“Hello,” I answer groggily.
“G. Sorry to call so early, and everything’s okay—just need you to come to the firehouse and drive Alex home,” Marco says in my ear.
“Is she all right?” I growl, my sleepiness instantly gone, my mind alert.
“She’s rattled, and I don’t want her riding her bike home when she’s not fully focused.”
I’m already out of bed and getting dressed as he talks. I heard Alex needed me and nothing else mattered; my body is operating on autopilot.
“What happened, Mar?”
“Her and Luc were searching an upper floor and things went downhill with the fire, so we called them out. She tried to stay because she swears she heard someone call for help. But had we waited any longer, we would’ve been the ones going in to get them. She had a go at Luc and the Captain, and she’s still a bit out of it.”
I’m slipping on my sneakers and halfway down the hallway when he speaks again. “G, I called you ’cause I know you know what it’s like as much as I do.”
He’s right. I’ve been on scenes where you could have saved someone, and that guilt gnaws at you along with all the what-ifs and maybes. They plague you, and it takes time to get past it. I had my family to help me. Alex has her crew, but more importantly, she has me, and I’m going to be there for her however she needs me to be.
“Leaving now,” I say as I grab my keys and head to the door.
“Okay, brother. Drive safe, and see you soon. She should be finished her report by the time you get here.”
“Is she in trouble?” I ask, trying to get a better idea of what we’re dealing with.
“Fuck no. The one thing you want in your crew is passion and drive. She has that in spades and just proved it to all of us. But she’s got heart, too, and that’s what needs protecting right now:”
“I’ll take care of her, Mar.”
“I know you will. I think you’re the best man for the job right now. You’re who she needs.”
I slip behind the steering wheel and turn the key, connecting my phone to the Bluetooth as his words register. “What do you mean?” I ask
“I thought Luc and Skye were full of it until I saw it with my own eyes the other night. There’s something between the two of you, isn’t there?”
“Yes, but it’s still developing, Mar. So the last thing I need is any of you interfering and meddling—well, more than you have already.”
“Understood. I’ll deal with the others. You look after your girl.”
“Like I was born to do it. You have my word. Hitting the road now. See you soon, brother.”
Then I’m a man on a mission, driving toward the firehouse while also calling my captain. I’ve got more than enough personal time banked up thanks to all the OT I’ve worked lately. I figure that Alex has forty-eight hours before she’s due back on shift and if she wants me—maybe even if she doesn’t—I’m going to be there for her.
Whatever she needs, however long it takes, I’ll have her back.
I walk into the living area of the firehouse to find Alex sitting on the couch, a mug cradled in her hands, her legs curled underneath her as she stares blankly at the TV. Luc is by her side, his chin jerking up when he spots me. He nudges Alex with his elbow and nods my way. Her eyes widen when she turns her head and sees me.
Then I see it—that tell-tale, haunted look in her eye. It’s something I wouldn’t wish on anyone, but especially not her.
“Hey baby,” I murmur softly before she hands her cup to my brother and launches herself up off the couch, running straight into my arms and burrowing deep against my chest. I meet Luca’s gaze, his eyes full of understanding and approval.
“You’re here,” she whispers, her voice muffled against my chest.
“Always.” I don’t know why, but it feels right to hold her like this. As she squeezes me tight and moves impossibly close, I let out a sigh of relief. She’s okay. She’s physically unharmed.
Her emotional wounds will take time. But feeling her, holding her close, and knowing that I’m giving her the comfort she needs? That fuels me in a way I’ve never experienced with a woman before. And as much as that should rock me, it just feels right.
Alex pulls back and looks up at me. “All I wanted was to see you.”
Despite being in the middle of the firehouse with my brothers and crew all around, it’s like we’re the only people in the room. I lift my hand to cup her cheek. “I’m here to take you home.”
She frowns. “Don’t you have work?”
“Called off. Someone more important needs me today.”
Her eyes widen before they glisten with tears again.
I swipe them away with my thumb. “You ready to go home, baby?”
“Yeah.”
“Then let’s go.”
I lace my hand with hers just as Marco walks over with Alex’s work bag in his hand. I take it off him, and we exchange a silent convo of “You’ve got this?” and “You know I do” looks before he lifts his chin and claps my shoulder. He gives Alex a hug, too, and whispers something in her ear before stepping back. She nods and then I’m leading her outside to where my car is waiting.
Opening the passenger door, I let go of her hand. I press my hand to the small of her back, but she stops and looks over beside the garage.
“My bike . . .”
“Marco will take care of it. All you’ve gotta do is let me take care of you.”
“Thank you for coming to get me.”
“Always, Alex. I mean it.”
She nods, relaxing in the seat, letting me close the car door behind her.
It’s not until we’re on the freeway heading for home that I reach over and hold her hand, giving it a squeeze. “Wanna talk about it?”
“I think I’m still in the deep thinking and processing stage of things.”
“Completely understandable. Just know I’m here whenever you’re ready.”
She turns my way, resting her cheek against the seat. “All I could think about afterward was wanting to see you.”
