Chapter Ten Lila
If the Hawk had real talons, I’m pretty sure she’d be digging them into my throat right now.
Which is crazy, because I’m totally on her side. We’re literally playing for the same team. As their union representative, she wants the station to succeed and flourish. And as their hired public relations specialist, I also want that same thing.
They’re also funny and sweet, and always willing to chat with me. Even the people I’ve spoken to who aren’t directly involved in Save A Hero have been great.
The Hawk is also great, even though everyone seems to be afraid of her.
I mean, how can I not absolutely adore a woman who manages to get an entire station of burly dudes and tough-as-hell women to snap to attention?
She cares about her career just as much as I care about mine, and just because she’s a little stern-faced and not the most stylish person ever, I’m supposed to see her as my enemy?
No way.
“I’m so thrilled to hear that you enjoyed the first official episode of Save A Hero,” I say to her, grinning from the other side of the conference table. “The reception has been great so far, and I really think we’re on the right track.”
“Hmm,” is all she offers in response.
Evan and Noah are sitting rigid in their chairs beside me. Even Hale, seated next to the Hawk, looks a little nervous in her presence. Then again, he’s always pretty stoic. You’d think he’d at least try to toss a halfway smile my way after the moment we shared after the gala.
Like, his tongue was literally in my mouth, and he can’t even throw a wink in my direction when we pass each other in the station?
Whatever.
I’m better off following his lead.
Because, as the Hawk is about to remind me for the umpteenth time, there is absolutely no fraternizing allowed at Station 47. Or any other fire station in the entire tristate area.
In fact, I have a feeling that if this girlboss had her way, she’d reinstitute the six-feet rule from the pandemic and keep us far apart at all times no matter where we are. She seems to harbor a lot of disgust for the concept of fraternization in general.
I keep smiling at her, hoping that a particular twinkle in my eye might break through her hard shell.
She lets out a long sigh. Beside her, inexplicably, Hale tenses.
“I’ll make this perfectly clear, Ms. Hart—”
“Oh, please call me Lila.”
Her eyes remain icy, as if she’s choosing not to register my words. “The Save A Hero campaign is well intended, and I appreciate the ideas you’ve shared with me, but it is already skirting the boundaries of acceptable conduct.”
At this, she eyes Noah sharply. No doubt because she thought his little demonstration down in the gym counted as that forbidden fraternization.
And sure, I got a really nice view of his ass while I was up there.
Also, maybe I did allow myself a few seconds of imagining what it might be like to have Noah toss me around a little bit. On a bed. With less clothing.
I clear my throat lightly. “I can assure you the only content that has made it to the internet is perfectly acceptable. Even the dance I shared with Captain Hargrove at the gala adheres to middle school rules.”
The Hawk tilts her head, making her look uncannily birdlike. “Pardon?”
“As in, when you danced with boys at middle school formals, you had to keep at least six inches between you?”
“Hm. I attended an all-girls Catholic school.”
“Wow, that’s fascinating. Did you enjoy it?”
She stares at me for a long moment. On my left, Evan shifts awkwardly in his seat.
I bat my eyes innocently.
The Hawk turns to Hale. “If I get even a whiff of impropriety, I will shut this down, Captain. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“And this Family Safety Fair happening tomorrow,” she adds, scanning her gaze across all of us, “it’s a public event. Anyone is welcome to attend. Many eyes will be on you, and not all of them have our best interests at heart.”
“Don’t worry,” I assure her. “I’ve got this under control.”
She gives me another long look. Part of me wonders if she can read my mind.
“I certainly hope so, Ms. Hart.”
***
When I step outside to meet the camera crew on Saturday afternoon, the scent of popcorn hits me first. Which is impressive, really, when you consider that Station 47’s annual Family Safety Fair is a block party in Midtown, where the aroma of car exhaust, grimy pavement, and vape smoke is usually the main thing to assault your senses.
The station has done an impressive job of stepping up their game, though. Sure, most of it is thanks to the fact that I took their annual event and turned it into something ten times larger, but they’re all very good at following instructions.
The block that Station 47 calls home has been cordoned off and packed with people. Everywhere I look there are strollers navigating past loitering groups, dogs tugging on leashes, kids squealing over balloon animals, and dozens of FDNY staff entertaining the masses.
