12-Alarm Cowboys

by Cora Seton

  Jax headed back inside and was halfway up the steps to the sleeping quarters when the fire bell rang. He turned and ran for the main bay at full speed. Apparently, he wasn’t going to be getting any sleep after all.

  *

  Jax had just finished eating breakfast the next morning when Captain Stewart called him and the other firefighters into the conference room. He topped off his coffee, then followed Dane and the others in. The captain stood in the front of the room, a grim expression on his face as he waited for them to take their seats.

  “I just heard back from the arson division,” he said without preamble. “They’ve confirmed what I thought—that the fire at the hotel on Jacobs Street was deliberate. Investigators found plastic residues from a container of gas in the store room along with cloth fibers from an improvised wick.”

  Shit. Jax glanced at Dane and saw that his friend was almost certainly thinking the same thing he was. People typically started fires in old buildings or foreclosed properties because they wanted to get out from under them. But if someone started a fire in a hotel full of people, the reason was likely much more sinister.

  “Are we looking at a serial pyromaniac here?” a curly-haired firefighter named Glen Bosch asked from the other side of the room.

  “That’s anyone’s guess right now,” Stewart said. “This could just be a one-time thing, like some guy looking for revenge against the hotel chain or a disgruntled employee. Or we could be dealing with some kind of psycho who gets off on starting fires. If that’s the case, we need to be ready in case he tries to do it again.”

  His boss probably would have said more, but he was interrupted by the clang of the fire bell. As they raced for the trucks, Jax heard the dispatcher call going out to multiple stations. The fire was at a nearby apartment complex about twenty minutes away. Jax glanced at Dane as they yanked on their turn-out gear. Once again, his friend was wondering the same thing. Was this just a random fire, or another arson attempt?

  Jax supposed it didn’t really matter. No matter how the fire started, a firefighter had the same job—put it out.

  *

  When they arrived on the scene, any thought that the fire was anything other than the work of an arsonist disappeared. The big apartment complex was burning in at least three different places, and that didn’t happen on its own. As Jax grabbed his SCBA tank, he overheard Lieutenant Boone talking on the phone with the other responding engines, figuring out who was going to handle which parts of the fire.

  Jax quickly headed into the building with Dane and Troy to start getting people out of the two-story building while the rest of the firefighters got the supply lines attached to the local hydrants and the attack hoses in place to fight the fire.

  People were gesturing madly toward the second floor the moment they got inside, shouting that there were several older people who lived up there. Jax and Dane immediately peeled off for the stairs as Tory searched the apartments on the first floor.

  The upper floor was a zoo. While some people were running for their lives from the fast growing flames, others seemed more interested in trying to save their TVs and computers. Jax kicked in the first door he found closed and rushed into the apartment to see if anyone was in there.

  The fire was eating through the ceiling and covering the walls at a rapid pace, but when he did a quick search, he didn’t find anyone. He turned to leave, jerking in surprise as a reflection in the glass of his SCBA facemask caught his attention. He had just a fraction of a second to see a man in a big, heavy coat and motorcycle helmet swinging something at him. Whatever it was smashed against his fire helmet like a ton of bricks.

  Jax went down hard, his vision swimming in a sea of black, gray, and red. He knew even before he hit the floor that he was about to lose consciousness. If he passed out in this fire, he was never going to wake up.

  The thought of what Skye would go through when she heard that she’d lost someone else in her life to a fire made him almost as sick as the dizziness overwhelming him.

  His hand moved of its own accord to the radio on his belt. There was no way he could call for help, but if he could hit the orange emergency button, it might be even better.

  As the unforgiving blackness swooped in and surrounded him, Jax prayed his finger had found that damn little button.

  *

  Jax came to as someone pulled him to his feet. A moment later that same someone draped his arm over their shoulder and slowly dragged him along the hallway and over to the stairs. Halfway down the steps, the darkness shrouding his vision finally began to recede. He determinedly got his feet under him and helped whoever was half dragging, half-carrying him by supporting his own weight.

