Page 45 of From the Embers

I kiss her hair. “Get some sleep.”

She yawns. “You took every last bit of energy I had.”

“I’ll wear that badge with pride.”

“You should.”

She falls asleep fast. I can tell because her breathing changes to a soft lull.

Any preconceived notion I had about committing has gone completely out the window. I’ve never been opposed to it, and I’ve had long-term relationships, but I meant what I said before. None of them felt like this. Maybe it’s because we have history, or that I love how full of life Adelaide is every time I see her. She’s bubbly, smart, sexy, and now she’s in my arms.

I don’t want to let her go, and I won’t. I’ll figure it out. I’ll make Daryl understand. What happened just happened. Neither of us had any control over it.

If Adi thought this was a one and done, she’s sadly mistaken. I want her, and I’m gonna stop at nothing to make her mine.

fourteen

Denver

Two days earlier

“You okay?” JJ asks as I run my hands through my hair.

I finally meet his gaze. “Yep.”

“Not convinced.”

I thought the common room being empty meant I could just sit for a second, but obviously not. JJ isn’t usually the most verbose man in the room, and keeps things to himself, but he has a big heart. “You did good today, I mean that,” JJ says.

“Thanks, LT.”

“Shit never gets easier.”

“No, it doesn’t,” I sigh. “It hits harder when it’s kids.”

“Take all the time you need.”

I give him a chin lift as he goes.

A few moments later, I hear two sets of footsteps. JC and our paramedic, Jake.

My eyes meet Jake’s but neither of us speak.

“You know we can’t win them all,” JC says, trying to break the mood.

“Know it,” I reply curtly. “But this one just hit home for some reason.”

“Probably because two kids died, plus the mom didn’t make it,” Jake says, shaking his head.

I look up. “No fucking way.”

Jake nods.

“She seemed okay⁠—”

“Internal injuries. Grandma was dead on impact. The surviving kid is now an orphan, can you believe that? I don’t even know what to fucking say.” Jake is clearly having a hard time with it, too. He worked on her all the way to the hospital.

“Fucking sucks,” JC agrees. “The truck driver was shaken up. I feel sorry for the poor bastard. The car just made a bad decision, costing them their life.”