Page 47 of Falling for the Playboy Pilot

DALTON

I sat beside her for two hours. A doctor had come out to the field to triage firefighters that were coming in. No one was seriously injured. A broken ankle, some smoke inhalation, and one dude had cut his arm. The tent that had been set up for the injured had mostly cleared out.

Janna was going to be fine. I had told myself that a hundred times and the medical team along with Chief had said it as many times. But until she woke up and told me to fuck off, I wasn’t going to believe it.

Soot clung to her clothes, her hair was a tangled mess, and her face was covered in dark streaks. The nurse had wiped some off, but it was going to take a gallon of soap and water to get rid of it all.

Chief appeared with a bottle of beer. The condensation clinging to the brown glass told me it was nice and cold.

“I know beer is probably not medically advisable, but I have a feeling you need it,” he said.

“Thanks,” I said and took it from him. It felt like I had a horrible case of strep throat. I’d been sucking down water but nothing soothed it.

He pulled over one of the folding chairs and sat down. “That was a hell of a thing you did,” he said.

I shrugged. “I just landed a plane.”

He scoffed. “Yeah, I got pictures of that plane. I don’t know how the hell you made it out in one piece.”

“Sorry, Chief.”

Chief chuckled and took a sip from his own beer. “You know, I’m starting to think things between you and Janna are a bit more serious than I thought.”

I didn’t deny it. Couldn’t. Not after what I’d just been through, not after the absolute terror of thinking I might lose her. “If she’ll have me after I was such an asshole, yeah. It’s serious. Today really put things in perspective for me.”

“Well, there are few women who wouldn’t want to be with the man that walked through fire for them.”

I shook my head, looking down at Janna’s soot-streaked face.

“She’s the hero here, Chief. She dragged Pickle five hundred feet through that inferno and was smart enough to get them into the diner.

She saved him. And then she flew that ancient piece of junk and got us all here.

” I took a long pull from the beer, the cold liquid soothing my raw throat. “I was just the guy carrying oxygen.”

“Bullshit,” Chief said firmly. “You crash-landed a plane in a cornfield, rode a horse through a fire zone, and pulled two people out of hell. Don’t you dare minimize what you did.”

“Anyone would have?—”

“No,” he interrupted. “Not anyone. Most people would have waited for backup, followed protocol, played it safe. You risked everything because you couldn’t stand the thought of losing them.” He paused, studying my face. “Losing her.”

I couldn’t argue with that. He was right. The thought of a world without Janna in it had been unbearable. Still was.

“She’s going to be okay,” Chief said quietly. “Doc says her lungs are clear, no permanent damage. She’ll be hoarse for a few days, but she’ll be fine.”

I nodded, my throat tight with emotion I couldn’t quite name. Relief, maybe. Or something deeper.

“And Pickle?”

“Concussion, but he’s tough. Cheryl’s with him at the hospital. He was asking for you both when he woke up.”

That was good news. Pickle was going to be okay. We’d all made it out.

Janna stirred slightly, her fingers twitching against the white sheet. I leaned forward, setting my beer aside.

“Hey,” I said softly. “You with us?”

Her eyes fluttered open, unfocused at first, then finding mine. Even exhausted and covered in soot, she was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.

“Did we make it?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.

“We made it,” I confirmed. “All of us.”

A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Told you to trust me.”

“Best decision I ever made.”

“I’ll leave you two alone. For what it’s worth, you’re both off for the next few days.”

I chuckled. “Thanks, Chief.”

Janna moved to sit up.

“Woah, what are you doing?”

“I want to sit up.”

“Just lie down.”

She ignored me and pushed herself to a sitting position. She looked around the tent and then at me. Her eyes dropped to the beer in my hand. She reached for it and took a long drink.

And then handed it back to me. “That felt good.”

I shook my head. “You’re nuts.”

“I know.”

And then because I couldn’t keep myself from doing it, I cupped her face in one hand and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled me down. Our tongues slid across one another as we drank in each other’s very essence.

I held her tighter than I’d ever held anything in my life.

“I’m sorry,” she choked out, her voice muffled against my lips. “I didn’t mean any of it. I was just?—”

“Stop.” I pulled back just enough to look her in the eyes. I saw fresh tears. “You were right. I was a stubborn bastard. I pushed you away. That was the dumbest thing I’ve ever done. I thought I was protecting us both, but I was wrong.”

She shook her head. “I shouldn’t have said what I did. When I thought we were gonna die—” Her voice cracked. “The only thing I could think was that my last words to you were awful . ”

A rough laugh tore out of me. “Yeah, well, I deserved them.”

She made a noise halfway between a sob and a laugh, and then she was kissing me again. It was hard and desperate, like she was trying to swallow me whole.

“Hold on,” I said. I stepped back even as she reached for me.

I put the bottle down and then grabbed her. I lifted her from the gurney with her legs wrapping around my waist.

I kissed her back just as fiercely, one hand tangled in her hair, the other on her hip, holding her so close I could feel her heartbeat against mine.

We only broke apart when someone cleared their throat behind us.

“Oops,” Janna murmured.

Yeah, we had an audience. I had forgotten everything except her.

