She massaged her pounding temples. This shouldn’t be such a hard decision. Other people didn’t have so much trouble deciding what path to follow.

  Well...other people hadn’t lost everyone they’d ever loved. Her gaze shot to Missy. Almost everyone. Fear gripped her throat at the thought of anything happening to Missy, but she fought off the urge to pull her out of the bounce house and into her arms. Barely.

  Besides, hadn’t her decision already been made when she hadn’t shared what she knew with the police officers? Of course, she could still ask Jack to contact Gabe and tell him everything.

  A flurry of activity caught her attention, pulling her from things she’d rather not contemplate anyway. More people gathered around the scanner. One woman held her bottom lip between her teeth, another twisted a band around and around her left ring finger. A man ran a hand over his near crew cut. The slight undercurrent of tension she’d felt earlier had blossomed. Something was wrong.

  “Missy.” Ava leaned into the bounce house and gestured for Missy to come to her.

  “What?” Missy kept jumping, but at least she started toward Ava.

  “Come here, babe.” Urgency pummeled her, but she kept it at bay, not wanting to scare Missy. “I want to get something to drink.”

  “Can I have a juice box?”

  “Sure, honey.”

  With one final bounce, Missy jumped into her arms.

  Ava staggered under the weight, then set her down and held her hand as she crossed the lawn to the coolers beneath the table where the group continued to grow. Keeping Missy tucked between her leg and the cooler, she lifted the top for Missy to choose her drink. Ava scanned the small crowd. “Is something wrong?”

  A woman she didn’t recognize looked up with tears in her eyes. Her eyes darted toward Missy for an instant before she lowered her voice. “There was a partial collapse. Firefighters are trapped inside.”

  Jack! An iron fist clutched her heart and squeezed. She couldn’t force air into her lungs. “Is everyone all right?”

  She shook her head. “We don’t know yet.”

  Serena walked toward her carrying a large tray filled with sandwiches. When her gaze met Ava’s she slowed and her eyes went wide.

  Ava understood the reaction, the same reaction she’d had when she looked through the peephole and found firefighters at her door the day Liam was killed, the almost unbearable urge to flee. Because if you didn’t hear the words, it wouldn’t be real.

  Missy tugged at her shirt. “Mama!”

  The aggravation in Missy’s voice pulled Ava out of her stupor. Obviously, she’d called her more than once. “I’m sorry, honey. What did you say?”

  “Help.” She held up the juice box and the straw she’d ripped from its side.

  “Sure.” She shook her head to clear some of the fog. She unwrapped the straw and popped it through the top of the drink, then handed it back to Missy just as Serena reached her side.

  “What happened?”

  Ava’s heart ached for Serena. Earl was her husband, the father of her children. They’d spent more of their lives together than they had apart. “A partial collapse. With firefighters trapped.”

  Serena squeezed her eyes closed and took a few deep breaths. When she finally opened them again, she seemed in control. “Okay, then.”

  She reached for Ava’s hand, then extended her other hand to Miss Jenny, who was standing next to her. Others joined in, forming a circle as they lowered their heads in prayer.

  Missy leaned her head against the front of Ava’s leg, thumb in her mouth.

  “Mom!” Serena’s oldest son jogged toward them.

  Ava gripped her hand tighter as everyone turned.

  Two firefighters followed Alex across the field.

  When Alex reached his mother, he put an arm around her shoulder and waited for the firefighters.

  Serena stiffened but held her ground. She waited without saying a word or turning her gaze from the approaching firefighters.

  Memories assailed Ava. She lowered her gaze, unable to take the hurt in the men’s eyes as they crossed to Serena, no doubt to impart bad news. Her grip on Serena’s hand tightened.

  Then she realized Jack’s mother stood on Serena’s other side, staring at the approaching men as well. Maybe it wasn’t Serena they were coming to talk to.

