Page 17 of Ember

Since the night they’d spend together, Tucker made it up in his mind to keep his distance from her. He’d already screwed things up beyond belief with Monae. He had no plans to do the same with Danica. Not when she was already in a vulnerable headspace.

“I’m fine.” He gripped the container, wishing he had enough self control to fight whatever pull it was that she had on him. The more his mind told him to push her away, the more he found himself wanting to flirt. “You missed me?” He questioned with a lopsided grin.

“I was concerned about you,” Danica corrected quickly. “There’s a difference.”

“You don’t have to worry about me, Dani bae, I’m cool.”

“You didn’t seem cool when you rushed out of my house after eating my good food like your mama didn’t raise you with manners.”

“My apologies, beautiful,” Tucker’s dimple made yet another appearance. “I can’t leave right now, but will a walk around the block help get me off your bad side?”

“Not quite, but I suppose it’ll do for the moment.”

“Aye, Charlie,” Tucker barked, tossing the container at his squad member when he came into view. “I’ll be on the radio if you need me.”

Charlie raised an eyebrow, but said nothing while watching the two stroll off. As they walked side by side, Tucker couldn’t help wondering why the heavy strings of life seemed to free him whenever Danica was around. He was still haunted, but the bleak outlook he tended to have about life was missing when she was near.

He loved it, but it also scared the hell out of him. The feeling was like nothing that he’d ever experienced before, and he wasn’t quite sure how to respond to it.

“So,” Danica was the first one to break the silence as she bumped his shoulder with hers. “How have you been?”

“Busy,” he replied truthfully. “I picked up a couple extra shifts this week, so I’ve been on go nonstop.”

“Is that the reason why you couldn’t pick up your phone?”

Grimacing, he rubbed the back of his neck while trying to come up with an explanation he felt would appease her. “Not exactly. I felt that it was necessary to put some distance between us so you aren’t subjected to my bullshit.”

“That’s not a decision that you get to make for me.”

“Dealing with me ain’t a walk in the park, Dani bae.” His nose twitched upon realizing how comfortable he was with using a pet name for her. “My girl walked out on me and left her ring on the table, because I couldn’t get my shit together with her.”

“And with all due respect, I’m not her.” Danica came to a stop, turning to look up at him. “Is it hard dealing with someone who’s suffering from trauma, you’re damn right about that. But hurt people have a way of understanding other hurt people. I’m not letting you push me away. Don’t forget, you pulled me out of a car that was seconds away from blowing up, while somehow managing to keep me calm when I was sure that I was about to die. So the least I can do is listen to you vent.”

Everything that she was saying sounded like music to his ears, but Tucker was resistant for more reasons than one. If he let go of everything that he’d been harboring since the day he lost Charlotte, there would be nothing fueling him to push through his days.

He’d used his anger and hurt to get by, and without it, he had no idea how he would function. Part of him was almost afraid that he wouldn’t know what to do if life ever went back to being normal. At least, whatever was normal was for him.

“Danica,” he tried once again to get her to listen to reason, but she reached up to place a hand over his mouth, silencing him.

“You’re not getting rid of me.” She assured him. “Not that easily.”

What other choice did he have other than to agree to whatever it was she was demanding of him?

“Fine.” He jerked his face out of her reach. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you, alright?”

“I’ve survived teaching a sixth-grade class the difference between soprano, alto, and tenor. I’m sure I’ll fare with you just fine.”

“You think you're tough, huh?” He licked his lips as she pranced away from him, ponytail swinging in the wind.

She whirled around so that she was facing him and walking backwards. “No, you just aren’t as tough as you try and make yourself seem.” Danica argued with a shrug. “Not to me. You can put on that act for everyone else, Keaghan Tucker, but I see you.”

“Yeah?” He kept a watchful eye on the sidewalk behind her as they continued walking and talking. “And what is it that you think you see?”

“Right now, a man that needs somebody to be there for him the way he’s there for everybody else. A person that’s not going to allow you to push them away, that understands you have moments so dark that it feels like you’ll never see the light of day again. And I get it, trust me, but you can’t let it consume you. You have to push through it, because there’s people in the world that still need you.” Stopping in her tracks, Danica didn’t falter as Tucker walked directly into her personal space. “And you need someone that knows how hard it is to drag yourself out of bed in the morning and push through a day that you’re not even sure you want to see. Tucker,” she brought both of her hands to his face, steadying him. “All you really need is somebody that understands you. And I know that because, for the longest time, I needed somebody that could understand me.”

Gathering her into his arms, Tucker felt like he was having an out of body experience as he leaned down to capture her lips with his. Danica jumped in his arms from the unexpected gesture, but quickly accepted his display of affection.

Cupping her face in his hands, Tucker deepened their kiss, parting her lips with his tongue and delving it into her mouth. He had no idea what the hell he was doing, or which direction things were going.

All he knew was that for once, things felt right, and he wanted to hold onto the moment for as long as possible. The universe apparently had other plans, as the alarm from the station sounded off, causing the two of them to jump apart.

“I gotta go,” he mumbled, tracing his lips with his index finger. “Can I call you later?”

“Yes,” she answered quickly, putting him at ease.

“Go straight to your car, alright?” He broke away from her, halfway rushing to get back to the station. “I would walk you, but…”

“Go,” Danica encouraged, shooing him away.

With a final glance in her direction, he hurried back to hop on his truck for yet another call. A smile crossed his face when he realized that for the first time in a long time, he had something to look forward to when it was over.