Page 39 of Courageous Demands

“I do, too,” Colton grinned.

“Same,” Chad chuckled and gave Justin a look. “I’m gonna get the truck ready, now – and start another pot of coffee.”

“I guess I’m gonna quit drinking coffee at this rate,” Justin muttered, walking off and rubbing the back of his neck in frustration.

Alec looked at Colton.

“You okay, bro?”

“Seriously, your mouth is something else.”

“I love that man - and he’s so easy to rile up.”

“Which one? Justin or Lance?”

“Both of them. I’m gonna get Justin a big, insulated Thermos so my man can have his coffee whenever he wants. Oh, and there’s a mouse in Lance’s helmet, too. Poor guy. Maybe we should go rescue him before he needs therapy?”

A shriek pierced the air, followed by more laughter.

Colton and Alec looked at each other – and shrugged.

“Too late,” Colton chuckled. “Let’s get to work.”

* * *

An hour later (and several apologies combined with cups of coffee for Justin), things were in a much better mood around the truck. Apparently, his son, Ollie, was already teething, and it was really messing with him badly. He slept the last two nights in the recliner, holding his son against his chest trying to comfort him.

Lance talked about his engagement and gushed about how nervous he’d been. They all laughed at his string of text messages, teasing him about the panicked reaction at first compared to how calm he was now.

“What about you?” Chad asked, looking in the mirror at him. “You’ve been awfully quiet, Alec.”

“Which is not like you,” Justin added, looking over his shoulder and grinning at him.

For a moment, Alec felt panic. He really didn’t want to discuss the thoughts rolling around in his head regarding his future, what was happening with Willow, or the fact that he was actually striking up a relationship with his ex-girlfriend again. Man, he always got so frustrated with friends who went back to their exes and here he was doing the same.

It wasn’t a bad feeling either.

“Well…” Alec began and let out his breath as the radio in the truck went off.

Motor Vehicle Accident with Injury

“Lights, sirens, action, fellas…” Chad announced, flipping the switches on the console as he sped up. Justin grabbed the radio and announced that they would be responding.

Lance was looking at him.

“So?” he asked Alec pointedly. “Things blow up or go okay?”

Alec simply gave him a thumbs-up.

“Fair enough.”

The truck was coming to a stop, and they were on the move. Climbing out of the truck, Lance was already heading toward the plug as Alec was pulling the hoses off the truck. Colton was helping lay out the lines as Justin passed the truck, waving people back and barking out orders. A sedan and a minivan had collided – and the sedan was smoking from under the hood. The ambulance was pulling up in the distance and Eileen was running toward the car to check the status of the occupants. Stephanie was coming up behind her with a kit.

“Where are we?!” Justin hollered. “Let’s move, fellas.”

Alec was heading toward the car – and hesitated as a pair of frightened eyes stared at him with a very downturned expression. The little pouting lip was wobbling, and his heart melted. His mother’s words haunted him at that moment.

Family and legacy…

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