Page 59 of Nanny for the Firefighters

But her gripping hands shift to pushing me back. I rear up to find her face ashen, slightly green. Rolling to the side, I help her up, and she sprints to the small bathroom around the corner. I follow, knocking softly on the closed door.

"Ella?" I hear her heaving on the other side. "Ella? How can I help?"

She groans and retches again. Worry worms between my lungs as I press my luck and try the knob. It's unlocked, a good sign. I crack the door. "Hey."

Ella's heavy breathing greets me, and she audibly swallows twice. "Can—can you call me a ride home?"

I pause in the doorway, warring with the want to hold her hair, rub her back, get her something to drink—anything to comfort her instead of sending her away. But it's what she's asking me for, so it's what I give her. "Okay."

Back in the bunk room, I grab my phone off the bed. Only, it's not my phone. It's Ella's, and it's unlocked. A quick swipe shows her open gallery. She has so many pictures of bars and clubs and the streets outside, but right in the center is the profile of someone I know intimately.

Tiffany. With me. The last night we were together at Harvey's. The night I got a package of information about my ex's cheating ways. How I was her lover, not her boyfriend. Because she is married.

And there's more pictures— not of Tiffany, but other men and women in compromising situations. It's almost as if Ella has a vendetta against them, given the meticulousness with which she's gathered intel. Screenshots, receipts, it's all there.

Dread sinks low under my ribs, sending a riptide through my gut.

Why would Ella have these? If she was there that night, why not come by and say hi? Why take these pictures of us together?

The last one of Tiffany is the one of the two of us together. The first one with my face full showing. Okay, I need to get to the bottom of this, but now isn't the time. I take my phone out and take a few pictures of my own.

Once I'm done, I set her phone back on the bed and bring up the local cab company with a few swipes on my phone. They'll be there to pick Ella up in ten. Plenty of time to settle her stomach and get her outside.

I grab a pack of Ritz and a juice box from the snack cupboard and meet Ella in the bathroom. She's leaned over the sink, wrists running under cold water. She jumps a little when my hand smooths up her back. "Hey. You all right?"

"Yeah." She shakes her head and laughs weakly. "Yeah. Just my stomach. It was upset earlier this evening, but I thought it went away."

"Think some crackers might help?" I hold out my offerings, and that small smile cracks wider.

The emotion whirling inside me wants to take care of her, make her feel better, but I know there's not much I can do for food poisoning or a bug. Other than to get her tucked someplace warm and quiet for her to rest and recover.

"I called a cab. He'll be here soon. Let's start the slow walk outside. Yeah?" I help her upright, and she nods.

"Yeah. Slow is probably better. Thanks." Ella takes my arm, dropping her temple against my shoulder as we step carefully through the bay. Once we're out front, she seems to breathe easier and relax against my side.

When the cab pulls up, I hand over her phone and help her slide in the back. Her thankful smile glitters in her eyes, and I know she means it.

How many people have taken care of her lately, before she fell into my and my brothers' lives? I kiss her forehead and whisper a soft you're welcome into her hair before I close the door and watch her ride off toward home.

Once the brake lights disappear around a corner, I pull up Marcus's number and call. He picks up on the second ring. "Hey. What's wrong? You're on shift, right?"

"Yeah. Yeah. Nothing's wrong at the station, but I just sent Ella back to your place in a cab." A pregnant pause hangs over the line. "I think we all need to gather and talk. Something is up."

Cap clears his throat. "Yeah, I've noticed. I'll get everyone here by the time you're off."

I let loose a heavy breath. "Okay. Good. Thanks."

After I hang up, I dive into my work for the rest of the night, and it's morning before my shift is over. We all meet at Ethan's house, and the weary faces all around confirm my intuition.

Ethan is the first to say something. "Ella's acting weird and hiding something."

Will nods thoughtfully. "I can't put my finger on anything specific, but sometimes, I get this feeling like something's wrong, and she won't talk about it."

Marcus wipes a hand down his face as he looks at us all. "She was sick this evening before she ran off on some errands."

"Shit. She was sick at the station, too, when she came to visit." I run a hand through my hair. "It's shifty, isn't it?"

Ethan and Will nod.