by Elle James
“Mr. Sanchez,” Rider said. “I want what your daughter wants. Selena means a lot to me. I would never do anything to hurt her, or to get in the way of her accomplishing her dreams.”
“Then what is it you want with my daughter?” Pedro Sanchez asked.
“Yeah, Rider,” Big John Grayson crossed his arms over his chest, “Selena is a good girl. I won’t have one of my sons mucking up her life.”
“Dad, Mr. Sanchez,” Rider said, “I think I might be in love with Selena.” There, he’d said it.
A collective gasp rose from all parties witnessing Rider’s declaration.
Big John shook his head. “Son, you’re fresh out of a bad marriage. Have you considered she might be your rebound from your divorce?”
Rider looked around at all the faces staring back at him and nodded. “I have considered that. My marriage had ended long before we signed the papers. I didn’t realize, until I came back to Hellfire all I’d been missing. Yes, I missed my family and friends. But it was more than that. And when I saw Selena…everything seemed to fall into place. What I knew about Selena, was the same, but different. I mean hell, we grew up together. We rode horses together. We like so many of the same things. I think I’ve always loved Selena. But now it’s different.” He shook his head. “I’m not explaining this very well. Shoot, I’m not even sure how it happened.”
“Please, Mr. Grayson,” Pedro said. “Don’t break my daughter’s heart. She does not belong in your world. In the world with the Graysons.”
Rider frowned. “How can you say that?” He turned and paced the length of the trailer, spun and came back. “Selena grew up with us. She hung out with us, she helped haul hay, she did everything we did. How does she not fit in with our world?”
“Yeah,” Lily said, “what do you mean she doesn’t fit in our world? She’s like a sister to me.”
“And to me,” Chance said.
“And me,” Nash and Beckett said at the same time.
Big John Grayson slipped an arm over Pedro’s shoulder. “Pedro, my old friend, ya have to admit it. You’re more family than employee.”
Pedro shook his head. “We will always be your employees. Me and my wife Margarita.”
Big John dropped his arm from around Pedro and stared at the man, a frown making deep grooves in his forehead. “Do I have to fire you to prove that we are like family?”
Pedro’s lips quirked as he shook his head. “I don’t want to be fired.”
“How can you say we’re not like family when we spend most of our days together? My Ann and your Margarita go to the same quilting bee. They belong to the same garden club. You and I have had beers together at the Ugly Stick Saloon. How is it you think that we are not like family?”
Pedro shook his head. “We are Hispanic. You are white. In many people’s thoughts and minds, the two races do not mix.”
Rider shook his head. “Not to us. We’re all one big family. It doesn’t matter the color of our skin or the nature of our origins. So what if your family is all from Mexico. Mine were from who knows where? Scotland, Wales, England, Africa maybe. Who knows where? Maybe Ireland. Maybe Romania. We’re all pretty much the same, everything mixed in together. It doesn’t matter. What matters is love. Who do you love? Pedro, you and Margarita are like family to me. You’re like my second father and mother. We love you guys as much as we love Mom and Dad.”
Big John nodded. “What my son is saying is true, Pedro. This business of eating in the kitchen while the Grayson family eats at the formal dining table is over. We will all eat together, or we won’t eat at all.”
“Amen,” said Lily.
Pedro nodded. “I appreciate what you’re saying. But what happens when Rider decides he no longer loves Selena? Everything will get awkward at that point. He will break my daughter’s heart. I will find that difficult to forgive, and I will not feel the same way toward a boy who once was like a son to me.” Pedro faced Rider. “Can you guarantee that you won’t break my daughter’s heart? That you will always be there for her?”
Rider sighed. “I don’t know where everything is going between me and Selena. All I know is I want it to continue going.”
“My daughter leaves in January, and she won’t be back for two years during her training. Are you telling me that you will wait for her?”
