He hugged them to his chest and sighed, “My baby. You’re home.”
Karolena looked to Legend, who was cracking up too hard to fill her. So Aven did it for him, shaking her head. “James’s car has been though some shit. Every time it gets beat up, he’s had our friends at Hot Rods fix it and make it even tougher. Those two, from the purple car, are Roman and his husband, Carver. And the guy on the motorcycle is Quinn, Roman’s little brother.”
“He owns the motorcycle shop where Wren does her welding, right?” Karolena thought she was starting to get the full picture.
“Not exactly. Gavyn owns it. Quinn’s the manager there.” Laurel waved to the guy. “That’s where I stayed when I first came to town. He’s married to Devra from Sweet & Spicy and their husband, Trevon.”
Karolena observed the mechanics, who circled around James while talking animatedly about the latest enhancements to his vehicle. “Remind me who the guy driving James’s car is?”
Aven filled her in. “That’s Holden. He’s the Hot Rod’s interior upholstery specialist. His wife, Sabra, is the one who produces their reality TV show. Plus they do this super cool couples acro-yoga shit together. You should ask to see it sometime. I’m sure it comes in handy to be that flexible when you sometimes hook up with like eleven people at once.”
Karolena was grateful for the sunglasses then so they couldn’t see her eyes bugging out.Damn. And here she thought she was greedy for keeping Legend and Tavish all to herself. They were plenty for her to attempt to handle.
The visitors mingled with the Shields. Whether on purpose or by instinct each cluster of agents staked themselves out on the perimeter of the gathering. Kennedy, Knox, and Marcus chatted with the Hot Rods on one corner while Sola, Aarav, and Cash caught up with Quinn on the opposite side of James. Ruby, Liam, and Ace stood up front while Legend and Tavish shadowed Karolena near the rear of the assembly, behind a sea of friends. Jordan, Wren, and Kason were at the heart of it all.
James spoke up then so everyone could hear him. “To shut up those of you who make fun of my baby once and for all, we’ve prepared a demonstration to show you that everything we survive makes us stronger.”
Karolena couldn’t help but shake her head at their tomfoolery. She’d never had a sibling, but she imagined this was what it would be like if you got along with them well…and had thirty of them.
“Who’swe?” Jordan asked, a long-suffering grimace on his face.
James pointed across the street to where the massive garage doors of Middletown’s fire station began to rise. Foot by foot, they revealed the florescent boots of four firefighters then their black turnout gear, edged in more yellow. Several of the women, and some of the guys, cheered and whistled for the group that she’d seen featured in a sexy firefighter calendar on the breakroom wall.
“What are they carrying?” she wondered out loud.
“Is that a flamethrower?” Liam asked.
“That issocool.” Ace practically drooled. “Do you think they’ll let me have a turn?”
Jordan cut him off right there. “Absolutely not.”
“You just got the car back again, babe. Are you sure you want to do this?” James’s wife, Devon, held his hand. “I know how much you love it. Almost more than me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” James rolled his eyes as if it was his wife who was over the top and kissed her right there in front of everyone. Karolena wasn’t used to such public and affectionate displays, but it made her heart flip-flop. “The only thing I love almost as much as you is Neil.”
“Hey.” Neil’s laughter took the sting out of his indignation.
“Besides, it’s fine,” Roman promised. “We used a coating that deflects heat and also reinforced all the surfaces with blast-resistant technology usually reserved for things like the Popemobile. He’s all good. We’re going to take some video clips so Sabra can add them to our commercials for street racing clients.”
By the time Devon had been reassured, the firefighters had jogged over, carrying the giant silver tube and a couple of super-sized extinguishers. She hoped the safety equipment was an unnecessary precaution. A woman drove over a firetruck with the lights on but no sirens and parked it so that it blocked the entrance to the lot and was accessible in case of emergency.
“Hey, Jordan.” The man with the most patches on his jacket saluted the head of Shields.
“Bored, Karis?” A corner of Jordan’s mouth twitched as he ribbed the chief.
“The boys needed a few more training exercise credits.” Karis grinned back. “Plus, who doesn’t want to play with a flamethrower?”
“Me.” Karolena was both amused and apprehensive given their antics. She took a step back and bumped into Legend’s broad chest. It shocked her how she instantly settled against him, less anxious. Even more so when Tavish angled himself so that she was exposed as little as possible. Their arms instinctively went around her.
Quinn took notice, smiling when he realized exactly how familiar her guards were with her body. She braced herself but all he said, quietly, was “Congratulations.”
She didn’t know exactly how to answer, though she caught Tavish fist-bump the man. The firefighters lining up in front of James’s car and the whole crowd counting down saved her from formulating a response.
Three…two…
If they shoutedone, she didn’t hear it over the whoosh of the inferno that shot from the fire gun directly at James’s poor, precious car. They paused after the first blast to assess the vehicle. Miraculously, it seemed fine, like the Hot Rods had promised.
So they cranked it up and did it again. The flames were twice as big this time and so hot they glowed blue at the core. Karolena figured that’s what she would look like if anyone took an infrared picture of her while Tavish and Legend were setting her off.