Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Aaron
It’s harder than I think it will be to return to work for the rest of the night. Like most evenings in Crown Hill so far, there aren’t many calls that require my attention. The lull was the reason I ended up at the hotel in the first place.
Now, I need to sit back and let my men have a turn doing the thing they love more than anything in the world.
Even if there are calls, I don’t think tonight is the night I’ll get to play the hero. Since the minute I sat down in the station living room, all I could do was think about that hotel call.
Damsel in distress. Handcuffed to a bed, half-naked.
I’ve seen my fair share of naked women in this line of work. For some reason, it seems that women are always naked or trying to get naked in front of the firefighters. I never had to shake the images from my memory out of respect for the women in distress.
Until now.
Paige was beautiful on that bed, her ginger hair fanned out on the headboard. Her cheeks flushed when I walked in to offer her the help her neighbors heard her screaming for. Her delicate wrists were small enough for me to wrap a thumb and forefinger around.
I might try to think about those things, but what I really noted was her body. The slope of her collarbone into the deep V-neck of her nightgown. The shape of her thighs. The dip of her waist, gentle and smooth from childbirth.
Her date left her for her mom bod, but me? I could hardly keep my hands to myself.
I can’t keep sitting here thinking about this.
I head straight to the weight room, hoping to blow off some steam. The clank of metal welcomes me as soon as I push through the door. Levi is already working up a sweat, head bobbing to the music pulsing from a speaker at his feet.
“Mind some company?” I ask before I jump on the treadmill.
“You’re the captain,” he says smoothly. He says it like I own the place. Like I can do whatever I want simply by virtue of my title. None of the men has fully accepted me here yet.
“You don’t have to do that.” I push the treadmill into a gentle walk to warm up.
“Do what?” Levi stops lifting weights to look me in the eye, maybe the first time since I got here a week ago.
“You know what I mean. The guys have made it clear that I haven’t earned my place here yet.”
“It isn’t about earning anything. Just let us get to know you. We can’t have your back if we don’t know anything about you,” Levi sighs. “Crown Hill is tight-knit. Everyone knows everyone.”
The last thing Paige said to me echoes in my mind. The rest of the station already knows me.
That would include Levi, wouldn’t it?
I could open up to him, share what happened tonight. Maybe we would have a good laugh. Maybe he would tell me where I could find the mysterious woman who’s taken over my thoughts.
Too bad I promised her that I wouldn’t tell my work stories, not even to the rest of the station.
“Think about letting us in,” Levi says, interrupting my inner loop before I could change my mind. Then, he disappears to take a shower.
I finish my run, thinking of what Levi said. I have a hard time accepting that these guys would take me just as I am—not if they know who I really am and what I survived to get here. I push myself harder, determined to prove to them that I earned the captain title.
This kind of motivation could really help me improve my fitness. Then, I shower and collapse into the small twin bed where I sleep.
When I wake up, Zachary is taking his place for the shift. Out of all the guys, he seems the most willing to let me in. True to form, he gives me a friendly smile and slaps me on the back as I sit up.
“Guess you had a slow night,” he says. “No kittens in trees to rescue?”
No kittens. One damsel in distress, though.
I shake the sleep from my eyes, wondering what he knows. I need a cup of coffee before I can consider the possibility that he might be a key to my current problem.
“I know it’s last-minute, but I’m getting married next week,” he says awkwardly. “The station is coming. You should, too.”
I don’t do crowds. But I don’t know how to tell him that, so I keep it to myself. “Thanks for thinking of me. I’d love to come.”
The relief in his smile is palpable. “Good. I wasn’t sure if you would be up for coming, but I’m glad you are. Summer burnt coffee at our house this morning. You want to grab some?”
A glance at the clock tells me I’m supposed to be off soon, but I still have paperwork to fill out.
“It’s just the café around the corner,” Zachary adds. “They make a mean cup of caffeine. And it’s on the house for us on shift. Bring cash for a tip.”
And just like that, he teaches me the first secret of Crown Hill.
I wonder what else I don’t know. I wonder who else I don’t know.
But maybe Zachary can tell me.
* * *
Paige
Noah toddles over to the playpen set up in the corner of the shelter floor, his little fingers lacing into the plastic weave. The puppies jump toward him excitedly—a little human their size.
