by Marie Force
“What’ve we got?” he asked Blaine, who was also in street clothes.
“Oh, hey, sorry you got called in. I could’ve handled it.” They did that for each other often—one covered so the other didn’t have to. “Three injured, one seriously. I called the chopper for him.” He gestured to where Mallory and another paramedic nicknamed Boner were doing CPR on a man in the street. “I called David to let him know we’re bringing in two others.”
“Tourists or local?” He didn’t recognize the cars.
“Tourists hit a local.”
“Fucking rotary.”
“You said it.”
They went their separate ways to supervise their subordinates. Blaine saw to traffic control while Mason ducked his head into the back of the ambulance where Shorty, one of the firefighter-paramedics, was with a woman who appeared to be about fifty. “What’ve you got?”
“Head lac and possible fractured wrist,” Shorty said.
“Is Jeff all right?” the woman asked. “No one will tell me.”
“Is Jeff your husband, ma’am?”
“No, my boyfriend. He was driving, and I can’t get anyone to tell me what’s wrong with him.”
“I’ll check on him.” Mason went to talk to Mallory.
“He suffered a cardiac event.” She was breathing hard from the exertion of performing CPR. “We’re not sure if it was before or after the accident, but we’ve been working on him for ten minutes already. No heartbeat yet.”
“Crap.”
The roar of the approaching helicopter drowned out everything else as everyone took cover while it landed in the middle of the normally busy street. His personnel loaded the patient onto a gurney, hustled to the chopper and turned him over to the paramedics on board. They’d have him at a level-one trauma unit in Providence within minutes.
As the chopper took off again, Mason made his way over to the ambulance. “Ma’am, your friend has suffered a cardiac event and is being transported to the mainland.”
“Oh God. Oh no. Jeff.”
“Please try to stay calm, Carol,” Shorty said in a soothing tone. “He’s in the best possible hands.”
The woman broke down into tears as she nodded to acknowledge what Shorty had said.
“Where’s our other casualty?” Mason asked.
“Still in the car.”
Mason went to look in on the young woman, who’d been given an ice pack to hold against a bump on her head. “How’re you doing?”
“I’m okay. Just bumped my head.”
“I’d like to get you to the clinic to be sure it’s just a bump. Is that all right?”
She nodded. “My mom is coming. She’ll be here in a minute. That other car, it just cut me off, and there was nowhere to go. I don’t know what happened.”
“We think he might’ve suffered a possible heart attack.”
“Oh, well, that explains why he was in my lane.”
Mason waited with her until her hysterical mother appeared on the scene to take her daughter to the clinic.
“Write it all up and get me a report by the morning,” Mason said to Carl, his other lieutenant.
“Yes, sir.”
“Call if you need me.”
“Will do.”
With everything under control, for the moment, anyway, Mason returned to his own vehicle. The alluring scent of his passenger was the first thing he noticed after he closed the door.
“Is everyone okay?” she asked.
“Two are. The guy in the helicopter isn’t so good.”
“Is he going to die?”
“I don’t know.”
“How do you deal with this stuff every day? I’d be a mess.”
“Believe it or not, you get used to it and become a little numb to it after a while. That doesn’t make you less compassionate for people in crisis, but you don’t take them all home with you the way you do at first.”
“I suppose you’d have to become a little numb to it or go mad.”
“Some people don’t last in public safety because they can’t deal with the stuff they see. I never blame anyone who can’t handle the job. It’s not for everyone.”
“How’d you end up the fire chief on Gansett Island?”
Mason pulled into traffic, following the direction of the officer who was guiding vehicles around the accident scene. He took a right turn that would eventually lead them back to Eastward Look, but he took the long way around the island so he could have more time with her. “I went to college for criminal justice, planning to be a cop. I applied all over but didn’t get picked up, so I started applying for fire department jobs and was hired in Worcester before I finished college. I spent nine years there, working my way up to lieutenant. When I heard about this job, I applied thinking I didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of getting it—and at first, I didn’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“They hired someone else, who couldn’t handle the winters or the isolation. He lasted four months. The mayor called to ask if I was still interested. I’ve been here four years this December, and I love it.”
“Isn’t it boring after working in a big city?”
“It can be, but I was never going to be chief in Worcester. I would’ve been lucky to make captain there.”
“And you wanted to be chief?”
“It’s nice to be the boss,” he said, winking at her.
He loved her smile, would do anything to make it happen, especially when it was directed at him. “I see how it is.”
“Then again, sometimes being the boss sucks, such as when you’re doing something fun and you get called into work, which happens far more often than I’d like.”
“So you have a lot of fun, then?”
He looked over at her, wishing he could see more of her face. “Not this kind of fun.”
“What kind of fun is this?”
“The best kind.”
“Is it?”
