HEADLINE: REPORTER WALKS INTO FIRE… LITERALLY
Word in the newsroom is that our most overworked breaking news reporter has landed himself in rather hot water. Or should I say, hot flames. A recent article about a near-disastrous blaze may have unintentionally suggested that the real problem was not the fire itself, but the fact that the watch manager was a woman. That woman happens to be the youngest watch manager in London Fire Brigade history. And trust me, she does not suffer fools. The official solution? He’s to shadow her for a few weeks to get a taste of the real thing. The unofficial prediction? Sparks. The kind no hose can put out. I shouldn’t be telling you this… but I will.Philippa
Being the youngest watch manager the London Fire Brigade has ever had is no small feat. I’ve worked twice as hard to prove I can do the job, and I don’t have time for people who think my gender is my biggest challenge. So when a Gazette reporter decides to question my capability in print, I make sure the chief knows exactly how I feel. The next thing I know, I’ve got a shadow. A tall, tired, annoyingly attractive shadow who seems far too used to late nights and not enough coffee.
AJ
I didn’t mean for the piece to come across the way it did. But apparently, I’ve ‘got something to learn about modern firefighting’, so here I am. My desk has been traded for fire engines, my deadlines for 3 a.m. callouts, and my press pass for a high-vis vest. Philippa is sharp, competent, and has perfected the art of looking right through me. And yet, somewhere between the alarms, the banter, and the way she looks in her turnout gear, I can’t stop wondering what it would take for her to let me in.
He thinks it’s just an assignment. She knows it’s going to be a test. But neither of them is ready for how hot things are about to get.
Fair warning: there’s a cheeky dose of adult content inside. Set in England and written in British English.