by R. Linda
“Oh, my god. How did she survive?” Her eyes were sad as she brought her hand to her mouth.
“She must have been in the bathroom when the fire started upstairs. It tore through the top floor so fast, and most of the damage downstairs came from the top floor falling in. Somehow the pipes in that bathroom hadn’t been affected, and if it wasn’t for the fact she covered herself in wet towels, she’d probably have died.”
“What happened?”
“We wrapped her in the towels, careful not to touch her skin, and carried her out. Her screams were excruciating, and she kept writhing in pain. She passed out by the time we had her in the back of the ambulance. Brody gave her painkillers and sat with her as they rushed her to emergency.”
“She’s going to be okay?”
“Define ‘okay.’ She lost her entire family in that fire. But if you mean make a full recovery and live, then I guess…Yeah, she’ll be okay.”
“That poor girl. I can’t imagine.”
“You don’t want to. She’ll be in hospital for a while so they can treat her burns. Brody called on my way here to tell me.”
Harper didn’t say anything. Instead, we sat there holding hands and watching the water trickle over the rocks in the stream until the sun set and it turned cold. There was nothing to say. A young girl nearly lost her life today, and her entire family perished. And there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it.
Chapter Eight
Harper
Kenzie burst into my room the following morning. “Have you seen this?” she asked, waving an envelope in my face. I rolled over and buried my head under the pillow, completely uninterested in whatever it was that had her so excited.
“What?” I mumbled into my mattress.
“The invitation to Linc and Indie’s engagement party.”
They were getting married? I was happy for them, but I couldn’t even muster the energy to fake excitement. I spent the entire night tossing and turning, my mind on Nate and what he’d told me about the fire.
“Did you hear me?” she asked. Why couldn’t she just leave me alone and let me sleep?
I grunted out a response.
“Why are you still in bed?” The mattress dipped when she sat beside me. She pulled the pillow off my head and poked me in the cheek.
I swatted her hand away and grumbled, “Nate,” not realising my mistake until it was too late.
“Nate?” She climbed over me and lay down beside me. “Well, this just got interesting real fast. Tell me more.” She nudged me with her elbow.
“No. Not like that.”
“Really? I’ve seen the lingering looks, and there was that one night in Fi—” I pinched her mouth closed to shut her up.
“Nothing happened.”
“You woke up in Nate’s bed with no pants! Something definitely happened.”
“Kenz, please,” I pleaded. I did not want to relive that moment because then I’d be forced to think about each and every other moment I ended up in Nate’s bed without my pants. If that happened, I knew I couldn’t be held responsible for my actions later, like if I just happened to lose my jeans and fall through Nate’s window, only to land in his bed—completely not my fault.
“One day you will tell me what is going on.”
“Nothing is going on. We’re just friends.”
“Best friends, actually,” Nate said from where he suddenly appeared in my doorway with that heart-stopping grin. What was he doing here?
Kenzie’s eyebrows shot up as I scrambled to rearrange the blanket and cover myself a little more, ridiculous as it seemed, given our history.
“Okay, well, I’ll leave you to besties to, you know…talk.” Kenzie winked and climbed off the bed, patting Nate on the chest as she walked past. She turned around and gave me a thumbs up before indicating to Nate and rubbing her chest. She either wanted me to rub my chest on Nate or wanted me to let him rub my chest. I wasn’t sure, but either way, it wasn’t happening.
“Just remember, Nate, she has class in an hour. So, make it good and make it fast.” Her laughter could be heard all the way down the stairs.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I didn’t realise she was here.” Nate winced.
“That’s okay. What are you doing here?”
“I don’t really know. I didn’t even realise I was driving here, but since I am, want to grab a coffee before class?”
“Ah, sure,” I said and threw off the covers, completely forgetting I was wearing nothing but a t-shirt. “Let me just have a quick shower.” I darted past him, only to be stopped when his fingers curled around my wrist.
Turning back to look at him, I saw his dark eyes were focused on something outside my window. He tugged on my wrist and pulled me to him. Releasing my wrist, he gripped my waist with one hand, bunching up my shirt exposing my underwear while he wove his other hand into my hair. It was a weirdly intimate moment and so intense my heart thudded against my chest.
His fingers skimmed the skin under my ribs, leaving a trail of goose bumps, while he tilted my head back to look at him, only he was still staring out my window. I leaned into him, both welcoming and hating the way my body responded to his closeness.
“You’re wearing my shirt,” he said in a deep, low voice.
“I…I—” I didn’t know what to say. My brain had up and left. I only answered to his touch, which was leaving a blazing trail across my skin. I was wearing his shirt, one he left here one night more than three months ago. I had hoped he wouldn’t notice.
“Raincheck on the coffee, friend?” he whispered, his lips grazing my forehead. “You’ve got a visitor right now, and I shouldn’t be here.” With one last lingering touch on my waist that turned my legs to jelly, he left.
A visitor? Who would be here, and how would he know? I stepped over to the window and peered outside. Dammit. Brody. What was he doing here? And how was Nate going to get away without being seen? Surely, he’d have seen Nate’s car in the parking lot.
