Page 23 of Packed in the Fire house

“Most firefighters work a forty-eight-hour shift, followed by four days off. Well, that’s how it is for beta firefighters, at least. Alphas apparently have a quicker recovery time, so our schedule is a bit more strenuous. Two days on, followed by two days off.”

“That sounds like a lot!” I exclaimed.

“It keeps us busy.” Rune shrugged. “We don't mind it. Half the time, when we aren’t supposed to be working, we are here because Walker has paperwork or a meeting with the higher-ups. This place is a home for us.”

“So, your two days on is about to end? What happens then?”

“Nothing much changes, except the other guys will be going on the calls. We’ll just be hanging out around the firehouse, maybe doing some cooking or doing our own things. It also means we're free to leave, making today the perfect opportunity to take you to the store.”

I nodded. “Thank you, by the way. You guys are being too good to me.”

Rune smiled. “It’s our pleasure, Cher.”

When Rune had told me about the gift card, I assumed it had fifty dollars on it, at most. He handed it to me as we walked into the store, Luka on my hip. The first thing I did was ask one of the sweet girls behind the register to let me know how much was on the card.

When she told me the number, I nearly fainted.

“How the hell do you have a gift card just laying around with a thousand dollars on it?” I asked in a panicked whisper as Rune dragged me deeper into the store.

“I have wealthy family members that don't understand the meaning of a decent gift. They just throw money at the situation.”

A laugh bubbled out of my chest. “You are aware this is insane, right?”

“It is, but I've tried to return the cards before. I only offended the family members, so usually, I just re-gift their gifts. Last year, they gave me a gift card to an alcohol store—I gave it to one of the young firefighters when they turned twenty-one, and they had the time of their life—this looks like a good place to start!” Rune beamed, looking around.

We were smack-dab in the middle of the women's section.

With a huff, I turned to face him. “This is incredibly generous, but I can't spend that much money.”

Rune shrugged again. “Just get whatever you need. I'll let the rest of the balance expire.”

I gaped at him. How could he let it just go to waste? He simply grinned at me.

Butthead.

Well-intentioned, sweet butthead.

“Fine!” I grumbled, and started rummaging through the racks. After a moment, the baby in my arms started getting wiggly. Luka was starting to toddle and wanted to be constantly moving.

“Come on, baby boy,” I muttered, bouncing him lightly.

It was hard to keep my focus on the racks of leggings when he was doing his best to throw his body weight in every direction.

I was about to take a step back and focus on him when a strong set of hands plucked Luka out of my arms.

Next to Rune, my son looked tiny. Even though he had been wriggling in my grip only seconds before, the minute he was in Rune’s arms, he settled down and entertained himself by running his hands over Rune’s face.

“Go do your shopping. I can keep him entertained. In fact, we will follow you so he's never out of your sight. Is that okay?”

I bit my lip. Part of me wanted to take my son back because I didn't want to burden him, but shopping would be a lot easier without a wriggling baby in my arms.

“I'll be ten minutes, at most,” I assured him.

Rune beamed at my son as he spoke. “Take as long as you need. I'm sure we'll manage.”

Now that I had a time limit, because I didn't want to saddle Rune with my baby for too long, I quickly went through the aisles, picking up several pairs of leggings, T-shirts, a few simple slip dresses, and some underwear.

The entire time, Rune followed me and didn't say anything. He did keep up a steady stream of conversation with Luka, though. Even though my boy’s vocabulary was limited, they spent a long time talking about a T-shirt with a duck on it.

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