Shaking his head, Carlos said, “I broke all my promises.”
“Man, your little sister is a great kid, but she isn’t the boss. You need to sit her down and talk to her. What’s between you and Ashton shouldn’t be dictated by a seventeen-year-old. If you like—”
“I love her.” The words rolled off Carlos’s tongue like it was nothing. Easy as breathing. But Polly. “I promised I’d put Polly first.”
Gregg turned from the stove. “And that would be putting Polly first. An empty well has nothing to give.” He paused. “I get sacrificing for her and making her a priority. I do. But if you love this woman, she can’t be second place.”
Instead of responding, Carlos sat quietly.
“You know I’m right, man. You can’t tell a woman you love her and then let your sister decide if you stay together or not. You’re either in it or not.”
Harris eyed Carlos. “You’re terrified. That’s why you told Ashton you wouldn’t see her anymore. It has nothing to do with promises.”
Carlos jerked his head up and looked at Harris. “I am not.”
“Really? You will walk into a burning building without even blinking. What’s really going on? Why the excuses, then?” Harris asked.
Standing, Carlos waved him off. “It’s not excuses.” He looked from Harris to Gregg. “It’s not.”
“When was the last time you dated anyone?” Gregg asked.
“Gayle.”
Harris’s mouth dropped open. “That’s years ago, man. And, honestly, I get it. Polly was young, and you’d both just lost your parents. That woman was selfish as all get-out, but this is different. Polly’s not a little kid anymore.”
It had been a while since Carlos thought of Gayle, really thought about her. What their relationship was like, how it ended, and how blind he’d been. She was selfish and demanding. She especially didn’t like kids. Polly being no exception. It had been both a hard breakup and easy. He’d hurt a little, but with Ashton, he felt raked out.
Gregg smiled. “Harris is right. You need to talk to Polly. You need to sit her down, tell her how you’re feeling, and then tell her you’re going to date Ashton. There’s a chance that things could go wrong, but what if they go right?”
Nodding, Harris smiled. “Exactly, and you’re both adult enough to keep your mess from affecting Polly’s relationship with Ashton.”
The guys were making good points, but he also didn’t want Polly to think he didn’t care what she thought. It had been the two of them for so long. He didn’t want her to feel like he was pushing her out of the way.
Before Carlos could think more on it, Derek skidded to a stop in the doorway. “We’ve got one. It’s at the center.”
Chapter 29
By the time they arrived at the scene, most of the Brothers and Sisters building’s windows had burst outward, allowing smoke and flames to pour from the building. Police officers were managing traffic in the area and keeping back a growing crowd of onlookers.
Carlos carried a hose coiled over one shoulder, running from the truck alongside Harris and Derek. They worked without having to speak, knowing by now how to move together like a single unit.
“Anybody inside?” Gregg shouted to one of the cops who’d arrived just before them.
“Could be—there are conflicting stories,” the officer shouted back over the roar of the fire.
“Duke’s in there!” one of them screamed, and Carlos turned in time to find a burly leather-vested man barreling toward the burning building. “He’s in there!”
A pair of officers held the man back, pushing him away from the fire. “You can’t! It’s too dangerous!” they kept trying to tell him, but it was clear he wasn’t about to listen.
Carlos went to him. “You say Duke’s in there?”
“Yeah! In back!” the man barked. Now that they were up close, it was clear he’d been inside when the fire started. Some of his long hair had even been singed. “The smoke got too thick. I couldn’t reach him.”
Of course. Of all the people to be left inside… “Where?” asked Carlos.
The man shook his head. “I don’t know exactly. In one of the rooms. I thought he was behind me.”
Carlos nodded, and the officers took the guy by the shoulders, leading him away in handcuffs.
Carlos looked to Gregg, who nodded only once and fixed his respirator in place before following Carlos into the building. The thick, black smoke was filling the entire place, and they turned on their flashlights to cut through the darkness. In a way, it was like being alone in a cave, and all he could hear was the sound of his own breathing.
In back. What did that mean? There hadn’t been time to find out. The gym was engulfed. Ashton’s office was nothing but flames with curtains and furniture melting from the heat. They went right when they reached the hall leading to the libraries, and as they did, bottles crunched under their feet. Carlos suspected it was an accelerant. That was one way to explain the degree of heat he was feeling.
They kept moving, deeper into the building, dodging falling ceiling tiles along the way. They couldn’t hope to be in there much longer without the roof caving. With as thick as the smoke was, Carlos had to wonder if they’d actually find Duke alive.
When they reached the end of the hall, it split off in two directions. He swung his head from side to side, wondering which way to go. Gregg grabbed his shoulder, fixing the beam of his flashlight on the floor.
A hand, palm-down.
Carlos crouched, feeling his way up the arm attached to the hand. The body stirred, but barely. Still alive. He looked up at Gregg, who helped pull the big man to his feet. He sagged in Carlos’s arms. There was no choice but to carry him over one shoulder with Gregg leading the way.
They emerged from the smoke together, the three of them, and the men milling around behind the line of police cars shouted and cheered at the sight. Carlos carried Duke a safe distance from the fire before lowering him to the ground.
