6. Marlee
Chapter 6
Marlee
On Monday morning, I stretched like a cat in the sunshine—warm, content, and satisfied. I smiled to myself as I bit my lip, replaying the memory of Seth’s kiss. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been kissed so well…
It felt good to let loose yesterday, to blend in and become part of a community. After the disaster of my last relationship blew up in my face two years ago, I’d thrown myself into work. As long as I remained strictly professional, I didn’t have to mourn the broken heart my ex left behind when he cheated on me.
There was a closeness here in Romeo that I never experienced in San Francisco. Listening to Seth’s coworkers telling stories about him was proof that they were familiar with each other like one big family.
It also confirmed my suspicions that Seth was a flirt.
I sighed and pushed myself up in bed, scrubbing a hand through my hair. My head warned me that I should steer clear of Seth. I didn’t need to be tossed aside like a toy by another man. But my heart—and definitely my body—continually tugged me closer to him.
Maybe it didn’t have to be anything serious.
Seth didn’t strike me as the type of guy to settle down long term. A harmless little fling might help me to get back on my feet. I knew it wouldn’t last, and Seth probably did, too. If he got bored and cheated on me, I would already have one foot out the door.
My phone buzzed with a text on my nightstand. I reached over and picked it up, glancing at the screen to see Seth’s name.
Good morning, gorgeous. Mind if I drop by your office later today with lunch?
A giddy bubble rose in my chest. I forced myself to calm down and typed out a response.
Only if it has more nutritional value than ice cream.
Within seconds, Seth sent back a reply.
A dozen donuts, coming right up.
I laughed softly, alone in my empty bedroom. Then I touched my lips to silence myself. I had to keep in mind that this wasn’t going to last. This wasn’t love. Just lust. Attraction. Flirtation for the fun of it.
Pushing the sheets aside, I headed for the bathroom and started the shower, waiting for the water to warm up. As I stripped off my pajamas, I caught the unmistakable scent of smoke.
Goosebumps rippled up the back of my neck. I tilted my head, sniffing the air. Had I imagined it? Was my mind playing tricks on me after that firework exploded in my office?
I turned off the shower and wrapped a towel around myself. When I reached for the door handle, it wouldn’t budge.
A red-hot spike of alarm rocketed up my spine.
I twisted and rattled the door handle, but it remained firmly shut. That didn’t make sense. The lock was on the inside. It shouldn’t be stuck either.
The scent of smoke was stronger now, erasing any doubt that I’d been imagining it. I whirled around, searching the bathroom for anything I could use to pry the door open. Hair pins, a brush, a comb, a curling iron, shampoo, lotion, toothpaste…
None of it would do any good.
My heart hammered against my ribs and panic began to cloud my vision. No window, a blocked door, and no way out.
What the hell was happening right now?
Thick tendrils of smoke began to seep underneath the bathroom door. I grabbed my pajamas, yanking them back on. I shoved the towel under the faucet until it was damp then pressed it to my nose and mouth.
My phone. I needed my phone to call for help.
I scanned the counter. Where had I left it?
Then I remembered.
It was still on the nightstand. I’d put it there after I texted Seth.
I froze and stared at the door, kicking myself. My phone was less than six feet away, and there was nothing I could do to get to it.
A black cloud of smoke boiled overhead. My eyes watered, blurring my vision. Despite the damp towel pressed to my face, it couldn’t completely block out the effects of the smoke. My lungs burned and my throat felt like it had been stripped raw.
Desperate now, I shoved my shoulder against the door. There was no way I could break it down, but maybe a neighbor might hear me.
“Help!” I yelled.
The door was hot . I could barely touch it.
Fire.
The one word blazed in my brain with horror. My house was on fire. And I was trapped inside. A fit of coughing wracked my body so hard that it felt like I was choking. I could barely see anything through the smoke now, and the heat emanating from the door made beads of sweat trickle down my spine.
I’m going to die in here.
No. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—give up. I met the whole damn fire department on Saturday night. They would come for me. I just had to hold out until they showed up.
Cranking the shower on to full blast, I hoped the water would tamp down some of the smoke. I huddled under the water’s icy spray, hugging my knees to my chest in an attempt to escape the oppressive heat. The flicker of firelight teased at the gap under the door.
Taking refuge under the shower wouldn’t be enough to survive the fire if it reached this far, but I was fresh out of options.
Distantly, I heard the wail of sirens. Relief flooded through me.
What felt like a lifetime later, the muffled sound of voices emanated through my house.
“Fire department! Is anyone here?”
I yelled as loud as I could, breaking off into another fit of coughing and wheezing. Darkness clouded the edges of my vision and it hurt to breathe. My chest felt tight and my skin was greasy from the smoke.
Then the door swung open and a firefighter stood on the threshold, covered head to toe in gear.
“Marlee?”
Seth’s voice, muffled by the mask covering his face. But I recognized those warm brown eyes.
