by Cora Seton
Unclipping the radio, Austin pressed the button. “Turn your hoses and fill up the first three rows.”
“We’re running low on water, Cap. Trying to conserve until the other truck is back.”
Fuck, he’d forgotten about that. “Just hold steady then,” Austin replied. And hold your breath that Shane can find someone at that farm who can help us.
Austin waited and watched while the crew worked for twenty minutes, until the sun disappeared behind the tree line and the thickening smoke occluded the rising moon, leaving only the bright orange flames to light the area. He still hadn’t heard a peep from Shane, and was getting worried. Suddenly, Sunny turned and she and the crew ran, dragging the hose away from the fire, as another man worked at the truck reeling it in.
Running over to them, Austin demanded, “What the hell are you doing?!?”
“Going to help the other crew dig another trench,” she replied, fighting for breaths.
“I didn’t tell you to do that!” Austin shouted. “Keep water on that fire!”
“Pressure is too low now—just a dribble,” Sunny huffed, her steps slowing until she staggered, then stopped. “Damn, I’m dizzy.”
“Go to the medic truck and get some oxygen,” Austin growled. And get a damned pedicure while you’re there princess.
She pushed her fire helmet back and ran her wrist over her forehead.
“No—something el—sa—something else is um wrong.” Sunny giggled, and her eyes widened. Austin’s did too, because that was the last sound he would’ve expected to come out of Sunny Gleason. “My brain feels…soggy.” Laughter bubbled from her lips, as she dropped the hose to sit down and shove off her helmet.
“Mine is soggier,” Braden said with a bark of laughter. “Damn, I haven’t felt like this since…” His eyes widened sending his eyebrows up under the brim of his fire helmet.
“Since when? What the hell is wrong with y’all?” Austin demanded, glancing back at the fire which was definitely out of control now. They needed to move their equipment fast and reposition. And Shane needed to get back.
“Um, since high school,” Braden replied with a sheepish grin.
Looking at the engine where the other crewmembers were ineptly winding hose, laughing while they unwound it to try again, Austin wondered if the whole damned crew had been hitting the gin before they responded to this call.
Sunny Gleason let out a long-winded sigh and a goofy grin spread across her pretty, soot-smeared face. “I’ve never felt like this before…like my insides are…” She stopped, and seemed to be searching for the right word. “Floating.” Wiggling her fingers over her head, she began singing, or wailing as it were. “Have you ever been mell—loooow…” When she ran out of air, she erupted into laughter, wrapping her arms around her stomach.
Austin turned his nose toward the smoke-filled night sky and inhaled deeply. His heart skidded to a stop as he recognized the scent from the many bonfires he’d attended as a teenager.
Marijuana. What he’d thought was corn growing in that field must be pot!
And Good God—his whole damned fire crew, including Sunny Gleason, was high as a kite from inhaling the smoke. Ice water ran through his veins as another thought struck him. He’d sent Shane over there into the dealer’s den!
Hand shaking, Austin unclipped his radio. “Shane, get back here. Don’t go to that house!” he shouted into the radio.
“Nobody’s home, Cap. The place is a little scary, looks abandoned, but I did see a cattle pond behind the house. Not sure about the well,” he replied.
“Just get out of there!” Austin yelled, then keyed the radio again. “Chief you there?”
“Uh, huh—I’m here,” Chief Gleason replied groggily.
“Is the crew over there okay?” Austin asked.
“We’re just peachy. Why do you ask?” The calmness, as Sunny said—mellowness—in the Chief’s voice told Austin the other crew was equally messed up, and fear sliced through him.
“Chief, that crop in that adjacent field is pot—not corn. Y’all need to put on your respirators fast!”
“Oh, it’s too late for that, young man. We moved back across the road, because we’re out of water. I called the Sheriff, but it could be a while before they get here. Y’all just come over here and join the party.”
A strange lethargy washed away Austin’s adrenaline, and by the time it reached his toes they tingled. His blood carbonated and laughter tickled his sternum. He realized right then it wasn’t only the crew who was high, he was high too!
