Chase: A single Dad Firefighter & a Virgin Romance ( A Standalone Novel) (Chiseled Book 1) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Epilogue

  Chase

  A Single Dad firefighter & A virgin romance

  A standalone novel of

  Chiseled series

  Rod Lee

  Book description

  She's hurt and all alone.

  She never felt loved by her parents and discovers the truth why they treated her the way they did. She simply doesn’t realize how beautiful she is, even with her injuries.

  When she meets him, she can’t help but be attracted to his chiseled firefighter body. If anyone I can move on with her, she loves my daughter too, bonus!

  The problem: I’m scared to move on and miss my dead wife.

  I am a firefighter, a part time model, witty, and charming. What more could I ask for? She is a beautiful model who just got burnt in a fire and thinks she’s ugly.

  How do I convince her she’s still beautiful? Jumping into the fray may be my best move but am I ready for love again?

  She makes the blood pump through my veins and my body wants her badly.

  But she is a virgin and scared. Her inexperience makes her very nervous, and I have to be gentle as it is her first time.

  I also need to consider my daughters feelings. Good thing she likes her too.

  First, I have to let go of the memory of my wife once and for all.

  They always say good things come to those who wait!

  Copyright © 2017 Rod Lee

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, and/or transmitted in any form or by means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in case of brief description or quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Table of contents

  Click on the titles below to navigate

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Epilogue

  Chapter 1

  Chase Daniels put his uniform on for the day. Before he buttoned his shirt up he studied his physique. He had tried to keep himself in shape but it had been a bit harder, the past seven years. Raising a daughter on his own had cut into his time he could spend at the gym.

  A few years ago, he’d been lucky enough years ago to find one that had a kid’s center in it. This gave him the freedom to exercise and know that his daughter was being watched as well. Some of the women in the center would always flirt with him, and of course he would flirt back.

  He frowned, pinching the last stubborn inches of fat around his abdomen with his fingers. Even his intensive workout routine failed to trim it, keeping him from looking his best. Suddenly Veronica came rushing into the room as Chase finished buttoning up his shirt.

  “Daddy, we’re going to be late, hurry up.” She came and grabbed his hand to lead him into the kitchen. “You have to eat though, so come on, I put some cereal in a bowl for us both.”

  He smiled down at his little woman, she looked so much like her mother. His wife Jen Daniels had passed away in child birth and it had been hard on Chase since that day. But he had never given up. Some of his friends had even suggested he put his daughter up for adoption but there was no way Chase would ever do that.

  Thank goodness for the support he’d had through the first years of her life. His mother had helped him whenever she could. Anytime he had to be at work, he would drop her off and knew that she was safe.

  He patted her head. “Thank you honey, what would I do without you?” Chase said as he poured the milk into the bowls.

  “You’d starve!” Veronica exclaimed brightly, parroting words that she had heard from his mother more than one time.

  Chase laughed, “You are probably right about that!”

  Veronica sat across the table, “Hey dad, tell me about how you and my mom met.”

  As she grew older Chase was trying to tell her as much about her mother as he could. Just because she was gone, it didn’t mean the child shouldn’t know just how much her mother would have loved her.

  “I was just getting out of a class in college, I think it was biology and I wasn’t paying much attention to where I was walking. Your mother was coming into the class and she also wasn’t paying enough attention. We ran into each other and our books scattered across the floor from the impact. She started giggling hard, just laughing, and I couldn’t help but join in. Her laughter was contagious and it made her beautiful. To make up for being so clumsy I asked her out after her class. I sat outside the class waiting for her to be done, and we went out to eat. From that day forward we were barely apart. I was still working at the fire department and she would come and visit me on my long shifts. We would talk for hours into the night about everything and nothing at all. I miss her so much, and I know that she
would adore you and spoil you.” Chase tried to end the story on a happy note.

  “Grandma says that mommy is an angel who is watching over me now.” Veronica said.

  “Yes, she is sweetie. She watches over you and smiles each day she sees how much you are growing.”

  “And how well I’m taking care of daddy!”

