“Captain needs Evans,” he said. Evans nodded and left.
“Walsh, this is Harvey. We’re going to cut him out,” Riya said.
Walsh nodded. “You got it, babe.”
She shot a glare at him. “Not. Your. Babe.”
“No need to get bent out of shape, sweetheart.”
“Jeez, Walsh. I’m not your sweetheart, either,” Riya shot back at him.
“Hey. You.” Harvey looked at Ian. “You can’t talk to a woman like that. Especially when she’s got that machine in her hands. Let her work. I want out of this.”
Walsh rolled his eyes and held the door. Riya grinned at Harvey and got to work. She brought down the shield in front of her face and powered up the Jaws of Life. The hefty machine vibrated in her hands, but she held it steady. After she made a few cuts, Walsh caught the door and removed it. Riya switched to the ram. She positioned it under the dash and against the running board, away from Harvey’s leg, and started it up. The ram extended its arm, pushing the dash away, allowing room to free the man’s leg safely. Walsh signaled the paramedics to come over, and once Harvey had been extricated, Riya removed the Jaws.
Elation flooded through her. Where there had been knots in her stomach, there was now excitement. She had done it. She’d used the Jaws of Life! Wait until she told Dhillon.
Oh. Or not.
“You did it.” Harvey didn’t seem surprised, just very grateful. “Young lady, you sure know your way around that machine. Thank you.”
“Part of the job.” Riya’s smile was genuine this time as she moved out of the way to let the paramedics through.
Walsh slapped her on the ass. She swung around, jaw clenched, heart pounding. “What the fuck are you doing?”
“What? It’s a compliment. Job well done.”
She shoved him with her free hand. She was still holding the Jaws. “Touch me again and it’ll be the last thing you do with that hand.”
“Don’t you shove me.” His face darkened.
She narrowed her eyes and spoke through her teeth. “You’re just lucky we’re on scene right now.”
“Hey, Desai! We need the Jaws back here. Now!” Evans called to her from the second car.
She made to move toward him. Walsh blocked her way. “This isn’t over.”
“Oh, it better be.” She jogged off to help Evans.
“Everything okay?” Evans asked, glancing back at where Walsh was still seething.
“Nothing I can’t handle.” She turned her attention to the car and peeked in. Her hands were shaking in anger, but she called upon her previous elation as she leaned toward their patient. “Who do we have here?”
The trip back to the firehouse was a jovial one. Even the summer heat didn’t faze them. Schultz and Alvarez had taken down a spontaneous car fire on the scene. Riya had got Harvey and two teenagers safely out of their cars with the aid of Evans and Walsh. Minimal injuries, no fatalities. It was a good rescue. Lieutenant Ambrose even smiled at her, albeit briefly. At least he wasn’t glaring at her anymore.
“We got ourselves a new person to handle the Jaws,” Evans declared as they disembarked the rig.
Riya bathed in adrenaline-fueled elation as the guys congratulated her. She hung up her turnout gear on the engine as they all started their postcall duties. As they finished up, the guys started getting ready to shower.
“Hold up,” Lieutenant Ambrose called out, getting everyone’s attention. “We have a situation that needs to be remedied. But until we do, Desai, you can have the locker room first. The guys’ll wait till you’re done.”
“Seriously?” Her grin was huge.
Ambrose nodded. “Better hurry and get in there before they get too impatient.” He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “I had no idea you had to wait. But before you go—” Ambrose stopped her, raising his voice so the guys could hear “—I think we can all agree that the rookie handled the Jaws of Life like a pro today. Apparently, cutting up cars is one of her talents.”
Hearty applause passed through the room like a wave. Riya flushed with pride. She turned and headed for the locker room as all the guys headed in the opposite direction toward the kitchen.
Walsh was the last to pass. He grazed her shoulder with his, murmuring, “Want company?”
