“He escaped again. Eric found him on top of the refrigerator.”
Rico looked as horrified as Vicki had felt when she’d heard. “Velcro jammies. That’s the solution. Stick that rascal to his bed.”
Vicki couldn’t help but laugh. “I like that idea. You should patent it.”
She made her way through the kitchen to the women’s staff restroom, where she changed into her uniform. She stepped back into the hallway and was tucking her handbag and clothes into her locker when Libby walked in wearing her work coveralls, purple bandana over her head, strawberry-blond hair in braids. It was clear from her face that she was upset.
“Are you okay?”
Libby jerked her locker open, shoved her backpack inside, and slammed it again. “If men weren’t stupid, I would be just fine.”
Uh-oh.
“Did you and Brandon have a fight?”
Libby sat on the bench, misery on her face. “He said we should get a place together. Can you believe that? We have a great time, and he wants to screw it up by making it serious.”
Vicki wasn’t sure what to say. “I’m sorry you’re having a rough day. I’m sure he didn’t say that to upset you.”
“You know what else he did? He told me he loves me and that I love him, too.”
“And that’s a bad thing because…?”
“I don’t want to love anyone!” Libby’s face flushed red. “When you love someone, they have the power to hurt you, to wreck your life. I don’t want that. I just want good sex and good times. Is that too much to ask?”
Vicki sat down next to her. “I know Brandon pretty well because he works for my husband. He’s a good guy, Libby. He’s not one of the jerks, and believe me, I’ve known some real jerks.”
That was an understatement.
Libby’s face crumpled, rage turning to anguish. “I know he is. But why did he have to go and complicate things?”
Vicki wasn’t sure Brandon was the one making this complicated, but she didn’t say so. “Being in love with a man who loves me is the best thing that’s happened to me. Sure, love is a risk, but life isn’t worth much without it.”
“You really believe that?”
“Yes, and I bet Brandon does, too. You can talk it over with him when he comes off his shift. This fire is pretty small, so I doubt he’ll end up working overtime.”
“Fire?” Libby’s eyes went wide.
Vicki recognized that fear. It was the same fear she felt every time Eric got toned out, the same fear every family member of a firefighter felt whenever their loved ones were called into action. But Vicki was the fire chief’s wife. She couldn’t let that fear show, not around the friends and family of Eric’s crew.
She willed herself to smile. “There’s a small fire west of town. Eric went up in a helicopter to get a look at it. He’s worried about the weather turning, but I’m sure they’ll get a handle on it. They’ll be okay.”
Joe stuck his head around the corner, smartphone in hand, his long hair tied up in a man bun. A handsome man of almost fifty, Joe, too, had a beard, though it was shorter now since he and Rain had gotten together. “Did either of you see Bear on your way in? Silver’s calling from the firehouse. They’re trying to locate him to make sure he’s nowhere close to this fire.”
Vicki and Libby shook their heads.
“He wasn’t at the roundabout.”
Joe disappeared again.
Vicki stood, gave Libby a hug. “It will work out. You’ll see.”
Chapter 4
Marc didn’tlike this at all. A little two-person tent sat on the lee side of an outcropping of rock. The rock protected the tent from wind and weather, but it also gave assholes a good place to hide. They could be up there right now, waiting for Marc and the others to get close enough for a lethal shot.
It’s what Marc would have done.