Forever Starts Tonight

by Barbara Freethy

  "It doesn't matter. I'm happy to take the training. It's just two nights, and since we're new to the community, it will help me get a better handle on things."

  "It's good you see it that way. Some women would find better things to do with their Friday nights, especially when they're single."

  "I'm not single. I'm divorced. There's a difference."

  "If you say so." As Donna headed toward the door, Jessica looked around her classroom and began rapping out a series of orders. "Kimberly and Chelsea, I want those blocks cleaned up and put back in the box. Michael and Emily, turn the chairs right side up and push them back against the table. Marissa and Peter, you're responsible for putting the books back onto the shelf. The rest of you put away whatever is in your hands and take your place on the carpet."

  The children began to move in one accord. Jessica nodded approvingly. Time to get the day started. There were a lot of things in her life she couldn't control, but her classroom was not one of them.

  * * *

  Two days later, Jessica walked into the high school gymnasium for the Community Emergency Certification Training class.

  The other teacher representing Crestmoor Elementary was Paula Cummings, a fourth-grade teacher. Paula was a short, curvy blonde with brown eyes and a friendly smile. She was also in her fifth month of pregnancy for her second child, so there was a decided bump beginning to show under her over-sized sweater.

  "Jessica," Paula said, waving her over to the benches. "I saved you a spot."

  "Great." She sat down next to Paula and looked around the gym. "There are a lot of people here."

  "They said they're expecting about fifty."

  "I didn't realize it would be this big."

  "All the community groups like to work together."

  "That makes sense."

  "Where's your son tonight?"

  "After-school care is having date-night tonight, so I didn't have to look for a babysitter. He's having pizza and watching a movie and is happy as can be."

  "That's great, but wouldn't date-night be better if you were actually on a date?" Paula asked with a laugh.

  "I suppose, but I don't know too many people in town."

  "I should introduce you to some of my husband's single male friends. They would love you."

  "Probably only until they found out I have a seven-year-old kid," she said dryly. "It's a game-changer."

  "The right man won't care about that."

  "So far, that man hasn't shown up." As she finished speaking, the mingling crowd settled onto the benches as several men in uniform walked through the door: two from the police department and two from the fire department.

  Her heart skipped a beat as her gaze settled on a tall, fit, attractive man with light-brown hair, blue eyes, and a wide smile. It was the firefighter who had cut her out of the doghouse. Of course, he would be teaching the class, because apparently it wasn't time for her to live down that embarrassing episode yet.

  "Oh, my," Paula whispered. "Good-looking men in uniform are definitely going to make this class more interesting."

  The other firefighter, who had also been at her house, was handsome, too, with dark-brown hair, brown eyes, and an olive complexion. But he didn't draw her attention the way the other man did. As his blue-eyed gaze turned on her, she felt an unexpected jolt of desire.

  Surprise flared in his eyes, followed by appreciation, and a slow, almost intimate smile. Butterflies danced through her stomach, and she swallowed hard.

  "Do you know him?" Paula asked.

  "Uh, I've seen him before, but I don't know him," she replied.

  Luckily, the man stepped up to a microphone so she didn't have to answer any more of Paula's questions.

  "Good evening, everyone. Thanks for coming. I'm Reid McAllister. This is Bill Carlton. We're from the Half Moon Bay Fire Department. Joining us is Mark Holmes and Ron Davenport from the police department. Later in the evening, we'll also have a representative from Mercy Hospital lead a discussion relating to emergency medical care. We have a full night planned, but we want to start out by letting you know how much we appreciate your interest and efforts to make our community safer." Reid paused, looking over at the other firefighter. "Bill is going to start things off."

  As Bill began to discuss the different emergency situations that might occur in town, Jessica's gaze drifted to Reid, who seemed just as interested in staring at her as she was at staring at him.

  She forced herself to break eye contact. She needed to focus on why she was here and that wasn't because of the sexy firefighter who'd seen her at her worst. Well, maybe the doghouse wasn't her worst moment, but it had been embarrassing. She flushed at the thought of what she must have looked like with her ass hanging out of the doghouse and her skirt hitched up around her thighs.

  After discussing protocols and emergency procedures for fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, toxic hazards, and active shooter situations, the speakers moved from general information to more specific details, and over the next two hours, Jessica learned a great deal about how the community would respond to each of those situations. While she was trained in CPR and knew a lot about how to deal with school emergencies, it was eye-opening to see the broader picture of how a natural event like an earthquake could impact everyone.

  At the end of the evening, the group was divided in half to role-play an explosion at a large city building. Jessica was put into the group of civilian responders while Paula was in the group of victims. They were given a few minutes to study their roles, the background of the situation, and the protocols they needed to follow. Then it was time to get to work.

  Jessica was given three patients and was instructed to triage them according to the severity of their alleged injuries.

  As her victims finished studying up on their injuries and got into position, Reid joined her. "We meet again," he said with a smile.

  "Quite a coincidence," she replied, the nervous butterflies back in her stomach. It was ridiculous to be so affected by him. They weren't on a date. This was a professional moment. He was a teacher tonight, and she was a student. She needed to remember that.

