ALEX
Alex: You know I’d walk through fire for you, right?
Judd: Like I’d ever let that happen.
_____________________
After watching the man I loved race into a burning building—my burning building—then having him confess that he loved me as much as I loved him, I was an exhausted, emotional mess.
My eyes still stung a little from the smoke, and I seemed physically incapable of detaching myself from Judd Kincaid’s person.
And both of us seemed to be okay with that.
When the blaze was mostly out and Judd’s crew confirmed that the fire, smoke, and water damage had been confined to the attics and the rooms in the back on the second floor, I was relieved… and also beyond ready to have the nightmare portion of the day be over so I could enjoy the wonderful bits.
Specifically, I wanted to head back to Judd’s comfortable little cabin, shower the ash off both of us, climb into his warm bed, breathe in his scent into my lungs like oxygen, and then hold him as close to me as physically possible for at least twelve hours.
Possibly twenty-four.
However long it took for a person’s heart rate to return to normal after a night like this one.
Unfortunately, while I might’ve been done with the day, the day wasn’t done with me… which became clear when Sheriff Westland hurried over to us.
“Kincaid—” he began. His expression softened when he saw me doing my human limpet impression as Judd and I stood bundled together, using his truck’s back door as a windbreak.
Judd didn’t move away even a fraction at the sheriff’s approach but kept me curled against his chest as he shook the other man’s hand. “Elias.”
“And Alex,” the sheriff said, turning to me. “Sorry about Timber. Glad you’re okay, though.”
“I’m fine,” I assured him. “Just… really lucky we were closed tonight so no one got hurt.”
“Actually, I think it might have been more than luck.” His eyes met Judd’s. “Don’t suppose either of you knows a Steve Hinton?”
Judd and I exchanged a look, and both of us shook our heads.
“Should I?” Judd asked.
The sheriff shook his head. “I had three of my officers canvass the neighborhood,” he said.
“They found a rental car parked by the entrance to the back lot. Your fire crew actually blocked it in with their rigs when they arrived.” He hooked a thumb at the far side of the building, where the fire trucks were still parked at an odd angle to the street.
“Now, ordinarily, I wouldn’t think anything of it, considering how many tourists we have in town for the holidays… but then my uncle Folger called.”
“Folger, the Grumpy Bear?” I asked. I nodded toward the small hotel at the other end of the street, where the old hotel’s ursine logo looked more cuddly than grumpy.
“That’s him. He named the place for himself, according to family legend,” the sheriff said with a small smile.
“So, you can imagine he wasn’t thrilled when he got woken up by an out-of-towner needing a room a little over an hour ago.
And he was even less impressed when the guy started complaining about being unable to get a ride to the airport right then and there. ”
“From Legacy? In the middle of the night? In winter?” Judd demanded.
The sheriff’s laugh came out as puffs of white vapor.
“Exactly what Folger told him. Then Folger noticed the guy didn’t have a car, a suitcase, or a proper winter parka, which made him more than a little suspicious, so he called me.
I’ll give you two guesses what the name on this out-of-towner’s credit card was. ”
“Steve Hinton?” I guessed. But then I shook my head. “I don’t follow, though. He accidentally parked his car back here and got blocked in? Why wouldn’t he tell someone so they could unblock him?”
“A great question.” The sheriff and Judd exchanged another look, and Judd’s arms squeezed me more tightly.
“But Folger was right that something seemed off, so I did a little digging. Turns out Hinton just did a stint in Salinas Valley State Prison in California for aggravated arson, and he’s out on parole.
Which means he shouldn’t have left the state without permission from a judge. ”
The word California made my eyes widen, and judge made my jaw drop.
Tavo.
My eyes met Judd’s and I saw he’d made the same connection. His big hand was warm and soothing as he caressed my jaw. “Tell me you’ve got this guy in custody, Elias.”
The sheriff nodded. “I sent a couple of my people over to the Grumpy Bear just to have a word. And wouldn’t you know it, Mr. Hinton started bleating about how we couldn’t prove anything, and he only, quote, ‘set a little fire to scare him and flush the kid out,’ and he ‘made sure the bar was closed first.’ Then he told us we should call a…
” He consulted a note on his phone. “A Judge Kirk Miller in San Francisco, who supposedly told Mr. Hinton he would ‘make all this bullshit go away’ if Steve just ‘did Judge Miller a little favor.’” His eyes met mine.
