Marine Firefighter

by M K Dwyer

  ∞∞∞

  On Sunday, they returned the rentals, packed up the campsite, and while the guys headed for San Diego, Will and Joe headed for Yuma. He wasn’t happy about taking Joe home, and he wasn’t looking forward to the words he needed to have with Theresa and her new boyfriend.

  After spending all day Saturday on the trails, he and Joe had a heart to heart. The things Joe told him, made his blood boil. Mark wasn’t beating Joe or anything that would get him truly in trouble, but he was downright mean to Joe. When he wasn’t hurling insults at both Joe and Theresa like baseballs, he treated Joe like an indentured servant and expected him to be at his beck and call for anything he could possibly want or need. He said his mom stuck up for him in the beginning, but stopped intervening when Mark practically moved in. Will didn’t voice his concerns to Joe, but he was afraid Mark hit or otherwise bullied Theresa. He couldn’t imagine Theresa being quiet about anything, much less the mistreatment of her flesh and blood, without some serious coercion.

  When they arrived at Theresa’s house, she was outside waiting for them with a cigarette resting between her fingers. Will hadn’t seen her smoke in years. She quit when she found out she was pregnant with Joe, and only picked it up occasionally like when she drank, or she was stressed out.

  “Go on inside, buddy. I’ve got to talk to your momma about something.”

  “All right, Dad. Love you.”

  “Love you too, buddy.”

  When Joe was safely inside, and the door was firmly shut, Will turned to Theresa, but she wouldn’t meet his eyes.

  “We need to talk, Theresa. Joe is not happy, and for good reason. Where is this boyfriend of yours? I need to speak to him too.”

  Still refusing to look directly at Will, she took a drag of her cigarette and blew it out as she spoke. “I know he’s not happy.” She chuckled a self-deprecating laugh. “Trust me. No one is.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean? Where is Mark? I want to talk to him.”

  She ignored his first question and answered his second. “He’s not here right now. He had to take care of some things at his place.”

  “Oh? He still has his own place? Could’ve fooled me. From what I hear, he’s here all the time making both your lives miserable.”

  That finally made her look at him, and the expression on her face made Will flinch. She thought she was better at hiding how unhappy she was.

  “I’ve got it covered.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means what it means. Just trust me. I’ll talk to him. I’m going to fix everything.”

  “Yeah I seem to remember a similar song and dance a couple of weeks ago. Something needs to change this time, Theresa. I don’t want to fight you for custody. But if you don’t do what it takes to make things better for Joe, then I will.”

  “I know, and it will get better. I promise it won’t come down to a fight.”

  He wasn’t convinced, but he’d said his peace to her, and Mark wasn’t there to speak to. “All right, Theresa. I’m going to trust you to do what needs to be done, but please don’t make me regret it. I meant what I said, I will take Joe if you continue to choose Mark over him.”

  She didn’t respond, but he knew she understood he was serious. He wasn’t known to make idle threats.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Nikki

  Nikki saw Will’s name flash on her caller ID and her stomach did that familiar excited somersault at the thought of talking to him.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey, baby. Miss me?”

  “You know I did. Did you have a fun time?”

  “The best. It was great to get out of the city. We all really needed the break. The only thing that could’ve made it better would’ve been to have you there with me. So, what did you get up to while I was gone? Did you work everything out with that other teacher?”

  “Yes. She apologized for throwing my lunch out. She said she knew that I never agreed to date teachers or parents that ask me out, but she was just so upset over the coach that she let her emotions cloud her judgement. We called a truce, and she’s going to buy me lunch one day next week.”

  “So, you never date guys from the school?”

  “No. I’m not going to date someone I might run into again who doesn’t even get my boat motoring.”

  “Do I get your boat motoring?” He teased.

  “You know you do baby.” She teased back.

  He laughed one of his genuine belly laughs. “What else did you do this weekend?”

  “Actually, Joyce and I decided to get out of the city a bit too. Well, more like, she booked a room and wouldn’t tell me where until we were pulling up to a lodge in Julian.”

  “Julian? You mean we were 45 minutes from each other all weekend?”

  “Were we?” She laughed. “I still don’t know Southern California very well. Shame. I would’ve snuck out when Joyce was asleep to meet up with you.”

  “I was just thinking the same thing.” Will chuckled. “So, did you bring me back one of those famous apple pies?”

  “Yes. Joyce insisted we stand in line for pies. I’ll admit the pies were pretty good, but that line was long!” She laughed. “Then I couldn’t decide how many pies to buy, so I went a little crazy. I bought you three pies. You have two roommates, right?”

  “Three, actually.”

  “Oh, well then the four of you get 75% of a pie. Sorry.”

  “Don’t be. War recently swore off sweets, so he won’t be needing a portion anyway.”

  War. Where have I heard that name before? She couldn’t place it, but she’d figure it out eventually.

  “Then it all works out.” She chuckled. “Do you want to come over and pick them up tomorrow? Or I can bring them to you.”

  “Can I swing by tonight? I’m working a double starting in the morning.”

  “Another double?”