Deciding to skip a shower, I pulled on a pair of denim shorts, slid on my white canvas shoes, and tucked the shirt into my waistband at the front and ran down the stairs.
“Hey, man, what’re you doing here?” Brody asked Nate as I rounded the corner into the diner.
“Uh…” Nate was caught, and he couldn’t lie to save his life.
“Aunt Julie asked if he could stop by and take a look at the ice machine because Uncle Johnny is useless,” I said smoothly, coming to stand between them.
“I heard that,” Johnny grumbled as he came out of the kitchen. “There’s nothing wrong with the ice machine.”
“That you know of.” I glared at him and pushed him back into the kitchen before he could say anything to make Brody suspicious.
He walked off, mumbling something under his breath about damn kids not respecting their elders.
“I heard that,” I called back through the door before standing in front of Nate. Perhaps a little closer than appropriate for a friend, but when it came to him, my body had a mind of its own.
“What are you doing here, Brody?” I turned to him, trying to act cool and like I was completely unaffected when Nate’s fingers began playing with the hem of my shirt, twisting the back where Brody couldn’t see.
“Thought I’d see if you wanted to grab a coffee,” Brody said, his eyes bright, hopeful. What was with these guys and coffee? Two guys, two coffees, and I only wanted one.
“Oh, I’d love to…” I froze when Nate’s fingers dug into the small of my back. A warning. “But I have class. I was just coming to see if I could take Johnny’s truck today, because mine needs new tires.”
“Well, that’s easy. I’ll give you a lift, and we can grab a caffeine hit on the way. After the hellish couple of days I’ve had, I need it.” Brody’s smile was so easy-going that it was hard to say no.
I didn’t want to hurt his feelings and tell him to back off, even though I was absolutely not interested in him at all. No, I was completely inv
ested in the guy who was trailing his fingers along the waistband of my shorts, unbeknownst to Brody standing directly in front of me.
“Ah, sure. Thanks.” I forced a smile, even though I would have much preferred to go with Nate. “Let me grab my stuff.”
“Yeah.” Nate cleared his throat, removed his hands from my skin, and stepped around me. “I’m off now. But tell Julie I’ll be back tonight to look at the fryer.”
“You mean ice machine?” Brody corrected.
“Whatever.” Nate narrowed his gaze on me. “Tonight.”
I stared, unable to form words because I knew it meant he was coming back tonight to see me, since there was nothing wrong with the ice machine or the fryer.
“See ya, man.” He clapped Brody on the shoulder as he walked away, only to pause at the door and face us both again. “Nice shirt, Harper. Looks kind of familiar.”
I ducked my head in embarrassment, the blood rushing to my cheeks. He just had to go and say that in front of Brody, who now stared at me in confusion.
“What’s with the shirt?” Brody asked once the doors had closed behind Nate.
“Uh…it was Indie’s. Guess that’s why it looks it familiar,” I said like a complete idiot, but I could hardly tell him it was Nate’s. “I’ll be two minutes.”
I ran upstairs and grabbed my bag, throwing a few books in it, and quickly fixed my hair in the mirror. I don’t bother to change my shirt because…well, Nate liked it, and I liked that Nate liked it.
Brody was waiting patiently when I got back downstairs. “Ready?”
“Sure.”
We drove in silence to the university campus in the next town—it was practically a city compared to Blackhill. Brody gripped the steering wheel tightly. He fiddled with the radio stations, sighed, and rubbed a hand over his tired face. He was on edge.
“What’s wrong, Brody?”
“How did you know?”
“I know you, remember.” Nate already filled me in on what happened yesterday, but I wasn’t about to tell him that. Because I wasn’t prepared to answer the questions he’d no doubt have.
“Just wondering whether I am actually cut out for this job or not.”
“What do you mean?” I knew the job was hard, but the reality was in this industry, people were going to die, and you had to be okay with that.
“There was a fire. A whole family perished, Har, except for one girl Nate and I found. It was horrible.”
“I’m sorry, Brody.” I reached over and rested my hand on his arm. A small comfort, but it was better than nothing.
He grabbed it with his own and squeezed my fingers. I wanted to pull my hand away. It felt weird. Our hands didn’t fit well together, not like mine and Nate’s. There was no spark, no tingle, no stutter in my chest, and that was the biggest sign of all. Brody and I were nothing more than friends.
“How’s the girl?”
“Audrey? She’s critical, but she should be okay.”
“Audrey?”
“That’s her name. I can’t stop thinking about the poor girl. She lost her entire family in the blink of an eye, and she’s fighting for her life. Just wish there was something I could do.” Brody pulled into the parking lot.
“I’m sure you’ll think of something. You’re kind, Brody, a good person. Even a visit would do you both good. You did save her life, and I’m sure she’d like to meet you.”
“I doubt that. I saved her, but not her family. She has nothing now.”
“Sure, she’ll be upset, heartbroken, and devastated, but I’m sure she’d like to meet the men who rescued her. I know I would. She wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for you and Nate.”
“Maybe you’re right.” He tapped the steering wheel once and climbed out of the car. “Where’s the best place for coffee here?”