Rider nodded. “I’m willing to wait for Selena. She’s everything I could ever want in a woman. I realize that now, after my divorce, that I don’t know what got in my head when I married to begin with. I think I was trying to fit into a place that I didn’t belong. I don’t belong in Dallas. Hellfire is my home. It’s where I want to be. It’s where I’ve always wanted to be. Because of the people who live here.”
“And if my daughter doesn’t want to stay in Hellfire?” Pedro asked.
Rider pressed a hand to his heart. “I will take her wishes into consideration. I only want to make her happy. If leaving Hellfire will make her happy, I will go with her. I would hope that someday she would want to return to Hellfire. It, too, is her home.”
Big John nodded. “I understand your concern for your daughter, but like all families we’ll work through whatever happens.”
The old time CB radio inside Big John’s truck squawked. Big John’s brow furrowed. “I wonder what that’s all about. I haven’t heard that thing go off in so long I can’t remember.” He climbed into the truck, lifted the mic and spoke with whoever was on the other end. When he came back out he nodded towards his sons. “That was a call from dispatch. All volunteer firefighters are asked to report in. They have a grass fire closing in on the edge of Hellfire. It’s getting close to the trailer park out on the south side of town. They want everybody who can help to come out.”
“Guess that means us,” Chance said. Of the four brothers, he was the only fulltime firefighter.
“Aren’t you off duty?” Nash asked.
“If they’re asking for all hands, I guess they might not care if I’m a volunteer or a full-timer,” he said. “I’m in.”
“You boys go,” Big John said. “Lily, Pedro, and I will get this load of hay to the barnyard. Then we’ll join you, if you still need our help.”
The four Rider sons ran for Nash’s truck parked on the edge of the hayfield and climbed into the cab.
“Must be pretty bad if they’re asking all volunteers to report,” Chance said.
All four men fell silent as they sped toward town. As they got closer they could see smoke billowing up along a line on the southern edge of town. A lot of people lived on the south side. People who couldn’t afford to rebuild their lives, who lived on the edge from paycheck to paycheck.
When they reached town, they swung by the fire department and collected protective clothing and equipment. They didn’t take long, and were back on the road and headed south as soon as possible. Volunteer firefighters had parked their trucks and cars along the sides of the road headed south out of town and walked in from there. It wasn’t long before Rider, Nash, Beckett, and Chance found the fire chief and received their orders of where they should begin and what they should try to save first.
“The fire line stretches all the way from Joe Sarley’s farm all the way to the highway. The smoke is getting so bad that its affecting traffic. We’re not allowing cars to pass through on the highway. We have the sheriff’s department stationed on the highway to turn people away on either side,” the fire chief said. “Our one pumper truck belonging to the county has been filled twice and has sprayed water along the edges, but it doesn’t seem to be helping and the wind is picking up. We have two more pumper trucks coming in from surrounding counties. We’ve commandeered every track loader and bulldozer we could from construction sites, farms and ranches around and they’re headed this way to help with the beak line. We need every man on deck to put out fires and to tamp down any new ones that spring up from the embers.”
The Grayson brothers knew the drill. They’d been through this several times before. Grabbing rakes, axes, and we
t burlap sacks, they went to work.
JUST AFTER ONE O’CLOCK, Selena clocked out at the convenience store and waved goodbye to Mr. Hutcheson. “I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” she called out.
“Study hard, girl. We’re expecting a lot from our hometown gal,” Mr. Hutcheson called back.
Selena had all intentions of going home, cracking the books and spending the rest of her evening absorbing as much information as possible. She’d put off studying for her test for far too long.
As she walked toward her apartment, all she could think about was the night before. Staring up at the stars, holding hands, kissing and making love with Rider Grayson.
As she passed his garage she decided to stop in and say hello. Perhaps he wasn’t too busy, and he wouldn’t mind a visitor. Maybe he would share the cookies that she had left the day before. Hell, she just wanted to see his face and hear his voice. Any excuse was good enough for her.
