HERO (The Complete Series) Read online

  “Yes, not there,” he answered. “It’s not for my day job. It’s for my family’s company. I still sit on the board as chairman.”

  “Yeah?” I asked weakly, thinking I would have to ask him what company his family owned when I felt a little better.

  “Not to worry about that right now,” he countered, as he walked towards me with the tea. “It’s not a big deal. James will take care of it. And I’ll stay and take care of you until your friends get here.”

  My heart melted. “You don’t have to do that,” I resisted. “I’ll be fine, really.”

  “I am staying,” he announced. “Besides, I feel bad that I didn’t catch you quickly enough as you passed out on the sidewalk yesterday. I told the paramedics to check you out for a concussion, and they said you were fine. So it must just be the smoke inhalation that has you feeling dizzy.”

  “Oh, that’s okay,” I replied. “Okay, fine. Stay. Thank you.”

  “What room are you staying in?” he asked. “I’ll grab your pillow.”

  I raised my forearm slowly and pointed to the guest room. He disappeared around the corner and then came back with two pillows and the comforter from the bed.

  “Here.” He propped my head up with the two pillows then spread the comforter out and covered me gently. Our eyes met as he leaned over to tuck the comforter behind my shoulders. I was at a loss for words and I hoped my eyes wouldn’t betray my thoughts. God, he was handsome; strong, and so thoughtful to take care of me that way. He was so physically appealing, that I could feel my nipples hardening in response to his body being so close to mine. His warmth emanated from him to every fiber of my being in this primal, carnal and mesmerizing wave.

  Control yourself Kate.

  As he stood up, I looked shyly at his body. He had broad shoulders. And those strong arms had held me so protectively. I remembered the warmth of his rock hard chest. There was a lot to appreciate about him.

  He sat in George’s chair and watched me intently, never turning his attention to anything else. I closed my eyes, aroused but tired and barely able to stay awake. I felt safe.

  * * *

  When I woke up, I had forgotten where I was, and was confused for a few moments. It was already dark, but that meant little as it was already late November and got dark well before the dinner hour. I realized I was in George’s guest bedroom, under the same comforter that Matt had gently wrapped me in. I pressed my nose into it and closed my eyes as I smelled the faint scent of his cologne. I could hear George and Richard in the living room or kitchen. They were bantering as they usually did. It was a familiar sound, hearing them cooking dinner and play-arguing over the usual fashion, celebrity news, and other trivial topics. Slowly, my recollection came back. I had fallen asleep in the living room, so Matt must have carried me to place me in the bed. I didn’t remember anything else.

  I sat up slowly to get my bearings, and Richard must have heard me.

  “Get your ass back into bed, Missy,” he shouted from the living room, as he walked towards my door. “You need to rest, Miss Famous.”

  Miss Famous. More like my 15 minutes.

  “Where’s Matt?” I asked, peering around Richard, into the living room to see if he was still there, silently hoping that he was.

  “He stayed until we got here,” Richard answered. “He actually just left about a half an hour ago. He explained everything, and we saw the reporters hounding you. You handled your fine self like an ace on TV. You whipped those fucking reporters into shape, sistah, and you did it with style and poise.”

  “Richard is right,” George chimed in at the door. “You’re a natural, and you handled yourself really well. The public is in love with you. And everyone wants to know more. We’ve had about 200 calls for you at the station. People are calling to say they are so proud of you. Reporters are trying to get exclusive interviews. And get this, you got a call from the Mayor of New York City. Do you freaking understand what that means? For you? For the station? Great job, Kate. But next time, put some clothes on and do your hair before you answer the door. You looked like hell. Cute and adorable as a button, but like hell.”

  I smiled, but nothing was registering fully. I was still thinking about Matt. Why did he stay there with me? Why did he give up his important meeting to take care of me? And who was he really? I wondered about him and his family and his business, making a mental note to Google him, once I felt better.

  “That was nice of him,” I said.

  “Who? Matt?” said Richard. As I nodded he exclaimed, “Girl, you are batting 100! All this media attention, you saved that boy, and now it looks like your knight in shining armor is here to rescue you and rock your world. If I had a few hours alone with that guy, well I just don’t know, I…”

  “Let her eat and get some rest, Richard,” George said firmly. “It’s late, and she doesn’t need your rapid fire, down in the gutter, conversation. Besides, we need her at the station bright and early tomorrow, remember?”

  “What for?” I jumped in.

  “You’ll see,” he said, smiling mysteriously. “Now get back into bed and let me grab the dinner tray so you can have some food in you before you go back to sleep.”

  They left me alone as I pecked at the bread, bowl of soup, and grilled chicken salad they brought me. I didn’t have an appetite but knew that I should eat something. All I could think about was Matt. Was I overreacting about what he did for me? He did say that he felt responsible for leading the reporters to George and Richard’s place, so that should have explained why he felt obligated. That, and the fact that he let me hit my head when I passed out on the sidewalk. Not that it was his fault at all, but it did explain why he would stay. It was just over twenty-four hours since the fire, and I’d seen Matt four times. He was slowly weaving his way into my psyche.

