by Paige Tyler
“Hold your breath!” he told her then darted across the smoke-filled living room. The flames had engulfed almost the entire back of the house, and were racing across the ceiling even as he and Trent ran. The heat was so intense his skin tingled in pain before he’d made it a dozen steps. But he kept going, knowing that if he went down, Lexi would never survive.
When they finally reached the door front door and burst into the cool night air, Lexi breathed it in as fast as he did.
Firefighters and paramedics were there to grab Lexi out of his arms the moment he stepped outside. Dane looked up to see six DF&R vehicles from stations 29, 57, and 58 all lined up along the street. Two dozen firefighters, including Jax, Kate, Kohl, and Tory, were already working to contain the fire.
“There’s a DPD detective in the basement,” he shouted. “He’s in there with the killer.”
Kate and Tory charged through the front door without hesitation, as two firefighters from the five-seven urged him and Trent toward the nearest rescue truck. When they got there, the paramedics from Station 29 already had Lexi sitting on a gurney. They were giving her oxygen and checking the abrasions around her ankles and wrists. He brushed aside the oxygen mask one of the men held out to him and instead ran to her side.
“Are you okay?” he asked urgently, looking at her feet for the first time and realizing she wasn’t wearing shoes. The fear of what that sicko doctor night have done to her warred with the fear that she’d been tied up so long she might have sustained serious damage.
She pulled off her mask to give him a small smile. “The feeling in my hands and feet is coming back now. They’re tingling like crazy, which is a good sign. I’ll be fine.”
He wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close. “Lambert didn’t…hurt you…did he?”
She shook her head against his chest. “No. He drugged me at the hospital, and I woke up here, surrounded by dead people. I’m a little creeped out to think about him changing my clothes, but as bizarre as it sounds, I think he thought of me as his sister. He would have never hurt me.”
“He would have burned you alive,” Trent murmured through his oxygen mask.
Lexi nodded. “Yeah, there is that.”
Dane pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
He would have said more, but right then Kate and Tory came out of the house, Logan supported between them, an arm draped over each of their shoulders. There was no sign of Lambert.
Kate and Tory helped Logan all the way over to the rescue truck where Dane, Lexi, and Trent were. The paramedics from Rescue 57 immediately began getting oxygen into the detective. Kate pulled off her gloves, helmet, and fire hood so she could help the paramedics. Her face was etched with concern as she tried to calm Logan’s coughs.
The cop looked over and caught Dane’s eye, giving him a slow shake of his head. Dane took that to mean the detective hadn’t been able to reach the doctor in time to save him. Maybe Dane should have felt bad about that, but he had a hard time doing it. Lambert had killed three people, and tried to kill a fourth.
“How did you two find me?” Lexi asked, drawing his attention back to the woman he loved.
It took a second for that reminder to sink in, but when it finally did, Dane found himself grinning like an idiot. It might be a little early on in the relationship to say the words out loud yet, so he figured he’d better keep them to himself. But it still felt damn nice knowing Lexi was the woman he was going to be with for the rest of his life—assuming she wanted him around.
“It’s a long story,” he said. “I’ll tell you all about it later. Preferably tomorrow, when we’re relaxing and doing absolutely nothing.”
“Not gonna happen,” a voice said beside them.
Dane looked up to see Jax standing there, his SCBA mask hanging off and a big smile on his face.
“Why’s that?” Dane asked.
“Because Skye and I are getting married tomorrow, and not only are you the best man, you also have to walk Skye down the aisle.” Jaz jabbed a finger at him. “And don’t think that almost getting killed by some madman is going to get you out of either of those things.”
Dane chuckled. “Wouldn’t think of it.”
Jax only stayed around long enough to make sure they were all okay then he and Tory went back to fighting the fire.
That left him, Lexi, Trent, Kate, and Logan alone with the paramedics. Dane sat down beside Lexi and wrapped his arm around her, holding her close. She rested her head on his shoulder, one arm securely wrapped around his waist.
“You scared me there, you know,” he said softly. “I know we talked about your having every right to risk your life as much as I do, but I never intended that to include going up against serial killers.”
“That wasn’t really my plan, either,” she murmured.
“Good.” He tipped her chin up and kissed her gently on the lips. “Then let’s agree to never do that again.”
She smiled. “Okay.”
