Twice Lucky

by Mardi Alexander

  “Well, the feedback seems to be all good. Lots of people have said they’ve enjoyed it. You know, that’s the first time I’ve ever used an extinguisher. It was kind of fun, really.”

  “I’m glad. It makes it all worthwhile when I hear things like that. What about your day?”

  “Fairly run-of-the-mill stuff, although it’s starting to get extra tricky as we’re having to juggle the rosters at the minute. We’ve had some more staff coming down with the flu. I was talking to some other unit managers today, and it’s the same all over.”

  “I’ll be sure not to kiss anyone with a sniffle.”

  “Hey, hot stuff, the only one you should be kissing is me. And I’m not sniffling.”

  Mac lifted her head and kissed Sarah hungrily. Sarah slid over until she was straddling Mac’s waist. As Mac broke off for air, she started laughing.

  Sarah mock-frowned at her. “What are you laughing at?”

  “Mm, chicken delight!”

  *

  Breakfast was a fun affair with cheerful banter across the table. Afterwards, while Sarah was in the shower, Mac and Thomas carried the plates out to the kitchen where Jean was washing up. Mac knelt down next to Thomas. “John and I will be coming to your school tomorrow to talk to all the kids about how to be safe around fire. I was wondering, if John or I needed a helper tomorrow, could we count on you to give us a hand?”

  Thomas’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

  “Yes, really. You know the kids better than we do and we’ll need some help with some of the equipment too. Would you be okay with that?”

  “I can do that.” Thomas jumped up and down and threw his arms around Mac, then ran over to Jean. “Mum, Mum, I’m going to be Mac and John’s helper tomorrow at school.”

  “Oh, sweetheart, that sounds very exciting.”

  Sarah emerged from the bedroom in a dressing gown, a towel wrapped around her hair. “What’s going on?”

  Thomas, still jumping up and down, told Sarah his exciting news.

  “Wow. Well, we better hurry up and get you ready for school so you can tell your friends that tomorrow is going to be a very exciting day for everyone.”

  Thomas took off running to his room to get ready.

  Jean turned to Mac and Sarah. “Who’s the chocolate fairy I need to thank?”

  Sarah and Mac looked at each other innocently. Folding her arms, Jean looked back at them.

  Mac caved, smiling. “It was Thomas. He thought it might be nice if you had a surprise treat for your first night here too. So thank him. If you’ll excuse me, I better throw myself in the shower.” Mac disappeared down the hallway.

  Sarah waved at her. “I’ll be there in a minute to help.” The sisters finished cleaning the breakfast dishes. “Do you have a recent picture of Richard at all?”

  Jean shook her head. “No, but the police do.”

  “Mac and I were talking last night and wondered what he looked like. I haven’t seen him in years. I thought maybe if you had one, we could leave a copy at the office downstairs. Have you thought to give one to the school?”

  Jean nodded, frowning slightly. “I thought about it the other day, but forgot to do it. I have a meeting with the principal later in the morning, so I can give her one then. I was thinking I might offer to be a helper at the school for the next couple of weeks. I don’t know how much help I’ll be, but it will make me feel better being busy and being close by until things settle down again.”

  “That sounds like a good idea. Whoops—I just heard the shower turn off, that’s my cue. Mac can’t do her shirt buttons up with her fingers bandaged.”

  Jean grinned openly at Sarah. “Oh, you poor thing. That sounds like a terrible job.”

  Sarah threw her sister a cheeky wink. “Very terrible indeed.”

  Sarah walked into the bedroom to see Mac standing, waiting, clad in only her underwear. She shook her head, smiling appreciatively at Mac’s sculptured body. Yep, just plain terrible. “You ready?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  With no time to linger this morning, Sarah and Mac were soon bidding goodbye to Jean and Thomas and heading out the door. It was a beautiful drive in, the sun beginning to burn off the early morning mist. Mac turned in her seat to face Sarah. “You sure you don’t want to stay with Jean and Thomas tonight?”

  “I’m sure. They’ll be fine. Besides, who’s going to get you dressed and undressed?”

  “I’ll manage.”

