Ember

by Skye Moon

  “I mean, you said that this was the first time that you’ve been able to come since the accident, so, what kept you away?”

  Taking a swing from her soda, Danica shrugged. “Life, I guess. I landed my dream job, moved, and spent the past couple of years living the plan that I’d had put together from the time when I was like five years old.”

  “Not too many people are lucky enough to be able to follow whatever path they laid out for themselves.”

  “Yea,” Danica nodded absently. “You’re right about that. I was very fortunate. Things were damn near perfect.”

  “If you had all that, then what the hell are you doing back here?” He questioned with a snort.

  “It’s home,” she looked up at him with a smile.

  “It is, but it ain’t all that.” He chuckled, leaning up against a tree as they came to a stop.

  “You don’t seem to mind being here.” Danica pointed out.

  Nodding slowly, Tucker finished off his drink. “My dad died when I was ten. He caught a stray bullet in a drive-by shooting when our neighborhood was locked in the middle of a war between rival gangs. After his funeral, I made it up in my mind that I was going to make a difference in my city. Over the years, it’s gotten better, but Brighton Heights still has a long way to go. I could never see myself in a police uniform, so the BH Fire Academy was my choice of poison.”

  “And I’m oh so glad that it was.”

  The two shared a laugh, followed by a short moment of silence before Tucker spoke up again. “Don’t think that I haven’t noticed that you’re deflecting, either.” He commented. “But I can tell that you aren’t comfortable talking about whatever it is that landed you here, so I won’t press the issue.”

  “Thank you.” Her gratitude was genuine, as she didn’t want to fall apart in front of an audience of strangers by reliving her past.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Their eyes met, and Danica found herself drawn to his thick, kissable lips. The air around them thinned, and all the background noise surrounding them began to fade.

  “Hey, Tuck,” Cecilia bounced over with a wide smile on her face. Her ponytail swung back and forth as she came to a stop. Danica noted that the woman’s smile slipped a fraction of an inch while looking back and forth between the two, but she quickly corrected herself.

  “What’s up, Cece?” Tucker questioned, dragging his eyes away from Danica.

  “Wade and Charlie have started up the usual argument about which one of them gets to man the new grill, and you know whenever they get into a pissing match it usually ends in…”

  A flash of fire shooting straight into the air caught Danica’s attention, while Tucker shot up from the tree like a bullet.

  “How many goddamn times do I have to tell them…”

  His voice faded as he stormed in the direction of the grill, leaving Danica and Cecilia alone in an awkward silence. Feeling uncomfortable beneath Cecilia’s penetrating stare, Danica gave her an awkward smile and walked off to find the rest of her family.

  Thankfully, she didn’t have to search too hard.

  “There you are,” Leanne exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air as Danica approached the picnic table where her family was seated.. “I’ve been looking all over for you. Where have you been?”

  “Woman, you ain’t been looking for a damn thing other than a fork to eat them baked beans with, hush up.”

  Giggling at the way her father blasted her mom, Danica sank onto the bench and accepted a plate from her sister.

  Involuntarily glancing over her shoulder, her eyes locked on Tucker standing in front of the grill. As if he knew she was looking at him, he glanced over, making eye contact with her.

  Danica forced herself to look away as a shiver coursed through her. Something in Tucker was calling out to her. And she wanted to fight like hell to resist it.

  Chapter 4

  Hopping out of the blaring rig, Tucker quickly assessed the scene in front of him. There was a small fire blazing in an apartment complex, but by his account, it was containable.

  “Is everybody out of the building?” He heard his Chief question one of the bystanders on the sidewalk.

  “Okay, listen up!” Tucker shouted to his team. “I’m counting at least six floors, four units each. Wade and Charlie, you’re with me! We’ll start at the top floor and work our way down. Cece, you and Allie are on standby”

  “I’ll start a floor under you, Tuck,” Will, the truck lieutenant, announced, securing his mask. “Jeff and Raleek are on aerial.”

