Page 23 of Tempered By Flames

Liam rubbed his face. “I was inside the building, and a beam came down. I didn’t have a choice. I caught it and pushed it away, and I didn’t realize that Taylor was there, and that he saw me. There’s no way to explain that as normal. It would’ve taken too much strength for a human to do what I did.”

Ethan was quiet for a second. “So he knows something is up with you.”

“Yeah. When we came out of the building, he said that we had to talk in his office once we were back at the station.”

“Why are you out here and not in his office, then?”

“He always has stuff to do after a fire. I’m sure he’s waiting for me, though.”

Ethan reached out to squeeze Liam’s arm. “Whatever happens, you did it to save a life. It was worth it.”

Liam knew Ethan was right, but that didn’t help him feel any less terrified. “I just worked so hard, you know? I thought this was finally it, the beginning of my new life.”

“It might still be. Look, I don’t know Taylor as well as West and Austin, but I’ve met him a few times, and I’ve talked to him. He’s a serious man, but he didn’t strike me as being unfair or like he would use it against you.”

“He’s a good man, but he just found out I’m not human. Most people would be terrified.”

“I don’t think that’s true. Most people would be hesitant, worried, and confused, at least initially, but terrified? You’re still the same Liam Taylor’s been working with for weeks. This doesn’t change who you are. It doesn’t change what you do, and I’m sure Taylor will be able to see that you became a firefighter because you wanted to help people. What better way for a dragon shifter to do just that?”

Liam swallowed. He hoped that Ethan was right because he wasn’t ready to lose all of this. He wasn’t ready to go home with his tail between his legs.

That was, of course, if Taylor didn’t report him to the authorities and they carted him away to experiment on him.

He groaned. “Yeah, okay. I’ll try to stay calm.”

“Good,” Ethan said with a smile, and Liam’s heart started racing for an entirely different reason.

Maybe he could obsess over Ethan instead of his impending conversation with Taylor, although that wouldn’t be safe for his heart, either.

Chapter Five

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ETHAN DIDN’T HAVE TO be with Liam to know that he was probably vibrating out of his skin. He’d been like that at the station, too, when Ethan had found him after the fire a few days ago. The alarm had gone off a few minutes into his conversation with Liam, and the team had left. From what Liam had texted Ethan after that, he and Taylor hadn’t had the opportunity to talk yet. They’d had a few more emergencies to answer, and by the time they’d been done, the shift had been over. Liam had booked it out of there, texting Ethan the entire time, but he was back at work today.

What if he fires me? Liam texted.

Ethan wanted to help him, but he didn’t know how. He truly didn’t think that Liam needed to be as worried as he was. He didn’t believe Taylor would do anything drastic or stupid. The man would have questions, as would anyone in his position, and he’d ask them without hesitation because that seemed like the kind of person he was, but he wouldn’t use that against Liam. Liam was just too panicked to realize that. When he did, he’d know that all of this was ridiculous and that he was freaking himself out for nothing.

Or maybe he’s going to call the authorities, Liam texted. They’re going to capture me and experiment on me. They’re going to open me up while I’m awake.

This was getting to be a little much for Ethan. He could feel Liam spiraling even from a distance. He desperately wanted to help, but he wasn’t sure how. He almost suggested that West and Austin could come out as shifters, too, to take some of the heat off Liam, but he couldn’t ask that of them. From what he knew from his conversations with Jonathan, the two had been wondering if it was time for them to come out to their team, but they hadn’t yet. They probably weren’t ready, and that was okay, but it also meant they couldn’t be a buffer for Liam.

Maybe someone else could talk to Taylor? But who? It had to be someone Taylor knew, so Ethan thought of Caleb. Austin’s boyfriend was a wolf shifter. Wolves weren’t as intimidating as dragons, so it could work, but once again, Ethan couldn’t ask someone else to out themselves as a shifter just to protect Liam.

He stared at the sketchpad in his hands. When he’d sat down, it had been to work, but there was nothing on the blank page. He hadn’t been able to stop obsessing over Liam and his situation, and the texts Liam kept sending weren’t helping. It didn’t look like Liam wanted answers so much as he was venting. He needed someone to listen to him, and Ethan liked being that person. He wanted to help more, though.

Maybe he could.

He swallowed. He didn’t usually willingly out himself as a chimera shifter. He’d done so when it came to West and Austin, and of course Liam, but that was because of the circumstances. He knew that the three were in his life to stay. West was dating Jonathan, and Austin was dating Caleb, and Jonathan and Caleb were both very good friends of Ethan. Besides, they were shifters. Ethan had been worried about how they’d take the fact that he was a chimera shifter, but he hadn’t had to worry about them freaking out over shifters existing. The same went for Liam.

Taylor was human. There was no way to know how he’d react, but at least he wouldn’t have anything bad to say about finding out that Ethan was a chimera shifter. He might not even know what chimera shifters were.

Ethan groaned and put down his pencil. Was he seriously thinking about willingly telling someone that he was a chimera shifter just to take the heat off Liam?

Yes, he was. Telling Liam what he was and having Liam react the way he had had emboldened Ethan. He’d never liked hiding what he was, but he’d done it out of necessity. He didn’t know if he could trust people, but he was pretty sure he could trust Taylor. In a way, Taylor was a member of their little group, too. Austin and West, and now Liam, made it sound like the team at the station were a family. Austin and West had been planning on telling their team what they were. This wasn’t the way any of them had wanted it to happen, but it was the way it had happened, and they had to deal with it. They also had to work with Taylor, though, which explained why they were so hesitant.

Ethan didn’t have to work with the man. In fact, he didn’t even have to see him ever again if things went wrong.