CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Brock
All I could think about was Amy.
What she was doing.
How she was getting on.
Whether she missed me as much as I missed her.
I pictured her sleep-moistened eyes, her hair pulled up in a messy ponytail, her salmon-colored cleavage that peeked from beneath my Dallas Cowboys tea-shirt as we teased each other over a late night game of chess.
Her ass was delicious and I loved watching it while she cooked. They were pleasantly round and sat high upon her hips—her long loose curls reaching them like willow trees bending in the breeze.
I missed her smell, so fresh and clean. The way her sharp teeth sometimes drew blood in my lower lip when I kissed her during orgasm.
I missed everything about her.
Would I ever be the same again, I wondered.
I’d decided that the only way to get Amy out of my system was to go back on the job. Immerse myself in the danger all over again. I’d let that little angel divert me from my purpose for far too long. Like a needle under a fingernail, she’d wriggled under my skin—made me feel what I’d worked so hard to keep hidden all these years. The hard-worn emotions I’d worked desperately to bury came flooding out in the most inopportune moments. Feelings of longing and relaxation, the chance for comic relief now and again. And the sex! Brilliant mind-blowing sizzling sex. There had been other women but not like Amy. In the past I just went through the motions, but this time I let my defenses down. None of that did me or anyone else any good I told myself. It made me weak. Downright useless I thought. I needed to keep a lid on that. A firefighter who couldn’t control his emotions wasn’t worth a damn.
I handed the keys to my office over to Williams who would be taking my place behind the desk.
His grey wiry brows formed into a scowl. “You sure about this? I mean, I’m not the cold-hearted bastard you are—not sure I can fill those big size thirteens of yours. These men might walk all over me and then where would the company be?”
“Williams you’re just as big an asshole as I am and you know it.”
“Seriously, you’re sure this is what you wanna do?”
“I’m sure.”
“Okay, well take care out there. All right?”
“I always do.”
He took the keys and dropped them in his pocket. Then he left.
I continued to load my things: the bust of my grandfather, photos of my parents, and various paintings I’d accumulated over the years into four cardboard boxes. I planned on selling my small flat soon, I never stayed there anyway, and moving back to the cottage as soon as I had a day off. Then I would live at the station when I worked and spend my free days working on the charities I set up. When my parents died, they’d left me a sizable fortune and with the economy doing so well, the interest increased at a phenomenal rate. I had more money than I could spend in two lifetimes. It was time I made sure my charities were going to the proper people. I wanted to set up a few new ones as well. One for kids needing college funds for starters. I didn’t know why I hadn’t thought of that until now.
There was a knock on the door and when I yelled, “enter” my annoying sidekick these days, Garcia strolled in.
“Chief, I mean…um… what do we call you now?”
“Mr. Fitzgerald.” My jaw set, I leveled a hard gaze on him. He was the last person I wanted to see for no other reason than he was a reminder of my past. I knew it didn’t make sense, but then I was a cold-hearted bastard like that. I liked Garcia all right but he was young. All cocky and headstrong. Like I used to be.
“Uh, right,” he said unscathed. Everything bounced off his back elevating my guilt for the way I treated him some time. That was good.
“Anyway, I need some advice and I thought… well, you being older and all—”
Ouch.
“Get to the point, Garcia and then get the fuck out.”
He just stood there, half-in and half-outside the door. Looking like a lost puppy, he ran a hand over the back of his head. “See it’s like this…”
“Come in, Garcia. I assume by your awkwardness we don’t want the rest of the company listening in on our conversation.”
“Uh, yeah. Yeah, right.”
“And shut the fucking door!”
“Uh, yeah.”
Slamn!
“Have a seat. Now, what’s the problem?”
He leaned back in the chair and crossed his arms, which made me grin a little. Definitely not intimidated, I thought. That pleased me.
“You know that bar we went to? The night you said you had a…headache?” He gave me a sly grin.
“Yeah, what of it?”
