“Oh finally! I’ve been dying to try it,” He beamed, looking at the spread of ingredients. The smile left his face & a deep sigh escaped his lips as he was brought back to reality and all that had happened during his shift. “Yeah, it was bad. 12-car pileup, several injured, a few fatalities. They made me leave my uniform at the hospital. Gave me scrubs to wear home.” The guilt of losing patients in the field always ate away at him, but this was especially hard.
“A shower is definitely warranted. I feel like I’m covered in layers of grit and grime. I’ll be back in a jiffy,” he added with a peck on her cheek, turning and walking to the bathroom, shedding his coat and hanging it on a chair on his way.
Jo’s expression fell a little as he mentioned just how rough work had been. She knew how hard that had to be, how much it hurt to lose people, even if there wasn’t anything you could do to stop it. She was glad she had picked today to come back to Atlanta, Tom would definitely need a distraction after the rough night he’d had. “No rush,” she called out after him, her skin tingling just a little at the peck on the cheek.
Being with him was surprisingly easy. He was sweet and gentle, and it made her want to stick around. Just being around him made her happy. She hummed softly as she focused on cooking, dipping the maple-bourbon cream cheese stuffed bread slices into the batter and laying it into the skillet to fry. She cooked happily as she waited for Tom to get ready, easily piling up a plate of food, the scent twining with that of the already cooked bacon staying warm in the oven.
He stood under the nearly scalding water, letting the warmth permeate his being. As he got out, he wrapped a towel around his waist walked to the mirror, staring at the tired eyes looking back at him. He peeled his gaze away and walked to his bedroom, pulling a pair of sleep pants on before sitting on the edge of his bed. Head in hands, he let his eyes close as he let the faces of those he lost flash through his mind. He learned their names, so he could pay them homage. Someone needed to remember them. He grabbed his notepad from his side table and scribbled the names down. He couldn’t forget; or else they might be forgotten forever.
He slid the notepad back into the drawer and rejoined Jo in the kitchen, his nose leading the way. “Mmm, smells delicious,” Tom practically sang as his stomach growled loudly, his feet bouncing him with each step.
Cisco backup 