The sex was so goddamn good that I didn’t even mind that Ethan didn’t ask me to stay over. OK, maybe I minded a little bit. After the sex glow had faded, Ethan seemed a little distant, as though there was something on this mind that he didn’t know how to put into words.

So, when my eyelids had started to get heavy and I knew that sleep was just around the corner, I slipped away from his warm, hard body and grabbed my things. As much as I hated to admit it, part of me wanted to hear him ask me back. But he didn’t say a word, either because he was fast asleep, or because he felt the same way about us spending the night together after such a sudden, passionate turn of events.

“So,” asked Katelyn, my fellow teacher and one of my best friends, as we sat in the teacher’s lounge before the day started. “How about that date with the fireman?”

She looked up at me from behind her big, red-rimmed glasses, her blonde hair a frizzy frame around her face, her eyes expectant.

“Did you say ‘fireman’?” asked Bethany, another one of my teacher friends. She sidled her curvy self into the free seat at the little round table. “You’d better have some details,” she said, a big smile on her round, pretty face.

I looked out the window at the leaves lolling in the wind in the green expanse of the schoolyard. I could see the kids, all loaded down with their big backpacks, file out of the busses and make their way to the front doors.

“Um, well, did you guys hear about that fire that broke out in the neighborhood?” I asked.

“Yeah,” said Katelyn. “Over at that shoe shop?”

“That’s right,” I said. “Well, I just happened to be there when that all went down.”

“Are you serious?” asked Bethany. “With the fireman?”

“Yep,” I said, reaching into my bag and pulling out my tablet. “Let me show you.”

I pulled up YouTube and found the footage. The view count of the video was already really high—in the low hundred thousands. The title was “NYC hero firefighter makes daring rescue.”

“Check this out,” I said.

I tapped the play button and the video started. The three of us sat enthralled as we watched the phone footage of Ethan leaping from one fire escape to the other, the frightened girl held safely in his huge arms.

“Oh my god!” cried out Katelyn, attracting the attention of some of the nearby teachers. “That’s him?”

“Yep,” I said, feeling pretty damn proud, not to mention a little turned on watching him in action again.

“He’s like a superhero or something,” said Bethany, folding her hands over her chest as a dreamy expression formed on her face.

“That’s exactly what I thought,” I said. “I mean, how often do you meet guys who literally leap from burning buildings?”

“You’re not getting to the good stuff,” said Katelyn. “What happened with the date?”

“I was, um, pretty smitten after watching this all go down in person,” I said. “And when he showed up at the bar in a skintight white T-shirt that showed off pretty much every muscle he had, I was done for.”

“Does that mean what I think it means?” asked Bethany, raising her slim eyebrows.

“It does,” I said, a small smile on my lips.

The two girls let out a shriek that nearly shattered the glass of the windows. Then, without missing a beat, the two of them started speaking in hushed tones, asking me for every detail imaginable.

“Come on,” I said. “You guys know I don’t kiss and tell.”

“Yeah, and it’s totally lame,” said Bethany. “You’ve got all the luck with the guys and you never give up the goods when it comes to gossip.”

“Wait a minute,” I said, confused. “Are you seriously suggesting that the string of loser hipster artists and Wall Street frat bros I’ve been wasting my time on for the last few years has been ‘luck’?”

“Beats the hell out of my dating life,” said Katelyn. “I’m lucky if can get a Tinder rando to meet me for drinks.”

“Trust me,” I said, “it’s been totally exhausting. Half the time I’d rather stay at home with some wine and a supreme pizza from Nico’s.”

“Grass is always greener, I guess,” said Bethany. “But anyway, you guys have another date lined up, right? Please tell me you do.”

“Nope,” I said. “After it all went down, I got out of there. It was all so much to have happened at once, I would’ve felt weird sticking around.”

“Wait,” said Katelyn. “Let me get this straight: You had the hottest date imaginable with a life-saving fireman, and then after you had probably the best sex of your life, you just ducked out of there because you didn’t want to make it weird or something?”

Hearing it put like that did make it sound a little odd. Leaving had just seemed like the right thing to do at the time—the night with Ethan was just too much all at once.

“I guess so,” I said.