  “And how do you plan on doing that?”

  “Well, I can get you to unbutton my sleeves and collar when you drop me off and I can slip the shirt off and on.”

  “You’ve thought this through?”

  “I have.”

  “And how will I manage?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, the bed will be cold, sleeping on my own, and I’ll miss my evening and morning fix.”

  “What do you mean your fix?”

  “My fix of undressing and dressing the sexiest firefighter in town. You might manage, but I think I’m addicted, and I’m not sure that I would manage quite so well. So if it’s okay with you, I’d like to hang on to the habit for a bit longer.”

  “Oh, well, when you put it like that, I see what you mean. It would be very selfish of me to deny you of that.”

  “Uh-huh, very selfish.”

  They were giggling as they pulled into the car park. Mac carefully closed the car door. “I’ll see you for lunch.”

  “I’ll see you then. I’ll text and let you know how I’m going for time.”

  A quick kiss later and they were heading off into their day.

  Chapter Twenty-six

  Mac’s class that day was small, and she and Tony finished well ahead of schedule. They used the time to look over the laundry site, with Mac pointing out some of the fire’s forensics to Tony. She pointed to the area of origin, the patterns of charring, lines of advancing, and secondary fire, and how different levels of heat affected different types of surfaces. Tony was a very willing listener and asked lots of questions as they went through the burned-out shell.

  “I never knew that a fire could tell a story like that. It’s amazing. I thought burned was burned, y’know? But it really is a story in itself when you point it out like that.”

  “As part of your training you’ll be shown some things to look for at the scene of a fire. As a firefighter, you not only have to put fires out, but you’ll also sometimes play a very important role in identifying evidence and ensuring that the scene and the evidence are preserved for further forensic investigations.”

  “I can’t wait ’til the training starts next month. I’m so excited—I’ve got to tell you, I love learning all this new stuff. I can’t thank you enough, Mac.”

  “Well, we’re pleased to have you on board.”

  Mac’s phone sounded. She looked down. It was a message from Sarah. Can’t make lunch. Sorry. Short-staffed. Maybe coffee later? Sxxx

  Mac texted back. No problems love. Catch up later. Mxxx

  She looked at her watch: it was close to lunch. After thanking Tony for the morning, she went past the cafeteria and picked out two lunches. She dropped Sarah’s off at her desk and took hers outside to eat in the warmth of the sun.

  As Mac had time, she decided to visit Peter and Jimmy. Peter was on one of the general wards. She walked in to find him dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed, with his wife in a chair next to him.

  Peter stood as soon as she entered the room, then stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her. “I was hoping I’d see you before I went home. I can’t thank you enough, Lieutenant James.” Peter pulled back and his eyes were moist. “Thank you doesn’t seem enough.” Peter’s wife handed him a tissue. “My apologies. Lieutenant James, this is my wife, Bonnie.”

  Bonnie stood and threw her arms around Mac, just as her husband had. “Thank you for what you did. God bless you.” Peter offered Mac a second chair next to the bed.

  “It’s lovely to see you bot
h again. Please, call me Mac. How’re you doing, Peter?”

  “I’m good. In fact, we’re sitting here waiting for the doctor to sign me out so I can go home. The smoke knocked me about for a bit with a chest infection, but I’m good to go now.” Peter sat quietly before shaking his head. “I couldn’t breathe. I thought I was a dead man…and then I saw you coming through the smoke towards me.”

  Bonnie reached over and gently grabbed Mac’s arm.

  Mac smiled. “How are you sleeping?”

  Peter shrugged. “In fits and starts. I close my eyes, and I can still see the flames.”

  Mac nodded. “It’ll probably do that for a little while, but it does get better. Soon enough, I’m sure Bonnie will be poking you in the ribs because you’re snoring too loud.” Mac reached into the inside pocket of her coat and pulled out a card. She handed the card to Bonnie. “Here are some people who’re really good to talk to when you come up against something like the fire. They know what you’re both going through. We all use them in the service. They’re regular, normal people who are really good at helping you understand why you feel the way you do and how to get through it.”

  Bonnie looked at Mac’s hands. “And what about you? How are you doing?”

