4. Hudson

Chapter Four

HUDSON

That evening, I tried to keep my focus on my friends. It shouldn’t have been that challenging. Except every time I looked toward Stella and her blond curls bounced around her shoulders, and her dimples peeked out when she smiled, and her cheeks turned pink, my body felt like an engine revving.

When I left, I happened to be walking out behind Stella. I paused beside Stella’s car because I couldn’t help but check with her. “How are you feeling?”

She looked up at me, something flickering in her eyes. “You were right. Ibuprofen is enough. I’m fine.” She lifted a hand, shifting her fingers through her curls. “And, I have shorter hair now.” Her smile was sheepish.

Fuck me. The urge to kiss her was nearly strong enough that I acted on it. I barely managed to keep myself in check.

“Thank you for, uh…” She paused, her nose wrinkling adorably. “Rescuing me and taking me to the hospital.”

I had to clear my throat to speak. “Anytime. Just glad you’re okay.”

I drove away, telling myself it was best to keep my distance from Stella.

Hell, she was a lawyer. If she knew about my past, she would run for the hills.

“Hudson!” Maisie said when I came walking through the back hallway while holding a tray of coffees aloft.

“You’re just happy to see me because I’m delivering,” I teased as I carefully checked the coffees in the tray before handing her the one with her name written on it.

“Maisie’s always happy to see us,” Griffin said as he rested his elbows on the counter encircling her desk.

“So, is he Huddy Hudson or something like that in your phone?” Rex Masters teased as he straightened from behind the desk, where he was putting away some files.

“Hudsy,” Maisie said, her brown curls bouncing with her nod.

“Hudsy? Excuse me?” I prompted.

Rex chuckled. He was the police chief in Willow Brook and also Cade Masters’ father, a firefighter here. They looked remarkably alike, although Rex had more silver in his brown hair and deep laugh lines around his green eyes. “Maisie gives everyone nicknames in her contacts. I’m Rexy Rex.”

“I’m Griffy Griff,” Griffin offered with a wry grin. “The only one who gets something different is Beck. What is he again?”

“Action hero,” Maisie replied with a dimpled smile.

Beck happened to be coming out of the hallway and chuckled as he heard her reply. He leaned across the desk to give Maisie a kiss on the cheek. “I love my nickname. I am an action hero.”

I chuckled as I rolled my eyes. “So, I’m Hudsy Hudson?”

Maisie nodded. “Can’t be inconsistent, or somebody will feel left out.”

“Sweetheart, I’m pretty sure nobody will feel left out,” Beck offered.

“I appreciate the consistency,” I teased.

Rex waggled his brows as he slipped out from behind the counter and headed toward the police side of the station.

Just then, the door to the reception area opened and we collectively glanced over. As soon as my eyes landed on the man walking in, I was so startled that my mouth dropped open.

“Hudson Fox! Holy fucking shit!” Parker Grayson exclaimed.

I met my old friend halfway across the waiting area and pulled him into a backslapping hug. When I stepped back, I asked, “Wow, what the hell are you doing here?”

Graham came walking into the waiting area. “He’s joining our crew. How do you two know each other?”

I didn’t hide my past, but I didn’t broadcast it either. Things had been rough when I was younger, and I’d ended up with a juvenile criminal record. Parker and I had met in detention. I’d walked the straight and narrow ever since.

I could see the questions in Parker’s eyes, and I had my own for him. Glancing to Graham, I replied, “We knew each other back in high school. We were both raising some hell then.”

Parker held his hands up. “I’m winning at living the most boring life since then,” he said dryly.

“Same.” I held my palm up to slap him a high-five.

Maybe plenty of people got in trouble in high school, but not all of them got nailed for dealing drugs with their dad like me. Parker ended up in detention for the same reason. We’d bonded pretty tight for those months and had stayed in touch sporadically since.

“Good to see you, man. I’m glad you’re going to be on the crew.” I meant it. Parker was solid. Maybe it was strange if you’d never done any time in detention, but you saw people’s true colors there. When everything was stripped away, maybe the only thing you had was finding your dignity and being honest.

Maisie was all business, fetching some paperwork and handing it over to Parker before she took a dispatch call. The group filtered apart, and I walked into the back with Parker and Graham.

“It’s really good to see you,” I said when we stopped in the locker area.

“You too.” Parker’s brown eyes crinkled at the corners with his smile. “I wasn’t expecting to see you, but I’m damn glad you’re here.”

“We’ve got plenty to catch up on,” I replied with a chuckle. “Aside from work, what brings you to Willow Brook?”

“That’s it. I’ve heard good things about Willow Brook, so I jumped on it when I saw they were moving a crew here.”

“Good move. It’s a great area. I was about to go work out.” I thumbed over my shoulder toward the workout area in the back.

Parker was putting his gear in the locker Graham had directed him to. “Carry on, man. I’ve gotta take care of this paperwork.”

I clapped him on the shoulder before leaving the locker room. I lifted weights and settled in for some time on the elliptical. My mind spun back to my days with Parker. My dad wasn’t the most stable guy. He’d made his money running drugs from Seattle up to Alaska and he’d roped me into it. I was too young to know better. When I got in trouble, I’d lucked out with a good public defender. He’d whittled my sealed record down to a few misdemeanors. I wasn’t ashamed of my past. I still felt like a dumbass sometimes. I had turned thirty this year and it had been almost fifteen years since I walked out of detention. After that, I’d scrambled to stay out of trouble. I loved my dad, but he’d stayed busy doing dumb shit until the last few years. I had no memories of my mother. All I knew was she didn’t stick around. I was doing all right and counted my blessings every day.

After I finished working out, we went out on a training exercise. On the drive home, I ordered a pizza for delivery. I’d scored a nice rental through a fellow firefighter, Russell. He had a duplex with a shared kitchen on a pretty lake. So far, the upstairs part of the duplex had stayed empty, although Russell had told me the other day that someone would be moving in soon.

Not long after I got home, I jogged up the stairs when the doorbell rang, assuming it was my pizza delivery. But when I answered, my mouth dropped open.

“Stella?”