Page 31 of Revived
“Maybe, but what a way to go?” I shrug.
His loud laugh startles me and causes my eyes to peer up at him.
“Something funny, Byrne? A girl could really take offense to a man laughing at her while he’s still balls deep inside her.” I raise a challenging brow.
His hands find my hips again and push me down a little more on his still hard cock, causing us both to groan. “Does that feel like I’m laughingatyou, Elena?” I shake my head, my core fluttering around him. “Right, that’s because I wasn’t laughing at you. I was laughing at what you said. I thought the exact same thing just last week. Don’t bea brat.” He playfully swats my bare ass, but my walls tighten around him all the same.
“I’m done with you. I need another shower and then food.” I roll my eyes while moving off of him and standing on shaky legs.
“Fine, but we’re talking about that reaction later.” His grin is enough to cause me to melt onto the floor, but I hold strong, and with my head held high, I make it into his bathroom with my illusion of control in place.
He may want to make an altar for me, but I couldn’t live without him.
Chapter fourteen
Sullivan Byrne
“Faster, Rook!” I yell across the back parking lot. I currently have them running a drill where they’re blindfolded with all their equipment on. We’re simulating them being lost in a structure fire. After setting up hoses going in every which way, ladders, and obstacles in their path, I led them out here one at a time. I spun them around five times and told them to drop. Now they have to find their way to the truck. Oh, and did I mention that they also have someone to rescue during all of this? Elijah’s our last guy to go, and at the pace he’s moving, he’s going to take the longest. I stand with my arms crossed in the middle of the parking lot and yell out reminders to him.
“Bump to pump, brother!” I yell out when he finally finds the hose. The rescue dummy is laid across his back as he army crawls across the parking lot. The other members of our crew have already gone and stand silently watching him. I watch him fight with the coupling to figure out what he has in his hand.
“Motherfuck!” He yells out after getting turned around a few more times and running head first into a training prop. The prop is made of wood and simulates the distance between two studs in a wall. He has to get through it with his rescue dummy to get out.
As soon as he yells out, I’m on the move. Rook is still new, and these drills are to teach them and hone their skills. I lay on my stomach directly beside him so my mouth is about six inches from his ear. He’sfrustrated, just like he’ll be in a real fire, but also, just like a real fire, his crew members will be in his ear.
“Take a deep breath, Rook.” I wait until I hear the sound of his mask filling with a large pull of air. “Good, that’s good, brother. Now take a survey. What can you feel?”
“It’s fucking hot, Lieu. Rescue is still secure on my back. There’s something hard in front of me. It feels like a two by four, but this one and the next aren’t far enough apart for me to fit through.”
Ahh, there it is. He panicked and has forgot something that was drilled into his head during the academy. “What’s the distance remind you of, Rook?”
“I don’t know!” He bites out in frustration.
“I get that you’re frustrated, Rook, but I’ll remind you that you’re speaking to your Lieutenant right now.” I grit out. I love my crew, and we joke around like siblings, but at the end of the day I am their leader, and I demand respect.
He takes another deep breath, “Yes, sir. The space reminds me of a small window.” He takes a second. “No. That’s not right… It’s– oh! Studs!” He instantly begins to maneuver his rescue through the sixteen inch space. Once that’s complete, he begins to wrestle with getting himself through the space between the studs.
“What did you learn about studs in the academy, Williams?” I maneuver through the studs with ease, something Elijah will not be doing with all his gear on and his SCBA attached to his back.
“I can’t– Lieutenant Byrne, I’m blanking.” He stutters out.
“Calm down, Elijah. Studs, it’s been drilled in your head, Iknowit has been.”
“If your shoulders can get through, your whole body can too.” He finally says.
“That’s it. Good job. Now get through these studs, and get your rescue to safety before you’re both dead.”
He nods in determination before bringing his hands together and stretching them out in front of him to narrow his shoulders as much as he can. It takes him a minute, but he gets through, grabs his rescue, and makes it to the truck just as his low pressure alarm sounds. He tugs off his mask, helmet, and hood and gulps air into his lungs.
This is why on rescue I don’t set you loose until you’ve shadowed me for eight to twelve months. I need to know he knows this shit without slipping up before he can go off on his own.
“Alright, everyone! Let’s get ready. Clean it up, then clean yourselves up. It’s our turn to cook tonight. Before we do tha—”
“What about you, Lieu? You’re not going to show us how it’s done?” The rookie, who I guess grew a pair in the last five minutes, cuts in before I can finish my damn sentence. The blatant show of disrespect causes my temper to light, but I work to keep it tampered.
Steel lets out a low whistle, “Damn, not the puppy challenging the top dog.” He and Sadie snicker.
I laugh humorlessly, “You know what? Sure, kid. I bet you I can do this in less than five minutes.”