But Austin had to keep his wits, because nobody else had a scrap left.
Fighting through the euphoria, he keyed the mic again. “Brush Two—have your men put on their repsir—respires—SCBAs when you get back! And call for backup, our whole damned crew is high!”
Chapter Four
‡
Sunny sat on the bumper of the medic unit taking her turn at inhaling fresh oxygen. They were almost out, because the whole crew had been taking their turn over here for hours. It was a hopeless cause anyway, this wasn’t helping a damned thing. As soon as she took the mask off the thick, herby smoke would surround her again. Every man and woman out there was stoned, except those with SCBAs, and the fresh crew from the two not-so-nearby stations who were able to don their gear before they arrived.
At least the fire was more in control than it had been, because they’d found a well and a pond on the pot farm. The tankers could refill quickly there so they could keep the grass trucks supplied. Someone sat down beside her and nudged her with an elbow.
“Stop bogarting the oxygen, Sunshine,” Austin said with a lopsided grin that reminded her of Billy’s grin when he was trying to charm her to get out of trouble. Something inside of her warmed then flowed downward, and Sunny inhaled deeply. She did not need any warm, flowy feelings toward her nemesis. He was an asshole, and if it took emptying this canister of oxygen for her to remember that, Sunny would suck it dry.
“Get your own, Captain,” she growled, fogging the mask as she exhaled.
Austin’s jaw worked a second. “I’m sorry for stepping on your toes. The tones were for a five-alarm fire and I was just trying to help out.”
“Help yourself into a job you mean,” she snapped back. This man hadn’t just stepped on her toes, he’d crushed them under his boots by ingratiating himself to her uncle.
“It was instinct and I was halfway to the fire by the time I thought maybe I should go back and get you. I apologize for that.”
“You’re not even one of our firefighters and you took over my command!” Sunny shouted, her voice muffled behind the mask.
“I hadn’t realized how much I missed it,” Austin said sadly, looking down at the toes of his boots. “I just—”
Sunny sucked up her first instinct which was to feel sorry for him. “Wanted to show off,” she finished for him. “Well you have a job—you’re a cowboy, so leave mine the hell alone.”
“I was a part-time Captain for ten years in Gladewater, would have been full-time if it paid enough,” he announced, as if he hadn’t even heard a word she said. Maybe he hadn’t—his voice sounded to her like it was coming down a long fuzzy tunnel. The oxygen definitely wasn’t helping enough, because the more he talked the less she hated him. “My whole family—my brothers, my dad, uncles, cousins, are firefighters. Yeah, they have a small ranch and I learned everything I need to know about ranching from them too, but firefighting is in my blood.”
“Why the hell aren’t you doing that then?” Sunny asked shortly. “Go back to Gladewater and join the fire department. We have a Chief and a Captain here—me—we don’t need you at our department.”
His eyes slowly slid up the front of her body, then met hers. “But I need your department. I can’t earn enough at the department back home without hiring out as a cowboy too. It’s a city-funded station and they have too many men as it is. Those guys are lifers, and the Chief is young. He’s not going anywhere for a long time.”
And that was her problem how? Fear formed a tight band around Sunny’s ribs, but then loosened. He had other options, he was experienced so his sob story didn’t wash. “Why can’t you hire on at a department in a bigger city?”
“I’m thirty-four and a half years old. Thirty five is the cutoff at most departments for new hires. It’s the same as the military. Even at my age, they are hesitant to hire me, which is ridiculous, but just the way it goes.”
“Our cutoff is thirty-five for new hires too,” Sunny informed. Damn, he was thirty-four, almost thirty five? Austin McBride looked to be in his late twenties, her age.
“But your uncle didn’t seem to care,” Austin said, adding a lazy wink. “He evidently appreciates experienced older men like most women.”
Like Sunny did. She inhaled deeply, then exhaled, fighting to remember she didn’t like this man and she was mad at him. “My uncle didn’t follow protocol. I do the hiring for the station.”
“He’s the Chief,” Austin countered. “He can do what he damn well pleases.”
