Up in Smoke (Hotshots 4)

“Me?” Brandt settled himself in one of the chairs.

“Yeah, yeah.” Shane kissed the top of his head before he took the other chair. “You too.”

“I’m wounded.” Brandt couldn’t stop staring at him even as he joked, couldn’t resist jostling his knee simply to have an excuse to touch him. “And she’s got a bunch of new words now. Tried telling her to slow down the growing, but you know the diva.”

“She looks bigger. And you look damn good yourself.” Shane swept his gaze over Brandt, blatant appreciation that made Brandt acutely aware of exactly how many hours it had been since he last had Shane in his bed.

“Thanks.” Brandt’s voice came out all husky. Maybe Shane could be convinced to skip dinner.

“How long are you in town?” Shane took Brandt’s hand, rubbing his fingers like he was trying to make sure he was really there. “I thought you had a shift this weekend.”

“Benefit of still being part-time is it’s easier to trade away hours. Ryland was happy to swap.” That was the whole reason Brandt wasn’t on this tour. Much as he’d liked being Shane’s entourage and Jewel’s dad, he’d missed the fire community a lot. So he’d gotten on with a hellitack crew, using his smoke jumper experience to get certified in short haul rescues. No more parachutes, but the ropes and rigging were plenty of an adrenaline rush. This early in the season, his main role was as a backup for other crew members, but come August and September he’d be closer to full-time as more fires cropped up. And as Jewel got older, the plan was to take on more hours as he could, especially when Shane wasn’t touring.

“Tell him thanks.”

“Will do. But no way were we going to miss your birthday.” Brandt squeezed Shane’s hand. Jewel was still happy with her snack and was playing peekaboo with a rack of Western shirts. “We’re here for this show and the Portland one, then taking you home with us. Wanted to see you close the tour out.”

“Can’t wait to be home.” Shane exhaled hard and let his head fall on Brandt’s shoulder. “Damn. Love the audiences we’ve been pulling, but I hate the road.”

“Well, we’re ready to have you home for a good long while.” Brandt wasn’t too proud to admit that he liked having Shane home best of all. He was super proud of Shane and the career he’d carved for himself, but their little house wasn’t truly a home without him in it.

“Good. Because I fully intend to take my time with this new album.” Swinging Brandt’s hand, Shane gave him a meaningful smile.

“Got enough material?” Brandt waggled his eyebrows at him just to earn another smile.

“That you volunteering to be my muse?”

“Always.” Not able to wait another second, Brandt leaned down and gave him a soft kiss that he was intending to be soft and friendly, but even the brief contact made heat pool low in his belly.

“Damn,” Shane groaned and shifted on the chair. “Do not write checks your body isn’t cashing in a hotel room with a toddler.”

“I brought the nanny. She’s enjoying some downtime and the pool at the hotel, but I got her and Jewel a separate room.”

“Estelle’s here?” Shane grinned widely. When Brandt had made the decision to return to part-time fire work, they’d needed more childcare help. Brandt’s new friend Ryland had hooked them up with a cousin of his partner, a wonderful, energetic older woman who’d raised her own children and who was looking for a new challenge. And as much as Brandt loved being just the three of them, his little triangle of a family, he was also looking forward to a little alone time with Shane, who apparently felt the same way. “I really do love you.”

“Love you too. And she’s not the only tagalong. Shelby’s supposed to meet us in Portland.” He said the last bit of news carefully.

“You talked to her?” Shane’s mouth quirked like he was trying not to frown. His relationship with his sister was still complicated, and like Brandt, he’d spent a lot of hours worrying over her.

“Yeah. I called to remind her you had a birthday, and she picked up for once. She sounded good. Healthy. Think this new counselor is helping.”

In the months after Brandt’s permanent custody petition had been granted, Shelby had bounced around a fair bit, but she’d finally decided to seek some mental health care. It had been a rocky road, lots of ups and downs, but she seemed to be in a better place lately.

“Wow. This is the best birthday—”

“You said that last year, too,” Brandt reminded him, twirling the ring on Shane’s hand.

“True. I did get nifty hardware out of that one.” Shane gave him a fond smile. “You do have a way of making holidays memorable.”