Chapter 8 - Rhea
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Rhea
I contemplated walking further into the station, but decided against that. Someone would come out here at some point, I just needed to be patient. Hopefully I had my timing right and they wouldn’t be called to fire while I was there.
I adjusted my hands on the picnic basket I was carrying.
They were damp, and my nerves were completely frayed.
But after the date with Calder and the night I had with Ash, I was feeling bolder than ever.
Beck’s schedule could get in the way of our date again, so I figured that it was my turn to make the first move.
“Rhea?” It was Calder’s voice that called my name, and I looked to the far left of the engine bay. All three of them were standing just outside the door that led deeper into the station, looking surprised but happy to see me.
“Hi there,” I said awkwardly, immediately feeling the blood rush to my ears. “Uhm, I was wondering if… Can I talk to Beck?”
Beck popped out from behind the other two, and jokingly stuck his tongue out at them. Ash rolled his eyes, while Calder simply frowned silently.
“Of course you can,” Beck said as he bounced toward me happily. He seemed a bit tired, with dark circles under his eyes, but he was smiling as brightly as ever. It made me feel weak in my knees, and I had to look away for a moment to clear my head.
Ash and Calder weren’t leaving the area, however.
In fact, they took a few steps closer, too.
I didn’t blame them for being curious, but I was here for Beck this time, and it was only fair that he got his share of my attention.
It felt odd to think of it like that; how was it possible that these three men were all competing for me?
“Really?” Beck asked over his shoulder at the other two. “You’re not going to give us some privacy?”
“Why? Are you shy?” Ash replied quickly as he crossed his arms. “Afraid you’ll bomb?”
“There’s no shame in third place,” Calder added. “It’s still the podium.”
Beck shook his head. “Sorry about them, Rhea. I don’t think they ever learned what manners are.”
I smiled in return. “I don’t mind it.”
I didn’t add that it felt quite nice to have them ribbing each other like this over me. I could watch the mostly friendly competition all day.
“Come on,” Beck took the basket from me and I hooked my arm into his. “Let’s go somewhere we won’t have an audience.”
Ash scoffed, and Calder raised an eyebrow, but they didn’t follow when Beck began to lead me away.
We walked to the far end of the engine bay, where there was a medical rig standing in the corner.
It was as out of view of the rest of the station as we could get, but I wondered why we hadn’t left entirely.
I had been hoping to take Beck out to a park or even to my backyard, somewhere relaxing.
“Unfortunately,” Beck sighed dramatically, “I’m still on call, so… If something happens, I have to be here.”
He made puppy eyes at me and pouted. “But I really, really want to try this picnic
you’ve brought. I have an idea.”
“Oh?” I asked, adding a flirtatious tone to my question.
The two previous dates had really skyrocketed my confidence, and in the summer dress I was wearing now, I felt beyond pretty.
Plus, Jackie’s advice to just go with it had worked for me so far.
Not being completely worried about everything I did was making it so much more fun.
“You ever have a picnic in an ambulance?” Beck said, walking toward the back of the medical rig.
“You’re allowed to do that?” I asked as I followed him and watched him expertly open one of the doors with a single hand.
He shrugged and grinned at me with a typical naughty boy expression. “I haven’t seen anything about picnics in any of the guidebooks. But I would suggest that we keep our voices down and try not to get caught, just in case.”
I giggled, feeling like I’d just snuck out of my parents’ house in the middle of the night.
Immediately, my heart was beating a bit faster and the tension in the atmosphere flared.
I hadn’t done anything sneaky like this in a long time, and I’d definitely never had a date in an ambulance.
It didn’t seem like the ideal venue, but with Beck there, I was sure that I’d at least be having fun.
He got into the ambulance with the basket before hopping out to help me in. It was higher than I expected, and I almost fell backwards. Beck steadied me with one hand against my back, and I instantly felt goosebumps rushing over my body.
“Thank you,” I said, pushing a strand of loose hair behind my ear and stepping forward so that Beck could get in behind me. He shut the doors and all of the noise of the world outside disappeared, leaving us alone with a picnic basket and an array of medical equipment.
“Let me see if I can make a bit of space for us,” Beck said as if he were hosting me in his living room. “Unfortunately, the mansion-sized ambulance is in the shop right now.”
That made me laugh and eased my nerves instantly.
Beck seemed so much more relaxed than either of the others; every move he made was as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
That was weird for a firefighter. I’d always assumed most of them were serious and deeply scarred emotionally.
Maybe Beck was, too, and he just hid it better than anyone else, but I simply couldn’t tell.
He managed to fold the stretcher and put it up against one of the walls, and moved most of the rest of the medical equipment into the various corners. His efforts cleared a small space in the middle of the ambulance, where he proudly placed the basket on the floor.
“Ta-da!” he said, holding his arms wide. “Isn’t that just perfect? We have all the space in the world now.”
“We could have a whole party in here,” I agreed with a smile, before I sat down beside the basket.
Beck took a seat across from me, grinning ear-to-ear at his own achievement.
I had to admit that, while this was definitely an odd location for a picnic, it had a certain charm to it.
It was a unique experience, at the very least, one that I could never have imagined having.
I reached for the picnic basket, opening the top to reveal the content. “I wasn’t sure what your favorite food is, so I just brought whatever I could think of.”
