by T Gephart
Leighton shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Nothing, just talking to Presley. You done with Shapiro?”
Tibbs nodded, his eyes getting huge. “The dude really came through. Listen, Lewis—”
He was cut off, the alarm sounding and getting everyone’s attention.
“Shit,” Tibbs swore. “Can you stick around? It might be a quick one and this is really important, Pres.”
“I don’t know, I have to get to the club,” I started to argue, not really wanting to hang around indefinitely. “Maybe for an hour or so but then I have to go.”
“Presley!” Mack was already in his turnouts, dressed like he was joining the crew. “What are you doing here?”
“Look at you.” I wolf whistled, winking at the chief. “Looking pretty sexy. You’re going out on a call?”
“North is home with Quinn and the baby, so we’re down one. Couldn’t fill the spot for tonight, so I’m up.” He looked pretty damn pleased with it too. “Hey, if you’re going to stick around, can you do me a favor? Hayden was supposed to meet me for dinner and she doesn’t really know anyone. Think you could let her know I’ve gone out on a call and I’ll be back?”
There wasn’t a lot I wouldn’t do for the chief, and waiting around to give his girlfriend a message was the easiest favor I’d ever do. Not to mention, it gave me the chance to see what she was all about, find out what I could about the woman who’d captured the chief’s heart.
“Of course, it will be my pleasure. You guys go and I’ll be sure to let Hayden know. I’ll message you if our plans change,” I offered, not knowing if they were going out to a quick call or a building fire that was going to take most of the night.
“See you when we get back,” Tibbs gave me a quick hug before jogging away to go get in his turnouts.
With most of the guys busy, Jared pulled me into his arms and gave me a quick kiss. “I love you, see you soon,” he whispered, reluctantly letting me go before leaving to change as well.
Butterflies flittered in my stomach, the urge to call him back for one last kiss so overwhelming I had no idea how I’d kept my mouth shut. But I’d see him soon, concentrating on meeting Hayden, who’d be my distraction for a while.
The bay doors opened, and the trucks left, leaving me mostly alone in the stationhouse. There was another crew lingering in the rec room but they kept to themselves, using the time while I waited to check my emails.
It wasn’t long before she arrived.
She was pretty, big grey eyes staring at me bewildered as she pushed open the door. She’d obviously dressed up, her blond hair styled to tame her curls while the stunning fitted dress showed off some pretty dangerous curves.
“Hey, you must be Hayden. I’m Presley.” I smiled, welcoming her into the building.
“Tibbs’ sister?” she asked, her eyes checking me out just as I’d done to her. “Wow, you’re gorgeous.”
“Thanks, and yeah, the jerk is my brother, but don’t hold it against me. Mack told me you were coming and wanted you to wait.” I hooked a hand on my hip, wondering what else she’d heard about me.
“Oh, did he need to go?” She looked around, surprised he wasn’t there. “He doesn’t usually go out with the crew.”
I nodded, a small smile edging across my lips as I looked at her outfit. “Chief is riding with them tonight because Riley’s home being a daddy, and they got called out. Probably just as well you didn’t get here early, would have been harder for him to get into the truck after he’d seen you.”
“Well, thanks.” She blushed, like she wasn’t used to the attention. “I thought it might have been too much, but I just got this and wanted to wear it.”
I could tell she was nervous, her hands fidgeting with her dress as she tried to look confident. Without trying to sound condescending, it was actually adorable. She seemed so incredibly nice, Mack deserving someone decent after the nightmare that was his ex-wife. Maybe Jared and I weren’t the only ones destined for a happily ever after.
“Oh no, it’s not too much. And his eyes are going to launch out of his head, trust me.” I laughed, trying to reassure her. “If I didn’t have to go to work, I’d stick around just to see it.”
“You need to go?” she asked, looking a little nervous.
“Yeah, I like to be at the club early. Meet with my front of house and security before it gets busy. Once the doors open, I like to be on the floor.” I checked the time on my phone again. Shit. It was already well after six. “And I’d have already been there if my pain-in-the-ass brother hadn’t texted me to meet him here. Not sure why he couldn’t just have left me a message. Weekends are insane for me.”
“Is it as exciting as it sounds? Running a nightclub.” Her eyes warmed with kindness, but nervously flicked around the stationhouse like she wasn’t looking forward to being left alone. And to be honest, I hadn’t really found out anything interesting, so I wasn’t ready for the conversation to end either.
I laughed, already deciding to invite her to come with me. “It has its moments. You want to come hangout with me until they get back? It’s not far, and at least there I can buy you a drink.”
She couldn’t agree fast enough, the, “Yes, I’d love that,” flying out of her mouth the minute I’d asked.
“Then let’s get out of here. I’ll text Tibbs and let him know you’re with me. Mack can call you when he gets back.” I tossed the phone back into my handbag, motioning to the door as I smiled. “I should probably let you know I have ulterior motives. Chief hasn’t dated anyone seriously since he split up with his wife. Well, not anyone we’ve seen. And considering the amount of time he spends with my brother—who no shit couldn’t keep a secret if his life depended on it—we would’ve totally known if he had. There’s been no one. Well, not until you. So, naturally I want to know everything.”
