Page 2 of Bravely Yours

The all-night crying had been enough to have me pulling my hair out, and now this.

I was standing outside my neighbor’s apartment in nothing but a pair of gym shorts. The door vibrated against my fist as Ibanged hard on it for the third time. Intuition was telling me that something wasn’t right. At twenty-five, I was one of the youngest guys at the fire station, but my dad liked to remind me that I had been born with instincts that made me a good firefighter. Apparently, it was ingrained in the men in our family, a trait passed down from one Mitchell to another.

I wasn’t sure about all that. But I couldn’t deny that my gut was screaming at me. Between the smoke detector and the wailing baby—not that the crying was new in this apartment—something was off. This wasn’t a fussy baby. This one sounded scared.

As I stepped back once again, waiting for my neighbor to answer the door, a thin stream of smoke billowed out from under the door.

Shit.

My training took over then. I stepped back, lifted my foot, and kicked hard at the doorknob, praying she didn’t have the damn thing dead-bolted. Thankfully, the lock disengaged, and the door swung open.

Instantly, smoke wafted into the hallway. Visibility wasn’t terrible, but a thick band of smoke came from the kitchen. My guess would be some type of cooking oil. Depending on which type, burning oil could easily create a lot of smoke. And very quickly.

I turned one way, then the other, taking in my surroundings. The baby stood, crying in some type of play pen. The plastic box off to the left could hardly be called a crib. The sound of coughing from the kitchen area caught my attention. Through the smoke, I could just make out a tall woman standing by the window.

“Fire department,” I called out, hoping I wouldn’t frighten her as I came around the island and into the kitchen. But between the loud alarm and the baby crying a few feet away, I wasn’t sure she could hear me. As I moved closer to her, Isurveyed the stove, and my shoulders relaxed a fraction. There was no fire, and she’d already turned off the burner.

“Is this stupid thing glued shut or what? I swear this shit only happens to me. Just wanted a nice quiet night,” she rambled, grunting and tugging on the window that wouldn’t budge.

Although I was annoyed with the situation, I couldn’t hold back the smirk and the snarky remark on the tip of my tongue. “Yeah, me too.”

The tall blonde jumped and spun to face me with wide eyes. Her face was stricken with fear. Though, for a second, I was sure her gaze dropped down to my bare chest. I hadn’t really pictured my neighbor as I cursed the crying night after night, but if I had, I would not have envisioned a beautiful young blonde.

She coughed again, and the baby echoed the same sound from a few feet away.

I stepped toward the gorgeous, frightened woman. “Move, please.”

“What?” She shook her head, her brows furrowed.

“Move so I can open the window and let some smoke out.”

With another cough, she stepped to the side. Quickly, I took over and yanked the window up before I moved past her to slide the patio door open.

The baby coughed again, sending a niggle of worry up my spine. I turned and studied her quickly, then focused on the blonde. Her eyes were still wide as she surveyed the front door, then squinted at me.

“Did you just break into my apartment?” Her green eyes narrowed, but the crack in her voice ruined the tough-girl stance.

“Technically,” I hedged, rubbing at the back of my neck, “yes.”

She turned suddenly, putting herself between me and the baby, then hurried over to the crib.

“I said ‘fire department’ when I came in, though.” I crossed my arms in front of my chest. She was acting like I’d broken in to do her harm rather than to help her out.

She spun again, her brows almost to her hairline. “The fire department is here?”

The woman and the baby coughed in unison, and worry pulled at the corners of the blonde’s mouth.

Dropping my arms, I shook my head. “No. Just me.”

I took a step toward her, concerned about her breathing as well as her daughter’s, but as I did, she startled and took a matching step back.

She was a skittish thing. Or maybe I was just an asshole dressed in nothing but gym shorts, who’d broken into her apartment and scared the shit out of her. Regardless of my intentions, I needed to get her and her baby out of here. And probably give Owen a call. They should be checked out. “I’m Jay. I live in the apartment next to you.”

“Oh.” Her shoulders relaxed a bit. “You moved in a couple weeks ago, right?”

Nodding, I slowly moved toward the door and waved for her to follow me into the hallway. “Come on, let’s go to my place. My buddy Owen is a paramedic and lives in the building around the corner. I can give him a call to come check you two out.”

“We’re fine.” She shook her head. “That’s not necessary.”

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