His eyes fluttered open as he sucked in air and coughed. Carlos scanned the area and caught the eye of one of the paramedics, pointed to Duke, and then returned his attention to the man.
Carlos removed his respirator mask, looking down at the enemy he’d just rescued.
Duke’s eyes widened. “You?” he rasped, coughing harder.
“Me.”
“Why did you do that?” Duke managed to choke out. His face was practically coal-black, thanks to soot.
“Do what?” Carlos asked, kneeling next to him.
“Go in there to get me. Why?” He broke out in another round of coughing, almost convulsing from the intensity.
Carlos fixed his mask over Duke’s face to give him oxygen while they waited for the paramedics to tend to him.
“Because it’s what we do,” Carlos explained while Duke fought to breathe. “You have a little girl who needs her father.”
Duke’s gaze locked with his for a long, silent moment. His lips turned down. “Not sure I can be that.”
“You can if that’s what you choose to do. You’re looking at prison for this, but that doesn’t mean you can’t change your life. Be the father Lucy needs you to be and the man Monica married. These guys,” Carlos said, tipping his head to the leather-clad group standing behind the police cars. “They don’t care about you. If they did, they would have stopped you.”
“I’ll think about it.”
“We’ve got this now,” one of the medics barked when they arrived.
Carlos retrieved his mask and backed away, watching the men tend to Duke for a moment before joining his company in getting the fire out. Screams rang out as the building collapsed.
It struck him just then. The building caved because all the support was burned up, leaving nothing but a gutted building unable to keep its strength. He was the building, trying to stand on his own, except that only worked for so long before there was nothing left.
He’d been going through the motions for years. To work, back home, and being
there for Polly. To a degree, she’d been there for him too. What he needed, though, was a partner. And he knew exactly who he wanted that partner to be.
But before his thoughts went any further, he needed to talk to Polly.
Chapter 30
Elise, Ashton, and Polly had arrived at the center, but the crowd had been so thick that they could only see the men working to put out the fire. While watching it, Monica called Ashton, asking what was happening. Someone in the grocery store had seen a news report, and she wanted to check if Ashton was okay.
It wasn’t long after the call that word came that Duke had been found inside and pulled to safety, but he was being taken to the hospital. Monica asked Ashton to go with her. She couldn’t refuse. Not when the woman needed a friend. Elise had dropped Ashton at her home to get her car, and she and Monica had gone together to see if Duke was okay.
Seeing the building collapse broke Ashton’s heart. She’d just rebuilt. How on earth was she going to do it again? The building wasn’t even a shell. It was nothing. There was no coming back from that.
Of course, she wasn’t giving up. She could never do that. She’d find somewhere to relocate. She just had no idea how long it would be before she could get another place up and running.
“It looks like he’ll be fine,” Kyle said, standing in the hall with Ashton and a tearful Monica. “A few burns to his arms, but they’re mostly superficial. More than anything, the smoke is what got him.”
That was a nice, polite way of saying Duke might’ve died if the fire department hadn’t rescued him when they did. Ashton put an arm around Monica’s shoulders. “See? He’ll be okay.”
“I’m so sorry he did this to you.” Monica sniffed, dabbing her nose and shaking her head. “I don’t even know why I’m crying.”
“It’s not your fault, and he’s still your husband and Lucy’s dad.” Ashton rubbed her back. “It’s only natural to be concerned and glad he’s alive.”
Never in a million years would she have pictured herself giving Monica comfort over Duke—other than she could do better. But it was what the woman needed to hear. Feelings didn’t just turn off.
“We’ll want to question him on a few things,” Kyle said. “The accelerant they used was the same as what was used in the big warehouse fire. It makes me wonder if the Vipers were involved in that too.”
Monica rolled her eyes. “Of course they were. He’ll be going back to prison, won’t he?”
Kyle shrugged. “I don’t know yet.”
“Oh, I wish he’d just go back to being the man I fell in love with.”
Kyle smiled. “If you want to go in and see him, he’s awake.”
Ashton let go of her, watching as she stepped into the little room where her husband was recovering from his close call.
Once Monica was out of earshot, Kyle turned to her. “He wanted you to know he was sorry.”
A smile lifted her lips. Maybe there was hope he’d change. She knew what he’d done wasn’t right, but she really wanted to believe the best. “I guess almost dying gave him a change of heart.”
Kyle didn’t look surprised by this. “Yes. That’s pretty much the way he described it.” He checked over his shoulder before continuing. “He also confessed to the arson.”
Ashton’s jaw dropped. “He did?”
“Yeah, so, if his change of heart is just short term, we’ve got him on record. Whether it would stand up in court is another thing, especially if he recants. You’d think it would, but nothing’s ever a guarantee until it’s official.”
“That doesn’t fix the damage, but hopefully it’ll change him.”
Kyle slid his hands in his pockets and cast his gaze to the floor. “Did you hear how he got out?”
Ashton shook her head. “I suspect one of the firemen.”
“Want to take a guess who?”
Her eyes widened. “Carlos?”
