Chapter 14
fourteen
The SUV’s speakers were turned all the way up, bass vibrating through the floor as Xander’s chief, Chief Logan, told a wild story about a family dinner gone sideways.
Xander loved when the chief spent time with them, which was rare.
Logan used to be captain at Xander’s firehouse before the promotion but still came around when he needed a break from the brass upstairs, like that day.
Xander laughed along with the crew, but his eyes were fixed on the GPS. Half a mile until Greene Gardens.
Logan had requested a few firefighters make themselves available to visit a site in Greene Gardens the week before.
Xander had volunteered, genuinely curious about finally seeing the village he’d been viewing in brochures and that all of New York City seemed to be talking about lately. At least, that’s what it seemed like.
It also seemed like every other week, someone he knew was talking about possibly buying a house in the emerging village upstate.
As they passed the Welcome to Greene Gardens sign, Xander took a slow sip of his coffee, eyes scanning ahead.
To his knowledge, the town was brand new, but people had already started living there and opening businesses.
It was the reason he and his crew were traveling from Brooklyn to visit on assignment.
It was late morning in the village. Xander and the other firefighters were there to collaborate with the developers to ensure safety compliance and proper fire-response infrastructure for their new local firehouse that would serve the area.
As soon as they crossed the first half mile past the welcome sign, Xander sat up in his seat, tuning out the conversation in the SUV.
He and his crew from the Park Slope station were temporarily assigned to assist with reviewing blueprints with project architects and engineers, making sure the design supported response times and, of course, safety codes.
But that kind of went out the window when he realized how beautiful and developed the village already was.
“Damn, they work fast, huh?” Xander noted to himself, but loud enough for a few of the guys to hear. “I thought this village was brand new. They got buildings and houses and shit.”
“I’m saying,” Jamal agreed beside him with a chuckle. “I was expecting deserted land and half-built properties. Scaffolding. Anything but this.”
Xander blew air through his lips as his eyes continued to scan.
The area appeared to be a mixed-use village community. Looked a lot like Brooklyn to him, with the blending of brownstone charm and modern design.
Xander wasn’t the only one in awe.
“Well, damn,” Pauly, another firefighter, said. His eyes were pinned to his window like a kid in the backseat of his parents’ minivan. “Might have to make the move. You see that house right there?”
“Yeah,” Xander whispered, his eyes glued and moving with the passing homes.
“Aye,” Chief Logan called from his seat behind the wheel. “Don’t be getting no ideas, you hear me? I’m not trading firefighters for no damn Greene Gardens. Talkin’ about ‘you see that house right there?’ Y’all better just see it.”
They all laughed, including Xander.
“Wouldn’t dream of leaving you assholes,” Xander said with a smirk.
Everyone laughed again.
He wouldn’t dream of leaving them, but a move to Greene Gardens, like Pauly just suggested, didn’t sound like a bad idea.
The guys arrived at the new firehouse site, stepping out of the SUV, all of their eyes scanning the building. The firehouse stood partially framed—steel beams, fresh cement foundation, and a banner that read Future Home of FDNY Engine 3.
Xander tucked in the hem of his firehouse shirt into his slacks. He and the rest of the firefighters were dressed alike, all in casual FDNY gear.
“Gentlemen,” they heard behind them. Xander turned to see a smiling Black man with two women flanking him on either side. “Welcome to Greene Gardens. Y’all are early. I like that.”
“Oh, no doubt.” Xander nodded. “That’s what we do.”
“I’m Levi Weston,” the man introduced. “I’m the lead landscape architect and your Greene Gardens rep today.
” He gestured to his right. “Over here is Presley Blake, one of our architects who’s assisted with designing this firehouse.
And over here…” He nodded to his left.“Is Allison Cruise, our local project manager. Thank you for coming.”
All of the guys, including Xander, shook everyone’s hands.
“The lead engineer is already inside,” Levi informed, pointing ahead. “Let’s meet him and get you guys up to speed.”
At Levi’s direction, they all followed him into the firehouse, both Allison and Presley sharing the blueprints to give the team an idea of what the finished building would look like.
“This is obviously not the complete schematics,” Presley explained, pointing at one of the blueprints. “But it paints a pretty clear picture.”
Inside, after getting introduced to the lead engineer—who pointed out plans for two drive-through bays, crew quarters upstairs, and a community multipurpose space—they all walked the site for hands-on work.