When she paused in front of Rider’s garage, she wondered why the overhead door was closed. She tried the smaller door to his office. It was locked. It wasn’t like Rider to close up shop on a weekday.
Selena went around to the side and climbed the stairs to the apartment above the garage. She chuckled thinking how much their circumstances were alike. They both lived in small apartments over garages. They both liked staring up at the stars and watching the meteor showers. And they both liked making love with nothing but stars and skies overhead. She really hoped that she would find him at home and that they could pick up where they left off the night before.
When she arrived at the top of the stairs she noticed the door was slightly ajar. She pushed it open and stepped inside. “Rider?” She stared around the room noticing how papers were strewn across the room. Drawers were emptied, dumped onto the floor, and the cushions had been ripped off the couch and flung aside.
What the hell? “Rider? Are you all right?” She picked her way through the mess, searching for the man who’d captured her heart, praying that he hadn’t passed out on the floor or was injured or had a heart attack. Hell, she didn’t know what had happened. But the place was a disaster.
Behind her the door shut with a sharp click. Selena spun to face a blonde-haired intruder in a designer royal blue dress.
“Lydia,” Selena said, “what are you doing here?”
Rider’s ex-wife twisted the dead bolt lock on the door and tipped her chin upward. “I’m Rider’s wife. I’m here to collect my man.”
Selena glanced around the room. “Are you the one who did this to Rider’s home?”
She laughed. “You call this a home? It’s a hovel. We had a beautiful seven thousand square foot home in the best part of Dallas. And he left it to come to this filthy, stinking, disgrace of a garage. To live in a tiny apartment even my maid wouldn’t consider appropriate. Rider is a fool to believe that this is where he belongs.”
“Rider is not the fool,” Selena said, “you are. This is what Rider wants. He wants to work with his hands. He likes making things work and figuring things out. And he doesn’t like living in a big city where there is too much traffic and too many people. He likes being out in the open air, in the country side.”
“Rider doesn’t know what he wants,” Lydia said. “He needs to be where he can make the most of his life. Where he can make the most money. Where he can be the most influential. And that’s working with my father’s firm.”
Selena snorted. “You mean Rider needs to be where he can be making money to support you, am I right?”
“Yes,” Lydia said. “We were married. He promised for better or for worse to support me. To be there forever and ever, amen!”
Selena shook her head. “That’s not how it works sweetheart. Marriage is a partnership. People involved should understand the other’s likes, needs and wants. And there should be compromise on both sides. And they should pool together their resources to make a life together.”
“Blah, blah, blah,” Lydia said, “How am I supposed to survive without a husband to support me?”
Selena couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “Are you serious? Is that the only reason you want Rider back? To pay for your expensive shoes and designer clothes?”
“What do you know about the life I lead in Dallas? There are expectations of everything I do. I’m always in the public eye. I’m expected to act a certain way, and dress a certain way and be at all the right places with all the right people.”
Selena snorted. “And Rider was your means to an end.”
“Yes, dammit. He promised to love, honor, and cherish me. And to support me through thick and thin. Well, he’s not doing his job.”
“From what I understand, you didn’t do your job. It was in all the tabloids that you cheated on him.”
She shrugged. “He was never home. What was I supposed to do? I was lonely.”
Selena shook her head. The woman really didn’t have a clue. “You were supposed to be faithful. To honor your commitment to him. Maybe he wouldn’t have worked so many long hours if he hadn’t had to earn so much money to support you and your expensive lifestyle.”
“What do you know…you…you…tramp.” Lydia gritted her teeth and screamed, “Maybe he would come back to me and Dallas if you hadn’t tempted him to stay!” She rushed toward Selena and shoved her hard.
Selena stumbled backward, fell, and hit her head against the corner of a cabinet. She hadn’t been prepared for an attack. She never would have guessed that Lydia had it in her to be physically violent. Those few thoughts flitted through her mind as darkness blurred her vision. Thoughts spun through her mind, but her head swam in the haze, dragging her under.
