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“I’m sorry, Thatcher. How old were you?”

He was so damn sweet. “I was twenty-seven and already on my own. I worked at Station 61 in West Hollywood back then. I’ve been at my current station for twelve years.”

“How old are you?” Jordan studied me with a slight smirk.

“I’m forty-two. Probably too old for you.” That was no lie.

Jordan chuckled. “I’m twenty-seven. Probably not too old for me.”

I chuckled as I leaned close to him and kissed his cheek. “Okay then. So you don’t like labels, but do you date men and women, or just men? I’m trying to get the lay of the land.”

“No, I only date men, but I align closer to being demisexual if I have to choose a label. No attraction until there’s an emotional bond.” He wasn’t fidgeting, which showed he was comfortable telling me his truth.

“How long has it been since you’ve been in a relationship?” It seemed important to know.

“It’s been since college. After my boyfriend went to Boston and didn’t ask me to go with him, I decided I was more invested in the relationship than he was and swore off dating. Then the band started forming, and I had other things on my mind instead of a relationship. That is, until I met you.” Jordan’s face flushed again, and my heart took flight.

I had to slow the bullet train in my mind because the guy was in a vulnerable position at the moment, with his future up in the air because of the accident. I could hold off on a full-scale attack, but maybe I could love on him just a little bit and see where it led us?

“More pizza?” There were two slices left, one with and one without pineapple.

He patted his flat stomach. “No, thank you. I want to stay fit, and I can’t do much more than run right now.” He held up the brace to punctuate his point.

“Got it. I’ll just put those in the fridge. You can eat them tomorrow if you want. I’ll be leaving for work at six in the morning. What time do you have to be at the hospital on Tuesday morning?” I could take off a couple of hours early and pick him up to get to the hospital on time.

If we had a light shift, I’d probably catch some rest, but even if it wasn’t, I’d gone without before. It wouldn’t kill me.

“I need to be there by six. How about you work your regular shift and get off at your regular time? I can get River to take me on Tuesday morning, and then can you pick me up in the afternoon after they release me? It’s done as an outpatient.”

“No, it’ll be fine if I take off a couple of hours early. I don’t mind.” Hell, I was convinced I’d do anything for Jordan.

Jordan lifted his good hand and placed it on the side of my neck, the heat from the contact lighting up my nerve endings. “Please, let me do it my way. I appreciate your willingness to help me out, but I’ve been on my own my whole life. I won’t have you put yourself out for me, okay?”

I pulled him closer and kissed each of his cheeks, the tip of his nose, and finally, his forehead. “This time, I’ll agree. We’ll talk more when I get back home, okay?”

He rested his head on my shoulder and hugged me around the neck. I felt his body relaxing against me, and I smiled.

Whatever had Jordan strung so tight, I’d make it my mission to try to ease some of his stress. We both needed a little love.

“LT, got a minute?” someone asked from the door to my office.

I was at the station going over the upcoming budget proposal we were submitting to CAL FIRE at the end of the month.

I glanced over to see Polly Scanlon, one of my female firefighters. She looked a little pale, which was unusual, and she had a huge spot on the front of her CAL FIRE T-shirt.

“Scanlon, you okay?”

“Not really. My stomach is pretty dicey. I’m not sure if it was Baker’s chicken and rice or if I caught a bug. I hate to ask…”

“Go home, Scanlon. If we get a call, I’ll call Station 1 and get them to send a body to the scene. We’re off shift for the next two days. Keep me updated.”

“Thanks, LT. I’ll see you on Thursday.” She walked out of my office, and I hoped she hadn’t just ignited a super-spreader event.

After finishing the budget review and forwarding everything to the captain’s email for his sign-off, I went into the common room to check on everyone. The last thing I needed was an entire crew out sick.

“Hey, everybody feeling okay? Scanlon just went home sick. Baker, you didn’t give us all food poisoning, did you?” I chuckled as I looked around to see the other guys laughing with me. I took it to mean that everyone else felt fine.

“Talk to AB. She’s the one who talked me through it.” Baker sat at the card table where a game of Hearts was going on.