“What’s the freaking deal?” asked Bethany. “You think some other totally jacked fireman’s going to come ask you out tonight?”

“I know, I know,” I said. “It was totally stupid. But it’s not a total lost cause. I mean, I did finally get the field trip lined up. I heard back from the fire chief and he said I could bring the kids to the station. It’s planned for tomorrow.”

“Then there you go,” said Katelyn. “You’ve got a second chance, lady—don’t blow it!” She checked her phone and sighed. “All right,” she said, “time to get going. Science isn’t going to teach itself.”

Katelyn and Bethany both got up, wished me goodbye, and left the lounge. I sat there for a while, watching the steam curl from my coffee as I thought the matter over. It sounded so silly, that I’d just gotten up and left Ethan. What if he’d been offended?

I laughed a little to myself as I considered this. Something told me that Ethan wasn’t likely the type of guy to have very thin skin—not like that Bushwick hipster I went out with awhile back who told me he was in love with me after we made out.

I put the cap back on my coffee thermos and headed out of the lounge.

“Morning, Miss Parker!” shouted my kids as I stepped into the classroom.

“Look at you all!” I said in a chipper voice. “Sitting down, hands folded on your desks, just like I asked.”

Big smiles beamed from the kids as I walked back and forth in front of the rows of desks.

“You all are on such good behavior, just like I’d asked. In fact, you’re on such good behavior that I think I just might take you on that field trip to the fire station I was telling you about.”

The kids shared excited looks, talking among themselves in eager tones. I raised my hand, the signal for silence. They quieted very quickly.

“We get to go and tour the fire station tomorrow morning.”

A hand shot up, belonging to Charlie, a tiny, sandy-haired kid.

“Do they have a fire pole there?” he asked, so excited it looked like he just might jump out of his seat.

“They sure do,” I said. “They’ve got a fire pole, and two fire trucks, and they even have a really nice dog named Mitch that you’ll get to meet.”

More eager noises sounded from the kids.

“And you know what? Let me show you the fireman that you’re going to be meeting tomorrow.”

I admit it—I couldn’t help myself. I booted up the computer on my desk and played the clip of Ethan’s heroics for the kids. But it was just as much for me as for them. I could’ve watched that clip all damn day. And I noticed that the view count had already taken a big jump up, gaining several tens of thousands of views in the time between now and when I’d shown the video to the girls. Was Ethan about to go viral?

The kids watched the clip, totally enthralled. Gasps shot out as Ethan made the jump with the girl, and when he landed safely on the other fire escape, cheers followed.

“He’s awesome!” shouted out one of the boys.

I spotted the same dreamy expression on some of the girls’ faces. They were a few years just before that age when they’d started to notice boys, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I’d started off lifelong fireman obsessions in a few of them by playing the clip.

The kids settled down, and we went on with the day. Ethan was like an invader, popping into my head constantly—I couldn’t shake him. I couldn’t remember the last time a man had this effect on me. It was thrilling and scary all at once. At recess, the kids were mostly playing kickball, and I had time to let my mind wander.

“Hey, Miss Parker!” shouted out Micah, a lanky redheaded boy who always seemed to be getting himself into one kind of trouble or another.

I looked around for just where he was calling from. Finally, I spotted him on the side of the school, scaling the fire escape. My heart raced as I realized just how high up he was.

“Take a picture of me!” he said. “And show it to the firemen tomorrow!”

The kids gathered around me as I looked up at Micah.

“Micah Monroe, if you want to even think about firemen ever again you’d better get down here right now!” I called out, my hands on my hips.

“Come on,” he said from his perch. “Just one picture!”

“You want to go tomorrow?” I asked.

“Yeah.”

“Then you have until the count of three.”

That got his attention. Micah scrambled down the fire escape with the speed of a caffeinated monkey. I didn’t realize I was so anxious, but once he was back on the ground I was relieved beyond comprehension.

“Don’t ever do that again, buddy,” I said. “Got it?”

He nodded, sufficiently shamed. As he scampered back to the rest of the kids, however, I couldn’t really blame him for wanting to imitate Ethan. Tall, handsome, strong, and brave, Ethan was basically what every little boy wanted to be when he grew up.

And, not to mention, he was who every little girl wanted to end up with.