Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Jaxon
After a quick stop at the grocery store to pick up fresh supplies for the next few days and a dozen long-stemmed red roses from Ariel’s Floral Bar, I was finally on my way to the lake.
The thought of proposing to Lily tonight was so very tempting.
Before Vegas, I’d researched ring styles and, on a whim, purchased an engagement ring set with three sparkling diamonds that I felt best represented our love: past, present, and future.
But I’d ultimately handed it over to my mom for safekeeping, so Lily wouldn’t accidentally stumble upon it before the timing was right.
It wasn’t that I doubted we were each other’s future, but rather I just knew she wasn’t ready for that official step yet.
While I was antsy and ready to commit my life to her by diving right into the deep end, the reality was that she’d only been back in my life for two months, and there was something to be said for taking your time and celebrating every moment.
We both knew that day would come, and I didn’t want her to feel any unnecessary pressure from me.
The smell of smoke started wafting in through my car’s vents and broke me out of my thoughts. While it wasn’t an unusual occurrence out in the woods, we usually were alerted when there was going to be a controlled burn, and I hadn’t seen anything in the books.
“Siri, call Jameson’s cell phone,” I said, asking my phone to call my brother.
The Bluetooth cut off the music with a click, followed by a chime to confirm. Siri then replied in her robotic voice, “Calling Jameson’s cell.” There was a slight pause before the speakers played the ringing dial tone.
Jameson answered on the second ring. “Damn, bro, you need pointers on how to increase your stamina?”
“Fuck you.” And yet I wasn’t surprised in the slightest that that was what he’d led with.
“I just assumed it was an issue for you since I happen to know you had big plans and all tonight.”
“I’m on my way to the lake now.”
“Aw, and you made time in your busy schedule to call me while en route? Sweet, bro, sweet.”
“Jesus, you can be exhausting sometimes.”
“So Ari’s told me, but it’s only because I’m obsessed with her—”
“Enough! There’s a reason I’m calling, since I know you’re working.”
“All right, what’s up?” His voice turned serious.
“I’m not sure if someone is having a bonfire, but the smell of smoke drifting downwind from the lake is getting stronger the closer I get, and I wanted to give you and the crew a heads-up.”
“Much appreciated. I’ll send a team out to scope the area.”
“The last thing we need is a brush fire.”
The moment I turned onto the stretch of road leading to our home, the reality of what had emerged above the tree line hit me like a debilitating blow to the chest.
“Agreed. I’ll—”
Anything else he said was drowned out by the thunder of my heartbeat in my ears.
With my breath trapped behind my ribs, I started to hyperventilate.
Each inhale and exhale came in quick, short, jagged bursts.
Extreme panic surged through my veins, causing my knuckles to turn white from the death grip I had on the steering wheel.
“Jaxon?”
The sound of Jameson calling my name was faint, but my voice was too paralyzed with fear to respond. My focus was singular as I pressed my foot down harder on the accelerator, praying I wasn’t too late.
“Fuck,” Jameson shouted. “Everyone, suit up. We’ve got a fire.”
“Lily,” I breathed her name with a sob so broken I didn’t recognize the sound of my own voice.
“Jax, we’re on our way. Don’t do anything stupid.”
I heard him shout, but as I veered off the main road with a loud screech of my tires and saw a glowing ring of fire surrounding the perimeter of our home at the end of the driveway, nothing else mattered but getting to Lily.
I skidded my car to a stop behind hers and jumped out, quickly thinking through my options since there was no sign of her outside.
The wooden porch along two sides of the house was gone, engulfed in flames from the fire fast approaching the roof, especially on the lake side, where the pitched roof line extended higher.
Since waiting for Jameson and his crew to show wasn’t an option I had ever planned to entertain, I sprinted toward the shed at the backside of the property, which was thankfully untouched, with the intention of grabbing anything I could use to get me inside the house.
When you grew up around a fire station, one tended to accumulate shit you hoped you’d never need to use. Pair that with living surrounded by trees, and I’d never been more thankful for what I had at my disposal.
I quickly kicked off my shoes and stepped into an old pair of bunker boots, shrugged into my dad’s old fire jacket, hooked a hammer through my belt buckle, grabbed the only two fire blankets I had, slung them over my shoulder, and pulled the fiberglass ladder off the wall where I’d rigged it up.