  “Copy that, let’s do this.”

  Securing his mask, Tucker closed his eyes. His heart was hammering so loudly that it almost seemed to drown out the hustle and bustle of everything going on around him. After sending up a quick prayer, his eyes flew open and he rushed into the building. Heat engulfed him the minute he was inside. Flames licked at the walls as Tucker and his team rushed up the steps, to the top floor, and immediately began kicking in doors.

  “Fire department, call out!” He shouted, moving through an apartment while Wade and Charlie did the same with the other units. One by one they made sure each unit was clear before moving down a floor. They were on my last floor and Tucker was inspecting the final apartment, nearly ready to head out when he heard the smallest of voices whimpering.

  “Is anybody in here!” He bellowed. Time was ticking down to the wire, and he knew that he needed to get himself and his team the hell out of there before they had an even bigger problem on their hands.

  “Tuck!” The Chief’s voice came through the walkie talkie attached to my gear. “I’m calling it. Everybody out of the building now!”

  “I need one minute!” He called back. “I think there’s somebody in the last unit.”

  “I’m on my way, Tuck!” Charlie’s voice came through next.

  “Fire Department!” Tucker shouted again. A sick feeling crept through his gut, twisting it into knots. “If you’re in here say something!”

  “In here!” The small voice yelled out clear as day, and he instantly went into action. One by one he knocked down each closed door until he finally found the source of the voice. Huddled in the closet of the master bedroom was a young boy who couldn’t have been older than six years old.

  “You okay?” Tucker’s voice softened as he held a gloved hand out to the little boy in front of him.

  “Y-yeah.”

  “Alright.” A loud grunt escaped as he pulled the little boy into his arms. “Are you by yourself? Where’s your mom and dad?”

  “It’s just my dad, and he said he would be right back.”

  “Tuck, Charlie, get out of there, NOW!”

  Wrapping the child up in his arms to try and protect him against the angry flames, Tucker pushed out of the bedroom to the main living area of the house.

  “Charlie, GO!” He hollered.

  The two men rushed out of the complex, and not a minute too soon. A flash explosion went off on the top floor, resulting in the collapse of at least two floors in return.

  “Eric!” One of the bystanders cried out in relief as Tucker sat the child in his arms down on the ground. The man attempted to push away the police personnel keeping him from getting to the scene. “That’s my son!”

  “Come on, sweetheart, let’s get you checked out,” Cece smiled, taking the little boy by the hand and leading him to the back of the ambulance.

  Ripping his mask off, Tucker grit his teeth as a red haze clouded his vision. Barreling over to the man, he pushed him roughly. “Were you thinking about him being your goddamn son when you left him in that fucking apartment alone?!” He hollered, face twisted with hatred. “He was scared, and huddled in a closet! WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU?! HE ALMOST FUCKING DIED!”

  “Tuck!” Will shouted, grabbing one of Tucker’s arms to restrain him. “Relax!”

  “Hey, screw you, alright!” Eric’s dad shouted back. “You don’t get to tell me how to raise MY kid!”

  “If it wasn’
t for me, you wouldn’t have a fucking kid to raise!”

  “HEY!” The Chief’s voice boomed, as Wade and Charlie joined the cause to try and keep Tucker from ending his career as a firefighter. “Tuck, back up now. Our job is done. Let’s pack it up and move out.”

  After a short, but intense, stare down, Tucker ripped away from the man restraining him and stormed towards the truck. He didn’t make it far before Will caught up to him.

  “Yo,” he called sharply, jerking Tucker’s shoulder hard enough to force him around. “What the hell was that?”

  “Nothing.” Tucker snarled, shaking him off.

  “Bro, I know that you’re still reeling from a loss, and I understand it, but you told me you had shit under control. Chief Snow ain’t gonna let too many more incidents like this pass without reprimanding you. All of us have that one call that’s gonna stick with us forever, but we’ve all found a way to manage the way we grieve. You need to find yours, or find yourself a different career, because the way you’re going, firefighting won’t be it.”