As she struggled to stay awake, she heard Lydia say, “If this place isn’t here, and if you aren’t here, he’ll come back to me. Just you watch.” She laughed. “Oh wait, you won’t be here to watch.”
Like a light being dimmed, Selena’s consciousness faded to black.
CHAPTER 11
AN HOUR into fighting the grass fire that edged closer to the south side of town, Rider glanced up long enough to notice that just about everybody from Hellfire had come out to pitch in and stop the fire’s spread.
At one point, he came across Raul and Shane working side by side, slapping at the embers and stomping on the startup fires. They worked in quiet concentration, respectful of each other’s efforts to stop the destruction.
And they did stop the destruction.
A hundred yards from the most outlying house in Hellfire, firefighters brought the grass fire to a halt. The winds died down, and a cheer went up from all the people covered in soot as they stomped on the last ember and doused the final flame.
Rider glanced up, looking for his brothers. Nash and Beckett were close at hand, but Chance had disappeared. He gathered close to his brothers. “Anybody seen Chance?” he asked.
Nash nodded. “He asked for my keys a few minutes ago. He said he’d be right back.” As if on cue, Nash’s truck raced up to them and spun sideways to a stop. Chance opened the door, stepped out on the running board and yelled out over the top of the truck. “Get in. We have another fire to fight.”
Nash and Beckett jumped in the back. Rider slid into the front passenger seat.
“Close the door.” Chance shifted into drive and hit the accelerator hard, shooting the truck forward, heading back toward Hellfire. Already, they could see a plume of smoke rising from the middle of town.
“Where’s the new fire?” Nash asked.
Chance shot a glance at Rider. “Dispatch says it’s at your garage.”
“My garage?” Rider shook his head. “I know I didn’t leave anything running.” He frowned and stared at the rising column of smoke. His pulse beat fast as he leaned forward in his seat.
As they left the brush fire, Rider noted that other firefighters were loading up onto the fire engine, and it turned in a circle to head back toward town. The Grayson brothers would arrive sooner than the fire engine or anybody else. When they passed the conveni
ence store, Mr. Hutcheson was standing outside, staring down the street toward the billowing smoke.
Rider wondered if Selena was working at the store. Would she be worried when she found out that his garage was up in flames?
Rider wasn’t as concerned about the things that were in the garage or in the apartment above as much as he was concerned about the fire spreading to other buildings within the town. Fortunately, Selena’s apartment was a couple blocks further along than his and should be all right.
He pulled his cellphone from his pocket and dialed Selena’s number just to make sure she wasn’t anywhere close to the fire. Her line rang five times before her voicemail picked up. She was probably still at work, or maybe in the shower at her apartment.
When they pulled up in front of the garage, flames shot around the base of the building and up the wooden steps to the apartment above. Already, he could see fire climbing the curtains in the upstairs windows. Then a flash of blonde hair and a royal blue dress caught his attention.
“Holy shit!” Nash exclaimed. “Is that Lydia?”
Rider leaped out of the truck before it even came to a full stop. He ran toward the woman who disappeared around the side of the building. When he caught up to her, he found her carrying a jug of gasoline, splashing its contents on the side of his building. He ran after her, yelling, “Lydia, stop!”
She laughed hysterically and flung the jug at him, splashing gasoline across his legs.
“You’ll see,” she said, “when this place is gone, when she’s gone, you’ll come back to me.” She spun and darted away.
Chance raced past Rider and tackled Lydia, crushing her body beneath his on the ground. He pinned her wrists above her head and straddled her hips. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“What do you mean, Lydia?” Rider asked as he knelt beside her. “What do you mean by when this place is gone, and when she’s gone? Who are you talking about?”
Lydia laughed in his face, her eyes wide. “Your girlfriend,” she said. “When this place is gone, she’ll be gone with it.”