  Chase ruffled her hair, “Yes sweetie. So, don’t forget that after school you wait for grandma and don’t talk to any strangers.” He reminded her of the safety rules and helped her put her coat on.

  “I know daddy, stranger danger. I’m not dumb, you know that don’t you!” Veronica rolled her eyes.

  “I know sweetie, I just want to be sure you are always safe.” Chase picked her up and tickled her.

  Veronica giggled and squirmed in his arms. He held her tight and hugged her closely, “I love you, munchkin.”

  “I love you giant!”

  It was a joke he had told her once about him and Jen. She had been quite a bit shorter than him and he had always called her munchkin. Her response had always been to tell him he was a giant, as she would peer up into his eyes from her small 5’ 4” stance!

  Chapter 2

  Chase pulled his Jeep into the school parking lot and got out to walk in with his daughter. When they reached her classroom, the teacher came over to him and welcomed Veronica to class. “Veronica it’s so nice to see you today!”

  She looked up at Chase and smiled at him and batted her eyes. He was used to the attention, she was always flirting with him.

  “Is today one of the days that Veronica will go to nursery school?” The teacher asked.

  “No, my mother will be picking her up today.” Chase commented.

  “Okay I’ll make sure she waits for her.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it.” Chase smiled back at her.

  The teacher, a young woman of twenty-seven put her hand on his biceps and said, “We can never be too careful with our children!” She let her hand linger a bit and squeezed his arm.

  Chase felt slightly uncomfortable, he wasn’t really looking for a woman to sleep with, or become involved with. Especially not Veronica’s teacher, though she was cute in her own way. “Yes, this is true and I do appreciate the extra attention you give to this.”

  He left shaking his head at the teacher’s obvious flirting. It wasn’t too unusual, plenty of women found his blonde hair and blue eyes attractive. Along with the time he spent keeping himself in good shape, it rarely surprised him if a woman tried to flirt with him. He gave Veronica a kiss and hug goodbye, “You be a good girl today.”

  “I’m always a good girl daddy!” She hugged him back.

  “I love you sweetheart”.

  He walked out the door on his way to work and began to think about his life.

  Even today when he had on his blue firefighter outfit, he would get women who would chat with him and bat their eyes, hoping he would ask them for their numbers or ask them out.

  He knew the uniform was tight on his muscles and helped to show off his body that was looking better each day. The fact that he had been a part of a calendar project the year before didn’t hurt either. He was sure a lot of these women had purchased that calendar and seen him in it. Many of them would comment about it, “Hey you’re Mr. June, aren’t you?” They would ask.

  “Yes I am.”

  “That’s my favorite month!” Most of them would add.

  The pose had been of Chase holding a puppet in his lap, with no shirt on, and he was sure most of these women had enjoyed looking at his body. Though he hadn’t been in as good of shape last year. This year the calendar would have him in it again, and he was sure even more women would be hitting on him.

  Getting into his jeep he made his way to work as he thought about his life. Eventually, he would get back into the dating game but for now he was happy with it just being him and Veronica.

  The fire station was a hub of activity with the shifts switching. The men who had worked the night shift stopped and talked to the men who were coming on for the next shift.

  Thankfully the Captain had been willing to work with Chase and give him the day shift. It allowed him more time with Veronica and let him drop her off at school in the mornings. Even though he would have to pull some night shifts from time to time, most of the time he was on the day shift.

  Life on the day shift was often boring. Not much happened during the days, there was the occasional car accident to respond to but usually nothing spectacular or dangerous. Most of the truly dangerous calls seemed to take place in the middle of the night.

  Chase didn’t mind though, after all he had Veronica to think about. He couldn’t imagine leaving her alone in this world, with both him and her mother passed away. However, he also knew that if he was faced with a dangerous situation, his training would kick in and he would react.

  For him life was good and he wasn’t looking to get into any kind of situation that might leave him injured or worse yet dead.

  Chapter 3

  “Hey man, they’ll be doing the new calendar next week, and that one girl called to see if you were interested in being a part of it again.” John, one of the other fire fighters said to Chase.

  “Which girl? Sally?” Chase asked.

