SWNOVELS Finding Hayes: Chapter 29
“Hey, thanks for hopping on a call with me,” Easton said, as we sat at the kitchen table staring at the computer screen.
“Of course. Is everything okay?” Savannah asked.
“Yeah. I’d say it’s damn good. That’s why I wanted to do this face-to-face, even if it’s just through a computer screen.” He chuckled. “Sheana’s case is closed, and she won’t be pursuing a lawsuit any longer.”
“That’s great. What happened?” I asked.
“She’s being sued by her current husband’s family. He’s some billionaire out of Texas, and he’s in his late eighties.”
“Sheana is married?” Savannah asked with a gasp. “I didn’t know that.”
“Neither did I. Apparently, she met the man while he was living in an elderly facility where she was working, and she claims they fell in love. They got married a few weeks ago. His family knew nothing about it and filed a complaint because the man is worth a whole lot more money than Abe was. She’s making quite the name for herself with this scam, and at the moment, she’s got more to deal with than she can handle. She probably figured out that claiming he made a verbal promise to her wasn’t going to hold up in a court of law. Especially considering Abe had recently updated his will, and she hadn’t been included. So, they dropped the suit against you.”
“That’s such good news. I hope someone stops her from doing this. It’s so disgusting that she preys on the elderly,” my wife said as Roddy walked over and tried to jump up for my attention.
“Sounds like she preys on rich and elderly men, in particular. There’s a special place in hell for people who do that.” I shrugged.
“Agreed. And her attorney has his work cut out for him trying to defend her now, with her current track record. There was one man in between Abe and husband number three, as well, and she inherited a couple hundred thousand from him after he passed away.”
“That’s horrible.” Savannah patted Roddy on the head before looking back at the screen. “Thank you for handling everything for us.”
“Of course. I heard Romeo and Demi had their baby a few days ago. Named him after you, Hayes?” Easton asked.
“Yeah. I still can’t wrap my head around it. He’s a cute little guy. Looks like the perfect mix of his parents.” I nodded.
I held him the day after he was born. This little bundle of dark hair and dark eyes, so innocent and perfect. I remembered the day that Cutler was born like it was yesterday. I realized in that moment that I already had two kids that I loved as if they were my own. I wasn’t going to get out of caring just because I didn’t have a child of my own.
I already cared.
Too fucking much.
But I was learning that it was okay to care. You just had to keep showing up and being there.
I could do that.
“Congrats to all of you. Exciting times out in Magnolia Falls. Hopefully, I’ll see you guys when I come to visit next. We’ll have to grab dinner.”
“Yes. We’d love that. Thank you for everything, Easton.” Savannah waved at the camera as we said our goodbyes.
She turned to look at me after she closed her computer. “You’ve got to leave for your shift soon, don’t you, Captain?”
It was my first official shift as captain, and I was ready. “I do. Three days away from my wife is not going to be okay with me.”
She climbed onto my lap, straddling me. Her fingers tangled in my hair as she leaned down and kissed me. “Maybe Roddy and I will come visit you if things are slow.”
“I’ll be counting on it.” I tugged her down one last time and kissed her hard.
I couldn’t be late for my first day as captain, and it killed me to slide her off my lap and push to my feet.
“You’re meeting Sabrina out at the farmhouse, right?”
“Yep.” She nodded. The house was done, and Savannah was determined to get it listed as soon as possible to have the money to open her new business. We hadn’t found any office space downtown that would work yet, so we were still looking. All the money from Abe had been put into a savings account for her father’s treatment. “We’re getting it on the market today.”
“I told you that we have plenty of money in savings when you find the right spot for the business.”
“And I told you that I don’t want to take that money out of your savings.”
“Our savings. We’re married, remember?”
“Ahhh… how can I forget when my husband is the fire captain? Do you have any idea how sexy you are?” She smiled up at me, and my hands landed on her perfectly round ass.
“You’re killing me. I don’t want to leave.” I thrust toward her, letting her know how turned on I was. I wanted her to know the effect she had on me.
“Go to work, hubby. I’ll stop by later.”
“Just know that there’s no rush to sell the farmhouse.” I kissed the tip of her nose.
“I have to do things my own way sometimes, Hayes. I don’t have income right now. I’ve put away all the money from Abe for my father, aside from the little bit I’ve used to live on up until now. The farmhouse is the money I want to use to start my interior design business.”
“I know, baby. But you love that house. I don’t want you to rush into selling it.”
“Go to work, Captain.” She raised a brow and smiled.
“All right. Call me later.”
“I will.”
I grabbed my keys and glanced over one last time to see my wife, who was now holding Roddy in her arms and cuddling him.
My family.
My whole world.
I shook it off and made it to the firehouse in less than five minutes, parking in the spot marked Captain.
I would have more flexibility in my schedule now, but I didn’t want to do anything too drastic until I got the hang of things.
It was quiet when I walked in, and I dropped my duffle in the hallway and turned toward the kitchen, when everyone shouted all at once.
“Captain Rambo is here!”
I rolled my eyes and pulled up the chair at the head of the table where Cap had always sat. They’d decorated it like a throne, so I assumed that’s where they wanted me.
Bones set a plate in front of me with about half a dozen giant pancakes stacked on top of one another with syrup and sprinkles all over it.
“You trying to kill me with all this sugar?” I teased.
“Oh, now that he’s married, he’s eating healthy and taking care of himself,” Beebs said with a cocky smirk.
“Hey, I’ve got to stay fit for my woman.” I winked, and the whole table erupted in laughter.
Beebs and Bones were cooking today, and Stinky, Stretch, Biscuit, and Santa piled food onto their plates and dove in.