  Tucker’s chest rose and fell in anger, and the only thing keeping him from lashing out at Will, was knowing deep down that he was right. Since the call that shifted his life, Tucker had been a loose cannon. His temper flared up over the smallest of things, and sent him into fits of rage that he had a hard time pulling back from.

  “I just don’t fucking get it.” He exhaled slowly, trying to diffuse his anger. “What the fuck is so goddamn important that you choose to leave your kid home alone, not knowing what the hell can happen? If I hadn’t…”

  “But you did, Tuck,” Will interrupted, moving his hand from the shoulder to the back of Tucker’s head. “You were there, and you pulled him out of that closet. Now he’ll live another day to do whatever dumb shit it is that kids do and break his arm or something.”

  The two of them shared a laugh at that.

  “You gave him another day to be a kid, Tuck, and that’s what you need to focus on, alright? Tighten up.”

  Removing his hand from Tucker’s head, Will playfully slapped his face as they laughed again. Ridding himself of his gear, Tucker settled in his truck and allowed his head to rest against the window. As much as he hated to admit it, he was losing it. The threads that held him together were unraveling one by one, and he hadn’t the slightest idea of how to pull it together.

  “Kee, what the fuck are you doing?” He whispered to himself as the rest of his team packed up the truck and climbed inside. As they pulled off, forced the thoughts of his personal life to the side.

  Tucker still had damn near a full shift to go, and he couldn’t afford to lose his shit again on yet another call.

  “Tuck,” the Chief called, as soon as they were dragging their tired bodies into the station. “My office, now.”

  He didn’t even bother to wait for a response before walking off. Tucker and Will shared a look as Tucker paused before reluctantly following. He opened his mouth to say something the moment the door was closed, but was quickly cut off.

  “Do you want to lose your job?” Snow questioned with a hard glare.

  “Snow, I…”

  “Do-you-want-to-lose-your-damn-job?” He repeated through gritted teeth. While Tucker wasn’t normally one to back down, he knew he was in the wrong. There was no other choice than to grin and bear through whatever was about to come his way.

  “Then I suggest you find a way to cope with the trauma that you’re dealing with, and quickly. I have too many men relying on you to keep them alive in a situation where you’re supposed to have a cool head and make rational decisions. I won’t have them at the mercy of your misguided emotions, do you understand me?”

  “Yes, sir.” Tucker replied, a steely expression on his face.

  “Good. That’ll be all.”

  With a short nod, he headed out of the office, furious for allowing himself to end up in the predicament that he was in. Making his way into the locker room, Tucker nearly sent his fist through his designated locker.

  Letting out a growl, he sank onto the bench, allowing his head to drop into his hands.

  “Tuck,” Cecilia’s voice floated into the room as she made an appearance. “Is everything okay?”

  Sucking in a deep breath, he exhaled, dragging his hands down his face. “I’m fine.”

  “It doesn’t sound like it.”

  “Cece, I said I’m fine! Drop it!” Tucker lashed out, standing to his feet. He thought that was all it would take to get her to leave him alone, but he was wrong. She stood her ground, staring defiantly at him.

  “Oh, really?” She scoffed. “Because it doesn’t seem like you’re fine! You’re spiraling, Tucker, and everybody can see it. It’s only a matter of time before…”

  “Before what? Huh?” He demanded, approaching me menacingly.

  Her gaze softened up a little as she reached up to gently place one of her hands against his cheek. “A matter of time before you push any and everybody that cares about you away.”

  As he breathed deeply, Tucker’s anger slowly ebbed away. He easily realized that despite her attraction towards him, Cecilia was coming to him as a friend that genuinely cared about his well-being, instead of a romantic level.

  Before he could respond however, the alarm sounded, capturing the both of their attention.

  Removing her hand from his face, she gave him a soft smile before the two filed out of the locker room to their respective vehicles. As he and his team loaded onto their truck, Tucker caught the funny look Will shot towards him and Cecilia.

