The way Jake had fixed everything he could reach, not because it was his job, but because he?—
Jake.
He was here.
He'd come for her.
He'd run into fire for her.
"Stay with me," his voice rasped above her, thick with smoke and fear. "Please, Hannah. Stay with me."
She wanted to answer. Wanted to tell him she understood now. About love and trust and how some things were worth the risk of being burned.
But the smoke in her lungs was too thick.
The darkness too heavy.
The world too far away.
The last thing she felt before consciousness slipped completely away was Jake's lips pressing against her forehead, desperate and fierce, as he carried her through the flames.
And in that moment, she wasn't afraid anymore.
Because Jake was there.
Because he'd come for her.
Because some loves were strong enough to walk through fire.
The darkness took her then, but she wasn't falling.
She was safe.
She was home.
She was loved.
And that was everything.
CHAPTER 30
Jake
"Fire at Sugar& Spice Bakery. All units respond."
The dispatch crackled over the radio, and Jake was already moving.
Hannah.
"Cooper!" Chief Miller's voice cut through the chaos as Jake sprinted toward his truck. "Wait for backup?—"
But Jake was already gone, tires squealing against pavement as he floored it down Main Street. Each second stretched into eternity as orange light painted the sky ahead of him.
Please. Please let me get there in time.
Sugar & Spice was engulfed. Flames poured from the windows, black smoke billowing into the night sky. The front entrance was completely blocked by fire, the glass already shattered from the heat.
Protocol said wait.