  “Yes. I have to trade shifts to get all these weekends off. It results in a lot of double shifts, but I can handle it.”

  “I know you can.” She smiled thinking how much she admired his strength. “Call me when you get here, and I’ll unlock the gate for you.”

  “Okay, baby. I’ll be there in 30 minutes, tops.”

  “I’ll be waiting,” she said in a sultry voice.

  He called her twenty minutes later to say he was pulling into the parking lot, and she met him outside. Walking towards the gate, he smiled when he saw her, but his smile dropped when he looked over his shoulder as if he expected someone to pop out of the bushes.

  “What’s wrong?” She opened the gate for him.

  “Nothing.” He gave her his million-watt smile again. “Just got an eerie feeling for a minute. Felt like I was being watched.”

  “I’ve had the same feeling this week, but there’s never anyone there.”

  “Well, keep your guard up. It bothers me the way your ex keeps showing up. He hasn’t done anything too alarming, but you can never be too careful.”

  “I know. I know. Enough of that.” She waved her worries away like a fly buzzing around her head. “Can you stick around for a minute or do you need to grab the pies and go?”

  “I’ve got an early morning tomorrow, but for you, my dear, I’ll make time.” He pulled her close and lowered his lips to hers as the gate slammed shut behind him. Thankfully, the gate locked automatically. His kisses made her forget her own name. There’s no way she’d remember something so mundane as locking the gate behind them.

  They walked with one arm around each other to her condo like they couldn’t stand to be apart for the short distance. She unlocked the door and let them in. He closed it, pressed her up against the back of it, and wasted no time picking up where they left off by the gate. She closed her eyes and let herself be consumed by him. Every touch from him sent sparks through her body. Every kiss with him was electric. She would not have been surprised if her hair was standing on end while his mouth devoured hers.

  Breathing heavy, he pul
led back and looked into her eyes. She whimpered at the sudden loss of his lips. Since when did I become a whimperer? Is that a word? She didn’t think so.

  “I missed you.” Will’s words pulled her out of her head. Whether he knew it or not, he was good at not letting her get lost in her own thoughts for too long.

  “I missed you, too.” With her back against the door, their bodies still pressed together, and their faces only about an inch apart, she realized she was exactly where she wanted to be. Not just in the physical sense that she was in the arms of the handsomest man she’d ever laid eyes on, but also in the sense that everything in her life, the good and the bad, had led her to that moment. If she hadn’t felt so rejected by her own family, she might not have latched so firmly onto Aiden and his picturesque family. If Aiden hadn’t left her so broken and ashamed, there would have been no reason to leave her comfortable life in Berkeley. If she’d never moved to San Diego, she never would have met the man that was coming to mean so much to her. She ran her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and smiled like it was the best feeling in the world. She felt the same way. They may have only been on a couple of real dates, but he felt more familiar to her than Aiden ever did, even after years of marriage. The realization that she was becoming attached to another man that could utterly destroy her should have sent her running for the hills, but instead, she looked into his eyes and saw home.

  “What are you thinking about? You disappeared into your head for a moment there.”

  “Nothing much. Just happy to be right where I am.”

  “Me too.” He laid a soft kiss on her lips but didn’t push for more. The heat that simmered between them was still there under the surface, but for the moment they were both content to hold and be held.

  Pulling apart from him was like losing a limb, but she knew he was probably tired from the weekend and he had a busy couple of days ahead of him.

  “Let me get those pies for you.” She stepped into the kitchen.

  “Oh, right. The pies.” He smirked. “Thank you for them. You didn’t have to bring me back anything, much less my undeserving roommates, but I’m glad I had the excuse to see you tonight.”

  “You don’t need an excuse. Drop by anytime.”

  He came up behind her caging her as she stood at the counter putting the pies in a bag for him, and whispered in her ear, “Don’t say that if you don’t mean it because I’ll actually do it.”

  She turned around and put her arms around his neck. “Oh, I mean it.”

  He kissed her again. She didn’t know why he was in such a kissy mood, but she wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. From hard and passionate to soft and loving, no two of his kisses were alike, and she was just along for the ride.

  “Damn. If I don’t leave now, my mouth is going to be attached to you all night long.”

  She blushed thinking about all the ways his mouth could be on her. I really need to get my mind out of the gutter.

  “Dirty girl. I can see where your mind went. It’s written all over your face. As much as I would like to fulfill whatever images are running through your mind, I really do need to get some sleep tonight.”

  “Ok. I’ll walk you out.”

  He grabbed the bag of pies and they walked arm in arm back to the gate. She unlocked it again for him, and he gave her just a peck on the lips before he walked through it.

  “I’ll call you after dinner tomorrow night.”

  “I can’t wait.” She really couldn’t. What is this man doing to me?

  When she got back to her condo there was another missed text from a different unknown Berkeley number than the ones she’d blocked before.

  Unknown:

  You stupid bitch. He doesn’t really want to be with you. You’re just a means to an end.