  After getting ready for bed, I was tired but couldn’t sleep. He was on my mind. I drifted into a restless sleep with visions of the fire, the little boy and his sister, and Matt holding me in his arms, looking deeply into my eyes like he wanted to tell me everything.

  Chapter 6

  “Wake up, Sunshine!” Richard shouted from my bedroom door. I was already awake, but still thinking about how surreal the last couple of days were. I was also planning out some things I’d need to be ready to say when I got back to work, and if the reporters happened to be there or on my way in.

  “George wants me to make sure that you get in on time,” Richard said as he walked in. “He left really early to be prepared for your surprise today.”

  “What surprise?” I asked, knowing that Richard would not budge, but still taking a chance that he might give me a hint, all things considered.

  “Uh-uh, missy,” he said as he shook his head with his eyes closed. “The vault is shut. Get dressed and get your butt into work and you’ll find out soon enough.” He reached over and pulled my arms to help me out of bed.

  “Okay, I’ll be ready in twenty minutes,” I said, but remembered that I had no clothes to wear. “Richard, I will need to borrow a shirt and some pants from you guys. I don’t have anything anymore.” And that’s when I broke down. I was never the materialistic type of person, but suddenly I felt the loss. There was nothing left of anything that may have meant anything to me. My body shook and crying turned to weeping, and overtook me fully.

  Richard put a protective arm over my shoulder and sat silently beside me on the edge of the bed. Once I started to calm down, he left the room and came back in a few minutes with a pink men’s shirt, and blue jeans. “I called George, and reminded him that you need to stop to do a little bit of shopping before you get in. We’re so sorry that we completely forgot about that. He’s asked that you tried to come in by eleven AM. I’ve got a little bit of time so why don’t we go together? You know I rock at all things fashion, and you can use a bit of company. Deal?”

  “Sure. Thanks Richard,” I answered softly, still red-faced and catching my breath.

  I showered and got dressed in Richar
d’s stylish clothes, which actually didn’t look too bad on me. I had a bit of breakfast, and then we decided to walk to a few of the nearby boutiques that open a little earlier than normal. Richard had all the details on where to find a good fashion bargain, and the best quality possible. On the way there, Richard found a way to make me smile. He was good at that.

  Richard was like a five-year-old stuck in a grown man’s body. He would climb onto the street-side park benches and sing out loud with his air microphone. He even ran through sprinklers that were on at full power on one street. He was completely drenched by the time we got to the first boutique. I loved seeing that side of him. He really was a beautiful soul, full of laughter, energy, fascination for the banal. And I was all the more inspired, considering what he lived through a few years ago.

  After all that searching through several boutiques, I decided on staying in what I was wearing. Richard didn’t mind too much because he bought some things to change out of his wet clothes. I smiled as I entered the radio station main entrance, wondering how often that actually happened to him.

  As I got off the elevator onto our floor, no one was around. All the cubicles and sound engineer stations were empty. I put my bag down and walked towards the set where we did our live radio shows.

  All eight of the day staff were cramped in the radio room with a large sign behind them that read ‘Congratulations Kate’. I walked in with a smile, however was still not in that festive type of mood to celebrate. They queued up the DJ on shift, and he announced a lofty welcome back to the room and to all our listeners. After much applause and hugs and pats on my back, the group dispersed to their respective workstations, and George asked me to come sit with him in the small outer office.

  “So, how are you feeling?” he started.

  “I think I’m mostly back to normal,” I answered, trying to have a little more excitement in my voice. “Thanks so much for the warm welcome back. You really didn’t have to.”

  “Oh, there’s so much more,” he continued. “Guess who’s going to be here at noon, going live on the air at our station, because of you?”

  “Who?” I asked, figuring it would be the station owner, or some delegate from the police or fire Department.

  “The mayor of New York City!” he said aloud.

  “What? Why? For me?” I asked.

  “Who else?” he said with sarcasm. “Of course, for you. He wanted to give you a special thanks in person, and also liked the idea of doing it live from our building as a public address. I believe they’re going to leverage the media to make an announcement about the displaced homeowners from the fire, yourself included, remember?”

  “Well it’s a good thing that it’s the radio, because look at what I’m wearing,” I answered. “Richard found more at the boutiques than I did. So I’m still wearing his clothes from this morning.”

  “Hold that thought,” he said. “The media’s going to be in a frenzy outside. And as it’s a public event, there’s probably going to be a lot of people showing up as well. ”

  “I wish I would’ve known before,” I answered. “Why was this supposed to be such a surprise?”

  “Um because, the station manager is going to offer you a promotion,” he answered. “But don’t let him know that I gave you the heads up.”

  “George, it’s a lot to take, don’t you think?” I said with a heavy sigh at the end. “I have no place to live, I have no clothes, everything that may have meant something to me in that apartment is now gone. And here I am getting ready to accept a commendation and a promotion, when I haven’t even come to terms with everything that’s happened.”

  “Just get through today,” he tried to reassure me. “A day at a time, okay honey? Everything is going to be fine. And you’re one of the lucky ones, remember? You had an insurance policy, right?”

  “Yes I did, but I still feel the loss.”

