Chapter 1

Chapter 1 – Meeting again

Two months later

Sadie Wilde

POV

I feel a sense of nostalgia walking into the fire station. Always a sense of fear as well. My nerves are shot. 

Today was my first day on the job in two years. Well, my first day as an EMT, I have been firefighter for two years before I had to give it but and two years later, I am an EMT. I have been forced to move to Chicago, to change my name and become an EMT. 

Everyone has that one decision in their lives they regret and while I don’t live with much regret there’s one decision in my life I wish I could go back and change, one decision I wish I never made, but I wouldn’t be here, I wouldn’t be in Chicago, I wouldn’t be starting fresh if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have to become and EMT so there’s some ways I’m thankful and others I’m not but there’s no going back, there’s no starting over.

I walk up to the chief’s office and knock. 

“Come in” he says.

I smile and walk in.

“Ah Sadie it’s good to see you.” He says with a wide smile.” Chief Denton Wilde. My mother’s twin brother. My uncle is one of the reasons I have moved to Chicago. It was safer here than anywhere else. And being with family helped the big move.

“Uncle Denny” I hug him.

“We have sorted out your paperwork and your badge. You will be Sadie Wilde now and Sadie Golding died in a car crash in Boston three months ago.” He says as he turns and walks back to the mess of a table. 

He searches for something. I watch as he messes up his table even more. The OCD part of me cringes at the mess. The mess was working on all of my senses. My eyes begin to twitch, I clenched my fists to distract myself. I try to not visibly cringe or directly look at the desk.

Finally, he pulls a folder out of the mess. I sigh in relief when I look away. I did not want to look at the mess any longer. 

He hands me the folder. I open it going through everything he gave me. A EMT badge, my new social and my new ID. I was lucky enough to have Dante and Tia come with me to Chicago. When they did not object to them following me out here really shocked me. 

I look at the things in it with a smile on my face. A new life. To reinvent myself, to try to have a happy life they said. If that is what you want to call it. I do not think I will ever have a happy life not after what has happened. I have been running for two years now. I am not running for my life. Or at least that is what I keep telling myself. I hate the word running, I was not running for my life, well at least not anymore. 

“Sadie everything will be fine. You will stay in one of the most secure apartments in the city. You are surrounded by people who will protect you. We are setting you up with self-defense classes as well.” My uncle explains.

I nod clutching the folder to my chest. It does not make me feel any safer though. I will never feel safe, I will always be looking over my shoulder, I’ll always be on guard, that won’t be changing any time soon. Being in a different city helps me sleep at night, but that doesn’t stop me from sleeping with a knife under my pillow. That doesn’t stop me from locking all the doors and windows at night that doesn’t stop me from showing with a knife next to me.

“Come let us meet some of the guys. A few of them are out on a call at a warehouse fire.” He explains leading me out of his office. 

Meeting the guys are to be expected. They are friendly not many female firefighters though.

But it has always been that way. Date started working last month and Tia and I start today. 

“Hey I am Gracie Almada. Everyone calls me Gracie.” A woman walks in the station.” I smile at her.

“Hi, I’m Sadie Go- I mean Sadie Wilde.” I smile shaking her hand. 

She smiles. “Are you the new EMT?” she asks 

I nod. “Yes, my friend and I start today we’re the new EMT’s” I tell her

She nods “Well that is good we have been taking alternative turns on the rig, it will give me and King a break on the rig at least. There is only four of us who are certified EMT’s as well.” She looks all stary eyed. 

I raise a brow at her, that is weird. “I take it you like King?” I ask with an amused smile.

She blushes and nods. “He and his brothers are out of this world hot. But he is just the sweetest as well. He is not only hot but sweet as well.” She gushes.

I laugh. I cannot say I know what that feels like. Gushing over a guy. when I think about men, I do not know what I feel when it comes to relationships. All I have ever gotten was the worst side of a relationship. But if I had to gush over a guy it would have to be the guy a met in that club two months ago. He was hot and a good lay. But that is about it. I will never see him again and I do not think I will ever date again.

She leaves to take a nap in the bunk room. 

“Sadie did you see that guy we met last week at the deli don’t you think his cute?” Tia asks. 

I roll my eyes. “Why would I care? I do not even know what he looks like.” I say honestly shrugging. 

I did not take note of him really, I did not even know I guy worked there. 

“Come on you should totally ask him out, he would make a great boyfriend.” I tell her.

I sigh deeply. “I do not want to date Tia you already know this. I do not want any man for more than one night.” I say what I have been saying for the past two years.

“But from what I’ve heard his a really great guy come on Sadie give him a try please.” She speaks.

I shake my head. “Not a chance in hell.” I cross my arms over my chest.

“What about that hot guy you slept with a few months ago. He seems great and you slept with him for a whole week before you never saw him again.” she smiles.

I roll my eyes. “I don’t give a fuck if he has a big dick, I never want to see that fucker again.” I stress out every word. 

The guy was a true fucker. He was creepy as fuck, I caught him taking pictures of my feet and licking it while I was sleeping. That was scary as fuck, and I never want a repeat of that ever again in my life.

