Trauma nurse Chauncey and paramedic Brody have only ever agreed on one thing in life—that they share a mutual hatred for one another. While they may have to work together, they’ve never gotten along. Brody sees Chauncey as nothing more than a bossy, jerk whereas Chauncey thinks Brody is a cocky, brat who needs a good slap on the nose. What neither one of them is willing to admit is that they share a secret mutual attraction.
One night they lose control and give into their passion. When they find themselves waking up in each other’s arms, they have to face one of the biggest decisions of their lives—do they give love a chance or are their differences just too big to overcome?
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In His Hero’s Shadow
Copyright © 2011 Stephani Hecht
ISBN: 978-1-55487-952-6
Cover art by Martine Jardin
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.
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In His Hero’s Shadow
EMS Heat Nine
By
Stephani Hecht
To all those who died on September 11th. May we always remember your bravery.
Chapter One
Since his day had already trotted down the path to sucksville, the last thing Chauncey wanted was to have one more crappy thing happen. Yet, that’s what occurred when he received the last call of the day.
As a mobile trauma nurse, Chauncey liked to think he was always prepared for the worst. Car accidents, chemical spills, fires—he’d take any of them over the disaster he was about to face. While those calamities may be scary, they in no way compared to one certain Brody Wiseman.
Chauncey disembarked from the copter and immediately scanned the small stretch of freeway that now housed the scene of their call. PD had blocked traffic so the only thing surrounding the crashed metal that used to be a minivan and SUV were various EMTs and fire personnel. Chauncey’s gaze immediately located and honed in on one of them—Brody.
All-in-all, he didn’t look to be much of anything. Sure, he was cute enough with his spiked sandy blond hair and big, puppy dog brown eyes. He wasn’t even that tall. Standing at just over five-six, Chauncey would be surprised if the guy tipped the scales at one twenty-five.
Looks could be deceiving because under all that aren’t-I-just-a-cutie lay a tongue so sharp it could cut through metal and glass. Not only that, but Brody possessed a cocky attitude that never failed to grate on Chauncey. Sometimes it got so bad Chauncey contemplated taking Brody over his knee so he could finally spank some manners into the brat. The only reason Chauncey held back was because, knowing Brody, he’d like it and then that would just defeat the purpose.
Brody knelt beside a patient. He wore his usual paramedic uniform of navy pants and dark, long sleeved tee. On the back of the shirt, the name of his ambulance company was written in bold, yellow letters.
The patient lay strapped to a backboard, her head encased in headblocks. While the blood marring her face made it difficult to be sure, Chauncey guessed her to be about seventeen or eighteen.
“Is this the one who’s being transported?” Chauncey asked as he approached.
While there were numerous victims in the accident, they’d only called him for the most critical. Sometimes even a few minutes could be the difference between life and death and his copter got to the hospital faster than the ambulance.
Brody nodded as he quickly and efficiently began to start a second IV in the patient’s arm. As he slid in the needle, Chauncey noticed the girl didn’t even flinch in pain. Either she didn’t have an issue with needles or she was so deep into shock that pain didn’t register.
“We have a seventeen year old female who was involved in a head-on collision with a SUV. While her airbag went off, she wasn’t wearing her seatbelt,” Brody said as he set the IV drip rate at wide open.
Chauncey winced as he mentally ticked off all the injuries the female may have sustained. He crouched down so he could examine her face more closely. She had her eyes shut and gave no indication that she was alert. She didn’t even startle when one of the fire crew started up the Jaws of Life a few feet away as they extracted another victim from the van.
The patient had multiple cuts and scrapes on her face. A face that was so young a bit of baby fat still lingered on her freckled cheeks. Her once pert nose was swollen and dripping blood.
“What are her vitals?”
“Crappy. Her BP is so low that it’s hard to get a good reading and her pulse is weak and thready. I’m trying to get more fluid into her, but it’s not helping. If I had to guess, I would say she has a pretty big bleed somewhere internally.”
Chauncey nodded in agreement. “Help me get her loaded up.”
They each took one end of the backboard and raced to the copter. It was already running in anticipation for a quick take off. Brody nodded to the pilot, Tanner, who returned the gesture.
As they strapped the patient in place, Chauncey couldn’t help but be amazed that Brody hadn’t fired off a bratty comment. Sure, the situation was pretty tense, given their patient’s condition, but that never stopped Brody before.
Just as Chauncey allowed himself to relax his guard, Brody leaned in and yelled, “I kept her stable this long. Don’t blow things and let me down.”
Oh, no. He did not just say that! Chauncey glanced up and glared at the medic. “Thanks, I got it from here. Why don’t you go play with the firemen?”
“Now, we both know that’s my favorite thing to do,” Brody called before he turned and walked back to the scene.