  Tory immediately ran over as they came out of the building. Jax waved him off.

  “I’m fine,” he said.

  But Tory ignored him, putting his arm around Jax to support him from the other side. Jax swore and yanked his mask away, shaking them off. “I said I’m fine, dammit! There was someone in that apartment with me. Fucking asshole knocked me out.”

  Tory stared at him.

  “What?” a familiar voice asked from the other side of Jax. He turned to see Dane looking at him like he was crazy.

  Jax reached up and pulled off his helmet, turning it around to show Dane and the Tory the big dent along one side of it. That would have been his freaking head if he’d been without a helmet. “Some asshole in a heavy coat and motorcycle helmet came up behind me and used my head for batting practice. He tried to frigging kill me.”

  Dane looked at Tory. “Tell the on-scene commander and the cops that someone assaulted a firefighter. Get them looking for this guy.” He turned back to Jax. “Come on. Let’s get you over to the paramedics.”

  “I don’t need a paramedic,” Jax told him. “I’m fine.”

  “Maybe, but you’re getting checked out anyway,” Dane said firmly.

  Shit, Dane could be stubborn. But unless Jax wanted to go twelve rounds with him right in the middle of the parking lot, it was easier to simply let a paramedic take a look at him. The faster he did, the faster he could get back in that building and look for whoever had clocked him.

  Unfortunately, a dark-haired female paramedic by the name of Fletcher took one look at his helmet and shoved it into Dane’s hands, along with his air bottle and turn-out coat. Then she ordered Jax to sit on the back of an ambulance and shined a penlight in his eyes.

  “You aren’t going anywhere,” she announced.

  *

  Skye was bummed to see that the vehicle bay was empty when she pulled into the parking lot of the fire station where Jax worked. After a moment of inspiration involving waffles and bacon, she’d whipped up a batch of cupcakes and brought them in for Jax and the rest of the firefighters to try. It looked like she was going to have to wait until they got back.

  She walked into the station and found Captain Stewart and a young female firefighter leaning over the big radio set-up, concern on both their faces. Skye felt a flutter in the pit of her stomach, and immediately tamped it down. Just because they looked worried didn’t mean it had anything to do with Jax or her brother.

  Her curiosity on the other hand couldn’t be so easily ignored. She was just about to ask what was going on, when a burst of chatter came over the station radio. Something about one of the firefighters getting hurt. The flutter in her stomach was back, along with a healthy dose of real fear. Stewart must have heard her gasp, because he turned and looked in her direction.

  “Skye,” he said. “What are you doing here?”

  “What happened?” she demanded, ignoring his question. “Who got hurt?”

  The older firefighter shook his head. “We’re not sure yet. I’m waiting for an official situation report. You can stay, but I need you to be calm. Can you do that?”

  Did that mean he’d lied to her about not knowing the identity of the injured firefighter? Was it Jax or Dane?

  She wanted to demand that the captain tell her who it was, but was
afraid he’d make her leave. So she nodded and stood there numbly as more details began to filter through. They didn’t make a lot of sense, though. No one had gotten burned or injured in a fire. Instead, one of them had been attacked inside a burning apartment building. That couldn’t be right. Who would attack a firefighter?

  Then she heard the name of the firefighter who’d been attacked.

  Jax Malloy.

  Skye gripped the edge of the table, afraid her knees were going to give out. Oh, God. The rest of what they said over the radio fell on deaf ears as she started hyperventilating.

  Captain Stewart put his arm around her shoulders. “It’s all right, Skye. Jax is going to be fine.”

  Hearing that should have calmed her down, but it wasn’t enough to stop her from freaking out. All she could think about was losing Jax. After everything else in her life fire had taken from her, the thought of losing Jax too was just too much to bear.

  Captain Stewart said something to the female firefighter, then guided Skye into the vehicle bay.