I grin up at the massive SAVE A HERO sign that hangs on the exterior of the station, bright red and glittering gold. I managed to slide the expense right underneath Hale’s and the Hawk’s noses, and I know it was the right call.
There’s nothing more important than branding.
“Lila!”
Evan is waving at me from down the street a little ways, Leo clinging onto him piggyback style.
I glance over at my filming crew, grateful that I don’t have to worry about capturing everything on my phone today. Also, thankfully, Jake’s assistant Sam is no longer sick, so Lou didn’t have to come help. Instead, she can hang back at our office and monitor our social media engagement.
“We’re rolling,” Jake informs me.
I grin at him, smoothing down the front of my frilly romper. Tossing my ponytail over my shoulder, I flounce over to my date—technically speaking, of course—and his adorable son.
Evan assured me yesterday that Leo would be prepped and ready to go to be an absolute sweetheart on camera. Which will be easy for him, because I have a feeling the little cutie is a sweetheart all the time. How could he not be when his dad is also so sweet?
He looks stupidly handsome today, too. I mean, he’s wearing jeans and an FDNY tee, but the material hugs his lean frame and the dark navy looks fantastic against his golden skin.
“Hi!” Leo chirps when he sees me, smiling down from his perch atop his dad’s shoulders.
“Hey, Leo! What are you up to?”
I’m aware of the camera crew hovering a few feet behind us, but for now I keep it casual.
Evan gestures at the collection of booths hosting classic carnival games, pointing specifically to the ring toss. “Leo wants to win a teddy bear.”
“Well, that sounds fun,” I say to Leo. “I bet you’re really good at it.”
“If I’m bad at it, then Daddy can just win it for me,” Leo replies very matter-of-factly.
“Oh, absolutely. I think that’s a great strategy.”
Evan chuckles. Leo starts squirming on his shoulders, so he maneuvers him carefully down onto the ground.
I expect the kid to run off immediately, since that’s exactly how I first met him, but he stays obediently by his dad’s side.
He felt safe enough in the fire station to explore, but it seems like he knows better than to dart into a hectic crowd.
And even though I know that having a well-behaved kid often comes down to pure luck, I also know Evan is definitely a fantastic father.
Honestly, he’s a total DILF.
Which is ridiculous of me to think, but I swear it’s only because I have my PR expert hat on right now. The people love DILFs. Hot single dads are the bread and butter of popular internet content.
Evan glances over at the camera crew. Where Hale had been apathetic about their presence, he looks nervous.
I place an encouraging hand on his arm, then turn to face the lens Jake is aiming at me to give a proper introduction.
“Hi! This is Lila, back with another episode of Save A Hero. Today I’m here with paramedic Evan Reyes and his son Leo, and we’re going to explore Station 47’s annual Family Safety Fun Fair, where the community comes together to have fun, educate themselves, and enjoy a perfectly grilled hot dog or two. ”
“I like hot dogs in spaghetti,” Leo reminds me from Evan’s other side.
“He has a very sophisticated palate,” Evan jokes, then glances at the camera. “I swear he eats his vegetables, though.”
But Leo wrinkles his nose at that. “I hate vegetables, Daddy. You know that.”
I snort. It’s adorable comedic gold.
We make our way over to the ring toss station, currently manned by one of the guys on the EMS staff with Evan.
I think his name is Nick or Mick or something like that, and he’s so young that I wonder if he’s even in his twenties yet.
He must have joined the crew almost as soon as he graduated high school, which I’ve learned is fairly common.
Despite his nerves, Evan surprises me by being an absolute natural in front of the camera. He waves his hand between the crew and his underling, as if introducing two people at a party.
“This is Mick, our newest rookie,” he tells the camera. “He could have studied biochemistry and pre-med at Columbia, but he decided to come work for the FDNY. We’re lucky to have him.”
“Wow!” I chime in, smiling at Mick. “Is that true?”
The younger guy shrugs, glancing bashfully at the crew. “I wanted hands-on experience, so I enrolled in a summer training program. But I loved it so much that I never left.”
I open my mouth to make a segue into Evan’s own professional backstory, but he shoots me another wink and smoothly transitions into it all on his own, all while helping Leo line himself up to start the ring toss.
