Page 16 of Over and Above (Mount Hope #4)

Chapter Sixteen

Eric

The August heat greeted me as I left the station, way later than planned, and blessedly, no friends around to try to make conversation.

“You headed home?” I asked Tate, who was walking with the slow, stooped gait of someone fifty years older. “Need to talk?”

“Nah. I’m good, captain.” He managed a ghost of a smile. “I’ve got Tennessee waiting for me with a plate of brownies. A long cuddle with him and our pets, and I’ll be ready to go again.”

“Good.” I was glad Tate had someone to head home to, even if my chest pinched. He and Tennessee were young, with their whole future in front of them, and listening to him talk about weddings and adoption made me feel nine hundred years old. I absolutely didn’t want to be married again or to have a partner, but the built-in stress relief, someone to talk to—though Montgomery and I hadn’t talked shop much—must be nice for Tate.

Speaking of stress relief, Magnus had somewhat indicated I could use him for that purpose. A no-strings fling. Which would be nice if we ever managed privacy again. It had been well over a week since our shower fun, and we’d had some heated looks, some flirting when no one was around, and some small talk around others, but otherwise, it was the height of tourist season for him and a consistently busy August for me. I’d picked up a few extra shifts, covering for vacations and such.

I wasn’t outright avoiding Magnus, but if staying busy meant less discussing what was happening between us, that was a happy bonus. But apparently my long day ran right into the end of Magnus’s day because we pulled into my driveway within seconds of each other.

“You look like hell.” Magnus didn’t waste energy on a greeting. I’d showered at the station, but my eyes were likely red and weary. I certainly felt like I’d aged a decade over a single shift.

“So do you.” I gestured at his rumpled bar T-shirt, more stubble than usual, and tired eyes. Exhaling hard, I stared up at the darkened house. Only the deck light was on. “At least the kids didn’t wait up. God, that sounds wrong. I should want to see them. It’s been a day.”

“No, it’s okay.” Magnus clapped me on the back. “You’re a good dad, and you’re allowed to want a quiet moment to yourself.”

Arm around my shoulders, he walked me to the deck and continued steering me up the stairs.

“You’re not going to your place?” I asked.

“First, Maren texted that the dogs are in your place because of this never-ending heat wave.” He opened the door and both dogs greeted us with big licks and wags. “Second, I came over to fetch you a beer and whip you up something fast. Something tells me you haven’t eaten.”

“I haven’t.” I groaned, unable to summon the energy for a white lie. “But I can’t make you bartend and cook. You had a long day too and deserve to leave the restaurant behind.”

“I left The Heist a good ten minutes ago.” Chuckling, Magnus handed me one of my own beers from the fridge. “Cooking for you isn’t work. It’s recreational.”

He saluted me with his bottle before rummaging more in the fridge.

“At least let me help.” I came up behind him only to be given three large potatoes.

“Any good at peeling potatoes?” he asked as he set a pot of water on to boil.

“I’ve certainly peeled my share.” I grabbed a peeler and got to work over by the sink. “What are you making?”

I was asking more or less to be polite and make conversation and to avoid thinking.

“A new mashed potato dish we might debut in the fall.” Magnus looked up from deftly peeling and smashing garlic cloves. “See, you’re helping with market research.” Garlic tended to, he returned to the fridge, yanked out a package of chicken, and made a quick stop at the pantry for a container of flour. “And because man cannot live on potato alone, I’m going to bread us some chicken cutlets to go along with it.”

“Sounds great.” I would have eaten flavored cardboard, but if Magnus made it, it would be top-notch. I was also brightened by that us. “You’re eating too?”

“We were slammed tonight, so I didn’t get much time to eat at work.” He waved a hand airily as he loaded spices and flour into a plastic food storage baggie. “Also, I know you, Captain. You’ll eat more if I join you.”

“True.” I had to work not to wince at the captain. Technically, I was the lead paramedic, not a captain, but I wasn’t explaining that at the moment. The last thing I wanted was to be in charge of anything right now. Instead, I turned my attention to the dogs poised steps from the stove, on high alert. “The dogs seem to be starving. But there’s chow and water in their bowls.”

“Kibble?” Magnus scoffed. “Who needs kibble? They’re hopeful some chicken might miss the pan.” He made a go-on gesture with his hands. “Go lie down.” His eyes widened as his gaze took in the two fuzzy cushions we’d lined up in the breakfast nook. “Hey. When did they get beds here?”

“I was at the warehouse store with the kids.” I used a casual tone like it was no big deal that I now kept water, kibble, and beds on hand for my temporary renter’s dogs. “Somehow, they fell into one of our carts.”

“Well, thank you.” He nodded before collecting the potatoes I’d peeled and chopped. He continued cooking, browning the chicken and stirring the bubbling potatoes as I cleaned up our prep work. It was a lovely silence, more proof of how easily we worked together.

“Your place is likely still hot even this late.” I kept my voice observational, using the weather to hide my reluctance to be alone with my thoughts after we ate. “Want to watch a stupid comedy after we eat?”

“I’d love to.” Magnus winked at me. “And my turn to pick.”