“The name Kirk Miller ring any bells, Alex?”
I swallowed hard. I knew Judd wouldn’t approve of my decision to keep quiet. He’d want me to cooperate fully and immediately, by the book, and I understood why. But I couldn’t bring myself to tell the sheriff anything until I knew Tavo was safe and had agreed to make a statement.
“I’m sorry,” I blurted. “I don’t… um… I can’t really…”
Judd’s boots scraped along the pavement as he twisted slightly, blocking me with his body.
“Alex has been through a lot tonight, Elias.” He spoke the words softly, but there was a distinct thread of steel beneath them.
“Why don’t you let him have a minute to think about it, and we’ll both come talk to you first thing in the morning? ”
The sheriff glanced between us and nodded slowly. “Alright. Alex, I have enough with the parole violation to keep this guy locked up till morning. But I’m going to need you to come in first thing and help me out with some of this, okay?”
“Absolutely. Thank you, Sheriff.”
“Welcome. Tomorrow, then,” he said, raising an eyebrow at Judd.
Judd inclined his head.
When he was gone, I looked up at Judd’s face. Streaks of soot marred his brow and collected in the creases at the corner of his eyes. Under the bright lights the crew had set up while battling the blaze, he looked as tired as I felt. And still, he hadn’t hesitated to back me up.
Fuck, he was a good man. Fuck, I loved him.
“You didn’t tell him.” The words came out like an accusation. “You didn’t say anything about Tavo to the sheriff.”
Judd cupped my cheek and ran his thumb along the skin there.
“Of course not. I figure you can call and talk to Tavo in the morning, let him know what’s happening, and ask your family to help you find an attorney to protect his interests and identity.
The sheriff’s going to want him to make a statement, if his lawyer agrees, baby.
” He took a deep breath and added, “And I think that would be a good idea if he wants this judge to stop coming after him. But that’s his call. ”
Warmth and love swamped me. “You’re willing to protect Tavo, even if it means causing the sheriff a harder time with his case?”
“Family comes first, Alex,” Judd said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “My friend DrunkenPoet told me that.”
I remembered a night when I’d messaged him about spending hours working alongside family, to haul in the harvest a few days early due to an unexpected frost. I’d missed a concert, and I was pretty sure my sisters had both canceled dates to stay and help, but even at the time, I’d recognized there was something wonderful about being part of a team.
It had been part of my explanation about how deciding to leave the family fold wasn’t an easy one. I loved my family. They were everything.
But I loved the man in front of me every bit as much.
“I love you,” I sighed, pushing myself against him. “Thank you.”
Judd lowered his head so his cold nose rubbed against mine. “Always, Alex. Now, how about I check in with the crew to make sure everything’s under control. Then we can head back to my house, and—”
“Yes,” I said quickly.
His eyebrow rose. “Just like that? You’re supposed to hear the whole offer before you—”
“Yes,” I repeated.
Judd laughed out loud. “I might have been saying ‘Let’s head back to my house and read some fire code manuals,’ you know.”
“And I’d be okay with that.” I wrapped my arms around his neck, burying my fingers in his hair.
“I have this strange new kink where I find fire codes sexy,” I confessed.
After a brief kiss to his lips, I added, “Or maybe it’s just that I’m wildly in love with this grumpy fire chief who likes to ignore them. ”
He pushed me into the back seat of his truck and kissed me so hard my lips tingled. “What are you going to do when your fire chief isn’t so grumpy anymore, Firebug?” he demanded against my lips.
My words were a whisper against his skin. A promise. “I’ll keep finding new ways to light your fire.”
The following morning, after we’d showered and managed a little sleep, we met up with Tavo and my uncles Joel and Pete.
While Joel owned a security firm that also did investigations, Pete—Tommy’s father—was an attorney in the Bay Area.
He was fired up to protect Tavo’s best interests, no matter what happened next.
It took a couple of hours to work through everything, but since Steve Whatshisname, the man in custody, was cooperating fully, it looked like there was plenty of evidence of Judge Miller’s involvement.
The judge had told Steve flat out—via text, no less—that he wanted Tavo “retrieved” for him.
Steve produced evidence showing the money trail, too.
From what Joel had provided, it seemed clear that there were witnesses at Pinch who could provide corroborating testimony about the judge’s inquiries into Tavo’s whereabouts.
And as of this morning, the soon-to-be ex-judge was the subject of an SFPD investigation.