by Jaci Burton
It had been a while since Kal had done anything special for his birthday. Typically, he and his brothers went out for drinks, but now Rafe was married and Jackson was engaged, so he didn’t expect to do much today. They’d both said they were busy, but they wished him a happy birthday. His mom had a dinner meeting tonight but said they’d do dinner with him this weekend.
But, hey, at least he’d had the day off today, so he relaxed by the pool since the sun was out, then vacuumed and washed his truck and did laundry. He was even able to grab lunch with one of his high school buddies.
He had a text message from Hannah wishing him a happy birthday, telling him she had a full day at work but asking if he wanted to go out for dinner. He smiled and texted her back, telling her he was game for that. It was a weekday, so he was grateful he’d get to see her at all.
After a quick workout at the gym, he got cleaned up and drove over to pick up Hannah.
When she opened the door, she looked amazing in a flowery red-and-black dress that swung around her legs when she walked.
“You look gorgeous,” he said.
“Thank you. And you look so fine. Happy birthday.” She lifted up on her toes to press a kiss to his lips.
He stepped inside, noticing right away how quiet it was in the house. “Where’s Oliver?”
“He and my mom went out for dinner.”
“Oh. I thought maybe he was coming with us.”
She shook her head. “He has a lot of homework to do, so they’re having a quick bite, then back home.”
“Huh. Okay.” He masked his disappointment in not being able to see Oliver. “You ready to go?”
She grabbed her bag. “Yes. Starving. How about you?”
“I’m always hungry.”
She rubbed his back as they walked out the door. “Of course you are.”
They got in the truck, and he started it up.
“I know it’s your birthday and all,” she said, “but do you mind if I pick the place?”
He looked over at her. “Not at all. What do you have in mind?”
“Becks has told me about Tommy’s Fish House. I think it’s owned by one of your former firefighter buddies?”
“Yeah, it is.”
“She said the food there is really good. She mentioned a few of their dishes, and I’ve been dying to try it out. If you don’t want to go there because you eat there a lot, I understand.”
“No, it’s fine. I like their food.” He’d planned on taking Hannah to a fancy restaurant, but you couldn’t beat the food at Tommy Rodriguez’s place.
The parking lot was nearly full when they got there, which was good for a Wednesday night, and great for Tommy and his wife, Estella. Kal was happy to see their restaurant growing.
When they went inside, their hostess, Brenda, smiled.
“Hi, Kal. It’s nice to see you.”
“You, too, Brenda.”
“It’ll be just a few minutes if you don’t mind waiting. But I’ll get a table ready for you.”
“Sure. We’ll just be in the bar.”
Brenda nodded, and Kal led Hannah to the bar.
When the bartender came over, Kal looked at Hannah. “What would you like to drink?”
“I’ll have a rosé,” she said.
“Beer for me.”
The bartender nodded and got their drinks, handed them over, and by that time, Brenda had come back to fetch them. They grabbed their drinks and followed her.
“This way. I’m sorry to have to put you in the back. We’re kind of busy tonight.”
“Not a problem,” Kal said.
“Busy is a good thing,” Hannah said, grasping Kal’s hand and giving him a smile.
Kal frowned when they passed the dining area and went toward the private room in the back. And when Hannah gave him a wide smile and opened the door, he had no idea what was happening.
Until everyone in the room shouted, “Surprise!”
It took him a few seconds to register that his entire family was in that room. And his friends. Even Hannah’s mom and Oliver, too.
He looked over at Hannah, who shrugged and gave him an innocent look, then said, “Happy birthday, Kal. I thought you needed a big birthday surprise.”
“Well, I’m damned surprised.” He leaned over and kissed her, then walked into the throng of people.
He couldn’t believe who was here. Not only Mom and Dad, Jackson and Becks, and Rafe and Carmen, but also Paige and Oliver. And several of his former Station 6 brothers and sisters—Miguel Acosta and Adrienne Smith. Ethan and Penny Pressman. Callie and Aaron Vassar. Tommy, of course, since this was his place. And some of his teammates from the TRT as well. Micah, Meg and Irish had come. Even his lieutenant had shown up. Of course Phil and Dean hadn’t showed. He hadn’t expected them to. They weren’t friends.
He was blown away by the support and the warmth of friendship and family.
“You did this?” he asked Hannah, who had been hovering nearby until he motioned her over.
“With a lot of help from your mom.”
He was overwhelmed. He’d had birthday parties as a kid but never expected one as an adult. This was a hell of a surprise. He’d had to admit he’d felt a little abandoned today by his family. Now he knew he’d been a victim of subterfuge. They’d all been damn good at it, too.
And Hannah was the master of it all. He hadn’t had a clue.
He watched her as she made her way around the room, either talking to people she knew or introducing herself to people she didn’t. She wasn’t shy, didn’t need to cling to him and wait for an introduction.
There was a tug in the vicinity of his heart that seemed to always be there lately where she was concerned. And every day it was growing stronger.