“I like that, baby,” I say, lifting her hand up to brush my lips over her knuckles.
“Marco said he’d call you, and I felt bad but couldn’t tell him not to.”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
“Yeah, but—”
“But what?”
“But we’re not . . .”
“Not together?” I ask, finishing her sentence, earning a nod. “I want to be, and we’ve got a date planned, do we not? And whatever we are or aren’t, you needed me, so I’m here.”
“I . . . shit,” she breathes, “I don’t even know where to start.”
“Well, you’ve got about fifteen minutes till we get home, and then however long you need after that. You take as long as you need, Alex. We’ve got time, and I’m here for you all the way—if you want me to be, of course.”
“You’re the only person I want to be around right now.”
“Good.” Hearing her say it makes me feel bulletproof.
She’s right that we’re not officially anything at the moment, but that does not negate my growing feelings for her, or my desire to explore them.
“Back home, I’d have Dad or Adam,” she says.
“Do you want to call them?”
She shakes her head.
“What do you need?”
She squeezes my hand as we come to a stop at a red light a few blocks from our house. “Just you, Gio.”
I turn my head and meet her eyes, and as if we’re magnets being drawn together, we lean toward one another, meeting in the middle. Her eyes flutter shut as I touch my lips to her forehead in a soft, barely there, meaningful kiss.
When I pull back, that haunted look has dimmed somewhat, and just seeing that convinces me that what I’m doing is helping.
“Take me home, Gio.”
Whatever my girl wants, my girl will get.
As soon as we walk through the door, I suggest to Alex that she takes a shower and changes into something comfy.
While she’s doing that, an idea takes form, and I set out to make it a reality.
By the time she emerges from her bedroom dressed in a loose-fitting jumper and leggings, she looks a little bit more like herself. When she reaches the living room, she stops dead in her tracks.
“Uh, Gio. There seems to be pillows and cushions and blankets all over the floor.”
“Is that what this is? Huh. That’s strange,” I say, pulling back the covers and patting the makeshift bed I’ve created for us.
She scrunches her nose up. “Are you feeling okay? Because this is totally not a Gio thing to do.”
“Come and lie down and get comfortable with me. I’ve decided this morning definitely calls for a pillow fort.”
Her eyes soften as she moves closer, and for the first time since she’s been home, she gifts me a small smile.
Pulling her in close, I tangle our legs together, loving the feel of her body against mine again. We both turn onto our sides, lying face-to-face, my hand moving around her to stroke up and down her back.
“I can’t believe you made me a pillow fort,” she says, shaking her head against the pillow.
“Technically, I’m not sure it can be called a fort, per se, as it doesn’t have a roof.”
“A roof-less pillow fort?”
“A makeshift pillow bed?”
“Whatever it is, I can’t believe you—Mr. Clean and Tidy—messed up the floor.”
“You said it used to make you feel safe and protected when you were scared of the storms. I figured that this might not be thunder and lightning, but you’ve still had a scare nonetheless.”
“You’re very thoughtful, roomie.”
I shrug. “I just want to help you in any way I can.”
She snuggles deeper. “You are, more than you could ever know.”
“Good, baby. That’s real good.”
“You make a good fort,” she whispers.
“Well, I’ve never made one for a woman before. So that’s a first for me.”
“You seem to know just what I need.”
My lips curve up. “I’m totally winging this, baby. But I’m happy that I’m succeeding.”
“If this was a date, I’d be a sure thing.”
“It’s a nap date. It’s totally a thing.”
A coy smile grows on her face as she presses her body closer into mine.
“But I’m not a sure thing when I have my girl to look after. I have to make sure she gets all the rest and comfort she needs after a bad night.”
“What did I do to deserve you?”
“You were just you, and I was powerless to resist.”
Her eyes slowly roam over my face. “I just . . . I don’t even know what to say.”
“Then don’t say anything. Just be. Relax and try to switch your brain off.”
“That’s the hard part,” she sighs.
“I know, baby. But until you’re rested and in a place to unload and unpack everything going on up here, you won’t be able to process it. When you’re ready, I’ll be here.”
She nods and leans into my touch, warming me even more.
“You tired?”
She shakes her head but her yawn tells me otherwise. “Just be, Alex. I’m not going anywhere.” I roll onto my back and pull her into my side, my chest acting as her pillow as I start my slow and steady strokes over her sweater again.
I stay with her as she dozes in bouts of fitful sleep, her body jerks and twitches letting me know she’s resting but not well. I’ll get her there though. When she’s ready, I’ll help her get to the place she needs to be in order to sleep peacefully again.
Whatever happened in that building—whether there was actually someone trapped in there or not—I’m going to be there for her. Marco texted me when she was in the shower and said they’d know by the end of today either way.
Until then, I’m going to lie here and hold her. I’ll stroke her head and be her comfort—whatever she needs.
I wasn’t lying when I told my brother that I’d look after her like I was born to do it, because holding her in my arms right now, her heat, her smell, her body against mine, and knowing I’ve made her safe enough to sleep after a horrific night—I truly believe it’s exactly what I’m meant to do.