Chapter1
Paisley
“Today, we are here for a swearing-in ceremony for firefighters, one of the world’s most honored but dangerous occupations.”
The air bristled with an unusually brisk chill for a late-spring day in April, but as I stood in front of the crowd of my department’s family and friends, I felt nothing but a scorching-hot iron of disapproval branding me from all directions. My face fanned with heat, probably crimson red in sync with the US flag hanging on the pole behind us. I tried to keep my eyes to myself, unwilling to meet the disapproving gazes of my soon-to-be colleagues. They didn’t want me there; I knew that. From the beginning until this very moment, the department, consisting solely of men, had made it clear to me that—as a woman—I somehow could not do the job I was hired to do.
“When there is an emergency in the community, firefighters are one of the first on the scene,” Chief Preston Davis continued. “Firefighters are there at devastating ravages of fire, motor vehicle accidents, tornadoes, hazardous material incidents, rescue operations, explosions, medical emergencies, and many other critical events.”
I shifted from one leg to the other, hands grasped firmly behind my back, palms, and neck, sweating with anticipation and nerves. In the crowd, a few onlookers seemed to glare at me instead of paying attention to their recruits. I recognized some of the men from my parent’s church, disapproving Christian conservatives who didn’t want me there any more than my new department. I’d endured the backlash for months, constantly pushing through, tuning the haters out until I wasn’t sure I could anymore. For months, I’d balanced on the edge of giving up and forcing my way in.
Some of the men on my crew had tried to frighten me out of showing up today. But I’d come. Months of nerve-wracking interviews, physical fitness routines, and skills tests finally got me here, where I’d always wanted to be.
Screw them and what they thought. I wasfinallyin, and I wasn’t going anywhere, despite their best efforts to scare me out the door.
“Firefighters become civil servants as sworn officers following standard policies and procedures of the fire service and standard operating procedures of their departments. They are there to prevent human suffering and death, stabilize the incident and prevent damages and loss of property.” Chief Davis paused and looked up, his eyes skimming over the crowd. A black man, in his late 50s, with years of experience under his belt and a protective eye for his squad, I liked him. He was one of the good ones. From the beginning, he’d been nothing but supportive of my being at the department. That was more than could be said for everyone else.
Next to me, Jake Finn, a fellow recruit, had tiny beads of sweat forming on his shiny forehead. In the brief time I’d known him, I’d found that Jake was a good kid. He was young, maybe twenty-two, probably still in college at ESU, with a shock of red hair and freckles that made him look sixteen or seventeen. Finn was a friend, one of the few guys who didn’t whisper nasty comments behind my back or scowl at me in the training room. He was just as new as I was, a rookie breaking into the tight-knit group of this department. If I had no one else, at least I had him.
“Relax,” I whispered to Jake. “It’s almost over.”
He smiled slightly with the corner of his mouth and stood up straighter, forcing his shoulders back.
I looked away from him and scanned the faces in the room. Of course, the mayor was flanked by a few city officials and representatives. Aside from the few faces I recognized growing up in the Eagle River District, no other supportive smiles came from the crowd.
My fiancée, Jeremy, had made it clear initially that he didn’t support my desire to get onto the squad. In his opinion, a fire department was no place for a woman. Of course, he couldn’t stop me from doing it, but he wouldn’t support me. My parents were pretty much singing from Jeremy’s song sheet. Despite being a retired firefighter, my father had yet to grasp that a woman could do the job as well as a man. It shamed him to know I’d allowed myself into this, voluntarily becoming a member of a department full of muscle twice my size. Women belonged in the kitchen, not in a firehouse.
Luckily for my own sanity, I stopped listening to my father berate me years ago, when I was still a sullen teenager sent from the depths of hell to make my parent’s life miserable.
Or so he said.
I averted my attention to the chief, who was introducing our new captain, Erik Hansen. Hansen was another one of the few that I liked. It wasn’t just his charm and physical appeal—although he had that in abundance—Hansen was a kindhearted man who took his rank seriously. He’d shown me nothing but patience and compassion and professionalism on all levels, from beginning to end. He didn’t look down his nose at me, didn’t treat me differently from the others, and that’s all I could have asked. Hansen’s promotion was great timing because the captain of any squad would be the person directing and caring for his recruits and his team. A lousy boss could quickly turn a dream career into a miserable life, but Hansen didn’t seem like the kind.
And God, I couldn’t pull myself together fast enough when he was around. Just looking at him made my body ache in ways that I hadn’t felt in years.
““Today, I would like to offer the opportunity for our new captain to swear in the new members of our family,” Chief Davis said, shaking Hansen’s hand as he joined Davis at the podium. There was loud applause and a few whistles. As I watched Erik Hansen step up to the podium, an erotic spark fired up between my legs, heating my insides with a moment of utter desire for him that seemed to consume me until my mind was blank and my nerves tingled.
Pull yourself together, P.
Captain Hansen thanked the chief and turned to face me and the two other recruits. His gaze met mine, gold-speckled, chocolate brown eyes demanding my attention and holding me hostage to him. An expression of satisfaction spread across his handsome face, and my knees shook with hot anticipation, not just for him but for myself. I was the first female firefighter ever to be accepted into this department, and that was something to be proud of, not just for me but for the rest of the department. I only wished they all felt that way.
“It is a great honor to swear in these recruits of the Eagle River Fire Department,” Hansen said, his eyes landing on each of us before moving on to the next. When he stopped briefly in front of me, a tiny, almost unnoticeable smile tugged at the corner of his lips before he was all business again. I had to cast my eyes to the ground to keep from falling to his feet. “Jake Finn, Tanner Rey, and Paisley Hill, please raise your right hand and repeat after me.”
I took a deep breath, voice shaking as adrenaline coursed through my veins.
“I, Paisley Hill, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America and the State of Colorado against all enemies, both foreign and domestic, and I will faithfully and impartially discharge my duties as firefighter of the Eagle River District, under the appointment of the department according to the laws of Colorado State, to the best of my skills and abilities, so help me God.”
Chapter2
Hansen
“You seem tense.” Julia put one hand on my chest, the warmth of her skin seeping through my shirt. I lifted her hand from my chest and kissed the top of it, letting my lips linger for a moment longer than necessary. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The sweet aroma of vanilla and lavender perfume she wore sent a buzz of relaxation through my body, arousing my tired senses.
““It was a long day.” I cupped the back of my neck with one hand and massaged it, trying to ease the tension from my shoulders. My mind was still on Paisley, how proud I’d felt swearing her in earlier. How …awestruckI was by this woman who had been through hell and still showed up for her swearing-in, despite the judgment.
“The ceremony?” Julia went to the kitchen to grab a beer from the fridge, handing it to me, and I popped the top and took a drink, savoring the bubbles against my lips. She leaned into me, her lips brushing mine, red hair tickling my face. “Is that what has you all wound up?”
I didn’t answer immediately because, deep down, I knew it had more to do with Paisley Hill than it did with the ceremony, and I couldn’t face that right now.
