But not for him, never for him.
He used to like knowing that nobody depended on him or needed him. That he wasn’t letting anybody down by risking his life to save others.
But now the knowledge tasted like dust in his mouth.
The truck pulled into the station, parking in the main garage. As soon as the engine was cut, Mark opened the door and stumbled down the steps. The rest of them did the same. They had no energy to do much more than let gravity do the work for them.
The families were waiting for them outside on the lawn. Lucas watched as his colleagues joined them, one by one. Just as he was about to turn around and head to the back, where his car was in the parking lot, he heard somebody call out.
“Lucas?”
He felt a shiver work its way down his spine. He looked up and saw Ember standing there, and for a second he wondered if it was his imagination. But then she smiled and walked toward him, and it felt as though every cell in his body lit up. Within sec
onds she was in front of him, her eyes soft as she stared up at his face, and the horror of the past few days began to fade.
“Are you okay?” she asked. “Does anything hurt?”
“Nothing hurts.” His voice sounded as rough as he felt. “I’m fine.”
Her smile widened. “Good, because I need to hug you.” She closed the gap between them and threw her arms around him, pulling Lucas into her embrace. He hadn’t known how much he needed this – the feeling of somebody holding him – until her body wrapped its way around his. She felt warm, sturdy, and so strong. He melted into her. She was stroking his face, his hair, his back, her touch as soft as cotton.
He closed his eyes for a moment, breathing her in. She smelled of flowers and sand, the perfect combination. She was clean and fresh – a sight for sore eyes – and he never wanted to let her go.
She inclined her head, a smile playing on her lips. Then she rose to her tip toes and gently pressed them against his mouth. Like the rest of her, Ember’s kisses were warm, welcoming, and delicious. His body shivered again, but this time with need. Something he hadn’t thought possible in his exhausted state.
When she pulled back he immediately missed her touch. But then she slid her arm around his waist, encouraging him to lean on her.
“Lucas Russell, you’re a mess,” she told him, looking down at the dirt that had transferred from his clothes to hers. When she brought her gaze back to his she was grinning again. “Let me take you home.”
28
Ember steered her car into her apartment block’s parking lot, sliding it into her usual space before putting it into park and turning to look at Lucas. He’d slept the whole way home, and she hadn’t minded one bit. That was the reason she’d suggested that she drive him and he leave his car at the station for them to pick up tomorrow.
The truth was, she hadn’t wanted him to drive. As soon as he stepped out of the fire truck he’d looked completely washed out. And no wonder. From what she’d heard the other families talking about, almost four days of fighting the wildfire had required non-stop physicality.
She smiled as she remembered the expression on his face when he’d spotted her waiting for him. His eyes had lit up, and for a moment the weariness had melted away, replaced by an intense longing she knew had also been reflected on her own face. When they held each other tight it had felt right – so right – as though it didn’t matter what happened in the rest of the world. As long as they had each other nothing could hurt them.
Turning to look at Lucas again, she couldn’t help but smile at his sleeping form. He looked innocent in slumber, younger than she knew he was. His eyelids fluttered, his lips shivered as though he was trying to speak. She reached out to touch his close-cropped hair, feeling the dirt that coated it. But she didn’t care about that, not one bit, he was home and that was all that mattered.
“Lucas,” she whispered, though she hated to wake him. If she could’ve carried him upstairs she would have. But his two hundred plus pound frame was no match for her light one, so waking him up would have to do. If he could get himself up to her apartment, she could carry the load for him after that. She’d strip him down, and wash his tight t-shirt that clung to every muscle he had. It would be a shame to throw it away…
“Mmm?” He twisted in his seat, making cute smacking noises with his mouth. She bit down a smile and traced his lips, wondering if it would be wrong to kiss him while he was sleeping.
“Lucas?”
“What?” This time he bolted upright, looking around with a frown on his face. “What’s happened?”
She laid a gentle hand on his arm. “It’s okay. We’re home.” As he slowly acclimatized to the dim light of early evening, she got out of the driver’s seat and walked around the car to his side, opening the door and offering him her hand.
He took her palm in his, not relying on her at all as he got out of the car. “I can’t help but feel this is all the wrong way round,” he told her. “Shouldn’t I be the one opening the doors?” He closed his own door behind him and she hit the button on her key fob to lock it, as they walked over to her apartment.
“The way I see it, we can both open doors. You’ve taken care of me enough times. I’d like to return the favor.”
He gave her a questioning look, but said nothing. The elevator arrived and they stepped inside, Ember pressing her floor number quickly, as Lucas leaned against the rail that circled the interior. His eyes were fluttering again, and she had to bite down a smile. Who knew he could be so gorgeous when he was this tired?
The elevator pinged when they reached her floor. Ember took Lucas’ hand again, leading him down the corridor to her apartment, within moments they were inside.
“Let’s get you straight into the shower,” she suggested. “Then you can sleep. Everything else can wait until you’ve recovered from your exhaustion.”