She smiled too, a breath of relief escaping her lips as she nodded her head. “Hey, if you’re buying me drinks, I’ll tell you anything you want to know. I’m pretty much a lightweight these days.”
“Oh, we’re gonna have some fun tonight.” I pulled open the door and led us back out to the street.
It wasn’t far, Diablo only two blocks from the stationhouse which made it a really quick walk. Hayden still seemed a little tense, her gray eyes widening as we walked inside the club.
“The owner is an investor from Hong Kong. As long as I keep up profits, he doesn’t care what I do with it. It’s a rare thing, usually they want to interfere or assume I need my hand held because I’m a woman. Doesn’t matter I have a business degree and worked in clubs all through college. In this world, unless you have a penis, they want you either serving their drinks or dancing on a pole, and they can kiss my ass if I’m doing either of those things.”
I hoped by sharing a little information it would help her relax. Last thing I wanted to do was make her feel uncomfortable, and judging by her body language she was way out of her comfort zone.
“So what about you? What do you do?” I asked as we settled at the bar.
Staff had started to come in but were largely ignoring us. It wasn’t uncommon for me to take meetings just before opening, and they knew enough not to bother me unless it was urgent when I had company. Bennett looked over nodding his head in greeting, while I grabbed some bottles from behind me and waited for Hayden’s answer.
“I’m a sales associate at Target. And do some medical transcription at home. It pays the bills.” I could hear in her tone how much she hated her job, almost as if she was ashamed of it. I hated that for her.
“Well, I sure as hell wouldn’t turn down that discount.” I shrugged, lowering two glasses on the bar. “I can’t go into the place without spending like a hundred bucks. Last week I went in for a throw rug and ended up with a cart full of stuff I didn’t need. Oh, and I totally forgot the throw rug so had to go back.”
Hank asked if I wanted him to take over, but I assured him we were fine, Hayden and I laughing about how much money we unneces
sarily spent in Target while he continued to set up the bar.
“They have a lot of respect for you. Lots of bosses would have sat down, asked for drinks, not caring about what they had to get done.” She nodded to Hank. “I bet they love working here.”
I looked over at my bar manager, smiling because he was ignoring us. “It’s not hard to treat people with respect. And just because I have a degree doesn’t make me any more important than any of them. You can replace a club manager fairly easily, but good staff are hard to find. The place would fall in a heap. And I’m not above making my own drinks. I said I wouldn’t make them for misogynistic assholes, but for us is a different story.” I grinned, pouring the vodka, topping up with soda then dropping in some of the freshly cut lime. “So tell me, Hayden. You like working at Target? And I say that with no judgment. But I did warn you I was going to pry, and I get the feeling it wasn’t the dream job you had in mind.”
She sighed as I handed her a vodka and soda, telling me she’d dropped out of college her second year and her life got stuck in a rut. She’d done odd jobs here and there where she could, landing in retail because it was reliable.
“Wow, this is really good.” She nodded to the drink.
“Thanks, but it’s hard to mess up a lime, vodka and soda. I leave all the fancy stuff to the professionals. And you still haven’t answered my question. All you did was justify why you’re there.”
I wasn’t trying to put her on the spot or make her feel unwelcome. But as someone who was finally about to realize her dream, I wished that for other women too. So many times we were asked to settle. To wait our turn, to be happy with the scrapes we were given. And that wasn’t close enough to what we deserved. I could already tell Hayden deserved more too.
“It’s okay. Am I happy? No, not really, but I’d be less happy if I was unemployed and living on the streets.” Surprisingly she didn’t stop there, giving me a detailed explanation of the type of work she’d do if given a chance. She was incredibly analytical, very clear in the operational requirements of businesses, and what was involved in risk assessment and compliance. It was so refreshing, lacking the starchy, boring language that came from someone usually in the field.
She was clearly smart, her current retail role not even close to reaching her potential. And just like David had taken a risk on me, I’d easily hire someone who didn’t necessarily have the “right” qualifications if they had the right attitude and could think on their feet.
“It’s not too late.” I took a sip from my glass, enjoying the tartness of the lime. “You could take night classes. Online college.”
She laughed, probably assuming I was joking. “Or I could stay at Target and keep my amazing discount.”
There was something about her that was different, and I was pretty good at reading people. She was more than what she was showing on the outside, bottled-up potential that reminded me a lot of . . . well, me. Not sure why I even felt so strongly about it, I mean, we’d just met. And other than knowing Mack was crazy in love with her, I didn’t know a whole lot else. But I wanted to. I wanted to help her in some way, and had a hunch she’d be an amazing part of my team.
“True, but if you ever change your mind, decide you want to do something else? Give me a call. No one says you have to stay on the road you’re on, just remember that.” I tried to play it off casually but really meant it, hoping she would see what I saw, and would someday give me a call.
She cleared her throat nervously, as she took another drink.
“So if you’re allowed to pry, then I am too. What do you know about Mack’s ex-wife?”
Great.
Mack’s ex-wife.
