Page 55 of Hot Shot

Their navy T-shirts sport the Roseville Fire Department shield on the breast, the rest of their outrageous bodies in the bottom half of their bunker gear, red suspenders and everything.

“Oh,” Molly says softly from my elbow, but I barely hear her as I scan a cluster of firefighters walking toward the building,smiling and laughing about who knows what. Nothing good, I bet.

And then Wilder walks around the front of the firetruck, nearly knocking me dead on the spot.

He’s dressed like the others, his ball cap pulled low enough that I can’t see his eyes from this distance. But I’d know that jawline anywhere. The shape of his broad shoulders and the taper of his waist into those godforsaken pants. What was beneaththat,I know quite well. In that moment, I’m acutely aware of the fact that I’m married to what’s in those pants. Once upon a time, every single bit of all that man was mine. Now I have to share a bed with him and pretend like I don’t remember what it was like.

Wilder turns his head and looks right at me. The corner of his mouth ticks up.

All of a sudden it’s too hot, the air soupy. Time slows down like we’re caught in amber, my breath sucked right out of my chest like it sometimes is when I’m near him.

I’d crack a joke about nearly blacking out, but then I actually do.

And all I can think is that he’s never going to let me hear the end of it.

CHAPTER 21

DUMDUM

WILDER

“Shit.”

I take off running as Cass crumples to the ground in a circle of kids, my heart clamoring in my chest. I spot Cricket, who looks terrified.

“It’s okay,” I promise her as I kneel next to Cass. Cricket nods, watching me pull Cass into my arms.

The way she feels against me isn’t just familiar. It’s Christmas as a kid. Birthdays as a boy. The kind of familiarity that’s thick with wonder and joy and wishes and dreams.

I brush her copper hair from her flushed cheeks. “Cass,” I say softly.

She stirs at the sound of her name and takes a deep, sleepy breath. And then to my greatest fucking delight, she nestles into my chest and sighs. Her eyelids flutter, then open, her pupils contracting and dilating again inside the greenest irises I’ve ever seen in my life.

Cass sits up, rolling her eyes, but she has a sheepish look on her face. “Don’t say it.”

I let her go, but I’m smiling like an asshole. “Say what? I’d never say I told you so.” I help her up. “You okay?”

“I am. Thanks.”

Once she’s on her feet, the kids circle me.

“Are you a fireman?” a girl asks.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You saved Miss W’s life,” a boy says with wide eyes.

“Always will—I’m married to her,” I answer with a smirk.

The kids’ eyes bug out, and muttering ripples through them.

Seeing the awe on their faces, I up the ante. “And Cricket’s my daughter.”

All their faces whip to Cricket, and she smiles, though her cheeks flame and she half hides behind Cass.

The kids erupt in questions, and Cass tries to wrangle them, giving me a look that’s only a little bit annoyed.

Look at me, winning today.

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