  "How did you end up here tonight?" he asked.

  "I'm a teacher at Crestmoor Elementary School."

  "And you pulled the short stick?" he asked with a grin.

  The man had a smile that warmed her all the way to her core. "Something like that. But it's been very informative, and I do like to be prepared in case of emergency. So it's all good." She paused. "The other morning, I—I wasn't at my best."

  "When I show up somewhere, I don't find many people at their best," he said dryly.

  "But how many do you find stuck in a doghouse?"

  "I have to admit you were the first one for that. But it doesn't even make the top ten of weird calls."

  "I'm happy to hear that, because it's near the top of my list for embarrassing moments."

  "It shouldn't be—you have great legs."

  She flushed at his compliment. "I don't think you're supposed to say things like that."

  "I'm definitely not supposed to say things like that, or notice things like that," he agreed with a smile. "Don't tell on me."

  How could she possibly tell on someone who was as sexy and charming as Reid McAllister was?

  "But let's get down to business and see what you've learned," he said, nodding his head to her first victim.

  "Okay." She knelt down next to a middle-aged man who was playing the part of a forty-year-old unconscious male, bleeding from a head wound. She consulted her notes. "He has a bad head injury. He's unconscious, but he is breathing. I don't see any other visible signs of trauma, but obviously a head injury could be extremely serious. I would tag him as…" She consulted the list of five colored tags and the notes behind each decision. "Red."

  "So he requires immediate attention and is a first priority for transport to a medical facility?" Reid asked.

  "Yes."

  He nodded approvingly. "Good job."

 
She moved on to the next patient, and Reid followed along. The older woman was playing a teenager, who was conscious and sitting up with evidence of a broken arm, with a protruding bone.

  "This person has an arm injury, but appears to be alert." She turned to the victim. "What's your name?"

  "Catherine," the woman said. "I'm in a lot of pain."

  "Do you hurt anywhere else besides your arm? Can you get up?"

  The woman nodded. "I think so. It's just my arm."

  Jessica looked over at Reid. "She's responsive. She knows who she is. She can walk. She would be marked with a yellow tag—her condition is stable but she needs care for her arm so she should be transported after the more seriously injured individuals." She paused. "Or would she be green? She could go to her own doctor and not go to the hospital?"

  "Her condition says a bone is protruding through her skin."

  She winced at that description. "Which sounds really painful."

  "It also probably requires surgery, so that would keep her in the yellow group. If she had what appeared to be a sprain, her condition would go down to green."

  "I can't believe I'm making any of these decisions," she said, standing up again. "I have no idea what's going on inside their bodies. What if they have internal bleeding?"

  "You won't know. You have to make a trained observation based on the protocols."

  She moved on to her final victim. Paula was sitting in a chair, but she was playing a nine-year-old, having trouble breathing, blood coming from her nose.

  "I think this is severe," Jessica said, reading through the symptoms. "It's a child. The blood from her nose could indicate internal injuries."

  "I can't—can't breathe," Paula said breathlessly. "I don't know where my mom is. I'm scared."

  "It's going to be okay," Jessica told her, putting her hand on Paula's arm. "We're going to take care of you." She glanced back at Reid. "The breathing problems suggest urgent care since there could be a problem with her lungs. So she gets the red tag."

  "Thank goodness," Paula said. "I was afraid I was going to get the black tag."

  The black tag was for individuals that they couldn't save. Jessica frowned at the thought of having to put that tag on someone, especially if they weren't dead yet. "I don't think I could do it," she said to Reid. "How could I mark someone who's still alive as no hope? There's always hope, right?"

  "Not always," he said seriously. "If this person was the only person at the scene, then, of course, you would work on them forever and get them to help. But this is a situation with potentially fifty plus victims. If a responder spends too much time on someone who can't survive, that person might cause someone else's demise. Instead of losing one person, you might lose two or more."

  She shuddered at the thought. "I really hope I never have to do this."

  "We all do," he said.

  "Are you done with me?" Paula asked. "I need to leave a few minutes early. I have a babysitter who has to be home by nine fifteen."

  "You're good," Reid said. "Thanks for coming. Will we see you next week?"

  "Absolutely," Paula replied. "I'll see you tomorrow, Jessica."

  "You two know each other?" Reid asked as Paula moved away.

  "Yes. Paula is also a teacher at Crestmoor."

  "What grade do you teach?"

  "First grade."

  "You have little ones."

  "Yes. I like that grade. They're not quite as dependent on me as kindergartners, but still intensely curious and eager to learn."

  "Is your son in your class?"

  "No, he's in second grade, and I would never be his teacher. I think it's important to have a separation there. I'm sure at some point he'll hate that I'm even a teacher at his school, but right now he likes knowing I'm just down the hall, especially since it's a new school. We moved here around Christmas." She had no idea why she'd just told him that. "Don't let me keep you if you need to work with another group."

  "I think everyone is covered," he said, glancing around the gym. "How do you like Half Moon Bay?"

  "I love it. I actually grew up on the other side of the hills in Palo Alto, so I wasn't totally unfamiliar with the area."

