Page 50 of Single Mom's Firemen

By the time I’m done with Rex’s story Sammy is finally asleep, catching up with Luna somewhere far away in dreamland. Slowly and cautiously I put the book away and remove myself from their room before making my way downstairs.

Eric has Halle for tonight. A one-on-one date. We agreed we’d take turns every week since it’s important for us to bond with her and for her to bond with us on an individual basis. While I certainly enjoy every moment that we get to spend together, the four of us, I do see the benefit from cultivating a more personal dynamic, too. There are sides of Halle that come out only when she’s with me. Other sides that emerge with Wyatt. And different aspects altogether with Eric. It’s fascinating. She truly is one of a kind.

Everything I’m feeling is scaring the fuck out of me.

“What is the matter with you?” Wyatt asks.

I’m not even paying attention to what I’m doing. It’s not until his voice comes through that I look down and realize I’m about to put a whole plate of cooked carbonara into the freezer. “Shit. Sorry,” I mutter and empty the plate into a plastic dish with a lid instead before placing it in the fridge. “My mind was somewhere else.”

“Clearly,” Wyatt chuckles, unloading the dishwasher. “You’ve been like this all day. What’s going on, brother?”

“Everything,” I say, letting a heavy sigh roll from my chest. He pours me a glass of wine and joins me by the counter island. We still have a few things to put away but I need this drink more right now. “I never imagined our house being like this.”

“Oh, you mean with a gorgeous woman and two kids laughing and running around?” Wyatt replies, a broad smile stretching across his face. “Yeah, me neither.”

“It’s not safe. Not while that fucker is on the loose.”

“It’s safer here for Halle and the kids than anywhere else,” my brother replies.

“No, I mean it’s not safe for us,” I say. “What are we doing here, Wyatt? Playing house? Planning a future? We keep telling Halle she’ll never be alone again but where does she stand? What are the chances she won’t take the kids and run off as soon as Colby comes closer?”

Wyatt narrows his eyes as he looks at me. “We’ve gone up against pieces of shit like Colby Nash before. That’s not what worries you.”

“I’m not afraid of that prick,” I grumble.

“No, you’re afraid of getting your heart broken. You’re starting to get attached, and it scares the shit out of you.”

“Wow, you read me like an open book,” I reply with a deliberately flat tone, then empty my glass and motion for a refill.

Wyatt obliges while simultaneously holding back a laugh. “There’s a lot to love about Halle, Chase. All three of us are head over heels with her and there’s no coming back from that. Luna and Sammy are just a bonus.”

“Yeah, but—”

“But she comes with baggage,” Wyatt says. “I know that but it’s obvious we want Halle to be a part of our lives. We’re working toward it. Hell, we’re trying to find Colby so we can throw his ass in jail and be done with him forever.”

“I don’t know, Wyatt.”

“You do know,” he replies, smiling. “You’re just not ready to admit it. You’re in love. So am I. And so is Eric. And we’ve got two choices at this point. We stick together and show Halle what it’s like to be with us, from beginning to end and everything in between, through thick and thin. Or we keep it friendly, help Drucker and the Dallas PD apprehend Colby, then send Halle and the kids on their merry way.”

I give my brother an alarmed look, which, in turn, makes him laugh. “What’s so funny?” I mumble, feeling my ears burn a tad with embarrassment.

“You’ve been a dark and brooding bastard your whole life. Big ol’ tough guy with plenty of battle scars and a left hook that could kill a man,” Wyatt says. “Then Halle and those little munchkins walk in and you’re toast.”

“Like you aren’t.”

“We all are. Our mother included. Chief Holt already misses Halle. He wants to know when she’s coming back to work. Fortunately for Halle and for us, he completely understands the situation and offered us his full support. The entire house is behind us, as well.” Wyatt exhales sharply. “No, brother, what’s really bothering you—and not just you, might I add—is the uncertainty that we’re having to deal with until Colby Nash is arrested, tried, and imprisoned for that diner fire.”

We’re not used to having someone take up so much space in our lives. A space that we’re willingly giving them. Happily, even. I had almost stopped wishing for a woman to show up, one that would want all three of us, together. She seemed like a wild and distant dream yet Halle fits the bill to a T. She is perfection incarnate, at least where my brothers and I are concerned.

“You were used to it being just the three of us,” Wyatt continues, as if plucking the thoughts right out of my head. “Us against the world. Maybe we’d each find ourselves a girl eventually, but when Halle popped up out of the literal flames, things changed. I get it. It’s concerning, especially given how challenging her life is. But I think she’s worth it. I think she’s worth all the trouble. Don’t you?”

I nod slowly. “Yeah. Absolutely. I just don’t like the thoughts I’ve been having about Colby, about what I’m willing to do in order to keep her and the kids safe.”

“You’re not the only one struggling with such thoughts,” my brother confesses. “You’re simply more likely to act on them and you know it. The fact that you’re worried about that tells me that you do have a conscience, Chase, and that makes you a good man, no matter what you might believe about yourself.”

Wyatt and Eric know me better than anyone else. There are so many things from our time in the Navy that we haven’t shared with our mother and father. Things we had to do. Things that I, specifically, did without hesitation. I carry the ghosts of many people with me every damn day of my life. Long shadows that never leave me alone. They are the loudest when they are quiet, because as my brother puts it, I do have a conscience. I simply chose to turn it off when I picked up that rifle in service of my country.

“Halle doesn’t know any of that stuff about me,” I say, my voice low.

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