Her Firefighter Under the Mistletoe. Scarlet Wilson

aside.

      ‘Then let me help you. It’s like abseiling in reverse. Lean back against me.’

      She was hesitating, still keeping all the weight on her legs, so he pulled her backwards towards him. He felt a little shock to feel her body next to his.

      It had felt different in the water, more buoyant, the water between them cushioning the sensation. But now it was just clothes. Wet clothes, which clung to every curve of their bodies.

      Her body was tense, stiff, and it took a few seconds for her to relax. He wrapped his arms around her, holding onto the lines in front of them, and gave them a little tug. His lips accidentally brushed against her ear as he spoke to her. ‘We let the lines take our weight. If you just lean back into me, I’ll walk up back up the incline. Just try and keep your legs in pace with mine. It feels a little weird, but it’ll only take a few minutes.’

      He let her listen, digest his words. He could feel her breathing sync with his, the rise and fall of their chests becoming simultaneous. She put her hands forward, holding onto the same line as he was, reaching for a little security in the strange situation.

      He wrapped his hands around hers. his thick gloves were in place, to take the taut strain of the line.

      He felt the tug of the line and started to walk his legs up the slope, taking her weight on his body. He looked skyward. Praying for divine intervention to stop any reactions taking place.

      It was the weirdest sensation. The last time their bodies had been locked together she’d been seventeen and he’d been twenty-one. A whole lifetime had passed since then.

      A marriage, a divorce, a fierce custody battle—and that was just him. What had happened to her?

      His eyes went automatically to her hand. He’d always imagined a girl like Jess would be happily married with a couple of kids by this age. But even through her wet gloves he could see there was no outline of a wedding band. Not even an engagement ring.

      Something clenched at him. Was it curiosity? Or was it some strange thrill that Jess might be unattached?

      His head was buzzing. He couldn’t even make sense of his thoughts. He hadn’t seen this woman in years. He hadn’t even heard about her in years. He had no idea what life had flung at Jessica Rae. And she had no idea what life had thrown at him.

      Drew. The most important person in his world.

      A world he kept tightly wrapped and carefully preserved.

      Drew’s mother, Kirsten, had left after the divorce and costly custody battle. She was in New York—married to her first love, who she’d claimed she should never have left in the first place, as he was twice the man that Callum was. Callum had been a ‘poor substitute’. Words that still stung to this day.

      By that point, Callum couldn’t have cared less about her frequent temper tantrums and outbursts. He had only cared about how they impacted on Drew.

      Drew was the best and only good thing to have come out of that marriage.

      He didn’t intend to make the same mistake twice.

      He’d never introduced any woman to Drew in the three years following his divorce. No matter how many hints they’d dropped.

      But his immediate and natural curiosity was taking over. He didn’t have a single bad memory about Jessica Rae. Even their break-up had been civilised.

      Seeing her today had been a great shock, but her warm brown eyes and loose curls took him straight back thirteen years and he couldn’t resist the temptation to find out a little more when it was just the two of them. They were around halfway up now. ‘So, how have you been, Jessica? It’s been a long time since we were in a position like this.’

      He was only half-joking. Trying to take some of the strain out of her muscles, which had tensed more and more as they’d ascended the slope. Was Jessica scared of heights?

      Her voice was quiet—a little thoughtful even. ‘Yes. It has been, hasn’t it?’ She turned her head a little so he could see the side of her face. ‘I’d no idea you were a firefighter. Didn’t you do engineering at uni?’

      She’d remembered. Why did that seem important to him?

      ‘Yes, three years at Aberdeen Uni.’ He gave a fake shudder. ‘These would be normal temperatures for up there.’

      ‘So, how did you end up being a firefighter?’

      Was she just being polite? Or was she genuinely curious? He’d probably never know.

      ‘There was a fire in the student accommodation where I stayed. We were on the tenth floor.’ He tried to block out the pictures in his mind. ‘It gave me a whole new perspective on the fire service. They needed to call out a specialist team and specialist equipment to reach us.’ He didn’t normally share this information with people. But Jess was different. Jess knew him in ways that most other people didn’t.

      ‘That must have been scary.’

      Not even close. There was so much he was leaving unsaid.

      The terrifying prospect of being marooned on a roof with the floors beneath you alight.

      The palpable terror of the students around you.

      The look on the faces of the fire crew when they realised you were out of reach and they had to stand by and wait, helpless, until other crew and equipment arrived.

      ‘Callum?’

      ‘What? Oh, yes, sorry. Let’s just say it made me appreciate the engineering work involved in the fire service’s equipment. I joined when I finished university. It didn’t take me long to find my calling at the rope rescue unit. I still do some other regular firefighting duties, but most of the time I’m with the rescue unit.’ He wanted to change the subject. He didn’t want her to ask any questions about the fire. ‘What about you? Are you married with four kids by now?’

      It was meant to be simple. A distraction technique. A simple change of subject, taking the emphasis off him and putting it back on to her.

      But as soon as the words left his mouth he knew he’d said the wrong thing. The stiffness and tension in her muscles was automatic.

      They were nearing the edge of the incline and he could see movement above them. the flurry of activity as the stretchers were pulled over the edge and the paramedics and technicians started dealing with the children.

      ‘Things just didn’t work out for me.’

      Quiet words, almost whispered.

      He was stunned into silence.

      There was obviously much more to it than that but now was hardly the time or the place.

      And who was he to be asking?

      He hadn’t seen Jessica in thirteen years. Was it any of his business what had happened to her?

      The radio on his shoulder crackled into life. ‘We’ve got the last two kids. Minor injuries—nothing significant. There’s an ambulance on standby that will take them to be checked over.’

      ‘Are all the ambulances heading to Parkhill?’ She sounded anxious.

      He lifted the radio to his mouth. ‘Wait and I’ll check. Control—are all paediatric patients being taken to Park-hill?’

      There was a buzz, some further crackles, then a disjointed voice. ‘Four classified as majors, eight as minors. Two majors and six minors already en route. The adults have gone to Glasgow Cross.’

      ‘Give me your hand!’ A large arm reached over the edge and grabbed Jessica’s wrist, pulling them topside. Someone unclipped their harnesses and tethers, leaving them free of each other.

      ‘Doc, you’re requested in one of the ambulances.’

      Jess never even turned back, just started running towards the nearest ambulance, where one