“I’m just grateful I’m getting fed,” Beck joked, peering into the basket. “Oh, hey, you brought grape juice instead of champagne. That’s smart.”
“I was worried you couldn’t drink because, you know, drunk firefighters aren’t a good thing,” I answered, taking the bottle of juice out along with the pair of plastic glasses that I’d packed. “And, well, I didn’t want to break my brand-new tumblers, so I brought these.”
“Smart, I’m a clumsy fellow,” Beck chuckled, taking the bottle from me to open it. “Honestly, sometimes I wonder how I manage to do my job at all. Calder always tells me I have no grace or elegance.”
The way he said it made me imagine him dancing around with a hose like a ballerina, and I found myself laughing again.
I had a feeling Beck’s humor would have me rolling on the floor by the end of the date.
It was like almost everything he said was funny in one way or another.
Maybe it was because of the butterflies in my stomach, or just my nerves, but I didn’t care. I was already having fun.
“Oh, crackers!” Beck’s excitement pulled me out of my thoughts. He’d already filled both our glasses and was now exploring the rest of the basket. “And cheese? How’d you know I love cheese?”
“Most people do,” I pointed out, but Beck peered at me secretively.
“Not Ash,” he said in a near-whisper. “He’s lactose intolerant. Don’t tell him I said anything.”
“Noted,” I smiled, filing the information away in my mind. “No cheese for Ash.”
Beck grabbed one of the crackers and a slice of cheese, and chomped away.
He made it look like it was the best thing he’d ever had in his life.
And his excitement, his pure zest for life, was contagious.
I could feel it building in my own heart, so much so that I felt like going on an adventure right there and then.
“I also have whipped cream and chocolate mousse,” I said conspiratorially, and Beck’s eyes widened. “I did bring bowls for that.”
“Aww,” he pouted, a shimmer of flirtation in his eyes. “I thought I could eat it off of you.”
“Wouldn’t that be a health and safety violation?” I asked, holding my hand over my heart and pretending to be very shocked.
“I clean up very well,” Beck insisted. “Lots of alcohol swabs in here. Nobody would ever know.”
“Mm, then we’ll see.” I winked at him, finding that this flirting came incredibly easily.
Beck had set me at ease fast, and all of my anxiety had completely disappeared.
I was comfortable and more relaxed than I had been in a long time.
Was this what it would be like to be with Beck all the time?
Simple freedom? That was definitely tempting, and something different than both Ash and Calder could offer.
It made me wonder what kinds of adventures would be in store if I chose Beck at the end of all this. I’d probably have a washboard stomach from all the laughter, at the very least.
“You know the best way to eat this, right?” Beck asked, grabbing the can of whipped cream and spraying a whole dollop of it right into his mouth.
He offered it to me, and I leaned back and opened wide.
Beck pressed the nozzle down for a smidge too long, and I ended up with bits of whipped cream running down my chin.
“Oops,” he said, pulling an embarrassed face, but I was already laughing again as soon as I swallowed, wiping the cream off me and transferring it to his cheek.
His eyes widened in mock-offense, and he sprayed some in his hand.
“That’s not fair!” I insisted, ducking back. “I don’t have my own can!”
“True,” Beck agreed, holding the can out to me. I peered at him somewhat suspiciously, but grabbed it, and filled my own hand with cream. Then, I gingerly placed the can to one side, awaiting the incoming stand-off.
Beck and I watched each other closely, doing a few fake-outs as tests, before I finally took the first leap.
I launched myself forward, letting my hand crash into his face, absolutely covering him in whipped cream.
He quickly caught me, and I was surprised with how in control he was of the force he used when he returned fire.
He got me good, but I could feel him holding back.
Soon enough, we were in a full wrestling match, smearing whipped cream everywhere in the ambulance. The rest of the picnic had been forgotten somewhere in the middle of rolling around.
Then, there was a pause where I was above Beck, giggling as I looked in his eyes, and a different urge came over me.
I found myself leaning down to kiss him, and to my delight, he did the same.
He lifted his hand and put it around my neck, threading his fingers through my hair, and pulled me into him.
His lips tasted like cream, and were as soft; less wild and insistent than Ash, but more adventurous and teasing than Calder.
He got himself into a seated position and moved me so that I was straddling his lap, all with measured, gentle strength.
I leaned into it, pushing my body against his and putting my arms over his shoulders.
There was that same overwhelming need for more that I had felt with the others; something deep and primal that pushed me forward and left me longing for the entirety of his being.
Beck seemed just as hungry as I was, one hand holding my face and the other curled into the fabric of my dress.
I wanted him to lift it, to get his own clothes out of the way, to feel him move inside of me.
In that moment, I didn’t care that it could possibly be too far; the venue wasn’t going to get in my way.
Unfortunately for me, the universe had other plans.
The station’s sirens suddenly began to scream around us, and I jumped away from Beck, hitting my head against the folded stretcher. For a moment, I was confused, but Beck was already on his feet.
“Oh boy, we might be in trouble,” he said, helping me up while checking my head. “Okay, good, you don’t look injured.”
“What’s going on?” I asked as I gathered the picnic up and bunched it all back in the basket.
“Call,” Beck answered, already wiping cream off the floor. “We need to get this clean and get you out of here before Chief sees you.”