  “Try to focus on the next hour,” he offered as consolation. “Why don’t you go check with Annie to see if she has any extra clothes she can lend you? You two are the same size, right? Now go take care of that and be back here at a quarter to noon.”

  I was not in the mood to go asking Annie or anyone else to borrow their clothes, but George walked me over and did the asking. And she was very willing and helpful, taking me to a small locker room and showing me the three spare outfits she had. She was around my size, but I stood at least half a foot taller than her, so none of her pants fit me. She did find a black, below-the-knee pencil skirt that more or less fit me. And I opted for her white dress shirt and pink button-down sweater that were definitely too short, but looked okay when I pushed the sleeves up to my elbow.

  I have nothing and am homeless.

  I knew the pity party in my brain would eventually end, but at that time, it was all I could think of.

  * * *

  I got to the main entrance of our building just a few minutes before noon. I realized then that George may have understated the event that was to come. Hundreds of people had already gathered outside and had spilled into the street. There were police officers redirecting traffic and beginning to control the crowd with wooden barriers. Some members of the public held framed photographs of a couple. I couldn’t make out who they were. Looking back, perhaps I was in denial.

  At one side of the stairs was a group of first responders who had plunged in to fight the inferno which erupted that night. Every so often, the crowd would turn toward them and give a round of applause. Piling up on the right side was every type of local and regional media outlet – radio, TV, newspaper, online outlets, magazines, the works. A podium and microphone was positioned at the top of the stairs. Several media outlets had clipped and secured their branded mics to the podium for better sound quality during the address. George was near it, looking around to the building as though he was waiting for someone to come out.

  Within minutes, a black town car slowly came through the parting crowd. The Mayor stepped out, and was quickly flanked by two security guards. He shook hands with a few onlookers, making his way up the stairs to the podium. He leaned in and greeted George and they exchanged a few words then looked back at the building entrance again. Then George walked inside and called out to me.

  “Come on, Kate,” he said. “They’re waiting for you.”

  As we walked through the entrance, a booming round of applause erupted from the crowd. They were cheering for me? I wasn’t prepared for that. In the blur of it I made out the Lieutenant with his firefighter colleagues. He nodded at me and smiled as though to say, “break a leg”. The Mayor raised his right arm to get the attention of the crowd, and then began his speech.

  “Citizens of New York City, we are here to take a moment to remember, to recognize, to begin healing and to rebuild. The fire at 6th Avenue was a tragedy. We want to remember that it displaced families, caused tens of millions of dollars in damage, and sadly, an almost unbearable loss of two people who perished during this local disaster. No passage of time can erase the lives lost, the injured and the damage caused by this tragedy from our consciousness. I know for some of us it feels like the wound has been reopened. It’s been a difficult few years and this is why we will continue to rally together as a community.

  “We also want to recognize the bravery and committed service of the firefighters of FDNY 10 station. These men and women risked their lives every day to save our precious loved ones. And it's their job. But if it weren’t for the quick thinking and courage of Miss Kate Samuel, there may have been one more burden for our community to bear. The city of New York extends its thanks to you.

  “And we want to begin to heal and to rebuild. As a community, our residents are resilient, determined, and have extraordinary kind of character. This is what we need to hold on to as we move forward. I pray, and I will continue to pray, that we will continue to rally together and support each other until we all returned to some sense of normalcy. And once we rebuild, we will be that much stronger.

  “Within each and ev
ery one of us is the capacity to lift ourselves up, in dignity and in strength. Yes, there will be great suffering for Mr. and Mrs. Holstein, who lost their lives during the fire. But we will show great generosity and support to their surviving children, and...”

  Mr. and Mrs. Holstein? It couldn’t be. Those were the parents of the two children from that night. Their names came flooding back as I had handled their credit cards at the restaurant a few times before.

  That is all that I remembered from the Mayor’s speech. I felt my head spinning and knees weakening, and at the last moment, reached my arm over to George’s shoulder, just before bracing myself for the fall. I didn’t quite make it to the ground, because I felt strong arms hold me up before I passed out.

  Hero.

  Chapter 7

  I woke up in a hospital bed a few hours later. As I opened my eyes and looked around, Lieutenant Lewis was sitting in the chair beside me.

  “What happened?” I began to ask. “And why are you here?”

  “You fainted,” he replied, then started with a smile. “Luckily I was there to catch you this time. The paramedics were there for the ceremony, so they were able to get you here pretty quickly. I think you may have a concussion, but the doctor will be here to discuss that with you.”

  “So why did you stay with me?” I couldn’t resist asking. “Where’s Richard or George?”

  “They were both very busy so I offered to stay,” he answered, then joked, “Just accept it; you’re irresistible when you’re unconscious.”

  “Funny guy,” I smiled. It seemed like fate wanted to keep Matt and I connected, and he was not resisting it either. “So what happened after I passed out? At the ceremony, I mean.”

  “Well, the mayor only had a few more words left in his speech when you fainted,” he started. “Sorry to say this, but it did cause quite a stir.”

  “How do you mean?” I probed, though a part of me just wanted to keep the conversation going.