  Shaking it off, because he wasn’t in the least bit worried about Cecila or anything that she came with, he focused his attention on their call, ready to get through the rest of his shift and get home to his bed.

  Chapter 5

  “Damn it,” Danica hissed, trying to balance the grocery bags in her hands and get to the buzzing phone in her purse. On a normal day she wouldn’t be so concerned with whoever was calling, but she was waiting to hear back from one of the school’s that she’d applied to.

  After Amad’s death, she’d taken some time to get herself together, dipping into her retirement fund to help keep herself afloat. But now, Danica felt that she was finally poised enough to dip a toe back into the working world and get back to doing what she loved to do.

  “Fuck!” She cursed, watching as one of the bags slipped faster than she could catch it. Wincing, she waited for the sound of shattering glass, and the feeling of spaghetti sauce splashing against her ankle as the jar broke, but it never came.

  Her eyes opened, and Danica felt it was near impossible to contain her smile upon seeing Tucker standing in front of her with the bag in his hand.

  “Do I need to put a beeper on you?” He questioned with a smile, relieving her of the other bags bunched in her hands without permission. “It seems like every time we run into each other, you need my help.”

  “Ha, ha, ha,” she replied sarcastically, shaking her hair out of her face. “I don’t think the beeper is necessary, since the universe has clearly appointed you as my guardian angel.”

  “You say it like it’s such a bad thing.” Tucker smiled, melting her heart in the process. Guilt quickly consumed her, and she shook the warm feeling off and changed the subject.

  “I could have handled those on my own, you know?” She questioned, gesturing towards the bags gripped firmly in his large hands.

  “Yeah, I could tell from the way the spaghetti sauce was about to bite the dust.” Tucker’s dimpled smile appeared again. “Where’s your car?”

  “Second row,” she revealed, gesturing towards her red Camry. “And you know you don’t have to…”

  “You decline my help one more time and I’m gonna be offended.” One of his eyebrows rose into the air as he came to a stop.

  “Sorry,” Danica halted as well, licking her lips. “I don’t mean anything by it, I promise. I’m just used to managing everything on my own with no help.”

  “I refuse to believe that a wom
an as beautiful and seemingly put together as you, didn’t have a man in her life to cover the simple shit.”

  Swallowing roughly, she reached up to push a strand of hair behind her right ear. “I did, once.”

  “Bad break-up?”

  Sucking in a deep breath, Danica exhaled slowly before responding. “He passed away, actually.”

  That stopped Tucker in his tracks again. Sorrow filled his eyes as he glanced down at her, and Danica immediately bristled. He’d barely gotten his mouth open to speak before she interrupted.

  “Don’t.” She held up a hand. “Please spare me the pity, because I don’t need it. I get enough of it on a day to day basis, and I don’t want it from you.”

  She attempted to storm off, but Tucker quickly caught her by the elbow, preventing her from walking any further while spinning her around to face him.

  “One, it’s disrespectful as hell to walk away from someone in the middle of a conversation.” He stated, closing the gap between them. Danica involuntarily shrunk at the power of his presence. She wasn’t afraid of him in the least bit, but there was something about him that made her bow down to help without much effort on his part. “Two, I don’t pity you. If anything, in a way I understand you, and if you ever need a listening ear, then I don’t mind. That’s what I was going to say to you.”

  Letting go of her, Tucker continued to her car while Danica stood rooted in her spot, conflicted by the feelings coursing through her. The way Tucker checked her was sexy as hell. Yet, acknowledging that fact filled her with shame, because the only man that should have had the power to make her feel that way was Amad.

  Dropping her head, she shuffled to her car, unlocking it on her way there. Tucker opened the backdoor and loaded her bags inside before closing it roughly.

  He went to walk away without another word, but Danica reached out to grab his hand. A jolt of electricity shot through her as if she were struck by lightning, and she quickly let go. Tucker’s eyes widened, leading her to believe he’d felt the same thing she did when they touched.