Ignite (Explosive) by Tessa Teevan

I have Sierra to thank for that. Sneaky, meddling Sierra. I’ve changed my clothes three times already, completely unsatisfied with each outfit.
    “Alexa, you have ten minutes or we’re leaving without you!” she yells from the living room.
    Oh good. I can just hide out for ten minutes, they’ll leave, and then I can put on my comfy clothes and spend the night with a bottle of wine and my Kindle. Yeah, that sounds much better than meeting face to face with my past.
    Ten minutes later, Sierra and Jeremy walk into my room, presumably looking for me and wondering why the hell I’m not dressed.
    “What the hell?” I hear Jeremy mutter as one of them stumbles to find the light switch. The room is suddenly illuminated as they find me sitting in the corner in the dark.
    Sierra laughs, “Umm, what exactly are you doing?” as she walks over to me and pulls me up.
    “I’m hiding. You said I had ten minutes. I was waiting for you to leave before I came out,” I say, giving her a sheepish smile.
    She pulls me towards the bed where all my clothes are strewn about. Going through my outfits, she comments, “No way are you getting out of this tonight. You’re coming with us and you’re going to have fun. No sulking. Seriously, I don’t get it. You guys were thick as thieves back in the day, and now you’re scared to even see him? I don’t get you.”
    She throws a pair of tight, low-riding jeans at me, tells Jeremy to leave, and orders me to put them on. Browsing through my tops, she decides on a bright red scooped neck t-shirt.
    “Flip flops and your silver hoops. Simple, yet sexy. You don’t want to look like you’re trying too hard, ya know?” She gives me a wink.
    I roll my eyes as I check myself out in the mirror. These jeans fit my newly toned ass perfectly, and the shirt accentuates my newfound flat stomach while hugging my chest. The neckline dips down, showing off just enough cleavage to make the boys want more. For the first time in a really long time, I actually do feel sexy. I take one last look in the mirror. I can do this.

I’m wrapped up in war-story sharing with a few guys from my class who also went into the service after graduation. Joey Thompson’s in the middle of recalling the time his Humvee was attacked by a rocket-propelled grenade that left him with a prosthetic from his left knee down. He’s up and strutting like he’s on the catwalk, showcasing how incredibly far technology has come. Moving with as much grace as anyone with two good legs would, he holds his head high. The fact that he can laugh and joke about it is pretty damn admirable.
    All of the sudden, the table gets silent except for Ryan’s, “Holy shit.” I turn to see what they’re all looking at when I spot her head ducking behind Jeremy’s tall form. Before I can move, Ryan’s on his feet, heading towards the door where he high-fives Jeremy, gives Sierra a hug, and then picks Alexa up and embraces her.
    “Little Lexi Sullivan! More like Sexy Lexi Sullivan. So nice to see you, girl,” he announces flamboyantly.
    Her eyes dart nervously around the room before they lock in on mine. She freezes, and my body reacts exactly the same way. She’s more breathtaking than she was ten years ago, if that’s even possible. Even though twenty feet separate us, I can see the grey in her eyes as they roam over me. She still has that cute freckle on the tip of her nose that she always hated. Her hair is slightly darker and longer than she used to wear it, and instantly I go hard at the thought of wrapping it up in my hands again. I always loved her golden blond locks, but she looks mature, more sophisticated with the darker color, and I can almost picture it fanned out around her as I drive into her.
    Whoa, McAllister. Slow the fuck down and get a grip, I tell myself as I try to get that image out of my mind. I catch her eyes again as I take a sip of my beer, my lips lingering longer on the bottle than necessary as I take her in. Her