Xander measured turning radii for the trucks parked outside. Tested hydrant water pressure with a gauge.
While checking the distance of one of the hose’s reach, he noted, “If you shift that hydrant five feet, we can reach the west end faster.”
The engineer nodded, lowering his attention to the folder he carried, jotting down Xander’s suggestion.
“Man,” Jamal said, walking alongside Xander and nudging him with his shoulder. “They should let you run this joint when it’s done.”
Xander snorted. “Nah, man. I’m just making sure whoever’s stationed here gets it right.”
“Hmph.” Jamal lowered into a squat to check the fire truck’s tire pressure. “The way your ass was looking through the window on the way here was giving I’m not just here for one visit.”
Xander chuckled, shaking his head. “And why were you watching me, creep?”
Jamal let out a laugh that made his head fall back.
After the walkthrough was complete, and the others started making their way back to the SUV, Xander stood outside the firehouse for a bit, lingering, eyes scanning the area.
Jamal was inside, using the bathroom before they all hit the road and headed back to Brooklyn. Xander decided to wait out front.
He watched a couple of kids ride past the construction site on their bikes, already making memories in their first Greene Gardens summer. Their parents weren’t far behind, stepping out of a café, paper cups of coffee in hand, waving back to them from down the block.
There was a row of finished brownstones and houses further down.
Xander lifted a hand to shield his eyes from the summer sun, catching sight of ivy already climbing some of the sides of those brownstones.
And in that moment, he couldn’t help imagining Nova and LJ running down that same block.
Rylee with a stroller.
She was five months pregnant now, showing in the most beautiful way, and Xander loved every moment of it.
Loved how his mind—even when he wasn’t trying—often had him thinking about their baby’s future.
One of those future thoughts centered on housing. The brownstone in Brooklyn had only three bedrooms, and lately, Xander had been seriously thinking about what that would mean once the baby arrived.
Would he move into the brownstone?
Because there was no way Rylee and the kids would leave the brownstone to live in his one-bedroom apartment.
“Beautiful, ain’t it?” he heard to his right.
Xander looked that way to see Levi smiling, eyes fixed out in front of him, and Xander smiled too while nodding.
“Y’all did y’all thing out here.” Xander folded his arms over his broad chest. “I swear, when my chief told us we’d be coming out here to help with your firehouse, I thought I was coming to deserted land.”
Levi laughed.
“I got the brochures and everything, but I thought that was just the finished part of the village. I can’t believe how much ground y’all covered so fast.” Xander blew air out of his mouth. “I feel like I just heard about y’all building only a couple years ago.”
“We have a great principal architect.” Levi nodded. “Hassani Franklin’s efficient. Stern as hell about this project.”
Xander laughed.
“He set project deadlines and has met each one.”
“Dope.”
They stood quiet for only a beat, a thought returning in that instant.
“So housing around here is open now?”
“Not all,” Levi replied. “But quite a bit. As you can see, we’ve already got families moved in for the summer, already making a home.”
“I see that,” Xander replied low.
“But yeah,” Levi continued. “A few units just listed last month.”
“Uh-oh, now he’s asking about properties,” Xander heard Jamal comment on his approach from behind them.
Xander chuckled. “Here he go.”
“You trying to move out here, Cox?” Jamal asked, stopping beside the two men.
Xander shrugged, his attention returning to the few people enjoying their day in the village. “Just asking questions.”
“Well, if your questions turn into interest.” Levi pushed a hand into the back pocket of his slacks, “here’s a contact at our sales office.
We’ve got a few properties opening up for sale this quarter.
Some are part of the city’s Good Neighbor initiative, too.
” Levi tapped Xander on the arm. “You’d qualify through your department. ”
Xander’s brows shot up as he accepted the card, eyes lowering to it. “Good Neighbor? Why does that sound familiar?”
“I’m sure you’ve heard of it. It’s a first responder incentive program. Firefighters, EMTs, teachers,” Levi explained, turning to face Xander now. “They get first pick and a serious discount—up to fifty percent off—in developing zones like this.”
“Oh, yeah, yeah.” Xander ran his hand down his beard. “I have heard about that.”
“The catch, though, is you gotta live there at least three years. But for someone looking to put down roots…” Levi shrugged with a smile. “It’s a solid deal.”
Xander nodded, his eyes returning to the card again before pocketing it. “Okay, aight. Thanks, man. I’ll check it out.”