After Chauncey arrived at the hospital and transferred the patient over to the ER staff, he ran down to the pharmacy to restock his drugbox. When he got back to the EMS room and found Tanner MIA, it didn’t come as much of a surprise. Tanner had a major crush on a guy from radiology so he was probably prowling around in hopes of bumping into the man.
Not that the delay mattered since their shift was technically over. So Chauncey made himself a cup of coffee and sat down at one of the two round tables occupying the cramped room.
He didn’t know how much time passed before the door opened. Expecting Tanner, a dash of disappointment went through Chauncey when he saw Brody walk in instead.
He sighed. “Oh, it’s you.”
Brody pulled a face. “Hey, that’s not cool. In case you forgot, your cousin is my partner so that means he’s here, too. Therefore, you should be happy to see me.”
Chauncey was never happy to see the little shit and decided not to say that aloud. The last thing he wanted after a hard day was to finish it off by getting into it with Brody.
“Where’s Kiefer?”
“He’s giving a report to one of the nurses.”
“Did you bring in the driver from the other vehicle?”
Brody nodded as he began to pour himself
a cup of coffee. “The asshole was drunk so of course he wasn’t that injured. How is our girl doing?”
“Last I checked, there was no change. I think they’re rushing her into surgery.”
“So you managed to follow my orders and get her here in time.” Brody smirked as he dumped a ton of sugar into his coffee.
“Yes, because we both know how I just live to please you,” Chauncey drawled as he rolled his eyes.
He didn’t know how his cousin, Kiefer, could stand working with Brody. Not only that, but they hung out when they were off the clock, too. Chauncey was sure had he been saddled with Brody as a partner, one of them would be dead by the end of their first shift.
Brody dropped into the chair opposite Chauncey. A look of pure mischief danced through the medic’s eyes. “If you only knew how many guys said that to me.”
“Is that before or after they forgot your name?”
“Who says I even tell it to them in the first place?”
Now, that didn’t shock Chauncey. Brody had a bit of a reputation for being a bed hopper. Okay, maybe it was more than a bit. To say Brody liked to play around would be an understatement. At least that’s what Chauncey heard. Other than Kiefer, they didn’t share too many mutual friends, nor did they hang out together. So Chauncey never saw Brody in action.
“Is that all you want in life? One quick, nameless hookup after another?” Chauncey asked.
Brody took a sip of his coffee, then shrugged. “Sure, it’s less messy that way. Besides, what’s the big deal? I don’t see you with anybody special. So your way must not be working either.”
“Who says I’m looking?”
“Sweetie, your kind is always looking for their one true love.”
Chauncey stared at Brody. He knew the medic was twenty, which made him four years Chauncey’s junior. Brody was way too young to be so jaded.
“I’m not saying that I agree with you, but if I were looking for that special somebody, why would that be so wrong?”
“Because there’s no such thing. All love does is make you weak and vulnerable.”
A stunned silence filled the room. “Wow, Freud would have a fucking field day analyzing your mental stability.”
Brody swirled his coffee as he appeared to be thinking that one over. “You may actually be right about something for once. I’m so messed up, I could be the official spokesman for Crazy Town.”
Stunned that Brody would actually admit that, Chauncey was momentarily at a loss for words. Lucky duck that he was, Brody decided to fill that void.
“But then again, maybe that’s not a bad thing. A lot of guys like my eccentricities.”
“Really? And here I thought you were just a brat who needed a good slap on the nose.”
Brody’s eyes flared with anger before he schooled his features and flashed a cocky grin. It occurred to Chauncey that the medic did that a lot. Almost as if he was afraid to show his true self or something.
Brody opened his yap for what was probably going to be yet another one of his irritating comments, but the door opened, interrupting them. Kiefer poked his head in. He impatiently ran his hand through his dark hair and let out an aggravated huff. “Come on, Brody. We have another call.”
Brody started. “Already? We haven’t cleared the hospital yet.”
“Yeah, I told them that, but I guess we’re the only rig they have.”
“What’s the call?” Brody stood and tossed his cup into the trash.
“It’s Mrs. Roberts again.”
Even though he wasn’t on a ground crew, that name was still familiar to Chauncey. An elderly woman with COPD and diabetes, she was a frequent flyer. Still she was sweet enough that most of the crews liked her.
“Shit,” Brody groaned. “It’s only been a couple of days since she last had to go in. It seems like she’s only getting worse.”
Kiefer gave a sad smile. “Dispatch said she was asking for you.”
Brody’s normal smirk, softened. “Really?”
“Why should that come as such a surprise? You know how much she likes you.”
For a brief moment, Brody’s glance flickered in Chauncey’s direction as if he expected a disagreement to Mrs. Roberts’ opinion. Chauncey just gave a small shrug. While he may find most of Brody’s behavior infuriating, for some reason females of all ages seemed to gobble it up.
Brody nibbled on his bottom lip, not looking too sure of himself for once.
Once again, Chauncey found himself wondering how somebody so young could already feel so damaged from life.
