Page 43 of Just One: Box Set

Chapter Six

A fter hearing that Dre was a firefighter the night before, Calli had shoved her phone onto the nightstand and climbed into bed.

Now, seated at her table a little after nine in the morning, she stared at his words again.

Guilt hit her like a bullet to the chest. Calli despised when people judged someone based on their profession, and yet, that’s exactly what she had done to him—Dre.

Earlier that morning, she had checked in with Ms. Holmes.

Katherine—now insisting on being called Kat, all thanks to the "hunky" firefighter who had given her that nickname—had been discharged. But that wasn’t the shocking part.

No, it was the fact that the firefighter who had saved her was named Dre.

It couldn’t be a coincidence. DallyDude had told her to call him Dre and mentioned he was a firefighter who had been injured on the job.

"Fuck," she groaned, pressing her palm to her face.

Was she being unfair, lumping him in with her one bad experience with a cheating ex who had also been a firefighter? Probably.

Determined to get some answers, Calli grabbed her phone from the bedroom and headed into the living room. Settling on the couch, she opened the I-Hope app again, her fingers shaking slightly as she scanned DallyDude’s profile one more time.

DallyDude: Single male looking for someone to explore forever with.

With a heavy breath, she finally opened the messaging feature and typed out a question she wasn’t sure she was ready for the answer to.

DoggyStyle: Are you the fireman who saved the girl from the house fire?

His response was almost immediate.

DallyDude: Yeah. Hurt my back and stuck in the hospital until this afternoon. Who told you?

Her heart raced as she stood, grabbing her purse and keys. Without overthinking it, she responded.

DoggyStyle: I’m coming to see you. Katherine is one of my brightest soccer stars. I owe you an in-person thank you.

Calli shoved her phone into her pocket and marched out the door, not waiting for his reply.

She drove straight to the hospital, her mind spinning the entire way.

When she finally reached the elevator, she took out her phone to find Dre’s room number: 320.

The realization struck her hard—she had been so close to him the night before and hadn’t even known.

Standing outside the door, she took a steadying breath and knocked.

"Come in."

His voice was deep and smooth, sending a shiver down her spine. Fisting the doorknob, Calli pushed the door open and stepped inside. As soon as she saw him, a wave of recognition hit her like a ton of bricks. "Wow… this feels like the twilight zone," she muttered, shaking her head in disbelief.

Dre smirked, his eyes lighting up with amusement. "Seriously? This is how the universe repays me for my heroic deed?"

"I can't believe this." Calli tried to shake off the image of him from her cousin’s wedding in Vegas. She forced a smile, trying to regain her composure. "You’re a fireman? I wasn't expecting you to be DallyDude . Andre, how are you?" She purposely emphasized his name.

Dre leaned back, sighing. "Look, I know I was a dick back in Vegas. I’m sorry.

You had a boyfriend, and I wouldn't let up.

But damn, Calli, you were fucking gorgeous, and that dress—" He shook his head, a sheepish grin tugging at his lips.

"Can we start over? I mean, clearly, I’m about to embarrass myself here.

" His hand waved toward the tent in the sheets. "I’m still very much attracted to you."

Calli’s eyes flickered to the sheet, and she swallowed hard.

She quickly looked away, trying to focus on why she had come.

"I don’t know. There’s a lot that could go wrong, but before we even get into that, I wanted to thank you.

Katherine Holmes is my star player and one of my best students.

The world would’ve lost something truly special if she hadn’t made it out of that fire. "

"Soccer, huh?" Dre scratched his head, looking genuinely intrigued. "I thought you were a teacher."

"I am. Seventh-grade math teacher and coach for the girls' soccer team."

Dre chuckled, his eyes brightening. "Soccer runs in the Cross blood, huh? Like your cousin?"

"Yep," Calli replied, nodding. "And speaking of family, where’s yours? I’m surprised they’re not here."

"They came last night." Dre shifted in the bed, clearly trying to discreetly cover himself, but it was too late—Calli had already noticed. The memory of what was beneath that sheet burned in her mind, and she fought to push it away.

Before either of them could say more, the door swung open, and in walked her cousin Phillip and his girlfriend, Amy, with their baby boy in her arms. Phillip’s eyes immediately narrowed in suspicion as he looked between Calli and Dre. "What are you doing here?"

Calli could feel the tension building in the room as she tried to stay calm. "The girl Dre rescued is one of my players. I came to thank him."

Amy beamed as she stepped forward, playfully slapping Dre’s arm. "Shut up, Dre. You're my big brother. Of course, I dragged Phillip back here for you."

Calli watched as Dre reached out to take baby Collin from Amy’s arms. Her heart practically melted watching him cradle the baby, his large hands gentle and protective. "You’re going to spoil him," Amy teased.

Dre just smiled down at his nephew, pressing a soft kiss to the baby’s head. "Please. Your soccer star baby daddy is going to spoil him the moment he can kick a ball."

Calli couldn’t help but laugh at the image, though her mind was racing. Dre was her cousin’s brother-in-law. If that didn’t scream forbidden, she didn’t know what did.

"You alright, Loppy?" Phillip’s voice broke through her thoughts.

She blinked, realizing she had zoned out. "Yeah, just… a lot on my mind."

Phillip gave her a knowing look before pulling her into a hug. "Take it from me—sometimes, the harder you have to work for something, the sweeter it is. Don’t give up too easily, okay?"

As Calli left the hospital, her mind swirled with thoughts of Dre, forbidden connections, and the undeniable pull she felt toward him. Things were about to get a lot more complicated.