On A Night Like This (Callaways #1)

just one look.
    "What are you doing here?" she asked shortly.
    Their meetings were always tense, the mix of anger and attraction between them making most of their encounters awkward and uncomfortable. It was bad enough they had to occasionally work together; she didn't want to socialize with him, too.
    "Your brother, Burke, invited me. We play basketball together on Wednesday nights."
    Of course they did. The police/fire basketball league was hugely popular. As a female firefighter, she'd always felt left out when it came to the basketball games. She could compete in co-ed softball, but the basketball games were all guys, and that was the way they liked it.
    Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out of her bag, hoping it wasn't work calling.
    Frowning, she realized she would have preferred a work text than the one she'd just received. "Damn," she muttered.
    "Something wrong?" Max asked.
    She returned her phone to the outer pocket of her bag. "It's nothing." She'd barely finished speaking when her phone buzzed again.
    "Doesn't sound like nothing," he said, a speculative gleam in his eyes. "Aren't you going to answer it?"
    "No."
    Her phone buzzed again, and she pulled it out of her bag to turn the ring to silent. As she did so, she saw three texts on the screen. Seriously? Jon hadn't talked to her this much when they were sharing an apartment. "I can't believe this," she muttered, then wished she'd kept her mouth shut as Max's interested gaze settled on hers. "Ex-boyfriend," she explained.
    "He must want another chance."
    "Men always want what they can't have."
    He tipped his head in acknowledgement. "The chase can be appealing."
    "I'm not good at playing games."
    "I doubt that. I've seen your competitive streak."
    "Not when it comes to the games of love," she corrected.
    Max smiled, and with that smile came sparks, the fluttering of butterflies in her stomach, the sudden dampness on her palms, the tingly feeling of anticipation shooting down her spine. They weren't standing very far apart, only a few inches between them. It wouldn't take more than a step to put her hands on his solid chest, lean in, raise her face to his.
    Whoa!
    She put the brakes on her runaway thoughts. She was not going to kiss Max Harrison. That would be reckless and stupid. It would probably also be really good, because he looked like the kind of man who knew how to kiss a woman. But she was not going to test out that theory.
    She couldn't let a little lust get in the way of her common sense. They had to work together. She needed to keep things professional.
    Clearing her throat, she said, "I should find my father."
    "Isn't that him over there?" Max tipped his head toward the center of the room.
    As the crowd parted, she could see her parents, grandparents and several of her siblings seated at a table in the center of the room. Her father was the focus of attention, which didn't surprise her. Jack Callaway had a larger-than-life personality, and like his Irish ancestors, there was nothing he enjoyed more than telling a good story and sharing a pint or two.
    With dark brown hair that was now peppered with gray, wide-set blue eyes, and a big booming laugh, Jack had charisma and presence, which was probably why he'd done so well in his career; he was a natural born leader. He was also a man of high integrity and deep commitment to his job, which made him a great role model. She'd admired him for a very long time, not just as a father but also as a firefighter. She could see that same respect in the eyes of everyone at the table.
    "That's him," she murmured, glancing back at Max. "You haven't met yet?"
    "No. Is that your mother next to him, the pretty blonde in the red dress?"
    "That's her."
    "You look more like your mother than your father."
    "I do take after my mom, but Jack isn't my biological father. He's my stepfather."
    Surprise flashed in Max's eyes. "I didn't know that. You have his name."
    "It all happened a long time ago. My mother, Lynda, married Jack when I was four years old. He legally adopted me as well as my older sister, Nicole, three years later. Since we rarely saw my biological father, we were both happy to become Callaways."
    "So you and Nicole are biological sisters. What about the rest of your siblings? Who belongs to who?"
    "Burke, Aiden, Drew, and Sean are my stepbrothers. Their real mother died. Jack was a widow when he met my mom. After they got married, the twins, Shayla and Colton were born. It's a yours, mine and ours