Smoke and Fire_A MFM Firefighter Romance Read online

  “It’s an apartment building.” Chase tapped the steering wheel and sighed. “So much for a peaceful night of playing cards.”

  “Maybe it won’t be too bad and I can take some more of your money after we’re done.” I tried to crack a joke, but my stomach was in knots.

  Apartment fires were the worst. We would have to evacuate the whole building and that was never an easy task. The details were fed to us as we drove and when we got to the apartment building, I immediately started running towards the door. There were already a number of people gathered outside in their pajamas, which was a good sign at least. We were told that the fire appeared to have originated from the ninth floor, which was where my team was headed. We took the stairs two at a time until we made it to our destination. All of us split into different directions as we started knocking on doors. I reached the end of the hallway and saw smoke, so I hit the door with my axe and carefully stepped aside in case of backdraft. A thick cloud greeted me once the wood was splintered.

  “Over here, I think I found it!” I motioned towards the firefighter that was closest to me.

  “Hey guys, Trent found daylight!” he yelled down the hallway, using our slang for the source of the fire.

  I was the first one inside, desperately searching for people that needed my help. Getting them out was top priority. I could hear one of the other guys on my team on the radio, calling for additional support. The smoke was thick, but it didn’t make it impossible to see. I quickly checked the kitchen and the dining area before walking into the living room. I was greeted by a wall of fire on the opposite side of the room that had spread towards the ceiling. I looked around quickly and spotted a figure on the floor. It was a young woman with amber-colored hair. The fire was too intense to check her for injuries, so I scooped her in my arms and started running for the door. I passed by the others as they ran in to check the rest of the apartment.

  “She’s breathing.” I pulled off my mask once I was away from the smoke. “I’ll get her outside. Get someone up to the tenth floor so we can evacuate it before the fire spreads.”

  The tenants were lucky, especially the young woman in my arms. The apartment building was in a good part of town and their alarms were in working order. That brought us to the fire before it got out of control. The building still had to be evacuated, but we were early enough to contain the blaze. I took the woman outside and put her on a stretcher so the emergency team could take care of her, but I quickly checked her for burns as they strapped an oxygen mask on her face. Her knee appeared to be twisted and she had inhaled a lot of smoke, but otherwise, she appeared unharmed. I wanted to go back inside, but the team was bringing people out in droves, so it looked like things were under control. I started working on securing the water lines and directing them towards the location of the fire on the ninth floor. After that was handled, I walked back over to the woman that was in the back of the ambulance.

  “You always find the pretty ones, don’t you?” Chase walked up and chuckled slightly. “Too bad we never get a girl like this when we’re looking for a chick to spend the night between us.”

  “Yeah, well, you seem to find plenty of girls that are willing, even if they don’t look like this. Any word from the top?” I turned my head towards him.

  “We don’t have any casualties. The fire was still contained to her apartment and she was the only one inside.” He nodded absently. “The building superintendent said her name is Kayla Lewis.”

  Kayla. That’s a pretty name.

  I stayed by Kayla’s side until the paramedics were ready to take her to the hospital. She had inhaled enough smoke that an overnight stay was necessary to make sure the carbon dioxide got out of her system safely. We got the fire out fairly quickly, and had the building evacuated in less than ten minutes, which might have been a record for a building that size. A lot of residents wanted to return, but protocol required them to wait until it was officially cleared by one of our investigators. I could already tell it was safe, but there would be smoke in the building for several hours, not to mention all of the water we sprayed to protect the surrounding floors while we put out the fire. The process had to be followed. I was glad that I was on the tail end of my twenty-four hour shift and would have a couple of days off. Once I was back at the station, I removed my gear and chugged some water to wash away the dryness in my throat.

  “Well, it looks like we had an exciting night after all.” Chase walked up with a can of soda in his hand.

  “Yeah.” I nodded and sighed. “At least we got there fast enough to handle the fire before it got out of control.”

  “Hey, Rachel sent me a text message.” Chase held up his phone.

  Ah, so that was her name.

  “Really? What does she want?” I looked over at Chase.

  “She had a great time and would love to see us again once we’re finished up here.” He grinned and pushed the phone into his pocket.

  “I don’t know, man. She was a lot of fun, but it hasn’t worked out very well in the past when a random hook-up turns into a regular thing.” I raised my eyebrows at him and shrugged.

  “Yeah, you’re right.” Chase nodded and sighed, looking down at his phone. “We’ve had better.”

  “And we deserve better. We need something real.” I reached over and tapped his phone. “The girls in there will never make us truly happy.”

  “You and you’re fucking logic. Do you want to hit up one of the twenty-four hour bars once we’re done? I feel like I could use a drink.” Chase leaned against his locker and rubbed his eyes.

  “You look like you need sleep more than a drink.” I chuckled and shook my head. “No, I might stop by the hospital and check on that girl.”

  “Uh oh. Is it serious already? Should I go ahead and rent a tuxedo for the wedding?” Chase snickered as he teased me.

  “No.” I narrowed my eyes and grumbled. “I just want to make sure she’s okay.”

