Page 52 of Where There’s Smoke (Fire House Omegas #2)

Fitz

I t was finally time.

Melody was on the road to recovery, and we were finally letting her come back to the station.

She had been stuck at the pack house, recovering from her burns and resting as much as possible.

It had been a fight to make her actually take a break, but eventually, with a little begging, she gave in.

She had spent four weeks snuggling with us, grumbling, and healing.

We had done our best to distract her, and she had read a lot of Samson’s books in her downtime.

“So, what sort of event are you guys having?” she asked as she got into the passenger seat of my car. Dotty was already on the back seat, lying down like the amazingly good girl she was.

I bit back a smile, so glad to have that melon scent in my vehicle again.

“It's a charity fundraising barbecue. Basically, Elliot will man the grill and cook up a bunch of burgers, and some people from the community and other fire stations will come by and raise money for a good cause. It’s a good time. We even get a bounce house for the kids.”

Melody sank back in her seat, beaming, her mouth turning down in that adorable way when she thought something was cute. “That sounds lovely.”

“I’m sure the kids will love seeing our little fluffball as well!”

“She’ll love it too,” Melody said, glancing back at the puppy whose tail was wagging. “It’ll be some good socialization for her.”

I resisted the urge to hold her hand on the drive to the firehouse. She insisted her hand was fine, but the burns were still healing a bit, which was normal, and I wasn’t taking chances. This was my omega right here, and hurting her was the furthest thing from what I wanted to do.

Instead, we passed the drive in comfortable conversation.

“Oh, wow!” Melody exclaimed when she saw the decorations outside of the firehouse.

There were balloons and banners and plenty of other things hanging from every available surface. A giant bounce house stood in the parking lot. Several children were already piled inside and having the time of their lives.

The moment I opened my door, the sweet scent of melon from Melody was muted by the overwhelming smell of charcoal and cooking meat.

“This is amazing.” Melody smiled, looking around.

She paused when she noticed the building next to the station.

“What’s going on over there? That place has been closed the entire time I’ve known you, but now it looks like someone is working on it?

Adding on, even?” I threw my arm around her shoulders, pulling her toward our pack.

Samson and Elliot were standing by the grill, matching grins on their faces.

“The new owners have been incentivised to get it done fast.” I grinned, loving this way more than I probably should.

Melody eyed me, her brows up. “So, what on earth is it? Please tell me they’re opening a burger joint. I could do with more burgers in my life…”

I shook my head. “Your new rescue,” I said simply.

Melody halted, shrugging my arm off from around her and turning to face me with shock written all over her expression, her mouth hanging open.

“What did you just say, Fitzpatrick Holden Wilder?”

“Oof, you’re getting full named.” Elliot laughed. Several of the firefighters and their families could overhear us, but I didn't care.

“Worth it. Well, firecracker, we've been working on a little project. Truth be told, this project has been in the works since your first rescue burned the first time. But you know, legal paperwork is a bitch.”

“What did you do?” Melody asked, her voice serious.

“Well, you see, the property next to the firehouse had been for sale for a while, and I decided it would make an excellent place for an animal rescue. There was already a small building on it, so we just worked overtime and hired a lot of people to expand it over the last few weeks. There’s still work to be done, kennels to be built, drywall to be done and such, but it's all yours. Seriously, the land is in your name.”

“You bought me a new building ? An entire building with land and kennels?” Melody screeched, her eyes adorably wide. “Fitz, this place must have cost a fortune!”

“My family has money, and as for setting up the rescue, that's what today is for,” I declared, opening my arms and gesturing to the barbecue happening around us.

“He's right. The cause we’re raising money for today is your new animal rescue,” Samson said, pulling our girl into his arms with a smile that shone as bright as ever.

“We know Fitz’s ideas can be a lot, but actually, I think this one is decent,” Elliot said. “This is a much better location for a rescue. You own it outright, and you're also right next to us.”

Melody looked between us and the building in shock, her head turning back and forth as she tried to understand what I was telling her.

“All these people came here to support you,” Elliot said, gesturing around.

“They've already raised a lot of money to go to the shelter, too,” Samson added. “At this rate, you’ll be ready to get up and running in no time.”

“This is too much,” Melody whispered, her stare glassy with unshed tears.

“But it's not for you, it's for the animals.” I beamed. “I mean, can you really say no to that? It’s not entirely completed—there’s still work to do inside—but you’ll be able to start using it in no time.”

A slow smile spread across her face as she shook her head.

“Clever. Still, I don't think I can. Holy shit! Guys!” She launched herself at me, wrapping her arms around my neck and squeezing tightly.

A second later, she broke away and threw herself at Elliot, somehow managing to drag Samson into the same hug as she started to tear up.

