Seducing Simon(64)

“Still can’t sleep?” A.J. asked from across the room.

“Nah. Too busy kicking my ass. And I’m worried about Toni,” he admitted.

A.J. got up and ambled over. He parked it in a chair next to Simon’s cot. “She’ll come around. She’s probably just upset and taking a break.”

“I was a jerk. She didn’t deserve to be treated like I treated her. No matter how angry I was, she is pregnant with my child. The upset can’t be good for either of them.”

“Has it sunk in yet?” A.J. asked.

“That the baby is mine?”

A.J. nodded.

“It’s the weirdest feeling. I can’t even describe it. I mean I already felt extremely possessive of Toni. Some archaic cave man response. She’s mine. Hands off. That sort of thing. But now it’s even stronger. She’s carrying my child. Mine. Her belly is swelling with a part of me. I can’t get over it.”

He looked down at his hands then back up at A.J. “Why didn’t she just tell me? I think that’s what I’m having the hardest time with. Toni had to know I’d take care of her. For that matter, why didn’t she tell me what happened the next day? I could have been there for her when she first found out she was pregnant.”

“Try to put yourself in her shoes,” A.J. said softly. “You called her Starla. In her eyes that meant you were seriously hung up on your girlfriend. Not to mention it had to be pretty humiliating that you didn’t even know it was her. And since she didn’t tell you right away, when she found out she was pregnant, she probably thought you wouldn’t believe her.”

“And maybe I wouldn’t have,” Simon said honestly. “I don’t know. I would have been shocked as hell, no doubt.”

“She’s been paying for her mistake,” A.J. pointed out. “I’m sure this whole pregnancy has been less than a cakewalk for her. I’m sure she’s been terrified the whole time that you would hate her. It can’t have been easy living with that kind of fear and anxiety.”

“You’re right,” Simon admitted.

The radio blared an alarm, and the chief shot out of bed, grabbing for his radio. Simon and A.J. strained to hear as the chief radioed ten-four.

“Let’s roll, guys,” Chief Maxwell said, heading for the locker room to grab his gear.

“What’s up, chief?” A.J. asked as the rest rolled out of bed and dashed for the locker room.

“Two car MVA out on old Bridge Road a few miles out of town. They need extrication. One of the drivers is pinned inside the vehicle.”

“Damn,” Simon muttered.

“Why don’t people stay the hell at home?” Mike grumbled. “It’s two friggin’ AM, and the roads are icy. Most people would have the sense not to drive.”

“It gets better,” the chief said, as they scrambled into the truck.

“Ambulance is still twenty miles out and slow going in the ice. Their back up unit is in Beaumont.”

“Make sure our medical supplies are handy,” A.J. called out as he hopped on the truck.

They headed out onto the ice slickened street, the heavy fire truck faring better than lighter vehicles. They were probably a good five miles from the accident scene, and Simon hoped to hell the injuries to the driver weren’t severe. He knew basic first aid, but he had no desire to play paramedic.

“Do we have an ETA on the ambulance yet?” he asked the chief.

“Still several miles out. The first responders said the driver trapped in the vehicle is unconscious and they can’t get close enough to offer any assistance. We’ll have to cut him out.” Simon nodded grimly and said a prayer that wherever Toni was, she stayed put.

As they neared the accident scene, flashing lights lit up the wooded area on both sides of the road. At least four first responder trucks were parked on the shoulder and the road had been closed off.

To the right, a Ford Expedition sat on the shoulder of the road, the front end completely caved in. Whatever they’d hit, they’d hit hard.

Simon hopped out with the other guys and was immediately met by Frank Parker, one of the first responders. “Are Matt and A.J. with you?” he asked, a peculiar expression on his face.

“Yeah, why?”

“You and A.J. are sidelined,” Chief Maxwell said as he walked up. He pushed Simon back toward the truck and yelled for A.J. “Someone find out where the hell Matt went and get him in the truck,” he directed one of the first responders.

“What the hell is going on?” Simon demanded. “You can’t sideline us.

We have an extrication to do.”

“Mike and I will handle it,” the chief said. “You get in the truck and stay there.”

There was something in Chief Maxwell’s eyes he didn’t like. Sympathy and a bit of fear. Simon’s stomach clenched. Before anyone could stop him, he shoved by Chief Maxwell and ran toward the embankment where a crowd of first responders, sheriff’s deputies and the highway patrol stood.

A flash of yellow caught his eye. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Nausea rolled in his stomach, and he feared puking right there on the road.

He shoved forward, not wanting to believe what his eyes were telling him. It wasn’t Toni’s Jeep. It couldn’t be. It was another yellow Jeep. It had to be.