A Firefighter in Her Stocking

“Thank you.”

* * *

“For?” Jude almost stumbled backward. Not because of the people moving around him but because of the woman radiating inner beauty toward him.

Sarah was breathtaking.

How he’d not noticed that months ago was mind-boggling, but now that he had, he wanted to soak in her exquisiteness.

Just as he wanted to see that smile over and over and was apparently willing to go to great lengths to do so.

Which made him question why he was going to such lengths with Sarah. Possibly the hurt he’d seen in her eyes over the idiot who’d stood her up and Jude wanting to erase that pain, to replace those memories with ones so magical she’d never doubt her value again. That she’d never let any man dump on her, because she’d not seen herself as worthy of better. He’d show her how she deserved to be treated so in the future she’d not settle for some man who didn’t appreciate what a treasure she was.

Not that Jude liked to think of her with another man, but he wasn’t a relationship kind of guy. He’d been a fool to think he had been with Nina. He’d learned better and that wasn’t a lesson he’d forget.

Keeping Sarah’s hand tucked in his, he guided them through the crowd and into the line to enter the theater.

“This. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” She glanced around, taking in the ornate decorations visible through the open doors. “This is so beautiful.”

Her excitement was contagious and Jude couldn’t keep the smile off his face. Everything about Sarah was delightful. Any moment he expected her to spin around as if she were in a dream. Good. That’s how he wanted her to feel.

“Just wait until you are inside the actual theater.”

Excited blue-green eyes met his. “That good, huh?”

He hadn’t necessarily thought about it being so on his previous visit, but he knew seeing the theater, the production, through Sarah’s eyes was going to be an entirely different experience for him.

That everything, through Sarah’s eyes, was new.

“That good,” he agreed, pulling their tickets out of his jacket’s inside pocket.

They made their way to their seats and he was glad they were as good as the sales agent had promised. He wanted tonight to be as amazing as Sarah had dreamed of. Better.

Her face shone with the excitement of someone who had looked forward to this moment for a long time and he was the lucky guy who got to share it with her.

Why hadn’t she gone on her own when it was something she’d wanted to do for years? Why hadn’t she gone with a friend? With a family member? By herself?

“Look. There’s the chandelier!”

He chuckled. “Shh, you’re supposed to be pretending that you don’t see that yet.”

She laughed and ran her gaze over the ornate ceiling. “I can’t believe I’m here. I’m really here.”

At one point in the show, she grabbed his hand and, not seeming to notice, held on.

Jude didn’t mind. He enjoyed Sarah’s warm, capable hand holding his.

A hand that could save a life.

A hand that could pull him closer or push him away.

No doubt before everything was said and done she’d do both.

A heaviness settled over his chest.

Sarah was different from any woman he’d known. He’d recognized that immediately, had been intrigued by her outside his apartment door, impressed by her at the hospital, fascinated by her at her apartment, protective of her at his, enthralled by her tonight.

There had been few times in his life when he’d made an effort to impress a woman.