After that, they sat there quietly, watching their fellow firefighters battle the raging fire and appreciating the fact they were both alive, and together. Finally, the words he thought he should probably sit on for a while bubbled up to the surface, and he had no choice but to say them.
“Is it too soon to say I love you?” he asked softly.
“No,” she said.
“Okay then. But to make it official—I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she said against his chest.
Dane caught Trent grinning at him through his oxygen mask. Mouth twitching, Dane ignored the paramedic and went back to holding the woman he loved as he gazed at the fire that was going to keep burning for a very long time.
Chapter Fourteen
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, Mr. and Mrs. Malloy invite all of their friends and family to join them on the dance floor,” the DJ announced after Jax and Skye had finished their first dance as husband and wife.
“That’s means everyone need to get their booties on the dance floor and start shaking them!” Skye announced with a laugh as the music began to play again.
Around Lexi and Dane, guests got up from the tables that been neatly arranged around the backyard of their ranch. Dane grabbed her hand and tugged her to her feet.
“Come on,” he said. “Let’s celebrate.”
Lexi was all for that. After yesterday, she was more than ready to have a little fun.
Dane pulled her in and slowly moved her around the dance floor—probably a little slower than necessary. But she understood that he was still worried about her. They’d both spent half the night in the ER—with Melinda tending to them personally—and were still technically in the recovery stage. Her throat was still raw from sucking down all the nasty smoke from the fire, and her wrist and ankles were probably going to be sore for at least another week. In all honestly, she was fine, but Dane had risked his life to save her, running into a burning building knowing there was a madman inside and carrying her out through the flames. The way she looked at it, if he wanted to coddle her a bit, he’d earned the right.
As of this morning, Lambert’s body still hadn’t been recovered, but the story of what he’d tried to do was all over the news and the Internet. While everyone was saying the standard lines about Dr. Lambert seeming so nice and normal, at the same time, grim-faced reporters were busy recounting the horrible story of Lambert’s childhood and his family’s deaths, with special guest psychologists giving their opinions on what had made the man snap. Lexi refused to listen to any of it. She and Dane had lived through the ordeal. That was all she cared about.
Lexi smiled as she took in the other couples moving across the floor around her and Dane. There were a ton of firefighters and paramedics in attendance, not only from Station 58, but from several other stations as well. The way every station on the northeast side of Dallas had come together last night to help had been amazing. DF&R really was one big family.
“Do you need to take a break?” Dane as
ked as the song came to an end.
The worried look on his face was so precious, it nearly brought tears to her eyes. It was crazy to think she was so in love with a man she’d just started dating. But when it was right, it was right.
She shook her head. “I’m fine.”
He nodded. “Okay. But the moment you start feeling tired, I’m taking you straight back to my place and putting you in bed.”
She wrapped both arms his neck and gave him a wicked smile. “I won’t complain about that, though I doubt either of us will get any rest if you do.”
His mouth twitched. “You are so bad.”
“Maybe,” she agreed. “But you like me that way.”
He grinned. “I won’t argue with that.”
Lexi laughed. She was damn lucky to have found a guy like Dane, and she promised herself that she wasn’t going forget it.
“So, do you prefer outdoor receptions like this one, or inside?” Dane asked out of the blue, his question pulling her attention firmly back to the present.
Her pulse skipped a beat at the question. “Why do you ask?”
He shrugged and tried to look nonchalant as he guided her around the floor. “No reason. Just curious.”
She smiled. “Well, in that case, if it’s winter, I prefer indoors, but if it’s summer, outside definitely works for me. Although there should be a back-up plan in the event of rain.”
Dane considered that then nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Lexi told herself not to get too excited. He was simply asking. But then a little voice in the back of her head reminded her that he’d said he loved her after only a week. She got the idea that once Dane had made up his mind about something, he didn’t wait around too long before he took action.
Still, she shouldn’t get ahead of herself. He still had to propose. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t start looking for a wedding dress.
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Paige Tyler is a New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of sexy, romantic suspense and paranormal romance. She and her very own military hero (also known as her husband) live on the beautiful Florida coast with their adorable fur baby (also known as their dog). Paige graduated with a degree in education, but decided to pursue her passion and write books about hunky alpha males and the kick-butt heroines who fall in love with them. She is represented by Bob Mecoy.
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Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
