since they’d started a month ago, but they still needed to learn how to work as a unit. They also needed to learn how to run faster, Chase thought, chuckling as he watched Teddy and Deb chase them with the hose.
Over the past few months, they’d managed to build something amazing with Hunter’s help. He’d overheard them discussing the plans to open up a school when he’d visited Sloane in the hospital and…
Somehow, they’d become partners. Hunter used his resources to make it happen quickly. They taught everything from basic first aid to specialized search and rescue tactics that no one else taught. They had students coming in from all over the world to take their training and a long waiting list. They had contracts with multiple fire departments to take over training, with the military, and with several private companies.
They had a full-time staff made up of firefighters, paramedics, ex-military, and of course, his incredibly beautiful wife helped out when she could. Hunter and Grey taught a few classes when they had time, but Chase ran the school with the help of his adorable assistants, of course.
The security door opening drew his attention to find Sloane walking out of the building with a woman holding a small child in her arms a little boy walking by her side and…
God, he loved that woman, Chase thought as he watched Sloane make her way across the training yard, her limp barely noticeable today. She was more than he’d ever hoped for, so much more. He couldn’t imagine his life without her and the kids, didn’t want to.
After she’d left the hospital, she’d been stuck on bed rest, forced to put up with her brothers, who’d all turned into mother hens when they found out that their baby sister was pregnant. She’d hated being on bed rest and had made the worst patient, Chase thought, chuckling. She’d complained, grumbled, and pouted, but he’d refused to let her out of that bed until the doctor cleared her.
She’d spent the last two months of her pregnancy spoiling the kids, setting up the nursery, and falling asleep in her office at Shadow House when she over did it. Grey had put her in charge of therapeutic activities at Shadow House and he’d honestly never seen Sloane happier. She was an amazing mom, so damn kind and patient with the kids, and she was so much more than he could have ever hoped for.
“How’s training going?” the woman that had him wrapped around her little finger asked, pausing by his side so that she could lean up and kiss his jaw.
“Good,” Chase murmured absently as he watched her check on Lucas, who was still sound asleep, snoring softly as his tiny hand wrapped around his teddy bear’s leg while Chase’s gaze slowly took in his wife’s incredible body and he was forced to remind himself that they still had a few more weeks before he could show her just how much he loved her.
“There’s someone here to see you,” Sloane said as she leaned down and kissed Lucas’s cheek.
“Oh, yeah?” he murmured, shifting his attention to the woman who looked vaguely familiar as she placed the toddler in her arms on the ground.
“Can I help you?” Chase asked with a smile for the little boy who was staring at the scar on the side of his face.
“You don’t remember us, do you?” the woman asked, drawing his attention back to find her watching him.
“I’m sorry. I’m afraid that I don’t,” Chase said even as he tried to figure out why she looked so familiar.
Nodding, she said, “My name is Sarah and this little guy is my son, Aidan,” gesturing to the little boy watching him shyly. “And this is Chase,” she said with a warm smile as she looked down at the toddler holding her hand. “He’s named after the firefighter that saved us,” Sarah said, making him frown as he looked back at her face, trying to figure out where he knew her from and…
Felt the air leave him in a rush.
“We wanted to come thank you sooner, but we were told that you were having a hard time and that it might be better to wait,” Sarah said, only to pause as she considered her next words while Sloane reached over and took his trembling hand in hers. “I wanted to thank you for trying to save my little boys. You didn’t have to go back in that fire, but…” she began only to