24. Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Four
ZACK
I closed out of my text thread with Mia with a smile and set my phone down on the counter when my Ring doorbell chimed. The last week with her had surpassed all my fantasies and cemented that, if given the chance, I wanted more than just a casual relationship with her. I wanted all of her.
I opened my front door, letting Adam in. He shut the door behind him and followed me into the kitchen.
“Thanks for doing this.” I grabbed the large cat carrier off the table and walked over to the playpen, placing it down inside. “Even though I could have handled it on my own.” I chuckled at the reminder that he’d jumped at the excuse to come over.
“No problem.” He sighed. “I’m going fucking stir crazy. Any excuse to get out of the apartment right now works for me.”
“How much longer before you’re back on shift?”
“Another week at least. Maybe two.”
“It’ll go quick.”
“I hope so.”
“Remembering any more of what happened the night of the fire?”
In the days immediately afterward, his concussion seemed to have messed with his short-term memory, and he could barely recall what happened.
All Lyla could tell us was that he told her to follow everyone else out and he turned back.
Of course, Lyla didn’t listen, waiting for him until lack of visibility turned her into a sitting duck.
“A little bit.” His brows furrowed. “I remember hearing screaming coming from the back hallway where the bathrooms were. It’s blurry, but I think it was a couple of girls trapped.
I yelled to them to turn around and follow the hallway to the staff entrance.
The next thing I remember is the sound of splintering wood. ”
“I’m pretty sure it was that damn railing that was loose upstairs.”
He grimaced, then chuckled. “Well, at least now it’s going to get replaced.”
I frowned at him. Did he think almost dying was funny? “You know this is the second time I’ve had to fear for your life. How about you stop trying to play hero all the time.”
“We’re firefighters, dude. Kind of part of the job description.”
I grunted at that, because he had a point.
Maybe we could all try to keep the heroics to when we were on-shift, though.
Thinking about how this last incident seemed really personal was not bringing me any fucking comfort at all.
I shook that thought off and tried to focus on the task at hand.
No use going down that rabbit hole when we really didn’t have any other information to move forward with.
Adam helped me corral the last two kittens into the carrier so I could take them back to the shelter.
Definitely a little bittersweet knowing the last two were being adopted.
I’d miss their little meows and their fuzzy faces and demanding cuddles, but I was glad they’d all found forever homes.
I’d considered adopting one, but I really didn’t have the time for a full-time pet.
“What’s the latest with you and Mia?” Adam asked, leaning back against the counter once we had the kittens ready to go.
“Nothing’s changed.” At the surface, that was true enough.
Except honestly, it felt like everything had changed.
I was a little surprised Logan and Seth hadn’t said anything since that night at the bar last week.
I was sure they suspected. But if they did, they were smart enough to keep it to themselves.
“Why does that sound like you’re not saying something?”
Dammit. I didn’t know how to do this. Lie to my best friend. So, I gave him the truth I could.
“Look, I can’t break a promise, okay? So for now, just know I have nothing to tell you. But if—or hopefully, when—something changes, you’ll be the first to know.”
Adam narrowed his eyes. “I don’t really like the sound of that.”
He was just looking out for me, but for the time being, I had to get him to accept this. “I’m happy where we are. Isn’t that enough?”
“Until it’s not,” he muttered.
I sighed. “I better get going. Need to have the kittens there by four.”
He gave me a clipped nod and I breathed out a sigh of relief that he wasn’t going to push anymore. I honestly wasn’t sure how much longer I could not say something before pissing him off or blowing it all by opening my big mouth.
After dropping off the kittens and then running a few errands, I was back home cleaning up and putting away all the stuff I’d bought to take care of the furry little beasts.
Figured it made sense to keep it all for a bit.
Who knew when the chance to foster would come up again.
I glanced at the clock on the wall and realized Mia should be off any minute now.
Even though we hadn’t made plans tonight, I was itching to see her.
Over the last two weeks, we’d ended up together any chance we got.
My phone rang from the counter, and seeing her name, I picked it up with a smile.
“Hey, just getting off work?”
“Yeah.” She sounded tired or stressed. Or maybe both. “Kittens already gone?” she asked.
“Yep. Did that this afternoon.”
“Are you sad?”
“Yeah. I’m going to miss Trouble the most.” The little black one always reminded me of my own troublemaker.
Mia giggled. “She was such a brat.”
“So are you,” I pointed out again.
She huffed indignantly before muttering, “That’s fair.” She chuckled and added, “But I’ll cheer you up.”
I thought back to a few nights earlier, when I had to take the other four back to get adopted. Realizing how down I was, Mia gave me the best fucking blow job of my life after telling me she knew just how to cheer me up. My cock already ached for her, and those words… Fuuuuck.
“Busy tonight?” I blurted out.
“I was thinking of going on a date.”
Her tone sounded serious, and anger rose up quickly at that. “What?” I snapped.
She snickered. “Chill, dude. I meant with you.”
“Oh.” What the hell was wrong with me? “Yeah, I knew that.”
She was quiet, likely knowing damn well I was about to lose my fucking mind. But I couldn’t stop wondering if she might be considering dating other people. We’d agreed on casual, but I literally couldn’t stomach that.
A thought lodged in my throat. Logan and Izzy’s wedding was coming up in a couple of weeks. Was she bringing a date? There was no way I could act friendly to any other guy touching her.
I did my best to push away those thoughts. That definitely wasn’t a conversation I was looking forward to having. Especially not over the phone.
“Want to come over, order Chinese and watch a movie?” I asked before adding, “Just us this time.”
She chuckled. “Sure. That works. I need to run home first. Be there in the next forty-five minutes or so.”
“Perfect.”
We hung up, but while I waited, I couldn’t stop wondering if I would have to watch her smile and dance with someone else. That would probably be the thing that killed me. I needed a plan to ensure I was the one she went with, because I didn’t think I could handle the alternative.