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ChapterFifteen
The moment Andrea pulled up to the fire station, she knew that she would be enjoying this project a whole lot. It would be a change from her regular and profitable Facebook Ad consultancy job, but she wasn’t worried. This was far easier than what she normally did, a little bit more time-consuming and hands-on, but nevertheless easier.
Taking out her camera, she took a few photos of the entrance and the hangar-like structure at the front that currently held two fire trucks and an ambulance. As she stepped through the entrance, she realized there was no one around, but there were a set of stairs at the back, and she could hear noise coming from above. She could also see that there were a set of rooms on the landing along a long corridor that overlooked the truck hangar. After snapping a few more photos of the protective gears neatly stacked on shelves attached to the walls, she made her way up the stairs leading to the first floor.
The first room she passed along the corridor was a kitchenette, and the next two rooms looked like offices. When she made it to the final room, which was much larger than the others, she could see through the window that there were a number of lounge chairs and couches scattered throughout. A number of men in the same tunic she’d seen Donny in were relaxing on the furniture. She turned off the flash of her camera so she wouldn’t startle them and to get a few candid photos. Andrea aimed the device and snapped in quick succession. As she moved further around toward the door, she saw Donny slightly turned away from her, laughing with one of his colleagues. Andrea smiled at his notable ease. She raised the camera and snapped him. As if sensing her presence, he looked over his shoulder and caught her eye through the glass. Andrea gave him a simple wave. Donny turned to say something to the man, who in turn looked in her direction before he turned and came toward the door.
“Miss Hamilton, I wasn’t aware you would be coming here today. I could have better prepared the—”
“Oh no, that’s fine. I’m actually happy you didn’t know I was on my way here. It gave me a better chance at catching you in your element, not just what you think is to be presented. And please just call me Andrea,” she greeted him back.
“Okay,” he agreed. “You seem to have a knack for catching me off guard.” He laughed as he ushered her into the room. “Please come in. Let me introduce you to the rest of the guys.”
As soon as she entered the room, her anxiety reared up as the men stared at her, not saying anything.
“Guys, this is Andrea Hamilton. She’s the one who will be restructuring our website.”
“Hello everyone, it’s a pleasure to meet you all,” she greeted with a smile.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, too, Miss Hamilton,” one of the men broke the awkward silence that had settled over the room to greet her.
“You didn’t tell us she would be this pretty lieutenant,” another called out.
Andrea felt her cheeks warming over and was certain her cheeks were bright red.
“Nice to meet you, Miss Hamilton. It’s always a pleasure to have another female around every once in a while.”
Andrea caught herself before the gasp left her lips. She gave the woman who was currently sporting a low buzz cut and looked to be about four inches taller than her a smile.
“Please call me, Andrea,” she implored as she shook the woman’s hand.
Soon enough, the others lined up to shake her hand and welcomed her to their fire station. Everyone resumed their previous positions and conversations, and for that, she was grateful.
“So, how long have you worked here?” she asked the only female in the fold whose name she found out was Celeste.
“Five years,” she answered.
Andrea shook her head, contemplating.
“I know what you really want to ask.”
“Really?” Andrea questioned the woman’s bold statement.
“Yup. I bet you want to know why I chose to become a firefighter.”
Andrea laughed. “That may have been one of the questions on my list,” she confessed.
The woman chuckled.
“So, why did you?”
Celeste placed her hand over her chest as she stared ahead. Andrea wondered if she was going to answer the question, considering how long she took to open her mouth.
“My house burned down when I was eight because the response of the fire team was too slow. We all managed to get out, but then my little brother died from the damage to his lungs from inhaling too much smoke.”
Andrea felt her heart break for the woman standing before her as she relived the harrowing experience that cost the life of her brother.
“So yeah, it was a no-brainer for me that I would become a firefighter,” she finished with an air of nonchalance.
