“What kind of training?”
Tony’s expression softened. “Sit down,” he said, indicating one of the much-used chairs in the office. “Please.”
Laura sat, but she kept her back straight so she would feel strong and powerful. She needed her strength for what she was about to do.
“I feel like you must have a reason for asking,” Tony said, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. He looked sympathetic, as if he were talking to a lost child. He wasn’t much older than she was, and she was not lost. In fact, she was starting to feel quite found. “Is this about your brother?”
“No,” Laura said, shaking her head. “It’s about me.” She took a deep breath and let it out, knowing Tony would be patient enough to wait a moment for her explanation. “I’d like to become a volunteer firefighter.”
IT WAS NOT the first time Tony had talked with someone coming into the fire station and asking about joining as either a volunteer or a full-timer. Firefighters tended to attract attention with their high-profile jobs, big trucks and loud sirens. The station, too, was prominently located and took up half a block in Cape Pursuit.
He was glad every time someone came in and asked about joining their ranks because he believed it was the best and most noble profession. Believed in helping others even at the risk of his own life. Believed in his men, his trucks and their training.
He couldn’t believe Laura Wheeler was sitting in his office asking to sign up. The fact that she was a woman had nothing to do with his shock. Cape Pursuit didn’t have any women on the roster, but most local departments did and he’d had female instructors at the fire academy who’d easily dispelled any myth about men being better able to do the job.
No, it wasn’t that she was female. It was that she was Laura Wheeler. The woman who had been cast adrift by her firefighter brother’s death. He’d asked about her since their meeting last year, indirectly and discreetly. His best friend and cousin Kevin was marrying Laura’s sister, so it wasn’t far off the mark for Laura to come up in conversation.
Nothing he’d heard would have made him think Laura was a candidate for the fire service, but she was right there looking at him with expectation written in the set of her mouth and intensity in her eyes.
“A volunteer firefighter,” she repeated. “Not an astronaut, so you don’t need to look so shocked.”
“I’m not shocked,” Tony said quickly, but he doubted he was very convincing.
“Women can fight fires.”
“Yes,” he said. “I’ve known other women in the fire service who could outclimb me on ladders, outdrive me in the trucks and just generally outsmart me.”
Laura raised both eyebrows, a look she had probably perfected with teenagers making up excuses about their homework.
“I just didn’t think firefighting...after what happened with...”
“My brother, Adam,” Laura said steadily as if she wanted to get it out in the open. “Yes. He died doing this. It was a forest fire, but it was a fire. And yes, I’m sure you think I must be out of my mind to want to do this.”
“I don’t think you’re out of your mind.”
“Good,” she said. “How can I join the department?”
“We...have an application process. And there’s training, of course. Volunteers don’t need nearly as much as full-time staff, but there’s still a lot you would need to know.”
“I know CPR and have first aid training because I was a coach, and I helped save someone just this morning from drowning,” she said. “That’s a start, isn’t it?”
“CPR and first aid training are very relevant,” Tony agreed. It was true that teachers and coaches had to be cool under pressure and often put the needs of others first. He respected that, but he hadn’t known before today that Laura had any experience or desire that would qualify her to do what he did. His image of her was as Nicole’s sister who didn’t always make the best choices.
Tony sat back in his chair and tried to reimagine Laura as a person capable of wearing thirty pounds of gear, fighting her way through smoke and dousing a fire.
“I’m physically fit,” she said as if she could read his thoughts. He was instantly ashamed. The size of a person had little to do with the ability to fight fires. Brains, attitude and training were far greater determiners. “I run.”
“That’s great,” Tony said. “I can see you’re very...” He needed to change the subject before he said something stupid. “Have you talked to your sister about this?”
Laura’s determined and even slightly defiant expression fell, and Tony knew he’d hit a sore spot. He didn’t want to discourage her, but...
He wanted to protect her. That was it. And that was the problem.
“I haven’t,” she said. “Do you ask every volunteer who comes in here if he’s talked to his sister?”
“You’re not every volunteer,” Tony said, his tone soft.
Laura stood. “Can I have an application, please?”
Tony got up quickly. “It’s online. You just fill it out and submit it.”
“And when does training start?”
Laura was dead serious. “Next week. We’re running a six-week intensive summer training.”
“Here at the station?” she asked.
Tony nodded. “And I’m the instructor.”
THE SUNNY MONDAY afternoon was peaceful as Laura and her sister, Nicole, cruised an ocean inlet on their paddleboards. Laura loved the challenge of keeping her balance and getting a good workout, and also spending time with her sister. The steady rhythm of their paddles moving in unison lulled her into believing that finding an even keel was a possibility for her that summer. She’d also decided that balancing over thirty feet of water was a great time to share her firefighting plan with Nicole.
The look her sister gave her did not bode well. Nicole dipped her paddle deep and splashed Laura with ocean water. “That’s not funny,” Nicole said, resting the edge of her paddle between her feet and balancing on the calm water.
“I didn’t mean it as a joke,” Laura protested, mirroring her sister’s movements. “I’m not kidding.”
Nicole held up a finger. “You were supposed to spend the summer with me, have fun, help me with my wedding and take care of Kevin’s dog while we go on our honeymoon. That kind of stuff. You weren’t supposed to show up in town and give me a heart attack.”
“Sorry,” Laura said. “I thought you might understand.”
“Understand?” Nicole asked, raising her voice. “You thought I would understand that my only sister, my only remaining sibling...” her voice softened and trailed off, and Laura instantly felt like a jerk for not realizing just how much of an impact her decision would have on Nicole.
“This is different,” Laura said. “I’m not planning on trying to outrun a forest fire. It’s a nice small fire department. I’ll get plenty of training—probably more than Adam had before he—”
“No,” Nicole said. “I’m learning to live with the fact that Kevin is a firefighter, but I can’t deal with potentially losing you, too.”