Page 8 of His Fiery Mate

“You need me to show you how to use that thing again or do you want to tell me what it is that’s got you up in the middle of the night?” asked Tanner with a smile, knowing full-well it wasn’t the coffee machine.

Jimmy approached the table cautiously, clutching his own cup of coffee. "I might ask you the same.”

“I know how to use the coffee brewer. I’m trying to figure out a couple of things, one of them being a woman.”

“Good luck with that,” said Jimmy. “I always thought women kind of dug firefighters, but when I got accepted into the academy, my girl dumped me.”

“Okay, so we now know you can’t help me with my problem, how about if we see if I can’t help you with yours.”

Jimmy sat down, taking a tentative sip of his coffee. "I... I wanted to talk about yesterday. The fire at the house."

Tanner raised an eyebrow and set his mug down. "What about it?"

Jimmy took a deep breath, seeming to struggle with finding the right words. "I froze for a moment. You and the rest of the team jumped right in. You went up the ladder and into that house so fast. I got the ladder ready to use, but when I got to the top and there was all that smoke billowing out and the fire was blazing, well, I just... I couldn't move. I froze. If it wasn’t for Billy yelling at me to get my attention, I don't know what would have happened."

Tanner studied Jimmy for a long moment before speaking. "You did all right, Jimmy. Everyone has that moment when they face a fire that just gets to them.”

“But I’ve already been on several calls.”

“And always had someone standing right there. This was your first fire as a real firefighter. It's normal to feel a bit overwhelmed."

Jimmy's shoulders slumped with relief, but the doubt lingered in his eyes. "But what if it happens again? What if I freeze when it really counts?"

Tanner leaned forward, his expression serious but kind. "Listen, kid, firefighting isn't just about physical strength or knowing how to handle equipment. It's about heart, grit, and learning to control your fear. We all have fear. The key is not letting it control you."

Jimmy shook his head slowly. “Not you. You’re fucking fearless.”

“Am I? How do you know that? I’m telling you, any firefighter who says he’s never been afraid is either lying to you or himself—neither of which makes for a reliable team member.”

“How do you do it, Tanner? How do you keep calm in those situations?"

Tanner smiled faintly, memories of countless fires flickering in his mind. "Experience helps, but it's more than that. You have to trust your training, trust your team, and trust yourself. Over time, you'll learn to read the fire, understand its behavior. You'll learn to rely on your instincts and those of your team who are more experienced."

He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in before continuing. "And remember, you're not alone out there. We're a team. We watch each other's backs. You saw how Billy had yours. He probably figured the fire had gotten to you, but you came right out of it and did a great job. That mother and those kids will never forget you. Never. They won’t care that for a split moment you hesitated. Even when you were afraid, you chose to risk your life for theirs."

Jimmy’s smile showed relief and a surge of grit and determination. Billy had mentioned the kid’s momentary freeze. Both had agreed if Jimmy talked to one or the other of them, they would write it off as normal, but if he’d tried to bottle it up or deny it, they’d keep a closer eye on him and note it for his evaluation.

"Thanks, Tanner. I won't let you down."

Tanner clapped a hand on Jimmy's shoulder in a reassuring gesture. "Never doubted it for a minute. Just keep showing up, keep learning, and you'll do just fine. Now go get some sleep."

“If you want to talk about whoever the woman was…”

Tanner laughed. “Kid, if you don’t know who I got fixated on after the fire, that just tells me you were focused on what was important and know less about women than I do.”

Jimmy headed up to the sleeping quarters and Tanner turned his musings back to the prickly drakaina, Melisandre Blaze. Maybe he could kill two birds with one stone—confiding in Melisandre about his own concerns regarding the rash of fires while he worked on getting past that armor-like thick skin that drakaina were known for. It might not be much of a plan, but at least it was a start.

CHAPTER 4

MELISANDRE

When Melisandre had known she was coming to Kodiak to work, she’d asked Nicole if she’d known of any place to stay other than a hotel or a bed & breakfast, preferably one with a balcony so she could sit under the night sky.

“You miss it, don’t you?” asked Nicole softly.

Melisandre thought about playing it dumb and asking what she meant, but Nicole had become a trusted friend. “I do.”

“Asher’s talked to Cooper. He thinks he’d be inclined to leave you be…”

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