“Well, I met a woman and well…I think she likes me but…”
I’m the last one to give you advice, kid. “So you met a girl, did ya?”
Garcia lit up like a Christmas bulb. “Man, she was hot! Had this cute li’l number that went down to about— ” He pointed to the middle of his chest. “You should have come with us, chief…er, I mean…Mr. Fitzgerald.”
“It’s all right if you wanna keep calling me chief.”
“Oh. Oh okay. Anyway the minute I saw this girl it was like wham! Hit me over the head with a sledgehammer. Know what I mean? She has the most amazing smile, well that is when she did smile, which was only the once.” He frowned. “She was sort of depressed because her boyfriend dumped her.”
I frowned even further.
“Yeah, well I knew she’s on the rebound and I tried to stay away, really I did but eventually….”
“The point, Garcia.”
“I want to do something special for her and I wondered if you might know how to do that?”
I shook my head and rolled my eyes. “Why are you asking me? Get her some flowers or something kid.”
“Flowers. Huh. Nah, too conventional. I was thinking about something specific. Actually, you’re the only person I can ask about this.”
“What the hell are you getting at?”
“You know that fund we have? The one for homeless people after their houses burn down?”
“Her house burned down?”
“No. No, nothing like that but I thought you may know some people at the bank. They’re trying to repossess her house and well…I thought since you may know some of those people maybe you could um….get them to extend her deadline a bit?”
“I don’t know.”
“Just for another six months say. Until she can figure out how to re-mortgage it or something.”
“You’ve known this girl how long?”
“It’s not the time that counts, chief. It’s the connection, man.”
“Hmmmph.”
I took a pad of paper and a pen out of the desk. I slid it toward him. “Write down her address. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Oh great!”
“No promises, Garcia. I’ve no idea how I’m going to pull this off or if I can even help her. And don’t breath a word of this to anyone. Got it?”
“Right. Like our other little secret, huh?” He winked at me and clicked his teeth.
“Ah Christ. Garcia get the hell out of here before I change my mind.”
“Right chief.”
As the door closed, my mind raced back to the day he helped me Skype with Amy. I’d been so excited then. So out of my head deliriously happy that this young vibrant sexy woman was interested in me. Me! Brock Fitzgerald, the cold fish. The man who pulled people out of buildings with his bare hands and never got a scratch. Me! The confirmed bachelor who barked out orders and never took a day off. After finding my little sex kitten hiding beneath my desk, my inner male ego had come blaring to life. Hell, I’d been living in a fantasy world since that day. Well, a fantasy was just what it was. Nothing more. Nothing less. Maybe if I could help Garcia with his girl, I would feel better about breaking Amy’s heart.
I ripped the paper with the woman’s address off the pad and then stuffed it in my pocket. Maybe this was just what I needed. An anonymous person I could help. Someone or something to take my mind off Amy. I’d been doing this sort of thing my whole life. I was hiding behind my money, but it worked and each time I felt a bit better about things. Better about what I’d done.
The first thing I had to do was see what kind of shape the woman’s house was in. If the owner truly did deserve a helping hand, perhaps I could get one of my other charities to pick up the tab. I looked at the date on my watch and ticked off the weekends in my head. Monday. Yup, I was off today. My habit of sleeping at the station—even on my days off—often had me forgetting what day of the week it was especially when I didn’t go home. Grabbing my truck keys off a key rack by the door, I headed downstairs.
I paused at the bottom of the metal staircase. Several of the men huddled around the scanner, listening to the details of a fire. A spurt of adrenaline kicked in. “What’s going on?”
“Brush fire over in Jasper” said Williams. “A ground fire. We’re hoping it doesn’t escalate to a crown. It’s just a few acres now but no telling how big those things can get. They’re evacuating all the way to the Sabine River watershed.”
“I’ve been in one of those. Back in LA. Brutal conditions I can tell you that. Melt your skin right off your face.” I paused, my own temperature rising just thinking about it. To tell you the truth, it was one of the most exciting times of my life and my blood skidded in my veins. When you had shit like that to take care of, everything else in your life was secondary.