“The same thing happened to me,” Evan explains.
“I thought I wanted to do the whole med school thing, become a doctor, and open up my own practice someday. I even finished my bachelor’s and took the MCAT, but I’d been volunteering for the fire department the whole time and I realized I would feel much more fulfilled if I became a paramedic full-time. ”
God, this is so much easier than trying to pry information out of Hale.
Not that the gala with the captain went badly. And not that I find Hale’s stoic demeanor off-putting. In fact, despite the cold shoulder I’ve received since our kiss, I still find him insanely sexy.
But Evan is sexy, too. Sweet and polite, and clearly very willing to make everything as easy as possible for me. If Hale is the stern leader, then Evan is the measured diplomat.
“That’s amazing.” I smile up at him, and there’s a softness in his gaze that makes my skin tingle. “So, tell me, what’s your favorite thing about being a paramedic?”
“Nice one, buddy!” comes a shout from behind Mick.
Leo has managed to get two rings around the same glass bottleneck, and Noah has appeared out of nowhere to witness it. He’s dressed in full gear, including his helmet, but the face shield is lifted up. Hale assigned him to one of the exciting backdraft demonstration on the far end of the street.
“Noah!” exclaims Leo.
“Leo!” he cheers back.
“You look like an astronaut,” Leo informs him.
“And you look like a ringtoss champion, little dude!”
I clear my throat loudly. This is nice and everything, but now is not supposed to be about Noah.
Noah locks eyes with me from the other side of the table and, miraculously, takes the cue. He claps Mick on the shoulder, winks at Evan, and carries on his way.
“Hey, kiddo, do you mind if we get a close-up of your next shot?” Jake asks Leo directly.
With wide eyes, he stares up at the strange man behind the camera for a long moment, gaping slightly. Evan ruffles his hair.
“Come on, buddy,” he chuckles. “It’s your time to shine.”
Leo nods, and the camera crew steps in closer. Evan and I move aside to give them room, smiling and nodding at Leo when he glances over at us uncertainly.
Except, when I step backwards, I misjudge how close behind me the edge of the curb is. A sharp gasp rips out of me and I clutch the closest thing I can reach, which happens to be Evan’s bicep.
He twists, realizing what’s about to happen, and quickly slips an arm around my waist to haul me back up onto the sidewalk.
The entire thing occurs within the span of a few seconds, and nobody else even noticed, but suddenly I’m standing so close to Evan that I can count each individual lash fluttering around his ridiculously pretty hazel eyes.
Time slows, my breath catching in my throat, and even though there are hundreds of people around, Evan’s hand on my hip tightens instead of letting me go.
I watch his gaze drop automatically to my lips. I note the subtle darkening of his eyes as his pupils dilate.
“You have freckles,” he murmurs. “I didn’t notice.”
“I…” I do have freckles. Yes. Many of them. I actually have a whole constellation of them across my stomach and thighs, too. You can kiss them if you want… “I do?”
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Evan laughs, his breath fanning across my cheek. My fingers tighten where I’d instinctively grabbed a fistful of his shirt. “You didn’t notice either?”
I blink at him like a dumbstruck idiot. God, he’s gorgeous. And he smells so good. And he’s still kind of holding me upright, cradling me against his side like we’re the only two people in this city.
“I’m…”
Mick and the camera crew burst out cheering.
We leap apart as if given an electric shock, turning just in time to see Leo jumping up and down as he gets another ring around a bottle.
Evan immediately shifts into father-mode and rushes over to scoop him up for a victory lift, leaving me standing at the edge of the sidewalk still trying to catch my breath.
While the crew captures the happy moment, I fumble for my phone and type out a desperate text to Lou.
I’m so horny that it’s starting to become a serious issue.
Her reply comes within seconds.
Girl, it is two-thirty in the afternoon.
Good point. And actually, the problem isn’t that I’m horny. The problem is that I’m horribly clumsy, and this is the second time that it’s landed me in a fireman’s arms. Which, as a result, makes me horny.
So, if I could just fucking learn how to walk properly…
By the way, Lou adds, check the GoFundMe page. We just reached our first milestone. We’re absolutely killing it, so whatever you’re doing, keep doing it… horniness and all.
I snort loudly. What is it with best friends and their habit for enabling our most reckless behaviors?