  Three

  Kayla

  Oh god, where am I?

  I woke up in the hospital with fuzzy vision and a pounding headache. It took me a couple of seconds to focus on my surroundings, but then I realized I was in a hospital. I heard a noise and turned to see a man standing in my doorway. I couldn’t make him out very well, but he was tall and practically filled the entire door frame. I blinked a couple of times and tried to focus my vision as he walked into my room, but the lights were dim. My mind raced as I thought about the night before. It wasn’t a dream. I really did set my apartment on fire, and the last thing I really remembered was laying on a stretcher outside looking up at someone—someone that looked a lot like the man approaching my bed.

  “You look familiar.” My voice was hoarse, and my words got tangled in my throat before I started to cough.

  “Hi, Kayla.” He walked closer with a gentle smile on his face.

  “You were there last night, right?” I narrowed my eyes. “I can’t see very well without my contacts.”

  “I was.” He nodded and stopped when he got to the edge of my bed. “My name is Trent Ward. I was one of the firefighters that responded to the fire at your apartment building.”

  “You’re the one that carried me out?” I tilted my head to the side as more memories returned as flashes in my head.

  “I was, yes ma’am.” He nodded again. “I’m glad to see that you’re okay.”

  “Well, I woke up in the hospital so I’m not too sure about that.” A weak smile formed on my lips.

  “They won’t keep you long. It’s just a precaution.” He reached over and lightly patted my hand. “Do you have any family or anyone you would like for me to call?”

  “No, I don’t have any family in Chicago. How bad was the fire? Was anyone hurt?” I felt fear inside and my face twisted to a look of concern.

  “It wasn’t bad and you’re the only one that had to be taken to the hospital. I don’t think you’ll be staying in your apartment anytime soon, though.” He grimaced and shook his head.

/>   “Great.” I leaned back against the pillow and sighed. “I’m homeless. At least nobody was hurt.”

  “You sure there isn’t anyone I can call for you?” He patted my hand again.

  “Nah, I’ll figure it out. I appreciate you stopping by to check on me, though. That’s really sweet of you.” The weak smile returned to my lips.

  “No problem at all. I’m just glad you’re okay. Here, let me give you my number in case anything comes up.” He leaned over and quickly jotted his number down on a notepad next to my bed.

  “Thank you.” I nodded and felt my throat getting dry again, which led to another round of coughing.

  “Here, drink some water.” Trent poured some water into a cup and handed it to me.

  “That’s a little better.” I tested my voice after I had a drink of water and found that it wasn’t quite as difficult to speak.

  “You should rest your voice, but give me a call if you need anything—I mean that.” He patted my hand again and walked towards the door.

  My throat didn’t hurt quite as bad, but my head was still spinning after the firefighter left my hospital room. A nurse visited and checked my vitals, which didn’t appear to raise any alarm bells. She said the doctor gave me some sort of sedative when I arrived, which was still making it hard to focus. I remembered coming home, drinking, and stupidly lighting up the cigarette I took from Anna. The next thing I remembered was waking up with my apartment on fire, so it was easy to connect the dots. The fire was my fault, and I was lucky that I didn’t end up killing myself in the process. I felt sick to my stomach when I thought about it. To make matters worse, I had managed to ruin the weekend for everyone in the building. I was thankful that nobody was hurt, but I was sure that they would all hate me when they found out what really caused the fire.

  I’m supposed to be the responsible one. This is a situation Anna would find herself in, while I scolded her for being such an idiot.

  I drifted off to sleep again thanks to the sedative and it was mid-afternoon before I woke up for the second time. It took me a moment to remember where I wasb, but I felt less groggy. A few minutes later, the nurse walked into my room and let me know I was being discharged. After she got the IV out of my arm, I realized that I had nothing to wear. The nurse didn’t know what happened to the pajamas I was wearing when they brought me in, but she was pretty sure the emergency room crew would have tossed them if they smelled as bad as my hair did. I didn’t have my purse or cell phone, and the phone next to my bed was useless since I didn’t have Anna’s number memorized. As embarrassing as it was, the only number I had belonged to the firefighter that rescued me, so I swallowed my pride and dialed his number.

  “Hi, Trent? This is Kayla.” I held the phone up to my ear as I spoke. “So, they’ve discharged me from the hospital, but I have a couple of problems…”

  I planned to ask Trent if he could go to Anna’s apartment and let her know that I needed her to come to the hospital, but he surprised me by offering to bring some clothes and give me a ride. I normally wasn’t one for charity, but it was hard to turn down his offer. Anna would likely be hungover and take forever to show up.

  At least he was reliable. An hour later, he showed up with a Chicago Fire Department t-shirt, a pair of jogging pants that barely stayed on my hips with the cord pulled tight, and some slippers that were comically large on my feet. I dressed in the bathroom and stared at myself in the mirror. My hair was a disaster and my makeup was a distant memory. There was no way to fix either of them, so I walked out of the bathroom feeling like a disheveled homeless person, but fully clothed.

  “Ready to go?” He opened my hospital room door and motioned for me to exit.

  “Yeah, I guess so.” I sighed and stepped out into the hallway.

