Thankfully, one of my rookies comes over, sweat pouring down his face. “Captain?”

“What’s up, Riggs?”

Riggs is a good kid, a bit overeager, but he’s going to be a great firefighter. With a last name like that, we expect nothing less. It also doesn’t hurt that his father is the chief. He has no choice but to follow in those footsteps, which I know all too well.

“Do you want me to start coiling the hose?”

“We can’t since they’re still using it.”

“Right.”

Jack snorts. “You can do something.”

Oh, I’m sure this is going to be good.

“Anything you need, Jack.”

“Don’t be so eager, kid, there are too many who will take advantage of it,” I warn.

“Right. Of course.”

Jack shakes his head. “Just stick with me, and we’ll find you something to do.”

That’s the worst idea ever. “For now, just make sure all the guys have water,” I tell Riggs.

Riggs runs off, doing as I ask. I chug another bottle of water and nudge Jack. “Chicken shit.”

“He’s Chief’s son, damn right I am. Where are the other rookies? We can fuck with them.”

When Jack and I came up through the ranks, it was a lot worse. We were basically the entire truck’s bitches, but it was how we were brought into the fold. A truck is a family. It’s where we put our lives on the line for strangers, but we would die for each other.

“Not anything too bad.”

“Of course not, but I do need my gear cleaned.”

I do another radio check, something that helps me, once again, check that my guys are all accounted for.

Once the last one confirms, we start to break down. We work as a unit, and get it done quickly and correctly. It’s something I love about it. We do it right from start to finish because, if we got another call right now, we need to be ready. Everything is about teamwork and preparation. The hoses go in the same spots each time, I can reach out blindly for an axe and know it will be there.

We don’t take chances. We don’t ever risk someone’s life by being lazy.

It’s just hitting five in the morning when Jack and I climb into the back of the truck to head back to the station, and I’m freaking beat.

“Where is Melia?” Jack asks.

“Stella’s.”

“I thought maybe she was somewhere else.”

“Where the hell would she be? After my mother takes her pills, she wouldn’t wake up if the house was crumbling.”

He grins. “Maybe Jessica?”

He’s such an asshole. “There is nothing going on with Jessica.”

“Okay, if you say so.”