“Thatshitnevergetsany easier,” Cain groans, dropping down on the station’s living room couch.
“If it were easy, I’d be worried that you were losing touch with humanity,” I say, sitting on the other end and tossing him a bottle of water from the fridge before pulling out my phone to text Tessa. I have never had an issue with our work schedule before. There are plenty of stations that don’t give their crews as much time off as us, but it’s been two days since I’ve seen my girl, and it’s driving me a bit crazy.
Me:Hey, darlin’. Just wanted to let you know I’m back at the station. Had to step out on a call, but we are all good.
I’m sure, given the time, she’s either getting ready to leave the diner or she’s already on her way to pick up Jake from school. I’m on the tail end of my two-day shift, and I’m more than ready to have the next three off. I’ve been texting with Tessa as much as possible, but this last call took longer than anticipated. Knowing what she has been through, I don’t want her worrying about me if I can help it.
The last call that came in was for our behavioral health crisis team, which Cain and I are part of. Unlike emergency calls, this one came in directly to our station’s phone. Some of the calls we get come frompeople who are simply looking for someone to talk to and aren’t in need of medical assistance.
This guy was looking for exactly that. He said he felt alone, like he didn’t have anyone in his life who would understand him and the inner demons he’s battling. Cain is the one who answered the call, and after a few minutes on the phone, he decided a wellness-check was the best course of action. He didn’t answer the door right away, but when he finally did, we knew immediately that Cain had made the right decision.
We were there for a while, spending most of the time talking and evaluating his level of distress to determine whether or not a seventy-two-hour long involuntary hold was necessary. He declined any sort of hospital transport, but based on our observations and what he said, he wasn’t at risk of harming himself or others. He simply needed someone to talk to.
I can’t say for sure if we helped, but I would like to think we did. He seemed in desperate need of giving voice to some of what was going on in his head. Toward the end of the visit, we were chatting with the guy like we were all old friends, and it seemed to lift his spirits. We provided him with a few resources should he feel the need for them.
Hartridge is a small enough town that most people are familiar with their neighbors and the business owners and know when someone is just passing through. That’s not the case for everyone, and I hate knowing there’s someone in this town who is struggling, especially if there’s a way we can help. Now that we know where this guy lives, we need to make it a point for one of us to do a follow-up check in a few days.
My phone chimes in my hand, and I glance down to see a text from the woman who has been occupying my every waking thought.
And my dreams.
Darlin:Hi, Lo. Thanks for telling me! I’m picking up Jake & then we’re heading home.
Darlin:We’d love to have you join us for dinner if you can.
Lo.That nickname has no business stirring up a wave of emotion in my chest. The only other person who has ever called me that is Luke, but he hasn’t used the nickname since we were kids. How can a simple name bring me such a sense of peace and belonging? It’s crazy to think I moved to Hartridge, not just to be closer to my brother, but to find a community. It’s something that was greatly missing from my life in the city. Back then, the hours were grueling, and we rarely went a shift without dealing with a major emergency. Even if we had time to do things outside of work, the mental and emotional toll that the job took often left me feeling like a shell of a human.
The crew here at Hartridge F.D. not only has begun to feel like a family but the community has as well. Granted, we still train and keep everything ready to go in case we are pulled away to handle an actual fire, but we also handle the type of calls I would have laughed at back in the city. Like replacing batteries in smoke detectors for those who can’t do it themselves, only to spend forty-five minutes chatting with them while they insist I try a piece of cake they baked. And we actually have the time to do things like firehouse tours for Scouts who are working toward earning a badge.
I may have loved the rush of adrenaline that came with nearly every shift in the city, but the slower pace of working in his town is exactlywhat I needed. Still, as much as I love it, I would give almost anything to be able to spend the rest of the evening with Tessa and her son. A smile curls over my lips as I tap out a response.
Me:I wish I could join you. I’ve still got a couple of hours left here.
Suddenly, a throw pillow comes flying toward me and knocks my phone from my hand as Cain’s laughter fills the room.
“The fuck, man?” I laugh, grabbing it and throwing it back at him.
“You’re sure smiling an awful lot these days for a guy who was in a deep ass rut when I first met him,” he says, tossing it aside.
“Guess that’s true,” I concede.
His brows furrow as his head cocks to the side. “You’re smitten.”
My head drops back against the back of the couch as I laugh, running my palm over my face. “Smitten. Really? Is that what we’re calling it these days?”
“You got a better word for a guy who stares at his phone with hearts in his eyes?”
“Who has hearts in their eyes?” Kinsley asks, strolling in from the bay. She braces her hands on the back of the couch, glancing between us.
Cain tips his chin in my direction. “Bennett over here. He’s got it bad.”
“For Tessa, the woman we ran into at the grocery store?” she asks, standing back and folding her arms over her chest. Concern is written across her face.
“We met at The Stampede before that. Been seeing each other since.” I would say she’s my girlfriend, but when you’re in your thirties like weare, that term feels a little lacking. “Speaking of, what was with your warning about hopin’ I know what I’m doing?”
She rolls her lips inward as her gaze flicks to Cain, then settles back on me. “I’ve lived in this town most of my life. I just… Tessa has been through a lot. She doesn’t need someone who’s going to mess with her heart or her head.”
My first instinct is to be offended by what she says. Is that what she thinks I’m doing? I haven’t known anyone here all that long, and I sure as fuck haven’t done anything to warrant any of them thinking I would get involved with her for the sake of messing around. But then I let the tone of her voice and the hesitation behind her words sink in.
