When he'd dreamed about the lake in his bunk, he'd imagined a dark haired woman beside him, her hair spread out on a pillow and her mouth in a sweet smile.
He barely knew Seaton and he was dreaming of her on his boat?
Smiling to himself, he shifted his duffel back up higher on his shoulder as he made his way to the door.
Just outside, a few of the firefighters had gathered around Cowboy's truck.
Given that Cowboy had parked next to his own truck, Sam knew that he wasn't going anywhere soon. "What are y'all talking about?"
Sam set his duffel in the bed of his truck and leaned against the side.
Rush, who was also known as Oliver Quintero turned his phone around so they could all see the new photo he had. It was a sweet photo of his family. Thora was a beautiful woman and she loved kids just as much as Rush. They had their hands full with three kids: Gia, Paz, and Pax. The photo showed the group at a pumpkin patch and everyone was dressed up in fall colors and big smiles. "I was showing off my new photo while I was waiting for everyone to come on out."
Sam looked around the group and realized that he was one of the last guys out from the fire house. Along with Rush,QPalmer “Rhett” Butler, Lincoln Abe, Noah "Cowboy" Sadler, Stillman Rook, Warren "Peace" Vidal, and Callan "Fish" Bass were enjoying the time off-shift with each other.
Stillman Rook, who was engaged to Chief Blaise's daughter, Aylin, nodded at Peace. "Well, you've got us now."
Rush grinned at his friend. "I was thinking about our shift getting together two Saturdays from now."
The group nodded and many of them smiled at the idea.
"I was thinking we go to one of the rivers in the area, or a lake. I want the kids to experience the water in Texas, beyond the bathtub they treat like a pool."
Fish laughed out loud. He was raising a boy at home and there was talk around the firehouse that there might be another one on the way.
Their firehouse family was growing by the minute.
Lincoln wrinkled his nose a little. "I'm not big on swimming but I wouldn't mind somewhere we could fish."
Palmer, who the firefighters called 'Rhett' because of his last name Butler, brightened at the idea. "Fishing sounds good. And a picnic. That would be fun."
Sam snapped his fingers. "Sounds like we'll need more time than an afternoon or a day for this. I know a place where we can do all of that on a lake and camp there, too. Calaveras Lake Park isn't all that far from here. And if everyone is up for it we could do an overnight camping thing."
"Overnight," Lincoln hesitated again. "That's a lot of time near that much water."
Rook gave him a look and shook his head. "Don't tell me you don't know how to swim?"
The group turned to look at Lincoln.
Lincoln shrugged. "Swimming wasn't that big of a thing for me growing up," he explained. "I'm a guy that likes my feet firmly on the ground."
Cowboy chuckled at that. "Unless you're on the ladder during a fire."
Lincoln nodded. "Still, there's a ladder under my feet. I'm just not all that big on a body of water that could swallow me whole."
Sam could see his point. Some people just weren't 'water' people.
Another thought crossed his mind.
Was Seaton a water person?
He'd like to think so. He'd looked it up on his phone during the night when he wasn't quite ready to fall asleep. Seaton meant Town by the Sea.
Then again, maybe it would be the opposite.
He had met someone from Hawaii who didn't know how to swim beyond a cursory doggy paddle.
Maybe, he wondered, he should ask her if she'd like to go to the lake.
