Up in Smoke (Hotshots 4)

“Shelby?” Shane’s voice carried back to the couch.

Holy fuck. Brandt was on his feet before he even realized what he was doing, same reflexes that had kept him safe from falling debris multiple times sending him straight to Jewel’s swing, positioning himself in front of it. The pounding in his chest increased, adrenaline heightening all his senses.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Shane asked as Shelby entered the house.

“A nurse called. Said the baby was sick.” Her hair was longer than before, a little more scraggly, and her face was more gaunt, high cheekbones slashing across a paler face. Shelby’s cut-off jeans and faded music festival T-shirt made her look younger than Shane, not older.

“She’s fine now.” Brandt crossed his arms over his chest. Funny how only a few weeks ago he’d prayed for her to turn back up, but now his voice was hard. He was more than ready to fight to keep his baby safe.

“It was only an ear infection,” Shane added. His jaw was tight like his teeth were grinding away at metal shavings. He’d seemed uncomfortable earlier, but it had been frustration, not anger in his voice then. His tone had shifted to something cold, anger rolling off him at a rate that Brandt wasn’t sure he’d ever seen from the guy.

“I was worried.” Shelby’s voice wavered.

“Shouldn’t you have been worried when you left your kid with me?” Shane’s skin was mottled with red now, and he was back to wearing a hole in the carpet with his pacing.

“I figured...” Shelby started defiant, but then her face crumpled. “I don’t know. I thought she’d be safer with you. Like I always felt. But then that nurse said she was sick and they needed to know what shots she’d had, and I didn’t know what to do. Just started driving.”

Brandt didn’t cope well with tears on the best of days, and after this week, he was in even less shape to deal with the onslaught of waterworks.

“She’s fine now,” he repeated, gentler now, moving so Shelby could see Jewel.

“Oh. She’s so big now.” Shelby fell to her knees in front of the swing.

“Yup. It’s crazy what a month will do.” Shane continued to stare his sister down. Not liking their arguing, Brandt’s stomach twisted. And it was crazy. Had it really only been a month? It felt like a lifetime, but not in a bad way, more that he was a different person now.

A dad. Ever since that night at the clinic, the title had seemed to fit more, like a shirt that had shrunk down to the right size at last. And now that he had that role, he wasn’t giving it up. He spared a glance at Shane. He was something else now too, something that still didn’t have a name, but hell if he was walking away from that either.

But right then, his top priority had to be Jewel, even if parts of him wanted to go to Shane, to soothe his anger and hurt.

“What do you want, Shelby?” Brandt crouched next to her, keeping his voice low, still wary and on edge.

“I don’t know.” She kept staring at the baby, not touching her but not looking away either. “Some lady lawyer has been leaving me messages...”

“Of course you don’t know what you want. No surprise there.” Shane sounded more tired than mad, but the bite was still there in his voice.

“Shane...” Having heard enough stories about Shelby and Shane’s losing efforts to keep her out of trouble, Brandt understood where the anger was coming from, but Shane also wasn’t helping anything either.

“I’m due on stage in forty minutes. I do not have time for this.” Shane raked at his hair.

“Why don’t you head to your gig?” Brandt suggested, trying to keep his tone neutral. “I can handle things here.”

“Yeah, maybe I should go.” Shane picked up his guitar case and bag.

“Do you need my keys?” Still keeping it light, Brandt dug in his pocket, but Shane held up a hand.

“I’ll take the RV.”

“Parking—”

“It’s a big lot. I’ll work it out.” Shane’s jaw was firm enough to sharpen an ax and his eyes were equally steely. He headed to the door, and Brandt stepped away from Shelby and Jewel to follow him.

“Be right back,” he said to Shelby, who was still peering at Jewel. She didn’t seem likely to move, let alone snatch her up, and Brandt couldn’t let Shane leave with this head of steam.

“Don’t.” Shane shook his head as they reached the steps, door shutting softly behind them.

“I get it. You’re mad.”

“Mad?” Shane blinked. “She left Jewel. She didn’t answer messages for weeks. And now she shows up, no warning, ready to ruin everything... Mad isn’t even half of it.”

“Maybe—”

“You’re going to give her the benefit of the doubt? No. Defend her all you want, but I finished making her excuses a long time ago.”