I had no clue how he’d guessed I was in no shape to make decisions, but his saucy wink gave me pause. I truly was looking to collapse on the couch, not embark on a sex fest.

“I’m…uh…that wasn’t innuendo.”

“I know.” Magnus patted me on the shoulder. “I’d love to watch a movie. Sleep has been in short supply lately, and I’m all keyed up because we had to let a server go earlier in the day.”

“That’s hard.” I was more than happy to let his bad day distract me from mine.

“Yeah. We found the source of the cash not reconciling.” He drained the potatoes with efficient movements, and I was ready with the milk and butter for him. “Newer server skimming tips. Luckily, he wasn’t particularly subtle about it, nor did he protest when confronted, but I hate letting people go.”

“I’m lucky to work with a good crew.” I watched as Magnus mashed the potatoes as if his frustration was fuel. Perhaps there was something to admitting when things were hard. “I’ve never had to fire someone, but I feel you on sometimes being the person in charge sucking.”

“Word.” He saluted me with his beer before taking a long sip. He plated our food with more of those quick movements. I liked watching him work, liked how easily he made the plates pretty with potatoes, chicken, and some sort of pan sauce over the top. Following him to the breakfast nook table, I exhaled hard as I sunk into my chair.

“We lost one tonight.” Fork poised for my first bite, the words tumbled out of me instead.

“I’m sorry.” Eyes soft, Magnus lowered his fork, a clear invitation for me to continue.

“It was a call way out in the country, up some mountain roads. Almost outside our service district. A wife called in because her husband had stomach and chest pain, and she couldn’t get him into the truck by herself.” I spoke slowly, letting the memory of the call unspool like a movie I didn’t care to watch again, yet needed to. “The guy, naturally, didn’t want to go, but after we arrived, we talked him into listening to her and coming in to get checked out. The wife was worried about appendicitis. I was worried about cardiac. We were both wrong.”

“What happened?” Magnus reached across the table to take my hand, holding it tightly.

“Abdominal aneurysm. By the time we realized what was happening, we were almost down the mountain.” The moment the inevitability of the situation hit me would be etched in that corridor of my soul devoted to feeling helpless. The scenario hadn’t been one where life flight could have been summoned or would have made a difference. It had come down to us and a race against time. “Burst before we could make the hospital doors. The guy was talking with us right up until he flatlined. Tate took it hard. He was driving and did everything right, but he’s young. Wants to save them all.”

“And you?” Magnus squeezed my hand, expression as sympathetic as I’d seen it.

“And me…” My breath caught, and a choking sound escaped my throat. “I’m old and still want to save them all.”

“I know. And I know you did the best you could.” Magnus came around the table to wrap me up in a bear hug. I collapsed into his embrace, spending several long minutes soaking up his strength.

“The food’s getting cold,” I murmured, embarrassed by how I continued to cling to him.

“Let it.” Magnus kissed the top of my head.

“I didn’t mean to unload on you. I know work talk can get heavy…” My face stayed hot and tight. For all that Montgomery had been a dedicated and caring physician, he’d preferred to leave hospital business at the hospital. He’d listen if I had a bad shift, but most of the time, the chaos of coming home to the kids and his steady energy had been enough distraction. I’d forgotten how good it could feel to talk things out, but my skin prickled, a sheepish mood descending on me.

“I don’t mind.” Magnus tightened his hold on me. “Truly. The worst thing that happened to me today was firing someone, and you listened to my story. Why wouldn’t I want to return the favor?”

“Yeah.” I nodded, but inside, my brain raced with all the reasons he shouldn’t. We weren’t a couple. He was dealing with his own weighty shit in the aftermath of the fire. I was more or less his landlord, and we were navigating the whole in-law thing. Why burden him with my crap?

“You’re thinking too hard.” Magnus stood, but not before dropping another kiss on my head. “I’m a people person. I’m a born bartender. Trust that I like listening, okay?”

“Okay.” I obediently took a bite of my chicken. “Thank you.”

“And no thanking me for being a decent human being.” Sitting back down, he wagged his fork at me. “Now, eat while I contemplate which eighties comedy I most want to revisit.”

“Oh, a deep dive into the classics.” I welcomed the distraction of movie talk like water in a desert. But I had to admit it was easier to move on to lighter subjects now that I’d talked about what had happened. I didn’t want to like this, didn’t want to like Magnus this much, and certainly didn’t want to come to need him.

But hell if I could pull back, especially right now. We finished our food, cleaned up together, and made our way into the living room. Magnus settled into the corner of the couch, opening his arms in a clear invitation to cuddle. And damn if I didn’t need to be held. I happily let him wind himself around me, getting us all cozy for whatever movie he picked.

His hand was warm on my stomach, and for the first time all evening, a glimmer of arousal thrummed through me.

“I might be up for fooling around later after all.” I arched into his touch.

“Happy either way.” Magnus leaned down to give me a quick kiss.

“Are all no-strings flings this easy?” I gave a self-conscious laugh.

“Nope.” He grabbed the remote. “But I’m not complaining.”

And for once, neither was I. This fling didn’t feel like anything I’d experienced before, and even calling it friends with benefits wasn’t entirely accurate, but perhaps the smartest course of action was to follow Magnus’s advice and stop overthinking.