A small, blonde omega came barreling toward us seconds later, tugging Melody away. “You better not be making my friend cry!” She laughed, pulling Melody into an embrace of her own.

Sunny Landry looked at our omega with joy. “Your guys did such a good job. The place is amazing. There's still some work that needs to be done, but we've already raised enough money to do it.”

“You knew about this?” Melody asked.

Sunny snorted. “Of course, I did. They had to ask my opinions on some of the decor. You know you can’t trust a bunch of alphas to do the entire thing.”

“You’re all terrible, and I love you desperately.” Melody hugged and kissed all of us some more, glowing with how happy she was, and it was everything . Seeing our girl that happy, especially after what she’d been through, was the highlight of my life.

“Where is your tiny terror?” I asked, looking around for her adorable dark-haired child.

“I’m pretty sure he and your cousin are in the bounce house, behaving like the toddlers they are.”

“Sounds about right!” I laughed.

Our little bubble popped when other people started coming up to say hello.

Melody was quickly absorbed in conversations about the rescue.

Watching her speak about what she wanted to do to protect animals and give them the best chance in life made my chest burn with appreciation for just how wonderful an omega we had somehow found.

Damn, we’re lucky.

“What the fuck did we do to deserve her?” Samson asked with a chuckle as he watched her talk animatedly to Sunny and a firefighter from Sixteen, Dotty in her arms and receiving enough pets to last her for a while.

“Ha, I was just thinking the same thing. We’re lucky assholes, that’s for sure.”

“There's something to be said about having an omega in the firehouse, isn't there?” Walker Landry said as he walked up to us, greeting us with a half hug.

“I hate to admit it, but you might be right.” Elliot laughed, his eyes locked on Melody.

A black sedan pulled up outside of the station, and I glanced over, thinking it was another visitor. When Chord Smoke stepped out of the car, Melody squeaked in happiness and ran over to him, throwing her arms around him.

“You came!” she exclaimed happily.

“Of course, I did. Your guys told me about what they were doing with the rescue, and I had to see it for myself.”

“I would show you around, but I haven't even seen it for myself yet!” Melody smiled so big as she shook her head. I could watch her for hours.

Chord stepped back from the hug, nodding. “We can look together later.”

“Did you come all the way out here for this, though?” Melody asked in disbelief. “That’s a hell of a drive.”

“Good to see you, dude,” I greeted, shaking Chord’s hand.

“Same,” he replied before turning to Melody. “Well, of course, I had to come see your new place, but actually, Lilia and I are considering moving out here. I thought I should take a look at some real estate while I’m in town.”

Melody started, utterly shocked for a moment by her brother’s words before another squeal left her chest, and she threw her arms around him in another joyful hug.

“That would be so amazing! Why, though? I thought you loved New York?”

“So the baby can get to know their Aunt Melody, of course.”

“Of course.” I shook my head, smiling at the thought of my niece or nephew. “But I know that’s not all. Tell me.”

Chord grimaced, putting his hand on the back of his head to muss up his hair.

“Honestly, ever since Reed got arrested, our parents have become insufferable, and I think you had the right idea moving across the country. Plus, there’s the entire conspiracy to commit arson thing they’re dealing with, and they still think I’m willing to defend them because, clearly, their delusions know no bounds. ”

Melody winced, reeling back slightly. “Conspiracy to commit arson? What the hell does that mean?”

“It means that since our folks put so much pressure on Reed to do ‘anything’ it took to get you home, and the way they were obsessed with you mating that pack, they are at least partly responsible for Reed’s actions.

Yeah, he’s using it as a bit of a defense, but honestly, I’m kind of okay with it if it means that they all face some jail time.

Plus, there’s not much Reed can do to get out of the attempted murder charge. ”

We’d been dealing with the fallout of Reed’s attack on our end too.

Melody had been a champ, working with the lawyers and police about what happened that day.

Her statements had been pretty damning, and in a weird silver lining, Melody’s injuries actually supported her words.

She had the burns to prove she was trapped inside the building, and Reed’s prints were all over the place.

“Wow.” Melody looked down for a moment, but then pulled herself upright, smiling at her brother.

“You know, I agree. And we’re going to put all that behind us.

So, say no more. I'm pretty sure the guys have several beers on ice. I think it’s about time we get you one of those.

And you’re more than welcome to stay with us while you’re looking for a place. ”

Chord grinned, visibly relaxing as the siblings headed off toward the firehouse. They’d both been through a lot in their lives, and seeing them together was damn incredible. I was proud of Melody and all she’d done.

Throwing his arm over his sister’s head, Chord replied, “I thought you would never offer.”

All I could do was smile. Because, apparently, sometimes where there’s smoke, there wasn’t just fire. There was also the love of your life and the start of something incredible.