Chapter Five
CHAPTER FIVE
Looking in the mirror as Canon parked, his dark-streaked face surprised him. He attempted to rub the grime away, but his sooty knuckles made it worse.
He sighed, locking the truck. Canon hurried to the emergency entrance where the EMTs had left Albie.
He held his breath when he peeked around the curtain. Albie stared at the ceiling with a white blanket pulled to her chin. An ER nurse asked her questions.
“And how does it make you feel?” The nurse clicked and unclicked her ink pen.
“Hot.” Albie shifted her gaze to the nurse. She lowered the blanket and waved her hand to cool herself.
Canon smiled as relief rolled over him. Albie seemed unharmed and breathing fine.
“And bothered?” The nurse’s tweezed-to-hell brows rose.
“Well…” Albie grimaced as her face reddened. “Yes. I guess. But mostly bothered about me not having the guts to—”
Canon cleared his throat, catching the women’s attention. He offered a small smile, hoping Albie wouldn’t want him to leave.
“Hello there, and you are?” the nurse asked.
“I’m Ms. Bach’s neighbor,” Canon stated, stepping inside the curtain.
The nurse scanned his body from top to bottom with a smirk. She turned to Albie. “I see what you mean by B’SHOAF. Yes, ma’am.” She wiggled her brows.
Albie groaned, turning crimson. She pulled the blanket over her face except for her wide eyes.
Canon glanced from one woman to the other. “What’s a SHOAF?”
“You.” The nurse chuckled.
“It’s an acronym,” Albie said, lowering the blanket. “Each letter stands for something.”
“I know what an acronym is. I’m glad I’m not a PITA.”
The nurse snorted. “Me too, or you’d have to wait outside.”
“I don’t know that one.” Albie crinkled her nose as if thinking.
Canon couldn’t help grinning and moved a few steps closer. With her dark hair fanned out on the crisp white pillow, she didn’t appear like the frail girl from before. He swallowed. “It means pain in the ass.”
“Oh.” She giggled.
“So SHOAF?”
“It’s B’SHOAF. There’s a B.” She glanced down at her fingers and picked a cuticle. “A few weeks ago, my sister asked who you were, and I didn’t know your name. I told her B’SHOAF. It was before we kinda met, and you told me your first name.” She blinked hazel eyes at him. A lopsided grin formed, and Canon resisted the urge to touch her lips.
“It means ‘big, sexy hunk of a firefighter.’ B’SHOAF.” She offered a weak shrug.
Canon warmed, and his heart raced. She thought he was a sexy hunk. He glanced down at his boots, noticing one was untied. “It’s not the worst nickname I’ve been given. Thanks. You made my day.” He tipped his head, then stepped closer to the bed and stuck out his hand. “I’m Canon Berns.”
She took his hand; his hand swallowed hers. “I’m Albie.”
“Albie Bach? Are you named after the Schwarzenegger movie?” He tried to swallow a laugh.
A full smile blossomed on her face, transforming her from a skittish girl to a confident woman. “No. Actually, I’m named after my Grandma Alberta, but she went by Bertie. My dad didn’t think I looked like an Alberta, and my brother couldn’t say it. He could say Albie, so it stuck.”
She tilted her head and asked, “Are you Canon because you had a big head when you were born?”
“Among other things, but, yeah, you nailed it,” he laughed.
Her mouth fell open, then she snapped it shut and hugged herself. Goosebumps peppered her sleeveless arms.
Canon rubbed his chest and then lifted his arm, holding one of his shirts. “Here, Albie,” he said, trying her name.
Her eyes narrowed for a brief second, then she smiled and took the offering. She opened the wadded garment, then slipped it over her head. As the navy squad shirt fell over her thin frame, she sighed. “Thank you.”
“I know how you like to wear over-sized items. And you looked cold.” Canon shrugged.
She lifted the shirt to her nose and sniffed. “Mmm. It smells like clean laundry. So much better than the smoky smell that’s stuck in my nose.” She inhaled deeply, then began to cough. And cough. Her face turned red and her eyes watered.
“Can’t—” she wheezed, then coughed. “Breathe.”
The nurse had already moved. She lowered the oxygen tube and fit it to Albie’s face. She tried to calm Albie and wiped her running eyes and nose. Albie fisted the blanket and glanced up at him.
Canon knew what panic looked like. He’d seen it many times. The more she freaked out, the harder it would be to get the proper amount of oxygen. Not enough oxygen made it hard to think.
He put a hand on her arm. “Albie, you are fine. Look at me.” When she met his gaze, he continued. “Hold my hand. You are not alone. I won’t leave you. Now close your eyes and listen to my voice.”
Her eyes fluttered shut, and he squeezed her tiny hand gently. The nurse nodded to him.
“Try to relax. Stretch your legs out and flex your toes. Point them toward the wall.” He paused, watching her feet move under the blanket. “Now point them to the ceiling.” Getting her to focus on other things distracted her from her anxiety about breathing.
“Good. Can you raise each leg, one at a time, like a flutter kick?”
Albie’s breathing regulated, and the nurse removed the oxygen. “I’m going to draw on the back of your hand. Try to guess what it is?”
“Ok,” she said, cracking one eyelid to glance at him.
He moved his finger over her soft skin, making gooseflesh appear on her arm again. “What is it?”
“An eight?”
He started over. “This line is straight.”
“Oh, a B then.”
“You got it.”
She smiled and hissed. “Yes!”
Canon chuckled, glad the game was working. He traced a new letter.
“S,” she said.
“Uh huh, try this one.” Her brow crinkled as his finger moved.
“H,” she guessed.
He continued with, “O.”
The next few, she guessed correctly. A and F.
Canon paused and winked at the nurse, who asked, “What’s it spell?”
“BSHOAF. Oh!” Albie giggled. She glanced up at him through thick lashes, and he winked at her.
“Honestly, that’s the best compliment I’ve had.” His face heated, and he had to be as red as a station twenty-five truck.
Albie clenched the blanket. “You must get complimented all the time by women.”
“Nah,” he said, sitting on the edge of the bed. “I don’t have time for women. Between both jobs and a book club I’m in, there isn’t much time for friends, let alone dating. The only woman in my life is my Grammie Nan.”
“Book club.” Albie tilted her head and studied him. “So, you’re one of those guys.”
Canon rubbed the back of his head and glanced toward the door. “Um, I guess so.”
“So, what type of books do you like to read?” She asked in a curious tone.
Canon faced her again. “Romance.”
“Seriously?” She bit her lip, hiding a smile.
“Why not? There are seven of us in the group. Six of us are men.”
“Romance reading men.” She made a funny noise. “I’d heard about it, but I refused to believe it.”
“You haven’t been in town long.”
She sighed. “Looks like I won’t be staying either.”
“It’ll all work out. Speaking of which, Grammie Nan has a duplex and said you are welcome to crash on the unoccupied side until you figure out where to go next.” Canon couldn’t meet her eyes. She didn’t respond, but squeezed his hand. He gathered his courage and glanced at Albie.
“Wow.” She tilted her head. “You’re sweet.”
Canon felt hot all over and shrugged.
“We’ll see,” Albie said, closing her eyes. Canon rubbed her hand and watched over her as she slept.