Page 85 of Controlled Burn

“It was like my worst fear had come true. I don’t know what I would have done if your mom hadn’t been here. She has to be the strongest woman I’ve met.”

“My mom is a warrior, no doubt. But so are you, Rabbit.”

“I thought about leaving,” he said quietly, and then he tucked his head in my shoulder like he wanted to hide from my reaction.

“Of course you did. That’s just a standard fight-or-flight response. But you stayed, didn’t you?” He nodded. “And that’s why I say you’re made of the same stuff my mom is. It’s easy to say you can deal with it, but when the rubber hits the road, it’s a whole different story. And here you are, right where you belong in my arms.”

He lifted his head and looked me in the eyes. “Your mother asked me if I loved you.”

“Did she? And what did you tell her?” I was already pretty sure I knew the answer, but I wanted to hear it from him.

“I told her I did. And not because that’s what I thought she wanted to hear, although I think it was, but because it’s true. I do love you.”

“Well, that’s a good thing, baby boy, because I love you, too.” He let out a sigh and laid his head back down on my chest. I kissed the top of his head and let my eyes fall closed.

Sometime later—I had no idea how long because I’d dosed off—the door opening woke me. I glanced down to see Caleb sound asleep, and then I looked up to see Robert standing in the doorway watching us. I lifted a finger to my lips to indicate that he should be quiet. He nodded and carefully put a backpack that I assumed had Caleb’s things in it on the floor next to the visitor’s chair, and then he took a seat.

“How are you feeling?” he asked in a hushed whisper.

“I’m okay, but that’s probably because of what’s in that bag.” I motioned towards the IV pump that was slowly dripping off to my right.

“Probably.” He grinned at me. “You scared the shit out of us.”

I instinctively wrapped my arms a little tighter around Caleb, knowing he didn’t just mean himself and the other firefighters who were there.

“I know. I scared myself. Thanks for coming back in after me.”

“Look, I know I didn’t react well to you and Caleb being together. But seriously, I love you like a brother. There was no way I was leaving you in that building.”

“I know, and I probably could have handled telling you about us better. I wasn’t expecting to fall for your son. It just caught me by surprise, you know. But remember that day at your house when you asked me if I loved him and I told you it was early days? Well, it ain’t early days anymore. And the answer is yes, more than anything.”

“I can’t ask for anything more,” Robert said, smiling at me. “When you do something, you do it one hundred percent, so if you’re telling me you love my son, I’m telling you, he couldn’t be in better hands.”

“It’s about time you figured that out.” Caleb lifted his head, eyes wide open. I didn’t know how long the brat had been faking it, but obviously long enough to hear the important part of our conversation.

Robert snickered and looked at me. “He’s all yours. Good luck.”

“Hey, I’m a fucking delight, and you know it.”

He shifted his gaze to Caleb, looking at him fondly. “You know, you actually are a delight. When you aren’t being a pain in my ass, but even then, you’re still the best thing that ever happened to me, and I’m proud of you, Caleb. Today was hard, and you handled it well.”

Caleb shifted to the side and stood up, going around the bed to give his dad a hug. “Thanks, Dad. For that, for saving Keith, and for being there for me today. You’re the best.”

Robert cleared his throat and stepped back. He’d never been an overly affectionate father, but the tears in his eyes told me how much Caleb’s words had meant to him. “I dropped off your bag.” He motioned to the backpack on the floor. “But I need to get back to the station. We still have a shift to finish.”

“I’ll walk you down.” Caleb turned to me and brushed a kiss over my lips. “I’ll be right back.”

“Before you go, can I use your phone? I don’t know where mine is, and I need to call Nash.”

“Oh.” Robert reached into his pocket. “It’s right here. I was supposed to give it to you. I forgot.”

“Thanks, Robert. Caleb, I’ll see you in a minute.”

As soon as they were gone, I dialed my brother’s number, and he picked up right away, answering with no hello, in true no-nonsense Nash fashion, getting right to the point.

“We’re getting ready to head that direction.”

“Hold on a second. I’m fine. Mom said you were on the other side of Gatesville, dropping off a horse.”

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