=========

Beckett King

POV

 Growing up my brothers and I were always so different from one another. Damon grew up to be a copy of my father, he played football and had the brains to become a doctor in half the time it would take a normal person. Axel played soccer he was not as muscular, and Damon and I and he played soccer for that and the scholarship it come him to go to college. I played hockey. I was a I was an enforcer; it sounds so much better than it is. I have the injuries to prove it, I played in high school and college. It paid for my college tuition and helped me in more ways than one. Being a middle child so close together messed me up in more ways than one. My brothers and I are only two years apart. I have the classic middle child syndrome. I have always been given the least attention. Damon was the daddy’s boy; the child prodigy and he had the girl at age two. Axel was a troublemaker and a mommy’s baby cannot do no wrong. he milked, hell he still milks it. that always left me feeling out. I was not like either of my parents. My mom always told me I was more like her father. I reminded her of him. 

That is what hockey helped me with, shinning in something my brothers did not gave me a special kind of happiness. My parents could not always make it to my games because all three of us played sport, so they would alternate between games. They have always been supportive do not get me wrong my parents are amazing. It is just I crave something I never got growing up. 

Axel did not really care for sports, but he was forced to find something to pay for college we all knew from the get-go if we wanted to make something of ourselves, we would have to work for it. my mother did not work, and my father worked in a factory. There was no way they would be able to pay for our college tuition so when I was ten, Axel was eight Damon sat us down and told we would have to play sport or excel in our grades if we ever wanted to succeed in life. that stayed with me until this day. Damon is many things, but he always taken care of Axel and I since we were kids. Even Axel looks up to him. 

When we all got jobs, Damon sat us down again to us since we earn an income, we should give back to the people who made it possible for us, we fed us and made sure we had a roof over our heads. And that is exactly what we did every month my parents get money from all of us so my father could retire and spend time with this wife. 

Being a firefighter has always been my dream. One time I was at a friend’s house when their house started burning, due to a candle the dog knocked over, the fighter department was there in minutes and they worked swiftly, I stood there in awe as they got everyone including me out safely. I remember telling my friend at the time that I wanted to be a firefighter when I grow up. I was seven at the time, and after that my mom never let me play inside a friend’s house, but the moral of the story is, I have known what I wanted to be since I was seven, this was my only choice, this was my dream. I did not have a backup planned. I knew I never wanted to go pro. I wanted to be a firefighter and then settle down with a woman. 

Being a firefighter was about being a hero, it was about helping people, saving people, and protecting people. That is why I did not just want to be a firefighter. When the EMT training was offered to us, Gracie and I applied. I could help a lot more survivors if I am EMT certified as well. 

“Yo man. I am telling you those girls were fucking hot.” O’Conner’s voice brings me back out of my thoughts. 

I roll my eyes. I have given up on that life. its exhausting and brings me nothing but a feeling of shame after the deed is down. I do not go on the hunt anymore. I am twenty-eight years old. It is time for me to settle down. I never really got the thrill of bringing a girl home. I doubt I have ever really brought a girl home in the first place.

I have no idea where to start. I do not want to bother Damon with my shit he already has a lot on his plate as it is. he is my only brother who has ever been in love and has met his soulmate. Damon is the only person I know who knows anything about settling down. 

He is back with his childhood girl friend and her daughter. The woman I once thought I was in love with. I used to have a really huge crush on her as kids. She was the only girl I tolerated near me. the only one who did not try to use me to get close to my brothers or me. Jess is pure perfection, she is kind, beautiful and a great altogether. Jess was my best friend growing up, I always knew she would be my sister-in-law, so I hid my feelings and then she moved away, and I moved on. Showing me, I did not really love her.

After her I met my best friend, Alexandra. She was an amazing strong girl. She has been through hell and back. This time there was no intimate feelings. I just wanted to protect her until she ran away, and I never heard from her again. 

“Yo King tell me what you do last night?” he asks me

I look over at him and Prince. “I spent the night with my brothers. We watched a football game before drinking ourselves flat.” I tell them.

The two laughs “Why the hell are you staying in?” Prince asks me.

I roll my eyes. “Not really my scene anymore.” I shrug.

I do not give a fuck what they think. Once we pull into the station, I jump out of the truck ignoring those fools. I get out of my boots and fire pants. 

“Come on you cannot be serious why would you give up on the chase to get all the girls happy to throw themselves at firefighters? Come on there is a whole sea of woman out there even the unfuckables. Just put a hood over their heads or fuck them from behind. You could never get bored of that.” O’Conner’s says following me. 

I once again roll my eyes. “Just fuck off.” I scowl I flip hi the bird before stalking off to the ambulance truck. I normally get a half an hour to myself chilling in there. 

I stop dead in my tracks when I hear a female voice I do not recognize coming from the other side of the truck.

“I don’t give a fuck if he has a big dick, I never want to see that fucker again.” 

I round the truck to see two blondes I don’t recognize behind the truck. Then I remember the cap said two new EMT’s were starting today. 

The one turns and I stumble back in shock. 

No! No! No this cannot be. This is fucked up.

Why? Why is she here?

She sees me and smiles. “Take a picture it will last longer.” She says before walking away with the other woman.