The tall, brawny, Black squad officer’s enormous boots tromped over to stand beside average-sized Edwards. “I called for another hand. Cash must have been the only one who heard me. I don’t mean to encroach on your authority with your engine crew.”
“Well, see that you don’t, then.”
Flash stiffened—did Edwards just snarl at Lieutenant Jackson? Her unbelievably rude lieutenant pivoted and walked away. She resisted the urge to flip him off—barely.Never needed permission to save a life before, she grumbled to herself.
“Let’s pack up our equipment and get out of here!” Edwards roared.
Exchanging a look with Jackson, Flash felt compelled to apologize. “Sir, I’m so sorry about that. He shouldn’t have been disrespectful to you.”
Jackson clapped a hand on her shoulder. “It’s hard being assigned a command in a new house, especially when everyone loved the guy before you, so, I’d cut him a little slack. Still,” he mused, quirking his mouth into a half-smile, “my offer stands whenever you’re ready for a change.”
Flash watched him go, her heart still pounding—not from the fire, not from the near miss, but from the sting of being treated like a problem when all she wanted was to help.
Chapter 8
“What a jerk,” Nita commented to Flash in the restroom at the fire station an hour later. She gave Flash a sympathetic look. Flash shook her head.
“Lieutenant Jackson said he’s just trying to establish himself in a new house. He doesn’t know me from a brick, especially since I’ve been gone half the time he’s been here,” she explained, trying to convince herself as much as her friend. “I should have checked with him first.”
“And what if that SUV with the family inside slid off the bridge while he was making up his mind?” Nita’s penetrating gaze met hers in the mirror over the sinks, and she rested a hand on Flash’s arm. “You did what any first responder worth her salt would have done. I think he’s intimidated by a strong woman.”
Flash glanced down as she washed her hands. “I have to give him the benefit of the doubt because I don’t know him either. But I can’t let him or anyone else interfere with me doing the job.”
Nita shrugged. “So true. Hey, speaking of strong women …” Her tone brightened, and she handed Flash a paper towel. “Tell me about your date with Agent Hottie.”
Flash’s cheeks flushed, and a grin tugged at her lips before she could stop it.
Nita was attractive enough with her raven hair, sapphire eyes combo, but she was a friend, and no Athena Bouvier. Around Flash’s age, they’d come up through the academy as the only two females in their class. Nita had taken the EMT route while Flash had always aimed for full-fledged firefighter. It was her passion. Well, one of them.
“Totally awesome, as I’m sure you can imagine.” Pleasure erupted in Flash just thinking about it. “We went to this fancy restaurant, which Athena insisted on paying for since I had bought the theater tickets, and the show was fantastic—top-notch performers.” Turning, Flash leaned against the sink in contemplation. “Is that going to be a problem?”
Confusion enveloped Nita’s face. “Is what going to be a problem? Having a wonderful time with a smoking hot babe you’re crazy about?”
“No.” Flash’s pleasure waned. “Can you keep a secret?”
Nita rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and snorted.
“No, I mean really—seriously. It’s like you have this thing where you just feel you’re going to burst if you don’t tell everyone you know something interesting or fun or horrible the moment you’ve been sworn to secrecy.”
Dropping her pose, Nita stepped closer and looked Flash in the eyes. “OK, if it’s truly important, I can keep a secret. You’re my best friend; you can trust me.”
With an exhale, Flash nodded. “Athena is secretly rich—like heiress rich, a big inheritance. I mean, she makes a lot more in her next-in-line-to-head-honcho at the FBI than I do to begin with, but she’s got millions of dollars. The house in the suburbs where she hid me?”
Nita, lips parted with an astonished look, nodded.
“Well, it’s like a plantation mansion with a pool and mega security systems. Anyway, sometimes it makes me feel … less than.”
“You?” Nita’s astonishment broadened into shock. “Feel less than? Aboutanything? Flash, you’re the most confident woman—no, person—I’ve ever known. How could something as insignificant as money rattle you?”
“Because it’s not insignificant,” she answered with concern. “I like to be the protector, the provider, the one others look to for help, only—with Athena and money—that’ll never happen. When I was trying to pick out a gift for her, it was like, ‘How do you impress someone who could buy whatever you give them—twice?’ If I had picked up the restaurant tab, I couldn’t have gone grocery shopping until the next payday. I’m not on equal footing with her in that arena and never will be. It just makes me feel … inferior.”
“Look, Flash, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses,” Nita consoled. “Can she beat you in any physical contest—strength, speed, endurance?”
“Yeah, but that’s different,” Flash dismissed.
“Why?” Nita arched a brow. “Because you think you must be the best at everything?”
“I’m younger and more physically fit than her, and, besides, I don’t want to just be the muscle.”