  Mac nodded and smiled. “I’m doing well. I’m back on modified duties at the minute but hope to be back into full swing soon. What about you?”

  Peter looked at Bonnie. “Well, we’ve been talking about retiring for a while now and we decided that we’ve just been given a bit of a reminder to stop taking things for granted. So I’m going to go back to work, because I want to finish with confidence, not with fear, and then I’ll give my notice. Our daughter lives on the Gold Coast, so we thought we might visit with her and the grandkids for a bit and travel a little after that.” Peter leaned forward, put his hand on Mac’s shoulder, and looked deep into her eyes. “I don’t know how we can ever thank you, Mac.”

  Mac shook her head and smiled. “You just have. Knowing that you’re okay and that you’re both happy and getting on with things, that’s special. If you want to do anything, send me a postcard when you get to the coast.”

  “We can do that, can’t we love?”

  Bonnie nodded.

  Mac stood. “Well, on that note, I won’t hold you up any longer—other than to say, look after each other and take care.”

  There was a last hug exchanged before Mac took the lift up to the burns unit to see Jimmy. Mac introduced herself to the unit manager who took her briefly aside and explained how Jimmy was doing and, that to see him, she would need to put on a gown and some gloves to reduce the potential of infection.

  One of the nurses helped Mac get the gloves over her bandages. She saw Mrs. Lee sitting next to Jimmy’s bed, similarly decked out in gown and gloves. As she stepped farther into the room, Mac could hear the gentle hiss of the oxygen, the ticking of the IV pump, and the beeps of the various monitors. Jimmy waved a bandaged hand in recognition.

  Mrs. Lee nodded to Mac as she walked to the side of Jimmy’s bed. “Hey there, Jimmy.”

  “Hey, Lieutenant James. Thanks for coming.” Jimmy’s voice was raspy and he started to cough.

  Mac raised a finger to her lips. “It’s okay, try not to talk too much. I know what it’s like when you chew a bit too much smoke. And besides, I’m sure the nurse will only come over and rouse on us both.”

  The nurse in the room smiled at Mac in agreement. Jimmy smiled briefly, nodding in appreciation of Mac’s understanding.

  “And please, call me Mac. I talked to your doctor outside and he said that you’re doing really well, and that the skin grafts are all looking good.”

  Jimmy nodded. Mac could see tears welling in his eyes. Putting her hand gently on Jimmy’s shoulder, she caught and held Jimmy’s gaze. “I know it’s tough, but you’re one of the strongest men I’ve ever met. I met your lovely family yesterday, and I know that they can’t wait to have you back home with them.”

  Jimmy nodded.

  “You’ll get through this. I’m going to give your wife my card, so that when you come out of hospital, you and I are going to sit down, and we’re going to share a wine or a beer, or something special. And we can make a toast to celebrate. Deal?”

  “Deal. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. Hurry up and get out of here, huh?” Mac winked at him and made her farewells. Once outside the room, she took the gown off and tossed the gloves. Her next plan was to pick up two coffees and see if Sarah could squeeze in a five-minute coffee break.

  Mac walked down into Emergency’s reception. She caught Sarah’s eye, and Sarah waved, acknowledging she was there. The nurse working the desk told Mac that she could wait in Sarah’s office and pointed it out. Mac made her way down the hall.

  Sarah’s office was neat and tidy and stylish in a subtle, unpretentious way. She had a soft muted piece of art on the wall and a metal horse sculpture on a corner coffee table, counterbalancing the tools of her trade in the other corner: a light box, a computer, and an anatomical figure, next to a side table hosting a small neat stack of medical journals. Mac sat down in the visitor’s chair and sipped her coffee.

  A few minutes later Sarah breezed in and kissed the top of Mac’s head on the way past as she headed for her chair. She sat down with an audible grunt. “What a day! Thanks for the coffee, you’re an angel.”

  “Another busy one, huh?”

  “Mm, I had to loan some staff to the high dependency and surgical units who’re really suffering with staff out sick. Tomorrow they’re going to have to call in temps. What are you up to this afternoon? Are you finished for the day?”