Next to my own ex, she was another one I didn’t like talking about. Melinda had been frequently coming to Diablo, probably hoping to bait Mack or piss me off. And while I hated her, she hadn’t done anything wrong—yet. She even kept her distance from Jared, leaving him alone since her original proposition of a blowjob. But I could understand the worry, the shadow of a crazy ex was something that followed me too. I wondered if Jared worried about it, and if sometime later it might become an issue.
Just saying her name was distasteful, unable to hide my disgust as I answered her question. “Melinda? Enough to know she’s bad news. In any case, you’re here and she isn’t, so I wouldn’t worry about her.”
Deciding a change of subject would be better for everyone, I instead asked about Ava, Riley and Quinn’s new baby girl. Other than a photo Riley had sent everyone, I hadn’t had a chance to visit but knew Mack and Hayden had been at the hospital when she’d been born.
After Hayden gushed about how sweet she was and filled in a few more details, I decided I needed to get back to work. As much as I wanted to stay and chat some more, I had some things I wanted to go over with the team. “You going to be okay around here for a bit by yourself? I have some meetings I need to take, but it shouldn’t take too long. I can come and chat in between my tasks until Mack gets back.”
She nodded, waving her hand like it was no big deal. “Of course, I’m fine. And thanks so much for the drink. If I’m not going to be in the way, I’d love to just hang around. I’d rather wait in here than sit at the stationhouse.”
“You’re welcome to stay as long as you like, and I don’t blame you. That place is made for function but isn’t as sexy as Diablo. I totally picked the color scheme, the designer almost having a heart attack.” I laughed, remembering the pushback I’d gotten. And in a few short months, I was going to do it again, this time with even more authority.
Instructing Hank to look after Hayden at the bar, I took my drink and headed to my office. I tried not to look too happy, the smile I usually tried to contain when I was at work, beaming off my face.
“You screwed him.” Raelle was sitting on my desk waiting for me as I entered my office. “All that talk about not wanting to do it with an audience, and there you go. Such a dirty girl, I fully approve,” she laughed, with a little too much joy in her irises.
I rolled my eyes, sinking into the chair behind my desk. “I didn’t. And if I did, I wouldn’t tell you about it.”
“Well, if it wasn’t sex then he did something equally as good.” She pointed accusingly. “You better keep him around, smiles like that on you are hard to come by.”
“I’m in love with him, Rae,” I admitted, not wanting to hide it any longer. “In. Love. With. Him.”
It was her turn to roll her eyes, grinning. “Girl, tell me something I don’t know. Now, move in together already because you’ve wasted enough time.”
And she was right.
Usually I dated a guy for months before I’d even consider moving him in, but Jared was different. And not just because I’d known him forever.
It was different because I couldn’t see another guy ever taking his place.
Because he was the one.
And I’d wasted enough time.
Jared
I WASN’T GOING to make it.
Presley had shown up in that dress and tested whatever resolve I had left. How I was able to 1. Stop myself from kissing her and 2. Not tell everyone she was my girlfriend was a mystery for the heavenly Father. I wasn’t even sure how I’d made it onto the engine, my arms and legs doing what they needed so I could pull on my turnouts and leave with the rest of my team.
It had been a shop fire, Mack riding shotgun on account North was still out. He’d made some bullshit excuse that he couldn’t find cover but deep down I think he missed it and wanted back in. Can’t say it’s something I could walk away from, but the chief was a different man.
We’d partnered up, sent into the basement on a rescue or recovery. It had been an intense few minutes, but we’d located the guy, Chief showing he still had what it took as he hauled him out without an assist needed by me.
After we’d gotten the patient to the EMTs, Cap ordered us back on lines. Nothing could be done to save the structure, letting the fire and water fight its way to conclusion until we
were finally standing in front of the rubble.
It had been at least a couple of hours, and any hope that Presley was still going to be waiting was gone. She would be at Diablo in that dress, and I’d have to do my best not to jerk off in the shower. We were definitely having wake up sex the minute I got to her apartment, my dick hardening in my uniform just at the thought of it.
And surprise, surprise, when we got back not only was Presley MIA but Hayden as well. Tibbs grinned as he checked his phone and saw his sister had taken Chief’s woman to the club with her.
“Poor Hayden,” Tibbs laughed. “I think I’d rather have an interrogation from Shapiro than one from Presley. Chief is gonna be pissed.”
“Well then, you should go tell him, better he hears it sooner than later.” I grinned, liking the idea of a Presley interrogation probably a little too much for my own good.
Not that she would have to try too hard, all she’d have to do is look at me with those eyes and I’d agree to anything.
Tibbs left to go find the chief while I grabbed my phone and hoped to find a message of my own. She hadn’t disappointed me, unable to contain my grin as I opened it.
Thinking about you and can’t wait until tomorrow morning. Love P xx
She wasn’t the only one, the countdown to the end of my shift happening as I sent my reply.
I’m considering getting paperwork from Chief and sneaking out to see you early. Not sure I can wait. Love you more xx
I shoved the phone back into my pocket, grinning like an idiot as I heard the chief yell. And not just the regular kind of yelling when one of us pissed him off or something. It was different, a roar that would make a wild animal back the hell off.
Without even thinking I ran to Mack’s office, Tibbs busting through the door just as I joined him.
