THE FIREFIGHTER HUSBAND I DIVORCED IS A QUADRILLIONAIRE

CHAPTER 1, PART 2

They had barely reached the middle of the second floor stairwell when a deafening roar erupted without any warning. A violent pressure wave tore through the narrow stairwell, completely knocking the air from Derek lungs. The ceiling was coming down.

Derek reacted entirely on instinct. His body moved long before his mind did. He spun around, threw himself over Erin, and curled tight as the massive wooden beam crashed down.

It caught him directly across his left leg.

The pain was white hot and total. He heard himself grunt loudly. It was the heavy sound of a man absorbing something enormous and actively choosing not to be stopped by it. He braced his palms against the hot floor, shoved the heavy beam sideways with everything he had left, and pulled his bleeding leg free.

Erin lay completely unharmed beneath him, with gray dust tangled in her hair. Their eyes met. For a very brief moment, Derek thought he saw something soften in her eyes. Regret, or love, even.

"I am fine," Derek gritted through his teeth with a pained expression.

Then her gaze shifted away from him entirely. She looked toward the dark stairs.

"Mike! Where are you?" Erin called out frantically with her hands cupped over her mouth.

"I am down here," Mike answered in a muffled voice through the mask.

Erin quickly wriggled out from beneath Derek without saying a single word of thanks. She rushed over to Mike and checked his arms and face meticulously.

"Oh thank god you are safe," Erin said with a sigh of absolute relief and a bright smile. She looked back at Derek sitting on the dusty floor. "Derek, I need to get Mike outside right now before the smoke gets worse. He is coughing again. You are a trained professional. You know exactly how to get out. We will see you outside. Okay?"

Derek did not say a single word. He just watched his wife help her lover down the remaining stairs.

He could not have said exactly how he finally got himself out. The next few minutes existed in broken fragments. Smoke and heat and the terrible weight on his leg made every single step a painful negotiation with his own body. He finally reached the lobby. Then the front doors. Then the cold night air.

Pain throbbed through Derek leg in relentless waves as the paramedics worked over the injury.

"Your leg looks really bad, man," the young medic said with a worried expression, kneeling down to examine the bleeding wound. "We need to get you to the hospital right away. That looks like a severe injury."

"No. Just wrap it up," Derek replied quietly, looking over the medic shoulder.

"Are you crazy? You need an x ray. The bone might be fractured," the medic argued while applying a tight bandage and frowning deeply.

"I said just wrap it. I am going home," Derek insisted with a firm and stubborn tone.

Derek answered their basic questions politely, but his attention kept drifting. He searched the chaos around him. Red and blue lights flashed everywhere. Where was Erin? After everything he had done to get her out, had she really just disappeared with Mike?

"Did you see a woman and a man in bathrobes come out before me?" Derek asked the medic with a blank stare.

"Yeah. A fancy black town car picked them up about ten minutes ago. They left the scene immediately," the medic answered with a simple shrug.

Derek felt a bitter laugh rise in his throat. There was no sign of her anywhere. Only bright flames consuming the hotel and blackened sections of the building collapsing into the smoke. It looked painfully familiar. His marriage was exactly like this hotel. It had burned for far too long before finally beginning to fall apart.

Eventually, Derek stood up slowly. His injured leg barely held his weight. He declined the final offer for a hospital ride and flagged down a passing taxi.

The cab ride home took exactly eleven minutes. Getting out of the car took almost as long. Derek dragged himself up the concrete driveway. Pain shot through his leg with every single step. After every major fire, that glowing front doorway had meant warmth and safety. Home. But tonight, the house felt much colder than the burning hotel.

He was three steps away from the front door when his bad leg buckled completely. He dropped hard onto the concrete. He caught his heavy weight on both palms.

That was when he heard voices coming from inside the house.

"This steak is huge, babe," Mike said in a slow and lazy voice while chewing his food loudly. "Are you absolutely sure you can handle all of that?"

Erin answered immediately. Her voice was low and shamelessly suggestive. "I handled you just fine tonight. Did I not?"

Mike laughed loudly, a sound full of smug satisfaction. "You were amazing. But what about your husband? Do you think he made it out of that fire alive?"

"Who cares right now?" Erin replied with a dismissive and sweet giggle. "Derek is a big boy. He is a firefighter. He always survives everything. Besides, I am so glad you are safe, my love. I was terrified for you. That is all that matters to me. Eat your steak before it gets cold."

"You are the best, Erin," Mike purred with a deeply satisfied tone.

"Only for you, sweetie," Erin responded with a soft and loving coo.

Then they burst into happy laughter together. Shamelessly. Happily.

Derek stayed on the ground for a moment. All the terrible pain in his leg suddenly vanished. Something dark and white hot ignited inside his chest. He reached into his pocket and dry swallowed three strong painkillers. He grabbed the porch railing and forced himself back onto his feet. He walked straight up to his own front door. He pulled his fist back and drove it directly into the wood with all his might.

With a splintering crash, the door flew open.