“They won’t call us,” I told Garcia when I saw the worry lines in his face. “Our department isn’t needed this far south. They’ll get that fire tamped down in no time without anyone’s help. They have special crews trained for just forest fires.”
“Unless it gets out of control,” said Clarke. “Have to be prepared.”
“Of course,” I amended. “A fireman is always prepared.” I patted Garcia on the back. “For now there isn’t much we can do to help.”
“We can d pray the wind doesn’t shift,” added Williams.
“Will it?” Garcia asked shifting his gaze from the scanner back to me. “Get out of control I mean.”
I pulled open a curtain and looked out the window. “Sky’s blue, sun’s bright. All those trees at the edge of the property aren’t moving. I say, the fire will be out before nightfall.”
“Hope so,” said the younger man. I worried about Garcia. Hell, I worried about all my men but especially the inexperienced ones. The last thing I wanted was for a rookie get dragged into something as big as a goddammed forest fire. It would swallow him up like a toothpick.
I took a light jacket off the hook by the door. “Anyway, I’m out of here.” Flinging the coat over my shoulder, I walked past the anxious group of men, down the stairs, and strode into the bay where my truck was parked. Cool air whooshed across my skin and the scent of oil and cleaning fluid permeating my nostrils. I frowned, glancing up to the second floor where all the guys were. The pump and ladder trucks shone like candy apples but the smaller trucks needed washing. I made a mental note to find out who was responsible for that particular duty this week and give him a kick in the ass if need be. This was still my company. I had pride in it, even if I weren’t the chief anymore.
Climbing into the red Chevy suburban SUV, I placed the key in the ignition but then stopped. Something wasn’t right. The seat was set way too close. I had to hit the button on the side to pull it back before my balls were squashed. I knew that my assistant sometimes drove it, but I didn’t remember giving him permission recently.
So who did drive it?
I was just about to turn the key, when I froze. “Fuck!”
It was the chief’s truck and I was no longer the chief. I ran a hand over the soft leather interior. The stations, among other things, were preset to just the way I liked them, and I liked them, the rearview mirror set for my six foot two inches frame. Damn. I’d have to take my own vehicle from now on, a baby blue beamer with all the bells and whistles. Not a bad ride—but I’d grown used to that truck.
Forty-five minutes later, I pulled up across the street from the address of Garcia’s girlfriend’s house and shut off the car. Now what should I do? I couldn’t very well knock on the lady’s door and say, ‘hey, I heard the bank is repossessing your house, here’s some cash.’ Most people had too much pride for that kind of thing. Plus, she didn’t know me from Adam. There was also the little aspect of determining if she was worthy or not. Maybe she just told Garcia all that stuff about the bank. He was a little naïve, after all. Or so I thought.
I leaned forward, trying to get a good assessment of the property. The house was just your ordinary house with polka-dot curtains in the front bay window, three dormers, and a two-car garage. It looked to be in pretty good shape too. I wondered what kind of mess this gal had got into that they were repossessing her family home. I just assumed it was her family home, judging by how well maintained the place was, and Garcia didn’t seem the type to go for an older chic. She had to be about his age or maybe younger. Not that it had anything to do with whether she bought her own house or not. This was just conjecture on my part. It got me to thinking though. What if this girl was a drug addict? What if she just wanted money from Garcia? Didn’t I owe it to the lad to check this woman out? I could always hire a private detective, but that would take too long and time was of the essence. No, I could probably get an inkling if she was on the up-and-up just by the way she dressed and carried herself. I decided to stake out the house, even if it took me all night. Since, leaving Amy, I had nothing else to do anyway.
I saw someone peak out the window-curtain and then pull down the shade, which made me laugh.
“That’s right honey. I’m just your average peeping Tom. Better close up those curtains before I get an eyeful. What else you hiding in there, sweetheart?”
An hour went by and then another and another. No one went in and no one went out. A good sign in my book if I suspected she was a drug dealer.