After he’d greeted and chatted with everyone, they took their seats and dinner was served. Oliver asked if he could sit next to him, which made him feel . . . hell, he didn’t know how to feel about that other than really good. Hannah sat next to Oliver.
“This is fun,” Oliver said. “I like birthday parties.”
“Me, too, buddy. Tell me about your best birthday party.”
Oliver looked up at the ceiling to think, then looked over at him. “It was a really long time ago. I think I was three. I had an octopus party, and Momma got me a cake that looked like an octopus because I really liked octopuses.”
Kal quirked a smile. “That sounds pretty awesome.”
He looked over at Hannah, who shrugged and smiled.
Dinner, of course, was great. Kal had an amazing surf and turf dinner that left him stuffed, but feeling like a king.
He figured everyone would leave after dinner. Instead, he got a few gag gifts and some funny cards, and then the toasts began.
Or maybe he should call them roasts, because it was really bad.
“Remember that time during your rookie year you fell asleep during morning report and the captain made you drag all the hoses up and down the stairs five times?” Ethan shot him a grin.
“Oh.” Callie sat up in her chair. “I remember that day. Highly entertaining.”
“For you, maybe,” Kal said.
“Yeah but you never fell asleep again, did you?” his dad asked.
“No, sir, I did not.”
“Or the first time you were on cooking duty,” Miguel said. “An hour after we ate, everyone pretended to get sick.”
Kal frowned. “That was not funny. You all scared the shi—” He looked down at Oliver. “You all scared me. I thought I had poisoned you.”
“We hid his turnout gear on his first day,” Micah said. “He spent two hours looking for it when the lieutenant asked him to do a gear check.”
His lieutenant smirked.
Kal folded his arms. “You’re all very mean.”
They laughed, then
they shared stories of their own hazing, and he realized what an amazing group of people he got to work with.
And when Estella brought in a huge cake, his eyes widened.
“Cake, too? Come on.”
His mom came over and put her hands on his shoulders, then leaned down. “From your favorite bakery.”
Damn.
Everyone sang to him, and then they cut the cake and served it up. It was chocolate with vanilla buttercream, and he’d never tasted anything better.
He was one lucky guy.
* * *
• • •
Hannah couldn’t contain her happiness as she watched Kal soak in the love from his family and friends.
This had all come about spur-of-the-moment, but she was so glad it had turned out well. Kal seemed so filled with joy tonight, and she couldn’t think of anyone who deserved it more.
That he seemed to appreciate it so much showed the type of man he was.
After dinner, some people left, then everyone else moved to the bar. Her mom was going to take Oliver home since it was already past his bedtime.
“I’ll be right back,” Kal said to the crowd. “Order me a beer.”
Kal walked with her and Paige and Oliver out to the car.
“I wish I could stay,” Oliver said, his face crestfallen.
When they got to the car and Oliver climbed in, Kal crouched down. “But you came to my party, and I’m so happy you were there. You know what? When your mom was still keeping the surprise party a secret and told me you weren’t coming to dinner with us, I was so sad.”
His face immediately brightened. “You were?”
“Yeah. I wanted to spend my birthday with you. You’re my best buddy, aren’t you?”
“You bet I am.” Oliver threw his arms around Kal and hugged him, and Hannah’s heart nearly burst with equal feelings of utter joy and abject terror.
It was clear that Oliver loved Kal. But what if things between Kal and her didn’t work out? Oliver would be devastated.
This was what she’d been trying to avoid, why she rarely dated, why she never brought men into Oliver’s life. Instead, it had happened, and she didn’t know what she was going to do about it.
Of course, it was too late now.
Now she just had to hope that she and Kal would continue on the course they were headed, and everything would turn out fine.
But she couldn’t ignore the nagging sensation of worry that lived constantly in the vicinity of her heart.
After hugging her mom and Oliver and waiting until they drove away, she and Kal headed back toward the restaurant.
Halfway there, Kal tugged on her hand. “Wait.”
She stopped and looked up at him. “What?”
“This.” He cupped the side of her neck, wound his other arm around her waist to draw her close and pressed his lips to hers.
He tasted warm and inviting, and she couldn’t help but lean into him, to slide her hands along his arms so she could feel the heat of his skin. His hand snaked along her back and farther down to cup her butt, drawing her against the rigid length of his erection.
And here they were, out in public, making out between parked cars, and all she wanted to do was be alone and naked with him.
She pulled back, trying to catch her breath. “Party guests.”
He laid his forehead against hers. “Damn.” He blew out a breath. “Okay, give me a minute.”
“Want me to quote baseball statistics to you?”
He laughed. “Do you know baseball statistics?”
She cocked her head to the side. “Are you really going to ask me that? Who has the highest batting average of all time?”
Now it was his turn to give her a look. “Easy. Ty Cobb.”
“Longest home run ever hit?”
“Babe Ruth.”
“The longest at bat in history?”
He opened his mouth, then closed it. She smirked.
“I suppose you know the answer.”
“San Francisco’s Brandon Belt, against the Angels’ Jaime Barria. Twenty-one pitches. The at bat lasted twelve minutes and forty-five seconds.”