Irritation prickled at the back of her neck. “I’ll be the Chief before long. My uncle is retiring,” she fired back. “And I have one of my men in mind to promote to Captain. So, sorry cowboy, you’re not even in the running.”
Austin reached up to snatch the oxygen mask from her hand. He covered his nose and mouth. “Inhale deeply, sweet cheeks. You’re much more pleasant when you’re high,” he said with a short bark of laughter.
Sunny ground her back teeth and stood to glare at him. “If you think you’re going to mess this up for me, you’re wrong. My uncle—the Chief,” she corrected.
“Is asleep in the back of his car. As soon as I clear my head, we are heading out.”
“Who died and left you in charge?” Sunny spat, putting her hands on her hips. “We need to stay here until the fire is out.”
“No, the other stations have it under control. We’re not a damned bit useful here and the Chief needs to go home. One of the crew from the other station is going to drive him home, and I’m driving the Suburban.” Austin’s lips stretched inside the mask to form a wide smile. “But we’re stopping somewhere to eat, because I have the munchies.”
Sunny didn’t want to go anywhere with this man. Where she needed to go was home to check on Billy. She glanced at her watch and saw it was nearly one in the morning. “I have to get home too. You can drop me off and drive the truck to your ranch. I’ll pick it up tomorrow.”
“That’ll be a two hour drive, and I’m definitely going to want to crash after I eat.” As if to prove his statement, he moved the mask aside to yawn. “Can I catch a nap on your couch?”
This man had a brass set for sure. “No, you cannot sleep on my couch. My house is full, and the couch is occupied by my—” Sunny stopped as her head swirled, and she wavered on her feet. “Whoa—” She sat back on the bumper as a whirl of goofy worked its way through her body to her toes, and she realized just how fast she was breathing. Breathing in way too much of the drug that permeated the night air. Her brain hazed, and that floaty feeling engulfed her again.
Austin stood, and Sunny looked up at him. The yellow glow from the flood light on top of their engine backlit him and he looked tall, really tall, at least three inches taller than her. And delicious with the soot and beard stubble on his square jaw. Her eyes fell on the logo crest on his entirely-too-tight white t-shirt. The title on the pocket of the t-shirt told her why the shirt was so tight. A giggle tickled in her throat. “You’re wearing my t-shirt?”
The spare shirt was one size too large for her, but it was about two too small for him, so it suctioned to every damned muscle in his broad chest. Damn, why did Austin McBride all of a sudden look like a hot fudge sundae to her? God, she could use a hot fudge sundae right now. Her mouth practically watered to taste that richness on her tongue. Or was it watering to taste him? It had been too damned long since she’d had that kind of sundae too.
Nearly five years.
Since she found out she was pregnant and told Jason. Since she found out what a lying sack of shit he was. Since she ran from Carrolton with her tail tucked between her damned legs to lick her wounds and have Billy at her mother’s house. Sunny was mortified when she felt her eyes fill and sucked in a sharp breath, also filling her lungs with more of the heady smoke which she quickly blew out. But it was too late. That soft euphoria tickled her insides and she sighed.
“Yeah, definitely more pleasant when you’re high,” Austin said with a chuckle, bending to pick up the oxygen canister. “I’m taking this with us. C’mon, Sunshine,” he said, turning toward the Suburban. Sunny sat there a minute enjoying the view as he walked away, but she refused to acknowledge that the cowboy-firefighter-medic looked just as good going as coming.
Coming—God, she’d love to come right now. But she could take care of that on her own, like she had for five years. There was zero chance of her getting in trouble that way. Emotionally or physically. And there was a less than zero chance she was going to have sex with Austin McBride. Ever. Even when she was high and thought he looked like dessert.
Pushing up to her feet, Sunny wobbled as she walked to the Suburban. Austin was already behind the wheel, so she took the passenger seat and tried to work up some irritation at his taking control again, but couldn’t. Exhaustion washed through her as she sat in the seat and put on her seatbelt. The last thing she heard was the throaty rumble of the engine, before she passed out.
The truck rocked and backfired, startling Sunny awake. She squinted as the bright yellow neon lights lining the eaves of the building blinded her.