  He led her over to a chair near the wall and gently pushed her down into it, then instructed her to lean over and put her head down. She obeyed, not really sure how it would help. But it did. After a few moments, she didn’t feel dizzy anymore. The fear, however, was another matter entirely. It had latched onto her with a viselike grip and refused to let go.

  Skye looked at Captain Stewart, searching his lined face. “Is Jax really okay?”

  The older man smiled. “He’s fine.”

  She sagged in her chair. “Who would attack a firefighter in a burning building?”

  “I don’t know. But I sure as hell intend to find out.”

  Captain Stewart sat with Skye while they waited for the trucks to come back. A rescue vehicle pulled into the station parking lot a little while later followed by two police cruisers. The moment Jax stepped out of the patrol car, she jumped up and ran over to him.

  Skye threw her arms around him, smelly fire suit and all. She was so relieved to see him in one piece that she barely paid attention as he explained to the captain about the psycho who’d come at him with a baseball bat in the apartment building. Until he got to the part about Dane coming in to save him. She hadn’t even realized her brother had been in the other police car until she finally caught sight of him standing a few feet away.

  She let Jax go long enough to rush over to hug Dane. “Thank you for saving Jax.”

  Dane hugged her back, something he hadn’t done in a long time. “Of course I saved him,” he said softly into her hair. “Jax might be a jerk, but he’s still my friend.”

  Skye smiled. Maybe Jax and her brother would be able to salvage their relationship after all.

  “What happened out there?” Captain Stewart asked.

  Skye shuddered as Jax explained how he’d been assaulted and left to burn to death. If her brother hadn’t gone looking for him…

  “The fire was under control before Jax and I left,” Dane added. “The on-scene commander is already calling it arson. With four separate ignition points, there’s no way that was an accident.”

  Captain’s Stewart’s mouth tightened. “Question is, did the guy assault Jax because he didn’t want the fire put out, or did he set the fire so he could lure the fire department there to kill a firefighter?”

  Skye felt sick to her stomach at the possibility of either situation. Needing some fresh air, she walked out to the parking lot and over to Jax’s truck so she wouldn’t have to hear any more.

  Jax came out ten minutes later. He took her into his arms and pressed a kiss to her hair.

  She closed her eyes and hugged him tightly for a long minute, then pulled back to look up at him. “Are you sure you’re really okay?”

  He gently ran the backs of his fingers down her cheek. “I’m fine. The paramedic who checked me out said I didn’t even have a concussion. And if she was wrong, I know what signs to look for.” His mouth quirked. “Besides, my head is too hard for anything to hurt it.”

  Skye didn’t laugh. She didn’t think it was funny at all. Jax must have figured that out because he changed the subject.

  “You brought cupcakes?”

  “What?” She followed his gaze to the Tupperware container in the back seat of his pickup’s king cab. “Oh, yeah. I tried a new recipe and thought you and the other firefighters might like them. Waffle flavored cupcakes with maple-bacon frosting.”

  She opened the door to grab them when one of his fellow firefighters poked his head out of the station telling Jax that the chief was on the line looking for a detailed report on what happened at the apartment building.

  “I’ll be right in,” Jax called over his shoulder. He took the container she offered, holding it in one hand and cupping her face in the other. “I have to go. But I really am fine, okay? I’ll be home in a few hours. We can talk as much as you want then.”

  She nodded. At least he was willing to talk to her about it. A lot of guys wouldn’t do that.

  He kissed her, then opened the driver’s side door. “Drive safe, okay? I’ll be home soon.”

  “I will.”

  Skye waited while he walked back into the station, waving at him when he lifted a hand in her direction before going back inside. She sighed as she put the truck in gear and pulled out of the parking lot, praying Jax didn’t have to go out on another fire before his shift ended. She didn’t think he would after getting hurt, but Jax was the type who’d go anyway because he thought it was the right thing to do.