“It’s good to see you here today,” Megan says as she thumbs through the adoption paperwork for the puppies.
“Nowhere else I would rather be on a day off. Noah loves the shelter.”
It’s true. I’ve been coming here for years, volunteering often when I can get time off from the hospital. Especially after James died and I was alone with Noah, I needed somewhere outside our home where I could relax.
Holding a wriggling puppy in my arms was the balm I needed. The puppies never asked much of me beyond what I could give: love, hugs, and a little bit of kibble. And as Noah got older, he started to love it, too.
It’s hard to go anywhere I can’t take Noah. Levi and Summer both have jobs, and I don’t want to ask my mom to watch him all the time. But he enjoys coming here and visiting Mr. Oakley, the old man I’ve helped since his wife passed, and I’m grateful for that.
“Heard the station got called to the hotel last night,” Megan says. “Did you hear anything about that?”
My face flushes, and I quickly busy myself with lifting the most rambunctious puppy out of the pen. Nothing ever stays secret in this town for long. I don’t say anything, letting Megan navigate the conversation alone.
“Hope it wasn’t anything too serious. My cousin is coming to stay in town soon, and I have him set up there,” she says.
Relief sweeps over me. Aaron was true to his word; he hadn’t told anyone about what really happened in that hotel room. If everyone else in town thought it was a fire, let them think it. I’d never tell the truth.
“Doubtful,” I tell her. “I’m sure we would have heard about it.”
Megan goes on to talk about the dogs going to the adoption floor this week and the ones that will remain behind for training first. I listen with only half of my attention, the other half focused on the fireman who saved me.
Aaron Evans isn’t like the guys at Station 59—definitely not like my brother. If it were up to them, my humiliation would be all over town by now, my reputation be damned. Gossip is currency in Crown Hill.
Instead, Aaron is quiet and reserved. He was gentle with me, even though I can still feel the tenderness around my wrists.
What I really still feel, even days later, is his eyes skating over my body. My date thought my body was disgusting, a marker of everything I have been through without him. Everything he is clear he doesn’t want.
Aaron, on the other hand, seemed interested. As much as his job would allow him to be, anyway. His attention had lit a fire in my belly, a yearning for something I didn’t realize still existed, buried deep.
How long had it been since I felt that spark?
I would have to see him again; that much is a given. The sky is blue. Levi will invite me to the station. Zachary and Summer are getting married. I will set yet another kitchen fire when I try to cook for Noah.
Everyday life. Everyday situations. Maybe I want to get handcuffed to another bed and need rescuing.
I need to come to terms with these feelings because Aaron is staying in Crown Hill. It’s inevitable that our paths will cross. I already had to turn down lunch with Levi at the station today to avoid him.
I just need a little bit of time before I have to face him—and the feelings he stirs up in me. Part of me dreads seeing him, the man who had to come to my embarrassing rescue.
But I hadn’t planned for the way his gaze drifted lower when he set to work over me, his touch gentle. And it seemed like he had a harder time forcing himself to look me in the eye—and it wasn’t all embarrassment.
I want those eyes on me again for however long he wants to look.
“You know, I forgot that I have to pick up my dress for the wedding this weekend,” I tell Megan when I can’t shake those thoughts loose. “I’ll make it up to you next time. I promise.”
“It’s volunteer work, Paige,” she laughs. “Go. Get your dress.”
Noah and I head out to the boutique where Summer insisted I order the bridesmaid’s dress. The seamstress has me put it on one last time before I take it home.
“I’ll keep an eye on this one.” The old lady smiles at Noah as she hands me the dress. She takes his hand and lets him lead her to the bright green velvet poufs outside the dressing rooms. Noah happily climbs up.
The stretchy fabric pulls over my head and drapes over my curves as it falls in place. Summer was right when she picked this one. It skims my hips and covers the softness of my tummy.
It’s shorter than what I would choose, but with a pair of heels, it will make my legs look incredible.
And Summer made Zachary invite a certain captain.
If I had to choose what he sees me in next, this dress definitely tops the list.
The seamstress pins it in a few key places, promises to make the alterations as soon as possible, and then we leave.
“The dress is perfect,” I report to Summer as we leave. “One more thing off your wedding checklist.”
“Now, all we have to do is make sure you get noticed,” she laughs. “I doubt that will be a problem for you in that dress.”