KingLiam69:
DM me. One of them is my girlfriend.
My heart stops, brain momentarily paralyzed. I’ve searched through hundreds and hundreds of comments so far, but this is the first one that says something like this. And it’s from a dude.
It takes me another half second for my motor cortex to speakto my fingers, then I’m on the guy’s profile, looking at the videos he’s posted. Sure as shit, the third one is of a brunette sipping a cocktail on the beach. The same brunette from the other night. Jordan.
I did it. I found the connection I needed to find Bryn.
“Ready?”
My ass flies out of the chair I’m in, phone flying across the desk in front of me. I didn’t hear my new lieutenant come back through the door to his office, but he’s standing there with his hands on his hips expectantly, the bulk of him taking up most of the doorframe.
Shit.
“Yeah, definitely.” A little sheepishly, I reach over and grab my phone from where it landed on a pile of papers and turn to him. “My bad, lieutenant. I’ve got this video that went—doesn’t matter. I’ll keep my phone—”
“Relax, man.” Nate’s dark eyebrows lower, the flat line of his lips moving into an easy smile. “We aren’t old school, old crew, no phones allowed. My first lieutenant was like that, and I vowed never to be like him.”
“Kind of how some guys vow never to be like their dad?” Myself included, I don’t add.
“Exactly like that.” Nate nods towards the door, a tousled piece of brown hair falling over his forehead with the movement. “If you’re ready to meet everyone, we’ve got roll call.”
The two of us met here before shift for a quick rundown of everything to expect today. He showed me my new locker and storage space for my turnout gear. It wasn’t the first time I met Nate, but it has officially become the longest I’ve spent with him, and so far, I like the guy. He’s kept things informal and friendly, asking a few casual questions while he gave me a quick tour of the station. We hadn’t seen anyone else in our travels, so this will be myfirst time meeting everyone.
It’s not often I’m nervous, but first days have given me the jitters ever since first grade when I walked in late and tripped in front of my entire class. It was bone-meltingly embarrassing when the kids started to laugh at me, and I’d wanted to disappear into the floor. Instead, I saved myself. Popping back up and ignoring the contents of my backpack strewn all over because I never closed it properly, I shouted a ta-da! The classroom exploded in an uproar of laughter, but it was with me, not at me.
I never forgot that first day of school—nor did I ever forgive my older brother, Gage, for being a pain in my mom’s ass and making me late in the first place. Maybe I should thank him, though. It gave me credit with the rest of the kids in my class, and after that, every first day was the same, even if I knew all the kids. Comedy and self-deprecating humor got me through. Or stupid stunts like tripping over my own feet just to get the other kids laughing. It drove my teachers crazy, but it helped me survive all the first days.
“You’re originally from Montana, right?” Nate asks as he leads me towards the meeting room.
“Yeah. Diamond River. Just south of Sheridan.”
“What brought you out here?”
Proving my old man wrong. “Firefighting. There’s a lot of volunteer work back home, which is how I got into it growing up. The junior firefighter program was great. A foot in the door that taught me a lot, but it was hard to get on anywhere near home.”
“You didn’t want to stay in Montana? Boise? Butte?” Nate asks.
He’s looking at me with genuine curiosity. This guy wants to know me. The small lift of his eyebrows, the tilt of his head, even the angle of his shoulders: slightly twisted in my direction. He probably doesn’t even realize he’s doing it.
It’s things like this that make it easier to trust a guy. To follow him and give him respect without knowing him.
“Figured if I was moving, I might as well make the move worth it.” I shrug, wondering if he’ll pick up on things I don’t say.
There’s a twitch in his lips, but he doesn’t say a word. Perceptive. He waits, giving me time to say something, but I don’t. Maybe one day I’ll share with him, but today isn’t that day.
“Fair enough,” he says as we reach a part of the station that’s noisier than the others. “Your new crew.”
Nate leads the way into the room but has no chance to say a word before the room erupts. I don’t even need to trip to make it happen.
“Holy fuck!”
“Oh my god.”
“There’s no way.”
“Are cowboys always this fast?”