  When she got back to the ranch, she played fetch with Rodeo for a while, then puttered around in the kitchen. In theory, she was working on a new cupcake recipe, but mostly she was wasting time until Jax came home. She wasn’t sure how they were going to taste since she spent more time worrying about Jax than baking, but she had them out of the oven and just finished frosting them by the time he walked in.

  She sagged with relief and dropped the spatula in the empty bowl. She knew she shouldn’t still be freaked out, but she couldn’t help it. Jax could have been killed today.

  That’s when it hit her. She was falling hard and fast for Jax.

  The realization would have alarmed her if it had been any other guy. But Jax wasn’t some guy she’d just met. She’d known him since they were kids. And it wasn’t very surprising that her teenage crush had turned into something more now that she’d had a chance to spend some real time with him. The thought of losing him was what scared her.

  Rodeo trotted over to greet Jax, wagging his tail happily. Jax bent to give him a pet and a, “Hey boy,” then walked into the kitchen. Rodeo followed at his heels.

  “Those smell good,” Jax said, glancing at the cupcakes.

  She tried to give him a small smile, but couldn’t quite manage it. He must have realized she was a mess because he took her hand, then led her to the table and gently pushed her into a chair. Pulling out the one beside her, he sat down and took her hands in his.

  “What’s going on in your head right now?” he asked. “And don’t say nothing because I can see you’re upset.”

  Skye didn’t answer right away. She knew she was being unfair. She’d known Jax was a firefighter when she decided to sleep with him. It wasn’t his fault that she had a phobia about everything fire related.

  “Even though you rescued me from that burning hotel, I let myself forget what you do for a living,” she said softly. “Today reminded me in a big, fat way.”

  “Today was an isolated incident, Skye. I can count on one finger the number of times a guy who set fire to a building hung around and tried to take out a firefighter. I was in more danger when I worked on oil rigs and rode broncs on the rodeo circuit. Hell, I’m in more danger driving to the station.”

  If he was hoping that would make her feel better, he failed. When she didn’t say anything, he let out a heavy sigh.

  “It’s okay. You don’t have to say it. After what happened with your parents, I know how hard it would be for you to be with a guy who go
es into burning buildings for a living.”

  Tears suddenly clogged her throat, and she swallowed hard. He thought she was breaking up with him.

  “Jax…”

  He brushed her hair back from her face, his dark eyes sad. “Shh. I get it, and it’s okay.”

  But it wasn’t okay.

  Skye grabbed his hands and held on tightly. “I’m not breaking up with you, Jax. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. We have something special, and I’m not going to throw it away just because what you do is dangerous. But I’m not going to ever be cavalier about the risks inherent in your job, either. I don’t like fire, and I never will. I’m going to worry about you every time you go to work and there’s no getting around that. But I care about you too much to walk away.”

  Jax sat there for a long time, not saying anything. Then leaning close, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her long and hard on the lips.

  “Thank you,” he whispered when he finally pulled away.

  She kissed him again, then tugged him to his feet. She didn’t want to talk about fires and burning buildings anymore. “Come on. I tried out a new cupcake recipe and want to know what you think.”

  Skye waited impatiently while he washed his hands, then peeled off the wrapper and bit into the cupcake. He chewed once, then twice before swallowing and making a face.

  “Um, what kind of cupcake is this supposed to be?”

  “Pumpkin with cranberry cream cheese frosting.” She leaned close and took a bite of the cupcake he was still holding. This time, it was her turn to make a face. She knew she hadn’t been paying attention to what she was doing while she was making them, but she’d screwed up the recipe even worse than she thought. “Ewww. I think I added way too much nutmeg to the cake and forgot the sugar in the frosting.”

  Skye took the cupcake from his hand and tossed it in the trash, then dumped the rest of the tray, much to Rodeo’s dismay. Giving him a Milk Bone instead, she looked at Jax.

  “Want to help me make another batch?” she asked.

  His mouth twitched. “Only if I get to lick the frosting off your nipples again.”