Page 15 of Saved By the Firefighter

I wrench myself away. What the hell am I doing? She's my best friend's little sister. Off-limits.

"The mask," I say gruffly, avoiding her eyes. My voice is rough with emotions I can't afford to feel. "Put it back on. You inhaled a lot of smoke."

She nods and lays back down on the blanket.

I glance behind me to see Elijah watching us, his brows raised. Shit. He saw everything. Annoyance flares within me at his prying eyes. I don't need him poking around in my business. And I don't want him—or anyone—seeing me like this. Exposed. Vulnerable. I quickly avert my eyes, focusing on the job at hand.

I hop out of the truck, shooting him a look that warns him not to ask me any questions about what he just witnessed. He turns his attention to the dog, offering it a bowl of water.

The wail of sirens cuts through the air as the paramedics arrive on scene. I let out a breath. Ellie is in good hands now.

As the paramedics load her into the ambulance, I squeeze her hand reassuringly. "You're safe. They'll take care of you."

She nods, eyes brimming with gratitude and something more that I don't want to name. I force myself to pull away, returning to Elijah's side. He gives me a searching look, one I ignore. Now isn't the time for a heart-to-heart. We have a job to do.

I secure my helmet, pushing thoughts of Ellie from my mind. I need to focus. Lives are at stake. In this moment, I need to be a firefighter, not some guy tangled up in feelings he has no right to have.

"Let's move," I bark to Elijah. We jog back towards the raging fire, the swirling smoke stinging my eyes. Back into the belly of the beast.

We pull out equipment next to our colleagues. My gloved hands grip the hose tighter, focusing on the force of the water that surges from it, trying to drown out the memory of her touch. I plant my feet, directing the stream at a particularly stubborn blaze, the muscles in my arms straining with the effort.

But try as I might, my mind keeps drifting back to Ellie. The feel of her in my arms. To that kiss. The one I never should've returned but desperately wanted to. I've been lying to myself, pretending she means nothing to me. That she's only a neighbor who happens to be my best friend's sister.

But our kiss tonight shattered that illusion.

She's dug herself into my thoughts, as much as I wish otherwise. I can't deny it any longer. The realization is terrifying, and it's the exact reason why I have kept my distance all this time. My heart is a fortress, or at least, it needs to be.

What the hell am I going to do?

"Come on, Jake," Elijah calls out, breaking through my internal maelstrom. "Let's put this thing to bed."

"Right behind you," I reply, my voice more growl than tone. But I follow, because that's what I do—push forward, save what I can, and try to ignore the rest, especially my failures.

Too painful.

Chapter 7

Ellie

Ituck the last of my student's colorful drawings into my satchel, feeling the weight of another week lift slightly off my shoulders. The classroom is now quiet, a complete contrast to the chaos that filled it only ten minutes ago. I let out a slow breath, trying to shake off my exhaustion. It's finally Friday and I'm planning to sleep the entire weekend, probably with some wine. Well, not the entire weekend because I do have some homework and assignments to grade.

As I zip up my large bag , Danielle breezes over. Her chestnut hair is pulled back in her signature bun, a pop of red lipstick giving away her evening plans, probably a date. "So what's your weekend look like?" she asks.

I force a smile, wishing I could match her enthusiasm. I'm sure my weekend sounds lame but I think I'm still recovering from the fire ordeal over two weeks ago. I inhaled a lot of smoke so the doctors said my body will take time to recover, and I keep having bad dreams about it. Scary dreams. "Oh, you know," I tell her. "Just the usual—laundry, groceries, grading homework."

"Come on," she nudges, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Let's do something fun. A girls' night out, or maybe a hike? We could use some fun after..." Her voice trails off, and the air between us fills with the unspoken memory of raging flames and smoke-filled skies.

My heart pounds, thinking of how close I was to not making it out of there. If Jake hadn't...

My forced smile gets wider. "Thanks, but I think I'll just cocoon at home."

Danielle frowns, not fooled by my expression. She places a hand on my arm. "It's okay not to be okay, you know. That fire was traumatic."

I shake my head. I'm not ready to talk about it yet, not even with Danielle. "Oh, it's...I'm okay. I'm managing."

"You sure you're okay?"

"Yup." Everyone keeps asking me that, but I'm just ready to put the entire experience behind me. Well, maybe not that kiss with Jake.

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