  "Where's your son tonight?"

  "The after-school care at Crestmoor offers a date night once a month on Fridays, so Brandon is hanging out there."

  "And you're not on a date? Where's your husband?"

  "My ex-husband lives in Boston."

  His eyes sparked at that piece of information. "Ex-husband, huh?"

  "Yes."

  "For how long?"

  "Six years. And you ask a lot of personal questions, Mr. McAllister."

  "Please, call me Reid. I'm a curious person. Do you have some secret past you don't want to talk about?"

  "No, it's actually fairly boring."

  "Let me be the judge."

  "Fine. Long story short—I grew up in Palo Alto, but I've been living in San Diego the past few years. I came back at Christmas because my mom has been having some health issues, and I wanted to be closer to her. No big secrets, just family stuff."

  "I'm sorry to hear about your mother."

  "Thanks."

  "How's your son dealing with the destruction of his doghouse? I felt bad about that. It looked like it meant a lot to him."

  "Brandon will be fine. His father sent him the doghouse along with the dog a few months ago—without asking me first, I might add."

  "It doesn't sound like you were too happy about it."

  "I love dogs, but I have my hands full working a full-time job and raising Brandon on my own. Kevin knew I was going to move, so adding a puppy into the mix was a crazy idea. But he presented both to Brandon while I was out, and by the time I arrived home, Brandon was in love with the dog. I couldn't say no, which is, of course, what Kevin was counting on. He got to be the hero and I got to pay the price." She hated that she sounded so bitter. She'd had plenty of time to get over Kevin, and she had, but sometimes the anger about his irresponsibility just got the best of her. "I'm sorry. You don't want to hear all this."

  "Actually, I'd like to hear more. Do you want to get a coffee, Jessica? There's a place not far from here. I'm assuming you might have a little time before date-night is over?"

  "You're asking me out?" she asked in surprise.

  "It's just coffee. Maybe dessert. What do you say?"

  She didn't know what to say. She actually couldn't remember the last time a man had asked her out. It had been at least a year. She rarely put herself in situations where someone would ask her on a date. She was always with Brandon, or working, or at home.

  She should say no. It was crazy to say yes. Dating with a child was complicated. So why was she so tempted?

  "It really doesn't need that much thought," Reid added. "The place is two blocks away. We can walk there. You can leave whenever you want."

  "I—I can't," she said, feeling an instant wave of regret. "I'm sorry. I have to go. We're done here, right?"

  "Until next week," he said. "Just so you know, I'm disappointed."

  She was disappointed, too, but she couldn't tell him that. She handed him her clipboard. "I'll see you next week." Grabbing her bag and jacket, she headed out of the gym before she could change her mind. Reid McAllister might not think coffee was a big deal, but instinctively she knew it was, because she hadn't felt such a pull to a man in a very long time. While that might be a good thing, it could also be very bad. She'd put Brandon through a lot of changes in the past couple of months. The last thing she needed to do was bring a man into the picture.

  She was doing the right thing, she told herself firmly, as she got into her car. She was choosing safe over potentially sorry. But as she drove away from the school, she couldn't help feeling like she'd just missed out on something wonderful.

  Three

  The ocean was brutally cold even with a wet suit on, but Reid wasn't worried about the weather, only about finding the perfect wave to ride into the shore. He'd been out since seven
a.m. and it was almost eight now. Clouds swirled overhead, and there was a brisk wind whipping off the water, but that just made the waves better.

  Surfing was his favorite way to start the day, and weekends were usually busy off Pillar Point. Today there were at least ten other surfers on the water, most of them in their teens, with a few thirty-somethings like himself mixed in. Age wasn't a factor on the ocean; it was all about desire. He'd been surfing since he was twelve years old, and while he seemed to get out less often these days, he still tried to hit the beach at least a couple of times a week.

  Looking over his shoulder, he saw a wave beginning to develop. Two other surfers nearby were readying themselves for the same ride. He waited for just the right moment, then began to paddle, picking up speed as a wall of water built up behind him.

  He moved onto his knees, then his feet, feeling an incredible sense of exhilaration as he battled the sea, keeping his balance as his board cut through the powerful white water.

  For a split second in time, he felt on top of the world.

  But as the wave crashed onto the shore, he lost his balance and plunged into the water. Just like that, the second was gone.

  The ocean pounded him down to the beach, punishing him for having thought for even an instant that he could win. Eventually, his knees scraped along the sand, and he breached the surface of the water, sucking in a long, deep breath of salty air. He found his board bobbing a few feet away. He grabbed it and walked out of the water, his heart still pumping from the wild ride.

  He wasn't surprised to see his friend and coworker Bill Carlton on the beach, tossing a stick to his Golden Retriever, Oscar, who raced in and out of the sea with wild abandon. Like himself, Bill had an apartment only a few blocks away from this stretch of sand, and in the past they'd often surfed together on their days off. But since Bill had moved in with his girlfriend, that didn't happen as often as it used to.

  "Nice ride," Bill commented. "For a second, I thought that kid was going to beat you, but he wiped out before you did."