  “Serena.” The first firefighter to reach her, Ben Stevens, took her free hand in his. “Earl’s been hurt.”

  “Hurt?”

  “He was inside when the floor collapsed. He’s on his way to the hospital.”

  She kept her composure. “How bad?”

  “I don’t know yet. He was unconscious when Jack brought him out.”

  Relief surged through Ava, slumping her shoulders, followed by a wave of guilt. Jack must be okay, but Earl wasn’t. She lifted Missy into her arms. “Come on, Serena. I’ll take you to the hospital.”

  Serena nodded and started forward, her movements stiff, as one of the other women wrapped an arm around Miss Jenny.

  Somehow, Ava got Serena to the car and headed toward the hospital.

  As the miles passed—slower than Ava would have thought possible—Serena stayed quiet and stared out the window. Ava understood and left her to her thoughts. Unfortunately, when Missy dozed off in the car seat, Ava was alone with her thoughts as well.

  This time her memories brought her back further than Liam’s death, to another painful time. Liam had been killed instantly. At least she could rest with the knowledge he hadn’t suffered.

  Her brother, Tommy, had suffered greatly. She’d never forget the phone call that had woken her barely a year after she’d moved out of the home where she’d grown up. Her parents and Tommy had been in a bad accident on their way back from a weekend trip upstate. A trip Ava would have been on if she hadn’t gotten a new job that prevented her from leaving town that weekend.

  Ava wiped tears from her cheeks as she pulled up to the emergency room doors. “Go, Serena. I’ll find a parking spot and meet you inside.”

  “Thank you.” Serena squeezed her hand before jumping from the car and running through the automatic doors.

  Ava circled the lot, passing a number of open parking spots that were filling rapidly. News of an injured firefighter would spread, and people would come, offer support, because that’s what people in small communities did. They were a family. And Ava had no right to stick around and put them in danger. She started out of the lot. But she couldn’t leave without knowing if Big Earl would be okay. She couldn’t leave without standing by Serena’s side in case she needed her. Ava had been forced to deal with Liam’s death alone. She couldn’t leave Serena. She wouldn’t. Biting back a scream so as not to wake Missy, she pulled into a spot close to the exit.

  She’d check on Serena, and then she was out of there. Serena might not understand why she’d left, but it was safest for everyone. She parked and jumped out of the car, hefting the flight bag over her shoulder in case she couldn’t make it back, and carefully lifted Missy into her arms. The longer she stayed asleep, the easier it would be to make a run for it.

  * * *

  Jack sat slumped in a chair in the hospital waiting room, elbows resting on his knees, head down, hands clasped over the back of his head. The adrenaline rush had finally started to subside, leaving him shaky.

  “Jack.”

  He looked up and found Patrick Ryan—one of the other firefighters who’d helped him pull Earl out—standing in front of him.

  “The little boy’s gonna be all right, man.” He clapped Jack on the shoulder. “I figured you’d want to know.”

  Too choked with emotion to speak, Jack simply nodded his appreciation. Pat would understand, just like he’d understood Jack would need to know and had gone to find out the child’s status. But he’d never understand the pain Jack had suffered when he’d looked down into that little boy’s face to be sure he was breathing and had seen a child the size his own son would be now, a child who’d grown and gone on with no memory of the man who’d once loved him like his own.

  Pat crossed the room and stood against the wall since there were no seats left in the crowded waiting room. As it turned out, it hadn’t only been Earl caught in the collapse. Two other firefighters had been on the first floor when the ceiling caved in on them. One of them was in surgery now, and the other was still having tests run. Thankfully, they’d been able to pull them out quickly. Otherwise, the results would have been much worse.

  Jack rubbed his hands over his face and sat up, needing to move to rid himself of the images that were tormenting him. He looked around the room at the group of men and women assembled there. Volunteer firefighters from their own house as well as from several surrounding towns. A good group of people, with a strong sense of community. A family of sorts. The realization that being part of a small, close-knit community wasn’t such a bad thing brought confusion as much as anything else.