“Damn. And how do you know this shit?”
She shrugged. “I have a thing for statistics.”
“And did Belt get a hit?”
“No, he flied out.”
He shook his head. “The things I’m still learning about you.”
She grinned. “I’m amazing, right? And now your boner is gone, so let’s go inside.”
He laughed and put his arm around her. “You are magic, Hannah.”
She liked the way he said that. She laid her head against his shoulder as they walked. “You just keep remembering that, Kal.”
CHAPTER 25
“Hey, Donovan. You in dreamland today or what?” Phil asked. “I’m waiting on slack for that rope.”
Kal blinked, realizing he was on the job and needed to get his head on straight. “I’m on it.”
He slacked the rope for Phil, who was working in some pretty tight quarters in a pipe where two workers had been stuck after one end caved in. Phil and Meg were currently working the pipe while the rest of the team provided support topside.
“We’ve got one hooked on to the red rope and ready to pull out,” Meg said.
“Roger,” Lieutenant Anderson said. “All right, team. Let’s do this slow and easy.”
Phil had already let the team know that neither of the workers had serious injuries. It was just a matter of pulling them out without causing any injuries—or further damage to the pipe, which could put the workers and their team members in danger.
Phil and Meg had harnessed the workers, so now Kal and Irish were in charge of the red rope, which contained the first worker’s harness. They began to pull, slow and easy, since the pipe was tight. Phil fed them verbal instructions on how the ascent was coming along, since the team above had no visual.
“Okay, a little slower, you’re getting to a tight spot. Now . . . hold.”
Kal and Irish stopped and waited, holding tight to their rope to make sure the worker they had charge of didn’t move either higher or lower.
“Okay,” Phil said. “Start pulling up again.”
It was painstaking work, and it took a while, but after about ten minutes they had the first worker freed from the pipe. He had a few cuts and abrasions, but other than that he looked okay.
Micah and Andy had already started pulling the second worker out. Once he was freed, they retrieved Meg and Phil from the pipe. Their team members were dusty and had a few abrasions of their own.
“It was tight as hell down there,” Meg said. “I don’t know if we could have gotten them out if that pipe had been any smaller.”
“But you did get them out, and that’s what counts,” the lieutenant said. “Job well done. Let’s pack up our equipment and get out of here.”
Kal began to roll up the ropes.
“You somewhere else today, Donovan?” Phil asked when he came over.
“No.”
“It was like I was talking to myself down there. I need an alert team member, and that wasn’t you. Pull your head out of your ass.”
“Yeah. Sorry about that. It won’t happen again.”
Phil pointed his finger at Kal’s chest. “See that it doesn’t.”
Kal put his head down and resumed folding the rope, taking a deep breath and wishing he could have done that rescue over again.
The last thing he needed was to be anything less than perfect on the job, and especially when he was working with either Phil or Dean, the two guys who for some reason he still couldn’t fathom seemed to have it out for him. And so what did he do today? He let his mind drift, to think about Hannah, when he should have had his head on work and only work.
But he’d been
thinking about the future, playing a game of what-ifs about Hannah and him.
He couldn’t let that happen again. His job was too important to him.
He went to the truck to store gear.
“You okay?” Meg asked.
He shook his head. “I let my mind wander, and Phil kicked my ass about it.”
“Hey, it happens. And he’s not perfect, either. Don’t let him kid you into thinking he is. The rescue was textbook. Don’t worry about it.”
He nodded. “Thanks.”
Meg was right, and he should let it go, but it was all he thought about through shift. He’d done nothing but work on high alert the entire time he’d been with the TRT. Mainly to prove to himself that he could do this job that he loved, but also because Phil and Dean had been riding his ass since the first day he’d reported for duty here.
He had something to prove, and he couldn’t for one second half-ass his way through any rescue. Today had been a good reminder of that. Focus first on the job, especially when he was on the job. Let everything else slide to days off.
Which was hard to do when Hannah was on his mind all the time. Every day. Every night.
Which was either a really good thing, or maybe a not-so-good thing.
He needed a sounding board.
After shift the next morning, he drove over to his parents’ house. The garage door was open, so he knew his parents were home. There was one of them he needed to talk to.
He knew his mom worked at home today.
He knocked, then went inside. Dad was at the kitchen table drinking coffee and looking at his phone. He smiled when Kal walked in.
“Don’t tell me. You came to surprise me and mow the lawn.”
“I can do that if you want me to.”
“I was joking. I was just about to head to the hardware store. Wanna come with me?”
“Actually, I was hoping to talk with Mom. Is she around?”
He motioned down the hall. “She’s in her office.”
“If she’s working . . .”
His dad cracked a smile. “She’ll still be happy to see you. Go on. I’ll see you later.”
“Okay, Dad. Thanks.”
He headed down the hall and stopped at the glass doors in front of his mom’s office. She wasn’t on the phone, so he lightly tapped. She looked up and smiled, then motioned him inside.