Chief stood a few feet away, arms crossed and his face bright red. “Do you all need a moment?”

“Sorry,” I said and gently put Janna back on the gurney. She kept her arms around my waist and leaned her head against my chest.

“Fire’s contained,” Chief said, like he hadn’t just witnessed the most embarrassing reunion in history. “It’s knocked down enough that the ground crews are going in for mop-up.”

Janna sagged against me, relief shuddering through her. “Martha’s?”

“Took some damage, but it’s fixable.”

“What about the rest of town?” Janna asked.

Chief grimaced. “Looks like twelve structures lost. We haven’t been able to get a good look at the outskirts.”

Janna sighed. “It moved so fast.”

“You did good,” Chief told her. “I want to personally thank you for your smart thinking. Pickle will be released from the hospital tomorrow. He wanted me to tell you thank you. You saved his life.”

She smiled. “I was just doing my job.”

Chief shook his head. “No. You did more than your job. The both of you. I have to get back to command, but I just wanted to congratulate you on a job well done. I’m proud to have you on my team.

Take a few days. I’ll understand if you’ve had enough of this job.

You went through something most of us will never deal with.

If you’d rather move on or maybe work in an?—”

“Hell no,” Janna cut him off. “I’m a pilot. This is the job I want. I stared that bitch in the face and I didn’t blink. Fire isn’t going to scare me away.”

Chief grinned. Pride was all over his face. “Alright then. You two look like shit. Get the hell out of here. We’ll debrief tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Chief,” I said.

“Thank you,” Janna added.

The adrenaline was gone, leaving nothing but bone-deep weariness in its place. I was so ready to get out of there.

“My place?” I asked her.

“Please,” she said.

I reached for her and lifted her once again.

“What are you doing?”

“We’re going to my truck,” I said.

I was already moving, nodding at the few people in the med tent. They were all smiling. I knew we’d be the talk of the town for a while. And because the firefighting community was pretty small, the stories about what happened today were going to spread far and wide.

And I also knew everyone was going to be talking about Herc getting taken to his knees by a little spitfire.

I didn’t care.

“I can walk,” Janna said.

“Nope.”

“You’re not in much better shape than me.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re breathing hard,” she pointed out.

I was. And I hated to admit I wasn’t in the best shape after all that smoke, but I was better than her.

“You stink,” I said.

“Hey! That’s not nice. You don’t exactly smell like roses.”

“Before we get in my bed, we’re taking a shower.”

“I have a feeling we’re going to smell like smoke for the next week.”

I sighed because I knew we would. It would cling to our hair and skin. “I have a good soap that cuts through some of it.”

“Will it make me smell like you?”

“Maybe. But I’d prefer you smelled like you.”

“And what would that be?”

“Oranges,” I replied. “Grapefruit. Tangerines.”

She smiled as I put her in the front seat of my truck. “My shampoo.”

“Whatever it is, I like it.”

My cabin felt like a sanctuary after the chaos of the day. I helped Janna out of the truck. Her legs were still unsteady beneath her. She leaned into me as we walked up the wooden steps to my front door.

Max greeted us with a petulant cry.

“What?”

“He lives here now,” I said dismissively. “Come on.”

I guided her toward the bathroom, not bothering to turn on any lights. The shower was one of the few luxuries I’d invested in when I bought this place. It was a walk-in with multiple heads and enough space for two people. I’d never shared it with anyone before.

“Let me help,” I said.

Everything reeked of smoke and ash. I helped her sit on the edge of the tub while I knelt to untie her boots.

“I can do it,” she protested weakly.

“I know you can,” I said, working the laces free. “But you don’t have to.”

Her socks were damp with sweat. I pulled them off gently, then helped her stand so I could ease her jeans down her hips. She stepped out of them, swaying slightly. I steadied her with my hands on her waist.

“Your turn,” she said, tugging at my shirt.

I stripped quickly, not caring about the aches in my ribs or the way my back protested every movement. All I cared about was getting us both clean and washing away the nightmare of the day.

I turned on the water, adjusting the temperature until steam began to rise. Janna watched me, her blue eyes tracking my movements with appreciation in her eyes.

We both knew sex was off the table. Neither of us could breathe right and our bodies were physically drained.

“Come here,” I said, holding out my hand.

She took it, and I led her under the spray. The water hit us both, turning gray as it ran off our skin and hair. I reached for my shampoo, working it into her blonde hair with gentle fingers. She closed her eyes and leaned into my touch, a soft sigh escaping her lips.

“Feel good?” I asked.

“Amazing,” she whispered.

I rinsed the suds away, then repeated the process with conditioner. The simple act of caring for her felt sacred somehow. My hands moved over her scalp, her neck, her shoulders, washing away the smoke and fear.

She returned the favor, her small hands working shampoo through my dark hair. I had to bend down so she could reach. Her fingers were magic against my scalp. It was the best post-fire shower I’d ever had.

Once clean, we dried off, and once again, I carried her to my bed. I gently set her down and then crawled in beside her.

“Dalton?” Her voice was already thick with sleep.

“Yeah?”

“Don’t be an idiot again.”

I pressed my lips to hers. “No promises.”

“Asshole.”

And just like that, we were out.