  Maybe it was time to think about settling down and returning. The sentiment slammed into him with all the force of a punch in the gut. Home. No matter how long he’d lived in the city, his apartment there had never really been home. Every time he returned to Seaport to visit his mother, the feeling of coming home overwhelmed him. He’d grown up with Pat Ryan, had played Little League with him and his older brother, Brad, for years. One of the firefighters who’d been injured was an old friend of Jack’s sister.

  But he’d wanted to be a firefighter his whole life—had worked hard to achieve his goal, to follow in his father’s footsteps—and Seaport had an all-volunteer fire department. In the city, he was paid to do what he loved. In Seaport, he’d have to choose a different career, only work as a firefighter when needed and when he could get away from work if called.

  A commotion from the hallway halted him mid-thought. Thankfully, or he’d wind up living back in Seaport, in a little house with a big yard, a white picket fence and a puppy. And maybe a few kids, all with big blue eyes and blond curls like their mother. Whoa! He shot to his feet. Where on earth had that thought come from? He shook his head, ridding himself of a vision that was all too appealing. If he ever did settle down in that little house, it would most definitely not be with a woman who already had a child. He’d traveled that path once before and had no intention of doing so again.

  Ava strode through the waiting room door with Mischief in her arms, head resting on Ava’s shoulder, arms hanging at her sides, apparently sleeping. Funny how innocent she looked in sleep without that spunky fire in her eyes.

  Several men jumped up and offered Ava their seats, but she waved them off with a thank-you and walked directly to Jack.

  His heart soared, and he opened his arms to her.

  After only a moment of hesitation, she leaned into him.

  He pulled her into his embrace, tucking Mischief between them, careful not to wake her. He dropped a quick kiss on top of Ava’s head an instant before she stepped back and wiped the tears from her cheeks. She tilted her head to look up at him, and his heart broke at the pain in her eyes. This couldn’t be easy for her, had to bring back painful memories. He fought the growing desire to pull her into his arms and shelter her. There was no way to save her from her own memories. He’d probably only make it harder for her.

  He shoved his hands into his pockets.

  “What happened?” A tremor ran through her as her gaze raked over him. “Are you hurt?”

  He shook his head quickly. “No, no. I’m fine.”

  “Earl?”

  “We haven’t heard anything yet, but he did regain consciousness in the ambulance, so I think that’s good.” He swiped a still-trembling hand through his hair.

  “Where’s Serena?”

  “I believe she’s in the chapel with her kids and Father Walter.”

  Ava nodded, a concerned frown marring her features. “Is something wrong?”

  “Uh...” What could he say, that he was trying to choke down the sudden desire to buy a home in Seaport and have a houseful of children? That he’d spent the last few hours reliving the pain of Carrie leaving him and taking Matthew with her? “I’m good.”

  But he wasn’t. Not really. He was supposed to stay in Seaport for six months. That’s it. Then he was going back to the city and resuming his life. Alone. The thought suddenly didn’t appeal quite as much as it once had. But what else could he do? “Did you talk to the police?”

  She lowered her gaze and shook her head, but not before he saw the instant of terror flash in her eyes.

  “Did something happen?”

  She cradled her little girl even closer to her, looked around and lowered her voice. “He called from right across the street, stood there staring at me, daring me to tell the police everything, and I caved.”

  “Okay, all right.” He couldn’t blame her. The woman was clearly terrified, had already lost her husband and was trying desperately to keep her child safe. He stroked a hand over Missy’s silky hair. “We’ll figure something out.”

  “No, you don’t under—”

  “Mama?” Mischief lifted her head from Ava’s shoulder. “Fireman Jack?”

  Ava’s breath hitched.

  “Yes, honey, it’s fine. Everything’s okay.” He led Ava downstairs to a quiet section of the lobby where a small cafeteria and gift shop stood. “Can I get you anything? Something to drink?”