A strangled sob tore from my throat at the sight of him. I felt like a small child as I held my arms out, practically as helpless as a baby. He dropped to his knees next to the tub, stripped off his mask, and placed it over my face.
“Breathe, sweetheart,” he said. “I’ve got you. It’s going to be okay.”
“I couldn’t get out,” I rasped. “The door—it was blocked. I couldn’t—”
Seth brushed my tangled, sooty hair away from my face with his gloved hand.
“Try not to talk, honey. Get some clean air into your lungs, that’s it.”
I clutched the mask, taking deep breaths. Seth stripped off his coat and draped it over my shoulders. The weight was comforting, and it immediately blocked most of the sweltering heat.
“Put your arm around my neck,” he said.
I did as Seth instructed. Then he hoisted me up as if I weighed nothing at all.
“I can walk,” I said, practically shouting to be heard through the mask and the crackle of the flames in my bedroom.
“I’m not letting you walk through a burning house in bare feet,” he countered.
Any further protest died on my lips as Seth carried me out of the house. I stared in horror and dismay at the wreckage of my brand new home, flames climbing the walls, scorching the floorboards, turning my beautiful kitchen to ashes. After living in an apartment in San Francisco, I had been so excited to own my first home.
When Seth and I emerged in the early morning light, an ambulance was waiting to greet us, along with a firetruck and two police cars. Two firefighters were on the hose, pelting the flames with a steady stream of water. A dozen people from neighboring houses were scattered on their lawns in their bathrobes and pajamas, watching the fire.
Seth eased me down onto a gurney and removed the mask from my face. He touched my cheek gently despite the rough, heavy fabric of his gloves.
“Was there anyone else in the house with you before the fire started?” Seth asked.
I shook my head.
“No, I was alone. Why?”
He pressed his lips into a thin line. When Seth glanced away, I curled my fingers around his wrist with a light tug to get his attention.
“Why are you asking me that, Seth?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed.
“There was a chair wedged under the door handle of your bathroom.”
My blood went cold. Someone had set that fire and prevented me from escaping. I wrenched my gaze back to the house, to the smoke curling up into the air and the dying flames.
Seth turned aside and lifted his hand, waving Sheriff Beck over.
“We’ve got this covered,” he said softly to me. “The medics are going to take a look at you. Beck will get your statement. Stay here until we put this fire out, all right? Don’t go looking for answers right now. You inhaled a lot of smoke. Take it easy, okay?”
I nodded, even though I didn’t want him to leave my side. Seth lingered for a moment, his gaze roaming over me with a flicker of worry. Then he leaned in and pressed a kiss to my forehead. I swallowed around the lump in my throat.
This wasn’t helping my effort to remain unattached. In fact, I felt my heart melting right into his hands.
The medics placed an oxygen mask over my nose and mouth. When they began swabbing a few mild burns on my arms and legs, I hissed at the sting of it. I hadn’t even noticed I’d been burned to begin with.
I told Sheriff Beck everything, though it wasn’t much to go on. I hadn’t seen or heard anyone. To think that the arsonist was likely in my house while I slept was a chilling realization. Over the past week, I’d been so preoccupied with tightening security measures for the office and the properties we had for sale that I hadn’t bothered with my own home.
I huddled in the shroud of Seth’s jacket, watching the firefighters mill around the scene as they worked. Seth had borrowed a spare jacket, so it was harder to spot him. The other firefighters had their names on the back of their coats—Mueller, Anderson, Davies.
“You’re breathing still doesn’t sound good,” one medic said. “We need to take you to the hospital.”
“But I feel fine,” I said, even though my voice sounded like a croaking bullfrog.
The medic raised his eyebrows with a pointed look. I grumbled and reluctantly eased back on the gurney while I was loaded into the back of the ambulance.
A moment later, Seth jogged over and appeared at the door, squeezing my ankle.
“Hey,” he said. “I’ll drop by the hospital as soon as we’re done here. I’ll bring those donuts I promised, too.”
I managed a weak, hoarse laugh.
“Promise?”
A small smile touched Seth’s lips.
“I just carried you out of a burning building, sweetheart. Wild horses couldn’t keep me away from being with you.”
As Seth stepped back and the medics closed the ambulance’s doors, I was left with the echo of his words ringing in my head. I thought I could convince myself that this was nothing more than a fling. A temporary thing that would never last.
What if I was wrong? What if I had miscalculated and I was way off the mark?
What if Seth Teagan really did…love…me?
Could I love him back?
I gripped Seth’s coat and tugged it tighter around me. I didn’t know how to answer that. The only reason I allowed myself to explore my feelings for Seth in the first place was because it didn’t mean anything.
That wasn’t the case anymore though.
On top of all this, I shouldn’t even be thinking about him. Not after that arsonist had attempted to murder me. Someone in Romeo wanted me dead. And I couldn’t figure out for the life of me who that could be.