Page 79 of Nanny for the Firefighter

But creaking sounds from overhead, and I know the branches here are getting fragile. The heat from the fire is making them brittle, and the assault from the Bambi Bucket has cracked some of them.

“Collapse risk!”

I point up, and the others catch my warning, adjusting their positions to manage the control line.

As they move, however, I notice that Patches gets his foot stuck under a tangle of partially burnt roots. He trips, hitting the ground and losing his helmet.

“Patches!” I hurry over, reaching for the guy’s arms to drag him out. “You ain’t adding another hole to that undershirt. Come on.”

He got his nickname for his hand-me-down clothes, and I’m not letting the poor kid get hurt out here. He has a newborn to get home to.

Crack!

We both look up, and a branch above us comes tumbling down. I shove Patches out of the way, leaping forward to avoid the impact.

I’m only partially successful.

Pain lances through my back as the blunt force knocks me to the ground and smashes into my back. The branch rolls down my body as it comes to a stop, pinning my legs beneath them.

“Fuck,” I groan, but I can still move. I’m just…stuck.

“Hayes!” I hear O’Brien call, and he sprints over with the others to help me get out from under the branch. “Jesus, man. Are you all right?”

I cock him a crooked grin, my entire body screaming at me. “Oh, you know, just pain. Ugh, get me out of here.”

The heat blooms over me as the men work to get me free, and the smoke is picking up from the backfire and the flames surging toward it. Even with the mask, my eyes sting, and my back and leg that caught the brunt of the impact steadily throb.

Worse, my head is spinning, and the dizzy, disorienting sensation makes it difficult to keep my eyes open. Pain swells higher as the heat gets more and more intense, and I stop pushing against the branch with the others.

“Hey, now, don’t you pass out on me.” O’Brien is right next to my face, pulling me by the shoulders across the ground, but my gear is caught in the branch. “Come on, Hayes, hang on.”

I like the guy. He’s always fun to have at the station, making jokes and suggesting the best movies to watch. I should invite him over for dinner.

Suddenly, I realize that I’m not controlling my thoughts well, and I feel a bit like I’m drunk.Fucking hell, probably a concussion.

“Why did you do that, man?” Patches says, his brow furrowed way down over his eyes. “You…you…”

Shakily, I reach around the branch and pat him on the arm. “Hey. You need to get home to Rochelle and baby Erin.”

“You’re too damn good, Mason.”

I try to give Patches a smile, but I can’t seem to find the strength. My head feels fuzzy, and the forest in front of me goes blurry.

“Hang on, Hayes!”

I hear the men’s voices shouting, but my body is done. I’m not steering this ship anymore, and as the pain throbs with each heartbeat, my eyes close.

I won’t give up. I promised you, Bridget. I just…need to…

And then I pass out.

TWENTY-FOUR

Bridget

“Did they fall asleep?”

I look over my shoulder at Meredith, nodding. “Yeah, on the couch.”

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