“Well, I guess we better get going. If she wants us, then we shouldn’t keep her waiting,” Brody finally said.
Kiefer gave Chauncey a wave before they left. Brody on the other hand, didn’t even bother looking in Chauncey’s direction again. Not that Chauncey expected any differently. The two of them had known each other for a little over a year now and in all that time, they’d only managed to agree on one thing—that they hated each other with a deep-seated passion.
Which was too bad, really. Under different circumstances, Chauncey would have made a play for the guy. With those cute eyes and even cuter dimples, he was the type of man that Chauncey normally went for. If only it weren’t for Brody’s bratty attitude and smart mouth, he would have been perfect.
Chapter Two
As they rushed into the ER bay, Brody headed to the passenger side of the ambulance and climbed in. As Kiefer slid in behind the wheel, Brody caught the confused furrow marring his work partner’s brow. Not that Brody could blame Kiefer for his confusion, given that Brody never gave up navigation duties.
“I have a headache,” he lied before he keyed up the mic and let dispatch know they were on their way to the call.
Brody let out a sigh of relief when Kiefer didn’t call him out on the fib. Still using the pretext of not feeling well, Brody closed his eyes and rested his head against the window.
Damn Chauncey. Damn his superior attitude. And most of all, damn him for being so appealing despite all those faults. No matter how hard he tried, Brody had yet to find a flaw in the nurse’s physical appearance.
A hum of arousal went through Brody as an image of Chauncey popped into his head. From his dark, almost midnight hair to his deep, blue eyes and cover model good looks, he was the perfect male specimen. It didn’t hurt that he came from one of the richest families in the nation either.
Not that Brody gave a rat’s ass about how much money a guy made. Yet, he couldn’t help but notice that Chauncey had a refined edge to him. It was obvious from his impeccable table manners, excellent grammar, perfect posture and elitist attitude that he’d been raised by the best money could buy.
Brody, on the other hand, grew up in a culture of weekend bonfire parties, Friday night football games and public school education. He knew that put him in a completely different league than Chauncey. Hell, the two of them weren’t even on the same planet.
“How come you’re nothing like your cousin?” Brody asked, not opening his eyes.
“What do you mean?”
“Even though you were both raised in the same environment, you still act more like…well, the rest of us.”
“And Chauncey doesn’t?”
Brody cracked open one lid. “No, you’re normal where he acts so privileged you’d think he had a branch from the Kennedy family tree stuck up his ass.”
Kiefer let out a snort of laugher. “God, I don’t know where you come up with some of these terms.”
“It fits though.”
“Not, really. I hate to break it to you, but this hate-hate thing you have going with Chauncey is just as much your fault.”
Outraged, Brody fully opened his eyes as he sat up straighter. “How in the hell do you figure that?”
“Don’t play coy with me. We both know you go out of your way to piss him off.”
Brody briefly considered denying that, but decided to just keep his mouth closed. He’d never been a liar before so there was no reason to sta
rt. Besides, he had a feeling Kiefer would see right through whatever excuse he came up with.
“Only because he makes it so much fun. Seriously, who could resist? The look of shock on his face when I deliver a zinger is just priceless. Even you have to admit that.”
Kiefer turned into Mrs. Roberts’ neighborhood. “Are you sure that’s the only reason why you’re doing it?”
Brody slowly shook his head, confused at the weird turn in the conversation. “What other reason could there be?”
“All I’m saying is sometimes you two are almost too vocal about your dislike for each other.”
“That doesn’t even make any sense.”
“You know how they say there’s a thin line between love and hate.”
“They also say that McDonald’s is bad for you, but you don’t see me giving up my McNuggets,” Brody snapped.
The corners of Kiefer’s lips twitched. “Did you just compare my cousin to fast food?”
“Yeah, and make sure you share that piece of info next time you see him. I would love to see how Mr. Country Club reacts to that.”
“That’s not fair. Chauncey is separated from our family, just as I am. In fact, I just found out that they cut off all financial support and are refusing to speak to him.”
Brody froze, shocked by that bit of information. “Since when?”
“Since he sided with me. It was already bad enough that he was gay, but when he went so far as to support me when I stood up to my parents, the entire family turned their backs on Chauncey.”
Some of Brody’s animosity slipped, replacing it with respect. “Wow, that’s huge. I know how it feels to be cut off from family.”
While Brody still had his mother—at least to a certain extent—the rest of his own family hadn’t bothered with him in nearly a decade. While it’d been a while, that rejection still held the same sting.
They reached Mrs. Roberts’ house, dropping the conversation as they both got out and began to collect their equipment. As they walked up the wheelchair ramp, Brody’s heart broke as he noticed new bullet holes marring the elderly lady’s siding. Her home had once been in a pretty decent neighborhood. As the economy and city fell on hard times, crime had continued to creep into more parts of Flint. Now, Mrs. Roberts lived in one of the worst areas.
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