  “Pretty much. What about you? Looks like you might be here awhile yet.”

  “’Fraid so, love. I’ve got a good couple more hours here, I would think.”

  “That’s no problem. Could I borrow your car keys? I can duck down to the station and finish my reports and some stuff for the school visit tomorrow, then swing back to see how you’re going. How does that sound?”

  “Sounds like a plan. And thank you for my lunch—it was yummy.”

  “My pleasure.” Mac took Sarah’s now empty coffee cup and tossed it in the bin. Sarah stood up and stretched before coming over and draping her arms around Mac’s neck. Mac leaned in to languidly kiss her before easing back to rest forehead to forehead with her.

  Sarah closed her eyes, as if to hang on to this little isolated bubble in time for a small moment more. Finally, she lifted her head up and brushed Mac’s fringe from her eyes. “Do you like dancing?”

  Mac shrugged. “I haven’t really done much. But I’m willing to give it a go.”

  Sarah gently kissed her. “I can see a night with a fire going, nice wine, some music, in each others arms…yep, it has potential.”

  “I hope you also see yourself wearing shin guards and steel-capped shoes for protection against two left feet.”

  “Yeah, I was actually thinking more along the lines of no clothes at all.”

  Mac groaned. “How long ’til you can knock off?”

  Sarah laughed. “Not soon enough. Hang on, I’ll get you the keys.”

  With a jingle Sarah located them in the desk drawer and handed them over. “If I finish up early, I’ll text you.”

  Mac kissed her. “Okay. See you soon, twinkletoes.”

  *

  They ended up having a what-if dinner. As Sarah explained to Mac, you looked at what you had in the fridge and in the cupboard, and you put them on the bench and said to yourself: What if I put that and that together? It was a fun thing she’d invented when, as a student, there either wasn’t enough food in the house, or she was too tired to be bothered cooking a proper meal. The rules were simple—the idea was to pick items that went together and took the least possible time to cook.

  Mac poured them each a glass of wine. She’d lit the fire earlier to take the chill off the room while Sarah was debating what to throw together in the what-if pot. Mac sat, curled up on the couch, while Sarah
squatted on the floor looking through Mac’s music collection. It turned out they had similar tastes, and Sarah selected a classic, Joni Mitchell’s Blue.

  Sarah loaded the CD into the player, then took a sip of her wine before putting her glass down. She held out her hand, inviting Mac to join her.

  Smiling, Mac took a last sip herself before rising from the couch to step into Sarah’s arms. Their bodies gently melded along their lengths. As they gazed into each other’s eyes, the rest of the world dissipated, unnoticed, into the background. With lips full of gentle adoration, love, and wonder, Mac feasted leisurely on the warm depths of Sarah’s mouth, as Sarah’s hips started to move to the rhythm.

  Mac had no idea what she was doing. Closing her eyes, she let her hips mirror Sarah’s movements, relinquishing command of her limbs, letting them liquefy, to follow wherever Sarah took her.

  Sarah’s hands wrapped around Mac’s waist. Seemingly of their own accord, they slid their way up under Mac’s cotton top to gently lift it off and away from her body, leaving her half-naked. Sarah’s hands slid up her ribs to cup her breasts, then dipped to circle her waist again. Sarah lit a fire inside Mac, and she was burning to touch and taste all in kind. Mac quickly disposed of Sarah’s clothing.

  Flesh melded with flesh, hips swaying in perfect unison, as the music wove its magic all around them. Time ceased to exist as they lost themselves in each other. The language of taste and touch transcending the need for words. Breaths quickened and eased, only to quicken again moments later as they took their time to discover and to tease each other to the limits of sanity and pleasure.

  At some point the album had played through as they lay in each other’s arms in front of the fire. The only sound to be heard was the gentling of heightened breaths against the hiss and crackle of the flames. Sarah reached over and snared the wine glasses. They sat up to drink, Sarah resting her back against Mac’s chest, her head on Mac’s shoulder as they stared lazily into the fire.

  Sarah’s fingers trailed along the length of Mac’s thigh. “You dance pretty good for a two-left-footed lieutenant.”