The heat from the fire warmed my face and hands the closer I got as I sprinted across the lawn to the side of the house that didn’t have a porch.
My plan wasn’t ideal; in fact, I’d never hear the end of it from my dad or brother on how reckless it was, but nothing would stop me in my attempt to get to Lily.
The thought of her, trapped, terrified, and alone, had the power to paralyze me, but I knew I needed to shove those fears aside.
Time was of the essence.
I extended the ladder to its full length, hoping like hell it was tall enough to reach the second-story window, and threw down one of the fire blankets over a patch of flames that licked the edges of the grass just past the gravel.
I prayed it would buy me enough time to climb the ladder before the rungs got too hot to touch.
With the ladder braced against the stone facade, about a foot under the window, I raced up the steps.
The smoke from my surroundings filled my lungs, but it didn’t slow my momentum.
Once I got to the top, I yanked the hammer from my belt and drove it as hard as I could into the glass.
It took two attempts before the glass started to splinter.
With one more forceful swing, the entire window shattered around me.
I tossed the hammer and blanket from over my shoulder inside, gripped the windowsill, and hauled myself upward, muscles straining as shards of glass bit into my palms. I ignored the sting and propelled my body weight up and through the window, landing unceremoniously on my shoulder in one of the empty spare bedrooms.
“Lily,” I screamed. “Lily, call out!”
The fire alarm had stopped ringing since I had arrived on the property, and as I screamed her name repeatedly, there was no response.
She had to have heard the alarm and gotten out of the shower, right?
I ran for the stairs to the main level, but something stopped me a few steps down.
I turned on instinct, darting desperately toward the primary bathroom.
My heart dropped when I saw the love of my life lying at the bottom of the shower stall.
“Lily.” I nearly ripped the glass door off its hinge before dropping to my knees.
“Lily, baby, wake up.” I cradled her head and frantically checked for bumps and any signs of blood.
“Lily, I need you to wake up, baby, please.” Pleading, she could hear the sheer desperation in my voice, but she was unresponsive.
I checked her neck for a pulse. “Thank God.” It was weak as fuck, but it was there. “Lily, I’m here. Please don’t leave me.”
I slid my arms beneath her limp, naked body and lifted her into my arms. Her limbs hung loosely, like a rag doll, as I carried her out of the bathroom and down the hall toward the spare bedroom where I’d mistakenly left the fire blanket.
With each step I took away from the sound of rushing water, the wail of fast-approaching sirens grew louder. Help would be here soon.
Lowering myself to my knees, I held Lily close while I wrestled with one hand to spread the blanket flat enough so I could lay her down and swaddle her for protection.
Smoke actively filled the room from the broken window, so I made sure we stayed low to the ground as best we could while I fired off a text to Jameson.
Jaxon: East side, look for the broken window on the second floor, hurry!
I tenderly swept my fingers over her forehead and down her cheek before pressing my lips to her brow.
“I love you so much, Lily. I promise to be strong for both of us, but please, I need you to be okay, baby, you’ve got to be okay.
” I held her tightly, hoping she could hear me, or at the very least feel my presence, and draw strength from it.
“Jaxon.” My brother’s voice was sharp and frantic from outside.
With Lily in my arms, I got into a low crouch to stay under the smoke and hurried to the window. Jameson was in the process of scaling the fully extended aerial ladder at lightning speed from the turntable on the ladder truck. I’d never been so thankful for his fast reflexes than in that moment.
“Is she breathing?” he shouted as soon as we made eye contact.
“Yes, but her pulse is weak. I found her in the shower.”
He pushed his knees wide into the side of the ladder, bracing himself. “Hand her to me,” he said with his arms extended.
I hated the idea of having to let Lily go, but I knew at that moment, above all else, it was the right call.
Shifting my weight, I carefully guided her unconscious body through the broken window and into the steady arms of the person I’d trusted since birth with my life.
Knowing full well Jameson would lay his life on the line before he’d let anything happen to her.
“I’ve got her, I promise.” He pinned my gaze with a reassuring expression that gave me a reason to hold on to faith.
That all would be okay.
“I know. Once you’ve cleared the bottom, I’ll be right behind you.”