  I really hadn’t been able to see Trent very well in the dim light of my hospital room the first time he visited me, especially without my contacts, but once I was up close I saw how incredibly handsome he was. His chiseled jaw, sexy smile, and mesmerizing sky-blue eyes were just the beginning. He had large shoulders and muscles that pressed against every inch of the fabric on his t-shirt. It would be my luck that I would meet someone as attractive as him, who was also the heroic firefighter that saved my life, while looking my absolute worst. I was certainly no vision of loveliness sprawled out on my living room floor in baggy pajamas, but even those looked better than what I was wearing when I walked out of the hospital.

  He led me to a large Chevy truck and helped me climb up into the passenger side before pushing the door closed.

  This will definitely take the top spot for worst first impressions.

  “I talked to the investigator on my way to the hospital.” Trent cranked up his truck and put it in drive.

  “Investigator?” I raised my eyebrows with a bit of surprise.

  “Yeah, it’s routine for a fire. He won’t be able to do much until Monday since he doesn’t normally work the weekends unless there’s an emergency, but most of the residents on the other floors will be able to return to their apartments tonight.” He nodded and looked over at me. “Do you have any idea how the fire started?”

  Uh, yeah. I’m an idiot.

  “No.” I shrugged as the lie crossed my lips. “I just woke up in the middle of it.”

  “It wasn’t electrical.” He turned his attention back towards the road. “That’s always the first thing they check, but the electricians said there was no real damage to the wiring, so that is ruled out.”

  “Weird…” I tried to maintain a straight face, but I felt a lump rising up in my throat.

  I really didn’t know what would happen to me if they found out the fire was my fault. I obviously caused a lot of damage, but I would never be able to pay for it. I was barely scraping by as it was with what I earned from my call center job. Trent was being extremely nice to me, but I was pretty sure that if I confessed to the real reason the fire started he would have to report it. It might save the investigator some time, but it wouldn’t do me any favors. I just needed to get to Anna’s apartment, say goodbye to the deliciously sexy firefighter, and hope the evidence was destroyed in the fire itself. In the end, that was the best outcome. I felt a bit of relief when his truck pulled up outside Anna’s apartment building without any additional questions being asked about the fire.

  “Do you want me to wait and make sure your friend is home?” He looked over at me once he put the truck in park.

  “No, she’ll definitely be home. She’s sleeping off a hangover. I’ve been here enough to know that the guy at the front desk knows me, so he’ll give me her phone number.” I reached for the door handle. “Thank you so much for everything—I know there’s no way for me to repay you.”

  “You could always go on a date with me.” He raised his eyebrows and smiled.

  “Wait, what?” I blinked in surprise.

  I look like a fucking disaster. He really wants to take me out?

  “I’m serious.” He nodded. “I know you’ll be busy dealing with things for a little bit, but give me a call when things settle down.”

  “Let me think about it?” I smiled as I pushed the door open. “My life is a complicated mess right now, obviously.”

  “You have my number.” He gave me a wink and chuckled.

  I stared at Trent’s truck until it disappeared and then walked into Anna’s apartment building. I couldn’t believe Trent had asked me out. Once my brain had a moment to get over the shock, I started to realize that a date with him was probably a bad idea. I had already lied to him once about the reason for the fire, and that wasn’t exactly the foundation of a trustworthy relationship. If the investigator did figure out how it started, Trent would know I wasn’t honest with him. I put the thought out of my mind after the guy at the front desk managed to get Anna to answer the phone and walked to the elevator.

  Okay, Anna. I’ve done you enough favors since we became friends. Now I need a really big one from you.

  “Oh my god!” Anna hugged
me as soon as I told her about the fire. “Thank goodness you’re okay!”

  “Yeah, the investigator doesn’t know what caused it yet. It might have just been some kind of freak accident.” I shrugged and sighed. “So, can I stay with you for a few days until I figure this out?”

  “Um.” Anna pulled back from the embrace. “That might be a problem.”

  “Why?” I blinked in surprise.

  “Because I’m being evicted tomorrow.” She bit down on her lip and grimaced.

  “Anna, what the hell?” My jaw fell open in shock. “Why are they evicting you?”

  “Well…” She walked over to her desk, opened the top drawer, and pulled out a stack of papers. “I’m a little behind on my rent.”

  “Seriously?” I took the stack from her and stared at months of notices. “Why haven’t you been paying it?”

  “It’s a long story.” Anna sighed and shook her head.

  Over the course of the next thirty minutes, I learned that Anna was more irresponsible than I realized. She managed to accumulate a ridiculous number of unpaid parking tickets, and when they told her she had to pay them or go to jail, she wiped out her bank account to avoid time behind bars. She was already dipping into her savings because she was blowing too much money when we went out. That meant she barely covered her rent and utilities. She spent months juggling the important stuff until it all culminated in a chain of eviction notices. I wanted to strangle Anna once she was finished telling me her story. She had been going out with me every weekend and blowing money like she didn’t have a care in the world. She had spent enough on drinks alone to pay her parking tickets, which would have avoided the whole thing to begin with.