he’s considering it. A glimmer of lust runs across his eyes, and I can see them undressing me and carrying me into the shower.