  Ava shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  The last thing Jack needed in the midst of his current turmoil was a complication like Ava and her daughter. While he’d never get involved with the fragile woman romantically, despite his ridiculous impulses, probably brought on by all the stress, it was clear she needed help. At the very least, a friend, someone she could confide in.

  Mischief frowned at her mother. “Mama?”

  “Here, why don’t you come to me for a minute and let your mom sit and rest.” When he opened his arms for her, she flung herself into them, and his heart stuttered.

  Ava sat down hard on one of the plastic chairs.

  “Come on. Why don’t we see what they have in the gift shop?”

  “Yay.” Mischief clapped her hands together, instantly forgetting there was anything strange going on, in the way only the innocence of childhood would allow.

  Jack walked into the gift shop with her in his arms but kept a watchful eye on Ava and anyone walking through or lingering in the lobby.

  “That one.” She pointed at a big, fluffy, black puppy with ears that stood straight up. “Mama says no puppy.”

  “Oh, she does, huh?” He lowered her to the floor, and she ran to it.

  “Yup, not ’til I’m big.” When she reached into the open box to hug the animal, it barked. Not the cute little yip you’d expect from a toy puppy, but a deep, ferocious bark worthy of a full-grown Rottweiler. She giggled wildly, and he couldn’t resist the sheer joy radiating from her.

  Jack laughed. “Are you sure that’s the one you want?”

  “Yup. I sure.” She hugged the pup tight, and it growled as if in warning. “I love Puppy.”

  “Okay. Puppy it is, then.” He was pretty sure Ava would be okay with a puppy that wasn’t real. At least, he hoped so, because there was no way he was disappointing Mischief.

  “Yay!” She clutched the dog to her, box and all, and the dog growled and barked again...and again...and again. Uh-oh.

  “But you have to take real good care of him.” Maybe it would be practice for when Ava crumbled and gave in to Missy’s demands for a real puppy. If Ava could get past her current situation, he had a feeling Mischief could talk her mom into just about anything with one pleading look from those big blue eyes. He’d sure have a hard time saying no to her.

  Jack took Missy’s hand and turned, only to find Ava standing there glaring at him.

  “Uh...” What could he say? Nothing, so he went with what he hoped was a charming smile. “Mischief wants Puppy.”

  Missy held the dog up to show Ava, squeezing away to make him growl and bark, finding joy in the midst of chaos as only a child could.

  Ava lifted a brow toward the dog, but a smile played at the corners of her mouth. “You obviously don’t have kids.”

  “What can I say?” He winked at Mischief and laid a hand gently on Ava’s back then guided her through the narrow shop’s aisles as they moved toward the register. “She loves Puppy.”

  “Uh-huh.” Though she finally smiled, her eyes remained guarded, wary, as her gaze skittered around the shop and across the lobby.

  A niggle of fear crept up his spine, and he shifted to put himself between Ava and Mischief and the gift shop’s open doorway while he paid for the new puppy. Once done, he checked the lobby before leading them to a small seating area situated away from any windows. Before he could ask Ava what she wanted to do, his phone rang, and he glanced at the caller ID. “I have to get this.”

  Ava nodded and sat directly behind Missy, who knelt on the floor and propped Puppy on a low table. She fished a small brush out of Puppy’s box and started to tame his fluff.

  Keeping watch over them, Jack prayed for good news as he answered. “Hey, Pat, what’s up?”

  “Hey, man, I didn’t know where you disappeared to, but I wanted to let you know Big Earl’s going to be fine.”

  Jack’s breath shot out in a whoosh of relief. “Oh, thank God.”

  “He’s got a mild concussion,” Pat laughed, “but he’s already giving everyone a hard time about staying overnight for observation. Looks like that hard head of his finally came in handy.”

  Jack grinned and gave Ava a thumbs-up sign.

 

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