The hours ticked by uneventful. Soon, I had to piss so bad, I considered opening a door and going out the side of the car, but I didn’t want to scare the neighbors. Not that any of them were around at this late hour. It didn’t look like a drug addict neighborhood and I was starting to question whether I actually needed to see this gal after all. Every now and again I turned on the radio just to see how the fire in Jasper was progressing, or not progressing.
It didn’t sound good. Not good at all.
In the next county, twenty-five hundred homes had to be evacuated and the wind had started to kick up. I was just about to give up my surveillance when a car pulled up in front of the house.
Out stepped a gorgeous redhead. She was a little on the chunky side for my taste, but still voluptuous in all the right places, soft curves and three-inch heels wearing a burgundy business suit—the kind that demanded respect but also said she could fuck whomever she wanted whenever she wanted to. I guessed this was the chic Garcia was talking about but then didn’t he say she was a brunette? Didn’t matter. Women were always changing their hair color. I tried to put the pieces together in my head. From the looks of her, I guessed maybe her business wasn’t doing so hot or perhaps she’d had a low-life boyfriend who stole all her money. Didn’t Garcia say she had just broken up with the jerk? Whatever the case, she definitely didn’t carry herself like a drug addict.
I made my decision.
To keep people from asking too many questions and partly to save the gal some pride, I decided I would pay the bank myself. Besides, what else did I have to spend my billions on? I started the engine and pulled away from the curb, but not before I snuck a peak in my rear-view mirror as she entered the house. Another smaller, vaguely familiar woman stood in the open doorway. Perhaps it wasn’t the redhead’s house after all. It didn’t really matter though. I wasn’t a private investigator and at this point I hardly cared. I had more important things to do. Like fight fires.
***
Sure enough, when I turned on the radio again, this time also flipping on the scanner, I realized how serious the fire in Jasper had become. Not only had it spread to San Augustine, and Newton counties but Intercourse and any other surrounding fire companies had already been called in to respond. After making a quick call to my own personal broker at the bank, I stepped on the gas and high-tailed it back to the station, running every red light, every stop sign, and passing every car along the way. The only thing that kept me from getting a ticket was my cherry red flashing emergency light I placed on the top of the car.
When I got to the station, Williams was the only man there. His face was ashen, his body tense, and he looked like he’d rather be anywhere but behind the desk. “What the hell are you doing here?” he said when he saw me.
“Heard on the scanner about Sabine Forest. Sounds pretty bad.”
“Yeah, well, we’re the only two left behind. The only two.” It was more of a command than a statement—like he was warning me from leaving.
“Don’t pull rank on me, Williams. I’m the only guy around here whose lived through that kind of shit. Hell, those guys don’t know what the fuck they’re up against! Half of them still wet their pants in a structure fire.”
“They’ve been trained, Brock. It’s what they’ve signed up for.”
“Fuck that. I’m going.”
“Like hell you are. Like I said, we’re the only ones in the station. What the hell would I do if someone else has an emergency?”
“This is the emergency,” I shouted, my blood boiling around my ears. “Don’t you see? You don’t fight this demon like any other fire. They don’t know what they’re up against. That fire will eat our guys alive. And if you force me to leave them out there without my supervision, you can kiss half their asses goodbye and I don’t mean they’ll quit. They’ll be fucking dead!”
Williams nodded, his lips taunt. “Go then.”
I flung open the door that separated the living area and the bay. I jumped inside my boots, threw on my canvas coat and popped my ass inside the only vehicle at my disposal, ironically, the red SUV. Then I turned on the siren and pulled out of the station house.
I didn’t have to drive far before the acrid taste in the air made my throat ache. Ashes filtered through the air. Sabine Forest covered one-hundred-and-sixty-thousand acres on the easternmost border of Texas. Jasper was twenty-eight miles away from Intercourse. As adrenaline coursed through my body, I hoped I wasn’t too late. I had to get there before any of my men got themselves in a dangerous situation or worse.