Maybe the guys could use some company,I thought as I got up and grabbed my robe from the hook behind my bedroom door. Beck had conveniently installed it for me; one of the many improvements they’d already made to the house.
I hadn’t heard any sirens yet, so I didn’t think they were very busy. Maybe they’d tell me that I couldn’t hang out with them at work, but it was worth a shot.
I caught a glimpse of myself in the moonlight in the bathroom mirror. “Okay… Maybe we won't go like this.”
It was possible that there were other firefighters around in the station, and I was only in my robe and pjs. Not to mention the sheer state of my hair. I wasn’t going to go through too much effort, but I decided to at least get dressed and tie my hair up so I wasn’t acompletetrain wreck.
Of course, I wasn’t going to get dressed as if I were going to a fancy dress ball, either. I grabbed some jeans and a loose-fitting shirt, and pulled my hair up into a messy bun. The outfit was complete with a set of gray sneakers that I’d bought with my employee discount about a year earlier.
“Good,” I said to my reflection when I gave myself one last look in the mirror. It didn’t look like I tried too hard, or like I didn’t try at all. Hopefully it wasn’t for nothing.
I made my way downstairs and outside. As usual, all of the station’s lights were on. It made me wonder how the guys ever got any sleep, and it also added another layer of explanation to why my house had been so cheap. Luckily, I had since decided to invest in blackout curtains for my bedroom window.
I strolled across my yard and then across the station’s grass. I wasn’t entirely surehowto announce my arrival. Was there a door somewhere I was supposed to knock on, or would my usual method of just going right to the engine bay work well enough?
What if they’re asleep?I thought, but still kept walking.It’s fine. They’re all on-call tonight. They’ll be awake.
I wasn’t sure about that. I knew Beck had mentioned naps while on-call before, but maybe I’d be lucky this time.
The engine bay was surprisingly quiet, but I could hear voices deeper in the station. I was about to yell out the guys’ names when I realized I was being a bit silly. Instead, I shot a text to them in a group chat, and waited.
Three notifications quickly came back to me, and I heard movement. Then, Calder appeared in the door leading into the station itself.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his face filled with concern. “Are you hurt?”
“Uh, no,” I laughed awkwardly, realizing “please come downstairs” might have been read differently than I meant it.
Beck and Ash both appeared behind Calder, looking as if they’d seen a ghost.
“Is she alright?” Beck asked, while Ash simply continued to scowl worriedly.
“I’mfine,”I insisted. “Listen, I didn’t mean to sound like I had an emergency. I just… I couldn’t sleep, and I thought I could hang out with you guys for a while.”
“Oh,” Beck breathed. “We thought you were in trouble or something.”
“Had us worried,” Ash added with a shake of his head.
“Seriously, shouldn’t scare us like that,” Calder finished off. “But since you’re here, come on up. It’s firehouse dinner night.”
“And I was just about to beat the chief in our poker game,” Beck added, but both Ash and Calder shot him a look that said they did not believe him. “You’ll see.”
I followed them through to the foyer and up a set of metal stairs, which made me want to laugh. For some reason, I’d always thought they both slid downandclimbed up the pole; I’d never considered that they might simply use stairs like us commoners.
Upstairs, a bunch of men had gathered on several couches, sitting around an old coffee table playing cards. Most of the men were older, with a few that seemed closer to Calder, Beck, and Ash in age. But I had to admit that the three of them were by far the best looking; though I might have been biased in that regard.
“Guys, this is Rhea, our new neighbor,” Calder announced, and the rest of the team looked up. Luckily, no one whistled ormentioned our unique situation, even though I was pretty sure they could have figured it out. “Rhea, this is the team.”
“Nice to meet you all,” I said with a little bow and a smile.
“Sloppy joe?” Beck offered from beside me. “We still have some left over.”
“I’m good,” I laughed. “But if you have a soda or water or coffee…”
“On it,” Ash announced, while Calder led me to an open spot on one of the couches.
“Where were we, Chief?” Beck asked as he sat down beside me, with Calder on the other side. One seat over, they left a spot for Ash when he came back. “Oh, yeah; you were about to fold under the strength of my bluff.”
The chief raised one quiet, stern eyebrow. “Unlikely. You’re welcome to try your luck.”