“So what happens with Lenny? He didn’t show up for his shift the last three days. What’s up with that?” Santa asked. The man was always direct and asked the questions that everyone wanted to know but didn’t always have the balls to ask.
“I don’t know. He said he was sick. I’ve got to give him the benefit of the doubt right now. We’ll see how it plays out. Either way, we’re okay.”
“You deserve this job, Hayes,” Santa said, catching me by surprise. He didn’t do the emotional shit, and it’s why we’d always gotten along so well. “You were made for it.”
I finished chewing and nodded. “Thank you. I’ll do my best to fill Cap’s shoes any way I can. But nothing changes here, all right? We’re a team. I’m still going to be out there fighting fires right alongside you. I’m just going to be overseeing everything to make sure it runs smoothly.”
“You mean you’re going to fight fires and be a babysitter, too?” Biscuit said over a mouthful of pancakes.
“Dude. You just spit sprinkles all over me,” Stretch groaned, which made everyone laugh some more.
“And he gets the king’s suite now.” Beebs took the chair beside me and waggled his brows.
“The king’s suite? That’s a bit dramatic, yeah?” I asked.
I would get my own room, and I would be lying if I said that wasn’t a perk I was looking forward to. My own shower and a bed that wasn’t next to a bunch of chatty-ass dudes.
“It means you can have the little missus stay over.” Bones jumped to his feet when I flicked a piece of pancake at him, and his head fell back in a fit of laughter.
“All right, I’m going to head down to the office, and I’ll call you guys in one at a time to go over the schedule for the month. So, if you have any requests, get them together before I call you in. I want to get this nailed down today.”
“Damn. Santa was right. You are made for this,” Beebs said, keeping his tone light, but his eyes were telling a different story.
He wasn’t being funny. It was heartfelt, and it meant something to him. Meant something to me.
I nodded and grabbed my bag before jogging downstairs and dropping it in my new room. It wasn’t fancy or big, but it was my own space, and I appreciated it.
The next few hours were filled with paperwork and meetings.
While the guys were doing some training drills, I was placing orders to keep our house well-stocked.
We had dinner, and I was surprised how quickly the day got away from me.
When the siren sounded, we were on our way to a small fire out at the Conley ranch. It didn’t require all of us there, but you just never knew what you were walking into, so we all loaded up.
It had been a quick turnaround, and we were in and out of there in less than a half hour.
“Hey, congrats. You popped your captain cherry,” Santa teased, as we made our way back to the firehouse.
I sent Savannah a text when we’d been on our way out to the fire, because I knew she worried, and I’d sent her one when we were heading back to the firehouse.
I had someone who counted on me now, and I didn’t need her staying up late worrying.
“See you in the morning, Rambo,” a few of the guys called out, and I held my hand up as I made my way downstairs and they made their way upstairs.
When I pushed the door open, I couldn’t help but smile. My wife was sitting on my bed wearing a tan trench coat, golden brown hair falling in waves around her shoulders.
“Hey. What are you doing here?”
“Well, I got a call from Dr. Dorsey. They have an opening. They want my dad there tomorrow morning. I booked my ticket to Dallas first thing in the morning. Roddy is going to stay with King and Saylor until you get off your shift. So I wanted to see you before I left.”
I ran a hand over my face. “I wanted to go with you.”
“It’s your first week as captain. You need to be here. I’ll be gone for a week or two, and I’ll get Dad settled. He and Nadia flew out tonight. It’ll give them time to get situated before he starts treatment tomorrow.” She pushed to her feet and reached for the belt of her jacket, tugging it open to expose her gorgeous body in nothing but a pink lace bra and matching panties.
“Jesus. You’re so fucking beautiful, baby.” I tugged her closer, my arms coming around her as my hand slid down her back, and I gave her ass a squeeze.
“I’ve always wanted to have sex with you in a fire truck,” she purred.
I tipped her chin up, eyes locking with mine. “Not a fucking chance that I’m letting any of those assholes see you naked. But how about I have my way with you in my new room? Does that work?”
“Ahhh… the captain’s quarters,” she said, stepping back and moving slowly across my room as she picked up my fire hat and put it on her head. She let the trench coat drop to the floor in a heap as her teeth sank into her bottom lip. She walked toward me and plucked the suspenders off my shoulders before unbuttoning my pants and tugging down my briefs. They fell to the floor, and she pushed me back onto the bed. She dropped to her knees and unlaced my boots, one at a time, and slipped them off and tossed them to the side.
“Goddamn, woman. You’re too fucking sexy for your own good.”
“That’s because I can’t stop thinking about my husband out there fighting fires and protecting people.” She stood up, placed one leg on each side of me, and straddled me.
I reached for her hips and glided her lace-covered pussy right over my erection. Up and down, as she groaned. She found her rhythm and continued grinding along my shaft, teasing me, as I reached for her bra and tugged the cups to the side. My mouth came over one of her perfect tits first. I sucked and took turns moving from one to the next.
I was so turned on I couldn’t see straight. Her breaths were coming hard and fast, and my hands moved between us as I found the lace waistband and tore it easily from her body. She gasped when I pulled the fabric between her legs and held it up for her to see. “I’ll buy you a new pair, but I need to be inside you right now.”
She smiled as she pushed up, lining the tip of my dick with her entrance, and slid down slowly.
“I needed this, Hayes,” she whispered. “Needed you.”
I buried myself inside her and groaned as I gripped her hips and slid her up and down my cock—and nothing had ever felt so fucking good.
“I’m yours, baby. Ride me until you come all over my dick.”
“I intend to, Captain,” she purred, as I tugged her mouth down to mine.
I drove into her over and over, needing to feel every inch of her.
Because Savannah Woodson had all of me.
She was mine, and I was hers.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way.