“Where are we?” she asked groggily, her mouth feeling like it was lined with cotton, her eyes with sandpaper.
“All-night diner,” he replied, opening the door to get out.
Sunny unfastened her belt and looked up to see Austin open her door. “I told you I needed to go home,” she grumbled as she slid out of the seat.
“And I told you I was hungry.”
He turned and walked toward the front door, leaving her to follow. Sunny contemplated getting right back in that truck, but shuffled behind him instead, her fire boots feeling like concrete shoes. Because, dammit, she just realized she was starving too.
Walking inside, Sunny found Austin seated in a booth by the far wall and staggered to the table then slid into the red vinyl seat and picked up the menu.
“I already ordered for you,” Austin informed. “Three eggs over medium, grits, bacon and wheat toast with a pot of coffee. That work?”
“I don’t care for grits, and I don’t eat wheat toast,” Sunny replied, bristling with anger.
He shrugged. “Don’t eat ’em. As hungry as I am, I’ll take them off your plate for you.”
As hungry as she suddenly was, she’d probably gobble the buttery goop down without tasting it. But she wasn’t telling him that. The waitress came back with two cups and a pot of coffee, then poured them each a cup.
“I’d like an order of pancakes too,” Sunny informed.
The waitress’s green eyes widened. “Short stack?”
“No a full-stack. And do you have strawberry topping? If you do, I want that too.” Her eyes fell on a table tent by the sugar canister. She dragged it to her and pointed at the ooey-gooey sticky bun in the picture, which made her mouth water. “Oh—and I want one of those too.”
“Jesus, lady—” Austin said, with a bark of laughter.
Sunny glared at him. “Don’t judge. You brought me here, so I’m eating.”
One corner of his mouth kicked up as he held her gaze. “I’ll have pancakes too—a full-stack. No strawberries, make it blueberries…” His sexy gray eyes fell to her mouth, and Sunny’s lips buzzed. “With whipped cream.” Austin licked his lips and Sunny’s breath hitched.
Her mouth popped open. “Do you have chocolate sundaes?”
“Yeah, we do,” the waitress replied dryly, as she scratched on her notepad. “Do you just want me to put in an orde
r for one of everything on the menu?”
Sunny, really, really wanted that sundae. Now.
“Make it two.” Austin smiled broadly as he dragged his red-rimmed eyes up to the waitress. “Long shift. I think the lady is hungry.”
The waitress rolled her eyes as she turned toward the kitchen. “I think the lady’s eyes are bigger than her belly,” she mumbled under her breath.
Austin’s eyes glided back to hers, and his lips twitched. “Think we should tell her why we’re so hungry? I have to tell you, that was a first for me.”
“Me too.” Sunny had never been into experimentation at all. She was as straight as they came in high school and after. Until she met Jason when she was a dispatcher in Carrolton and he talked his way into her pants. “We probably smell like we’ve been smoking pot all night too. Did you think of that? Lord, if a cop comes in, we’ll have a hard time explaining.”
“If a cop comes in, he’s probably heard about the pot farm fire on his radio. I’m sure every first responder in the County has heard by now.” Austin laughed. “Some are probably racing out there to get in on the action.”
“Well, as hot as that fire was there could be spot burns until tomorrow. We’re lucky the house didn’t burn.”
Austin shrugged. “It’ll probably be confiscated by the DEA when they get out there, so maybe we could use it for controlled burns later.”
Sunny’s eyes flew to his. “We could use it for controlled burns? I thought I fired you.”
“You can’t. I’m a Captain, you’re a Captain—we’re equals, Sunshine. The only one who can fire either of us is the Chief.”
“Well, that will be my first priority when I become Chief then,” Sunny grated.
Austin’s cupped his coffee mug, his smile faded and his eyes narrowed. “If you become Chief, I’ll turn in my notice, because there is no way in hell I could work for you. Until, you become Chief, we’re equals.” He dragged his eyes down to stare at the steamy black liquid in his cup. “But don’t count on that happening. You’ve got a long row to hoe before you get that job.”
