Intertwined

bonus one: when rhett met trouble

R H E T T

"YOU KNOW, IF you don't wipe that frown off your face one of these days it's going to get permanently stuck there," Bentley says from his work space next to me, a teasing grin rested on his lips when I turn my head to look at him. Boss or not, he's never afraid to bust my balls. It's why he's my best friend, and why I have no problem reminding him of that I am in fact his boss.

"You want to do grunt work?" I ask, lifting an eyebrow in his direction. "Cause I'll make you do the grunt work. I'm talking on your hands and knees, scrubbing the bathroom tile with a toothbrush. It won't be fun."

That only makes his smile widen as he shifts, leaning against the side of the truck we're working on. "You know I'm just messing with you, right? You don't have to be so tough all the time. It's okay to smile some of the time. It's not going to hurt you."

"I'm fine, Quinn," I say, but when the look of concern in his eyes doesn't shuffle at all I drop my arms and cross them over my chest. "Seriously. I'm fine."

He hums, and shifts back to his work. "So you've been saying."

My lips part, ready to argue my point further when the alarm bells rings out over the apparatus floor and the operator's voice carries across the building with the emergency call and directions for where we need to head. Quinn's eyes dart to me before we both shuffle to store the equipment back in their appropriate cubbies as quickly as possible before I round the front of the truck to slide into my gear already prepped and ready. Toeing off my work shoes, I step into my boots and pull my fire resistant pants up to my hips, fixing the suspender over my shoulders while my crew does the same around me. Slipping my coat on, I step up into the passenger seat and my rightful spot as the truck Lieutenant and pull the door shut behind me.

"Let's go, guys," I say, slapping my hand on the outside of the passenger door and directing my gaze to Quinn as he pulls out of our fire station. No matter how many times I've done this, the adrenaline of running into an emergency—no matter how dangerous—never wears off. If anything, it's only grown since my promotion to Lieutenant last year. I'm not just part of a team now, I am the leader of that team and my guys are looking to me for the answers.

It's as exhilarating as it is terrifying, and I don't think I could ever see myself doing something else. I was destiny to be this—a protector. A role I've been taking on for so long, that I don't know how to be anything else. It's as if it's been woven into my DNA.

When we roll up outside an industrial office building, it seems to be perfectly intact. The alarm and cluster of people gathering around the muster point looking more annoyed than panicked over a potential fire tells me this is nothing more than a false alarm. Quinn rolls the truck to a stop slowly along the curb, and I grab my helmet, tucking it under my arm as I step out and onto the pavement. The guys following after me when a tall guy in a three piece suit approaches, a look of unease written on his face. His hair standing up in all directions, like he's been running his fingers through his hair over and over again.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah, sorry. We had a minor fire in the microwave in our unit and it kind of set the whole building's fire alarm off. It's out now, but..."

"No worries. Just hang tight here," I tell him, nodding my head towards the building to give my guys the go ahead to head in without me and check out the unit. "We'll take a look around just to be sure."

He nods and moves to join the group of people waiting, hearing a couple groans at his return. I'm about to lift my helmet to my head when a bright tone carries behind me, followed by the clicks of high heels on the sidewalk.