“Uh-huh. At least it is for me.”
“It is for me, too. The most fun I’ve had in a long time.”
Her revealing statement filled him with an unreasonable amount of hope. The many reasons why he shouldn’t be letting himself become enthralled by a woman who was still married to someone else failed to matter in the face of all that hope. “Are you in a rush to get home?”
“Not really. Why?”
“There’s something I want to show you.”
“Where have I heard that line before?”
Mason laughed. “No, I really want to show you something. Trust me?”
“Since you saved my life, I suppose the least I can do is trust you.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
He grinned like a loon, thankful for the darkness that made it impossible for her to see how delightful he found her, how refreshing and special. When they reached the access road that led to his favorite place on the island, he took a left turn and navigated the bumpy dirt road that wound through a dark thicket of trees.
“And then they found her body two weeks later.”
Laughing, he said, “Your imagination is creative.”
“This is how every episode of Dateline begins. A woman goes for a ride with the burly fireman, and only one of them comes back.”
“You think the fireman is burly?”
“Duh. Like you don’t know you are.”
“I’ve been called a lot of things. Burly ain’t one of them.”
“What else have you been called?”
“Stretch was my nickname growing up. My grandfather called me that. My brother calls me Roid from the days when I lifted competitively, and PS, I never once took anything other than vitamins.”
“Your brother is funny, and hello, you lifted competitively?”
“For a couple of years, until life kicked in and I had to get a real job—you know, the kind that paid actual money.”
“I know what that’s like. That’s how I became a model.”
> “You were a model?”
“For years.”
“What kind of model?”
“Mostly underwear. I did pretty well because my look is nontraditional, or so they used to say.”
“I bet you were in hot demand.”
And yes, he emphasized the word hot, which had Jordan wondering if he thought she was hot. Why do I hope he does? Maybe because I find him insanely hot in a tall, strong, muscular, incredibly competent sort of way? I’ve seen him three times, and I already know there’s not much that rattles him, certainly not fire or smoke or car crashes or women who aren’t breathing.
Since just about everything rattled her, Jordan had mad respect for people who kept their cool in a crisis.
“Wait for it,” he said as he navigated another bend in the dirt road. “This is what I wanted to show you.”
When they cleared the last curve in the road, they were treated to a view of the water, which was brightly lit by the full moon. It was truly one of the most beautiful things Jordan had ever seen. “Wow.”
“Right?”
“How’d you find this place? I’ve been coming here all my life and never knew this was out here.”
“Technically, this road isn’t open to the public, but we had a brush fire out here one night on a full moon. Now I come out here every time there’s a full moon.”
“Ah, I see. It’s part of your date formula, right?”
“What’s a date formula?”
“It’s when a guy has a reliable ‘wow’ package of things he does on every first date that’s guaranteed to leave an impression. I had a friend in LA who always got tickets to either the Lakers or Dodgers, depending on the season, with dinner either before or after at the same place every time, followed by a drive up Mulholland to cap the night off with panoramic views of the city. Worked like a charm for him. He got a lot of second dates.”
“Huh, well, I’ve never had a first-date formula, and I’ve never been here with anyone else for the full moon.”
Jordan gave him the side-eye. “Really?”
“Really,” he said, laughing. “You’re so jaded.”
“Wouldn’t you be if your husband released a video of you having sex so the whole world could see what you look like when you come?” The words were out before she took even a second to consider what she was saying—or who she was saying it to. They’d been having a nice time, and she had to go and ruin it. “Sorry, that was a bit intense.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you, and I don’t blame you for being bitter.”
“Did you watch it? When you looked me up before, did you watch the video?”
“I didn’t and I won’t. I swear.”
“Good.” She released a deep breath full of relief. “He took down the original, but there’re bootleg copies all over the place. It’s like a game of whack-a-mole. We get one taken down, and another pops up. I’ve begun to accept that this is my life now.”
“I can’t think of anything worse than someone I loved violating my trust that way.”
“It’s part of the toxic cocktail that was our marriage. And I went back to him after that.” She shook her head, her expression regretful. “That was the breaking point for Nik. She was my manager before I went back to him.” And why was she telling Mason this crap? What did he care about the shitshow her life had become? “Anyway…”
Mason reached over and placed his big hand on top of hers, infusing her entire body with warmth. “I’m sorry for what he put you through. You deserve better.”
Jordan appreciated that he expressed only regret, not pity. She couldn’t bear to have him pity her. “Some of it was my fault. I put up with it way longer than I should have. I got caught up in the nonsense that comes from being famous for no good reason. It was fun and exciting at first, and then, it wasn’t. So here I am with millions of followers on Twitter and Insta and no idea what to do with them.”
“What do you want to do?”
