Page 7 of The One She Can't Forget

I opened my mouth to argue that I could handle an EMS call. The warning shake of his head stopped me in my tracks. I watched them roll out and fought back the wave of disappointment that crashed over me.

My role as a firefighter and EMT was probably the most important thing in my life. It gave me a purpose and a brotherhood. I got to help people and serve my community. Would Dad have been proud? Probably not. He’d died convinced I was a disappointment, and as far as he was concerned, nothing was ever going to change that.

I could be a screwup and still be a firefighter. Today was case in point for that scenario.

I had to figure out how to get my head in the game. I couldn’t function like this. Bryce was right to sideline me, but today had to be it. By my next shift, I was going to figure it out.

I retreated back into The Store and started sorting the logo’d undershirts by size. Apparently, we still needed to teach some of our guys the alphabet because nothing was where it needed to be.

I heard the rig pull back into the garage about forty-five minutes later. When Bryce stuck his head in, I was counting the spare hose clamps.

“How’s it going?”

“Oh, it’s just riveting,” I said, my words dripping with sarcasm.

He chuckled. “Yeah, well, you didn’t miss much on the call. Kid had a bloody nose and the babysitter panicked.”

I rolled my eyes. “Nice.”

He shrugged. “It’s okay. I gave her the information for the first-aid classes the hospital offers and suggested she’d feel better babysitting after some training. The mom was pretty ticked though. She got there as we were leaving. Guess she drove all the way home from work in Terre Haute.”

I let out a low whistle. There were quite a few people who made the forty-five-minute drive into Terre Haute to work each day, but I would never sign up to be one of them.

“Kid was fine?”

Bryce nodded. “Yeah, the bleeding stopped shortly before we arrived.” He looked around the store. “You making good progress?”

I nodded. “I suppose. Keeping my mind occupied.”

“So, you ready to tell me what’s up?”

I sighed. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Let’s talk while we grab lunch. TJ made some chili in the crockpot yesterday and left us the rest.”

We walked back through the garage where Matteo, our rookie, was restocking the ambulance.

“I hope he went easy on the spice this time. His last batch gave me heartburn.”

Bryce laughed. “You sound like my dad, man. Are you thirty-four or fifty-four?”

I made a face at him. “Ha-ha, very funny. I’m just saying, when your tongue goes numb, you can’t even taste it.”

I opened the door, and we walked through the station rec room to the kitchen.

Bryce ladled soup into bowls and put one in the microwave before turning back to me, his hands resting on the counter behind him. “So.”

I sat at the table and returned his serious look. “So.”

Bryce didn’t respond to my less-than-enthusiastic response.

“Where do you want me to start?” I asked.

“Let’s go with the beginning.”

I narrowed my eyes at his snark. “Fine. Just remember, weweregoing to tell you. We were going to tell everyone at the auction.”

“What did you do?” His tone was accusing. There it was. The overprotective big brother I had anticipated.

---