  “Yeah, she seemed to really want you to be a part of it. I guess you helped push the sales over the top.” John laughed.

  “Hey I can’t help it the ladies loved looking at my bare chest! But I’m sure all of the pictures helped to sell the calendar. After all, we all know how women like to see us fire fighters with less clothes on!” Chase laughed.

  “Shit I know, I can’t tell you how many women came up to me and asked me about it. Got a few dates out of it for sure. But I’m sure you had the same thing happen to you!” John replied.

  “Well I had a lot who came up to me and flirted, a few gave me their numbers too but I didn’t call any of them back.”

  “Why the hell not man?” John said shocked.

  “I’m not really ready to date and bring another woman into the picture. I don’t want to find the wrong woman and have Veronica fall in love with her, and when it doesn’t work out wonder why not.” He admitted.

  “Yeah, it’s gotta be tough with a kid. I don’t see how you do it. Honestly, I don’t know if I could.”

  “I’m telling you man, once you hold that baby in your arms after they’re born your life changes. You are holding a small being that you helped to create. It’s an amazing moment. You fall in love with them immediately and can’t really think of your life without them.” Chase explained.

  “I don’t know man, I’ve never found a girl who I even wanted to have a child with. I’m more of a love ’em and leave ’em type of guy!” John laughed and walked away. “Hey don’t forget to call Sally and let her know you’re on board.” He said before leaving the room

  Chase picked up his phone and found Sally’s number on his list. She had given it to him and told him she wouldn’t mind going out with him sometime. Chase had never taken her up on the offer though.

  “Chase, nice to hear from you.” Sally answered her phone.

  “Hi Sally, John was telling me you are getting ready to shoot the new calendar.” Chase replied.

  “Yes, we are.” She sounded disappointed but still cheerful. “Are you in?”

  “Sure, you know I love doing these things that help out charity.”

  “Great we’ll be there next week. I’ll text you on the day with the idea we have for your pose.” Sally said, then asked “So are you free for dinner one night before then?”

  “I’m sorry but I don’t think so, you know I have Veronica to take care of.”

  “Hmm, okay, well maybe later. Call me anytime you have some free time.” Sally said hanging up the phone.

  Chase once more shook his head. She had caught him off guard when she had asked him to dinner. But again, she wasn’t really someone he wanted to get close too.

  If he could find someone like Jen
maybe he would feel differently. Though he knew he would never be able to replace her. She had been one of a kind, funny, charming and caring. She had made him laugh a lot of the time. They had a great life together and he still missed her after all of these years.

  But his body was also screaming out for some sort of physical release besides the exercise he was doing. Eventually, he would take up one of these women on their offer, though he didn’t really enjoy one night stands.

  It was tough figuring out the type of woman he wouldn’t mind having around Veronica though, so he had simply avoided most of the offers, and ignored many others. He had acted dumb on many occasion like he wasn’t aware the women were flirting with him.

  He had to laugh when they would get frustrated at his clueless behavior and give up.

  Chapter 4

  Kitty McComb got ready for her photo shoot. She hoped this would be the one that would break her through to the big leagues.

  At only 23, she knew she had the looks that many people found attractive. Her face was like a porcelain vase, white and smooth. Her long red hair that hung halfway down her back only added to her good looks, and her eyes were what many photographers had called ‘enticing and like pools of emeralds’.

  It was hard to break into the field with so many other women who looked just as good, if not better. But Kitty was determined to make a name for herself. She would show her parents that her dream was obtainable.

  For many years they had told her she was a fool and she should focus on learning a skill that would have her getting a good paying job in an office.

  “Kitty you’re wasting your time.” Her mom had told her more than once in the past.

  Sure, it upset her that they didn’t have much faith in her to succeed but now she understood where they were coming from. It was hard surviving on the little bit of money she made.

  Currently she lived in a rundown high rise. It wasn’t the safest area of the city either. She was able to pay the bills and live on her own. It was preferable to listening to them talk down to her every day.

  She combed her hair and put on a little bit of make-up. Kitty didn’t know why she bothered with the make-up, the artist would redo it once she got to the photo shoot, making her up another way.