Nodding, he lifted his head a little, and a tiny smile played on his lips. “Yep. He went in there and carried Duke out over his shoulder. It was like something out of a movie. I saw it for myself. The whole place collapsed maybe a half a minute after they were out.”
Her breath caught in her throat. Carlos had gone into that building to save a man who had threatened him and his sister. Truthfully, though, it didn’t shock her. That was the kind of man he was. Brave and wonderful.
“I thought someone should tell you.”
“Where is he? Is he okay?”
“He’s okay. I think he went back to the station and then home, but I’m not positive. I came straight from the scene to talk to Duke.”
Monica poked her head out of the room. “Ashton, Duke wants to talk to you.”
Kyle tipped his head toward the room. “Go ahead. We can talk again later. I’ll need your statement too.”
“Sure,” she said and walked to the doorway of Duke’s room.
In the span of a few days, she’d lost everything. Well, not everything. She had Polly, and after their talk, she felt closer to Carlos’s sister than she ever had.
It changed nothing between Ashton and Carlos, however. Nothing would change until he decided there needed to be a change.
Chapter 31
Rolling his neck from side to side, Carlos stepped inside his house and was immediately engulfed in a hug from his sister. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
He wrapped his arms around her. “I’m okay. Just a regular day at work.”
Leaning back, Polly leveled her eyes at him. “You ran into a burning building to save a guy who’s been making life miserable for everybody. That’s not a regular day at work.” She dropped her arms and stepped back.
“I’m sorry about the center. I know you loved going there.”
“It’s not your fault,” she said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “We need to talk, though.”
Yeah, they did. About a lot of things. “Okay.” He followed her to the couch, and they sat. “Me first?”
Polly nodded.
“I love you. I have never once regretted the promise I made to Mom and Dad. You are a bright, intelligent, amazing woman. Anything you set your mind to, you can do. Whether that’s being a chef, a lawyer, a mom, or all three.” He laughed. “But you aren’t the boss of me. That changes today. This second.”
“I know.”
Blinking, Carlos reeled. He’d expected pushback. “What?”
“I’ve been selfish, spoiled, and rude to you.” She chewed her lip. “Elise and Ashton had a talk with me.”
Carlos opened his mouth to speak, but Polly held up her hand. “They were right.”
“So what does that mean?”
“It means you don’t have to tell me that you’re going to date Ashton whether I like it or not. I’m okay with it.” She smiled. “I think you should talk to her, though. She seemed pretty upset.”
Carlos sighed, casting his gaze to the floor.
“And I take the blame,” Polly said, touching his arm.
“No.” He looked at his sister. “Some of it’s on me. I was afraid of getting hurt.”
Polly tilted her head. “Why?”
He took a deep breath. “Gayle.”
Her mouth dropped open. “My teacher?”
“It wasn’t until a few hours ago that I figured out I wasn’t in love with her. At the time, Mom and Dad had just been taken from us, you were moving in, and everything around me felt chaotic. I broke up with her because she didn’t want kids, and she didn’t want me taking you in. It messed with her plans.”
“What a jerk.”
“She was. Funny, last time I saw her, she had four kids, so I guess things change.” He took her hand. “Anyway, it was really all on me. I’m putting a stop to it now, though.”
His sister smiled. “I bet Ashton would love to see you. I can’t imagine how she feels.”
“That’s what I was doing next. I needed to talk to you first, though, because you needed to know that you don’t lay the law down here. Not with me. I�
��m an adult, and you aren’t. Not yet. Things will be different from this point forward. Do you understand?”
Nodding, she threw her arms around him. “I understand. I love you, Carlos.”
“I love you too, kid.” This talk had gone a lot better than he ever thought it would. He was glad it hadn’t been him laying down the law. They had a great relationship, and he wanted it to stay that way. Knowing she was on the same page made it so much easier, though.
“Great, now go see how Ashton’s doing. I know it’s not good, and she doesn’t need to be alone.”
Carlos stood, and Polly with him. She shook her finger at him. “If you break her heart, I’ll hurt you.”
“Just me?”
“I told her the same thing…well, I may have left off the I’ll hurt you part.” She chuckled.
Carlos set his hands on his hips. “Thanks for the confidence.”
She hugged him around the chest. “It’s part of the woman code. I had to.”
He laughed and hugged her. “All right.” Dropping his arms, he turned to the door. “I’ll be back in a little while.”
Depending on whether Ashton would even speak to him. He’d basically left her when she needed him the most. No, he’d done worse. He’d taken Polly too. Ashton had depended on him, and like a coward, he’d run.
With a silent prayer sent up, he headed to his car, hoping he could right the wrong and maybe even talk about a future with her.
Chapter 32
Ashton stepped inside Duke’s room and hesitantly crept her way across, not sure what to expect from the man. “Uh, hi, Duke.”
The man kept his gaze lowered. “Hi.”
As the clock on the wall ticked in the silence, she wondered if she was supposed to talk first or him. He’d been the one who wanted to talk to her, right? So she’d wait until he was ready.
Monica sat beside him on the bed and took his hand. “I’m here, babe. Tell her. You can do this.”
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