I glanced around, taking in my surroundings, and tried to think of the best place to grab a hot beverage. Truth was, the campus cafés were severely lacking. Most coffee tasted like dirty water.
My gaze landed on a head of crazy, curly, blonde hair. Kenzie. But she wasn’t alone. I couldn’t see well from where I was standing, but I could tell she was worked up. She was waving her hands, and her voice, unintelligible but loud, carried on the breeze. Her left foot tapped the ground as she craned her neck and looked over her shoulder, moving just enough to give me the perfect view of who she was talking to.
“Shit.”
“What?” Brody asked, but I ignored him and rushed over to Kenzie.
“Kenz.” I reached her and placed my hand on her back.
“Just go, Chace. I already told you no.”
“You can’t stop me. He’s my son. I have a right to see him.”
“You have shit. You lost that right when you ordered me to abort my child. What kind of person does that?”
“I was fifteen, dammit. A kid.”
“So was I,” Kenzie growled and took a step forward, but Brody appeared out of nowhere and pulled her back.
“My parents were furious. Threatened to cut me off. What did you expect?” He ran his hands through his hair. He had a plaster over his nose, and his eyes were still black with bruises.
“Yeah, great. Sure, that’ll be a huge comfort to Cole when he cries to me at night wanting to know why his daddy doesn’t want him.”
“But I do. Why won’t you let me see him?”
“Because I don’t trust you. You’ll be the best thing in his life for three months, until something more interesting catches your attention, and you disappear without a word. It would break his fragile little heart, and I’m not willing to risk that.” She took a deep breath, still held back by Brody’s hand on her arm. “I know you, Chace. You only do things if it’s good for you. And having a child is not good for you. Your life becomes about them. Having a child means everything you do, you do for your child. They always come first, not as an afterthought. And to you, Cole is nothing more than an afterthought. A way to piss off the parents. A way to pass the time. But to me, Cole is my entire life. I live for him, and I’m not letting you fuck with that.”
Chace stood there, stunned, at a loss for words for a moment before setting his gaze on Brody. “And who’s this? Some dude you’ve got pretending to be the kid’s father?” he scoffed.
I winced and waited.
“The kid’s name is Cole. And you wonder why I won’t let you near him. You’re petty and jealous and can’t even say his name.”
“Let’s go,” Brody suggested quietly.
“Kenzie, we’re not done here.”
“Yeah, we are,” she said. “Back off.”
Kenzie nodded to Brody and turned away from Chace. We walked together, ignoring Chace’s calls to come back, toward our first class with Kenzie muttering to herself the whole way. He was really screwing with her head. “How did he know I was here?”
“I don’t know.” I had to admit, it was weird that he knew what uni she attended and where she would be. Had he been waiting for her long? Or did he know her entire schedule?
“Is he stalking me or something?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him.”
“Want to see if I can find out?” Brody offered. Damn, I forgot he was still there, but at least this saved me from sitting through an awkward coffee with him.
“How?”
“I know a few guys on the force. Could get them to check him out.”
“You would do that?”
“Sure.”
“Thank you.” Kenzie leaped forward and hugged Brody. “Should I come with you?”
“If you want to.” He smiled.
“Now?” Kenzie pressed. “I don’t want to stay here knowing he could still be waiting after class.”
“Uh…” Brody looked at me for an answer, so I shrugged. It made no difference to me if they left now. I could lend Kenzie my class notes later to catch up. “Sure.”
“Oh, crap. Harper. How will you get home?” Kenzie turned to me as if suddenly remembering I was there.
&
nbsp; “I’ll be fine. I’ll get a ride with a friend.”
“A friend?” She raised her eyebrow at me and pursed her lips. “You don’t have friends.”
“I do so.” I folded my arms and frowned. “I have a new one.”
“Oh, really?” Her eyes twinkled as she realised I was referring to Nate. “A new bestie, huh?”
“If you’re not careful, then yep. I’ll replace you. Go. I’ll be fine.”
“Okay. Thanks, Harper.” She hugged me briefly and stepped back.
“Raincheck on the coffee?” Brody asked. I groaned inwardly. I had already heard that today.
“Sure.”
“See ya.”
I waved and watched them walk away together. Kenzie turned around, continuing to walk backwards. “Make sure you and your friend are safe. Use protection and all that.”
I ground my teeth and glared at her, but she just winked and continued. “Seatbelts, Harper. I don’t know how good a driver this friend of yours is. Are they good? Know what they’re doing?”
I thought about my response for a minute before deciding and calling out, “The best.” I winked. Her mouth dropped open and her steps faltered before she gave me a thumbs up and turned around again. She was going to ask a thousand questions later, and I’d have to come clean.
Chapter Nine
Nate
I slammed my fist into the steering wheel when I pulled into the driveway of The Love Shack to see if Linc wanted to go for a surf. I needed to clear my head and calm down.
Therapy sessions.
What a load of bullshit. I didn’t need therapy sessions, but Cap said it was mandatory for all of us after that disastrous fire. I argued with him until I was blue in the face, but ultimately, he won because it was either complete the sessions or he’d suspend me indefinitely.