He didn’t remove his hand, which was fine with her. She liked the way his hand enveloped her much smaller one. He made her feel safe, which was such a relief after the unpredictable man she was married to. “I have no idea, which is my biggest problem at the moment, now that I’ve been given this second chance at life thanks to you. I’m contracted to do another season of my show, but I really don’t want to. I can’t see how the show works anymore without me married to him. He was the reason the network wanted me.”
“It wasn’t just about him. They wanted you for you, too.”
She looked over at him. “How do you know that?”
“I told you. I’ve seen the show.”
“I still can’t believe that. You’re not exactly my target demographic.”
“How do you figure?”
“My show appealed to shallow young women who’re mostly about their phones, their look, their social media accounts.”
“And men who like to watch sexy women be sexy.”
Jordan thought nothing he could’ve said would’ve shocked her more than to hear he’d watched her show, but then he managed to top that. “It was silly.”
“It was fun—and funny and interesting.”
“Come on. You’re joking, right?”
He turned in his seat so he could better see her. “I’m one hundred percent sincere. I enjoyed the show the few times I caught it. You and your friend Gigi were funny to watch.”
“Because she’s certifiable. She’ll say anything.”
“And you were the sensible one.”
“She’d be in jail if it wasn’t for me, even if she’s a lawyer. We’re not sure how that actually happened, but she swears her law degree is legit.” She turned toward him. “I can’t believe you watched the show.”
“I read that you had between six million and eight million viewers. Why wouldn’t one of them be me?”
“You make a good point. Listen, the show is dumb. I always knew that, but I was proud of it. We made something from nothing.”
“You should be proud of it, Jordan. Millions of people enjoyed it.”
“I think half of them have emailed or hit me up on Insta and Twitter to ask when we’ll be back. The network is pressuring me.” She shrugged. “All that feels like a million years ago since things blew up with my husband.”
“You should do whatever you want now. You’re a star in your own right, separate from him. People responded to you and to Gigi on the show. It wasn’t about him. Maybe they were interested in the show at first because of your connection to him, but that’s not why they kept coming back.”
“You’re very good for a girl’s fragile ego.”
“Your ego has absolutely no reason to be fragile.”
She turned her palm up to connect with his and wrapped her fingers around his hand. “Your hands are huge.” Placing her palm against his, she realized his hand was easily twice the size of hers.
“I’ve heard that before.”
“Did you play basketball?”
“All the way through college.”
“I bet you were good.”
“I was okay. I lacked the fire in the belly you need to make something of it. I preferred weightlifting, much to my basketball coach’s dismay.”
“Can I ask you something else?”
“Anything you want.”
“Last night, when you were, you know, saving me, did something weird happen between us, or was that just me?”
Chapter 11
Under normal circumstances, Maddie McCarthy loved nothing more than being surrounded by family and friends. However, there was nothing normal about anything these days. Being confined to bed or the sofa while the world, including her three young children, went on around her, Maddie was going slowly insane from inactivity. Not to mention, she was certain that looking at the cupcakes Syd had brought was putting more weight on her that she’d never be able to lose after the twins arrived.
If that wasn’t enough, her sweet husband, Mac, was about to spontaneously combust, desp
ite the breathing and meditation exercises he’d been doing religiously since an anxiety attack had caused him to collapse at the clinic in the single most frightening moment of her life. The strain of her pregnancy was getting to them both, and nothing they did to alleviate it seemed to help. Even having the family over for a dinner they didn’t have to cook.
If they hadn’t lost their son Connor the way they had, they’d probably be coping with this unexpected pregnancy better than they were. But between losing him and this unexpected pregnancy with twins, the stress had swelled to dangerous levels for both of them. The fact that they couldn’t have sex only added to the pressure cooker they were living in.
Something had to give.
Maddie just wished she knew what to do. With the summer to get through until the twins arrived, she and Mac would be in pieces long before then, even with the wonderful new au pair they’d hired earlier in the day. Kelsey had been terrific with the kids, who’d taken to her right away. She’d be back in the morning to help out, providing a much-needed lifeline.
Maddie’s sister, Tiffany, came to sit with her while the others raised hell on the deck. Maddie had come inside when the lounge had begun to hurt her back.
“What’s up?” Tiffany asked.
“A whole lot of nothing. You?”
“Other than ‘morning’ sickness that lasts all day, nothing much.”
Maddie winced. “That’s a drag.”
“Eh, it’s nothing compared to full-time bed rest.”
“It’s not nothing.”
“Blaine is out of his mind over it. ‘How can this be normal?’ he asks every day as I’m puking my guts up.”
“He wishes he could do something to help.”
“I know, and he’s a huge help with Ashleigh and Addie. I couldn’t cope without him.”
“Maybe you should tell him that. It’ll make him feel less useless when you’re sick.”
“I probably should. What about you? Tensions are running high around here.”