  Aiden’s riddles were getting on her nerves. Did he really think he would get her back with name-calling? A part of her wanted to move and change her number, but a larger part of her wanted to stand her ground. She already left Berkeley, her hometown, so she wouldn’t have to relive the heartache every day. She wouldn’t let him run her out of San Diego. The place where she had an amazing man, amazing friends and taught at a school she loved. The place where she’d stood on her own two feet for the first time in her life.

  Chapter Twenty

  Nikki

  Will kept his word and called her the next night, and the next night, and the next, and so on and so on. She wasn’t sure if all their talks made her miss him more or less, but she didn’t want to stop and find out. They hadn’t had any more fun with her Magic Pickle. She wondered if he was only going to initiate that when she was drunk or got hit on. Note to self: Get drunk AND hit on more often.

  He offered to cook dinner for her on Friday night and was only a little less excited when she learned he wanted to cook her dinner at her place. She wanted to meet his roommates, but he said he wanted her all to himself and “those jokers would just ruin it”. She guessed she could understand that. For now.

  He came to her condo Friday night loaded with bags for the dinner. When she offered to carry something, he gave her a look that said, “Are you crazy?” He set her up with a glass of wine and told her to relax on the couch while he prepared their meal. She opted for a seat at her kitchen bar to watch the man in action.

  “What’s on the menu?”

  He gave her a heated look. “Besides you?”

  She blushed. He could be so corny sometimes, but it didn’t stop her blood pressure from rising.

  “Yes. Besides me.” She winked. She could play this game too.

  “My famous chicken piccata.”

  “Famous?”

  “World famous.” He exaggerated a wink back.

  She grinned. So corny.

  “So, tell me more about your roommates. Am I ever going to get to meet them?”

  “You’ll meet them… after we’re married.” He chuckled to himself and then his eyes got huge when he realized exactly what he’d said.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t consider that a proposal, but it’s good to know where your head is.” She chuckled too. Jokingly. Maybe. Sort of. Dating is hard.

  He didn’t say anything for a minute, and she hated that it’d become awkward between them. It was too soon to be thinking marriage, but it was still a beautiful thought.

  “Sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin the conversation.”

  “No. Don’t worry about it. It’s not ruined.” She smiled at him. “I’ll admit. It took a weird turn, but as nice a future as that would be, it’s a bit early to plan for that future.”

  “Agreed.” He smiled back at her and the awkward weight visibly lifted from both their shoulders. “I’ll take you to the house to meet them one day. It’s just that War would only acknowledge your existence with a grunt, and Jesus would hit on you. Adam is a nice guy, but he’s too damn pretty for his own good.”

  She would have spit out her wine when Will described another man as “too pretty for his own good” if she wasn’t reeling from the names of the other two guys

  “Did you say ‘War’ and ‘Jesus’?” In an instant, she remembered why the name “War” had sounded familiar before.

  “Yes.” His eyebrows knit together.

  “Is War a giant scary-looking guy?”

  “Yes.” He added a squint and a frown.

  “Is Jesus a smooth-talker with long hair and a beard?”

  “What the…? Nikki, how do you know that?”

  “Don’t get mad.” Too late. “I think I’ve met them before. Jesus introduced War as ‘Warren’ but called him ‘War’ as they were leaving.”

  “Leaving where?”

  “You remember that night you called me after I’d been out drinking with Joyce. I was tipsy.” Understatement. “And I told you some guy hit on me at the bar…”

  “Damn it!” He brought his fist down and connected with her granite countertop. “Damn it!” That time he was talking about the pain in his hand.

  “Calm
down. Why are you so angry?”

  “I don’t know. I wanted to be with you when you met those crazy fuckers. Maybe shield you a bit from the grunting and flirting.”

  “You mean, pee on me in front of them.” He gaped at her. “Mark your territory so all the dogs in the neighborhood know not to touch your stuff.”

  He was speechless. At least that was better than yelling and hitting things.

  “Let’s get something straight, Wilson Braun. We haven’t really had the relationship talk so we’ll have it now. You’re mine, and I’m yours. We’re together. I turned him down flat because I only have eyes for you, and I hope that you would do the same in a similar situation. If I’m mistaken, please enlighten me now before I’m embarrassed in the future.”

  He was still frozen to his spot in the kitchen. She was beginning to think she’d already embarrassed herself when he started moving towards her. He came around the kitchen bar and turned her bar stool around, so she was facing him. His lips crashed onto hers. He scooted her to the end of her seat, so she was straddling him. There wasn’t even a millimeter of space in between their bodies. Again, this kiss wasn’t like any before it. Like he was trying to tell her in actions what he couldn’t say in words.

  “That is the best thing I’ve heard in a long time. I agree. You’re mine, and I’m yours.”

  She smiled. That was the best thing she’d heard in a long time, too.

  They smelled the burning chicken at the same time, and he raced back around the kitchen bar to tend to his chicken breasts in the skillet. She’d take burnt chicken any time as long as it was after a kiss like that.

  Dinner was amazing. She wasn’t sure what to expect when Will offered to cook, but it was better than she’d imagined. His “world famous” chicken picatta tantalized her taste buds, and the cook tantalized everything else. She’d never had capers before, but they were little buds of heaven. Of course, the person hand feeding them to her might have had something to do with her perception of them.