NORA
By the time the fire trucks cleared and the police finished taking statements, it was well past midnight.
The house was still smoking. Yellow caution tape fluttered across the front yard. And I was standing barefoot on the sidewalk, watching my home disappear behind flashing lights.
And while we watched the firefighters try to contain the flames devouring everything I owned, Theo’s hand never left my back.
Not once.
When the fire inspector told me I wouldn’t be able to go inside until they assessed structural damage in the morning, Theo said, “Don’t even think about getting a hotel.
You’re coming home with me.” So I just nodded as he led me to the car he’d paid to wait for us.
I didn’t have a wallet or phone to pay for a hotel bill, anyway.
By the time we pulled into Theo’s driveway, the smoke felt embedded in my skin.
In my hair.
In the back of my throat.
“I should probably try to shower off all the smoke,” I said as we stepped inside his beautiful home. A place that was the complete opposite of the blackened and burned hole we’d just left in ashes.
“Yeah, I need a shower, too,” he said. “Probably should just throw these clothes away while I’m at it so they don’t stink up the house.”
I looked down at the green-and-white-striped pajama set I wore, realizing they were the only clothes I had now. Everything else had been destroyed in the fire.
My clothes, my shoes, my gymnastics leotards. All the memorabilia I had from this last year of college.
I didn’t even have keys for my Jeep anymore.
Or my wallet.
Man, I’m going to have to get my license and diploma all over again.
How was I supposed to find the time to do that? How was I supposed to afford all of that? I had, like, two hundred dollars in my savings account.
At least I won’t have to pay my rent next month. Well… not to my current landlord, anyway. I suppose I still need a place to live…
Maybe Lucy’s parents would be okay with us crashing at their place for a while?
Or maybe I should just give up on this “living on my own” thing and go back home to Amherst.
I was sure my parents would probably try talking me into that when I told them everything tomorrow.
I sighed, feeling overwhelmed at the thought of everything I’d need to do in order to get my life back to normal.
Poor Lucy and the Roundys. They didn’t even know that our place had burned down yet.
They’d be finding that out when I called them—from Theo’s phone—in the morning.
Yay for being the bearer of bad news.
Theo locked the deadbolt on the door behind us and gestured toward the stairs. “Come on. Let’s get you a towel and some clothes you can change into.”
The hallway lights were soft and warm upstairs. He stopped outside the guest bathroom I was familiar with. Charlotte’s bathroom.
“I’ll be right back,” he said.
I nodded, taking the opportunity to look at my reflection in the mirror.
And yikes, I had definitely looked better. My hair was a mess. My eyes were red and stinging from the smoke.
I quickly ran a hand through my hair, hoping to tame my curls somewhat before Theo came back.
“Here you go,” he said when he returned a minute later with a towel draped over one arm and a folded T-shirt and basketball shorts in the other. “These clothes will probably drown you since you’re tiny, but hopefully, they’ll be okay for the night.”
“Thank you.” I managed a small smile as I took them from him.
“But if these don’t work…” He hesitated, running a hand through his dark hair. “I guess there’s a whole wardrobe in Alisha’s closet.” His voice trailed off, as if he wasn’t actually sure about the offer.
“No, that’s okay,” I said, not wanting to put him in the awkward situation of rifling through his dead wife’s pajamas. I hugged his clothes to my chest. “These will be perfect.”
“Okay, great.” He let out a low sigh of relief. Then, hooking a thumb over his shoulder, he said, “I’ll, uh, just shower in the bathroom and then we can meet downstairs to order some clothes that will fit you better and have them delivered first thing in the morning.”
“Thank you.” I nodded again, appreciating his kindness, since I really was at the mercy of his generosity at the moment. “That’s really thoughtful of you.”
After he turned and headed back toward his bedroom at the opposite end of the hall, I slipped into Charlotte’s bathroom, locking the door behind me.
I turned on the shower and stepped under the hot water, letting it run over my shoulders.
The first rinse sent gray water spiraling down the drain.
I shampooed my hair once.
Then again for good measure, breathing in the shampoo that smelled like Charlotte’s hair always did when I brushed it each morning. Like coconut and vanilla.
Like happy adorableness.
I stood there under the hot water, letting the heat work its way into my muscles.
I could have died tonight.
I sighed, pressing my forehead against the cool tile as the water washed over me.
I would have died if Theo hadn’t been there to save me.
“Do you want to watch something?” Theo asked once we had a few outfits ordered and set to arrive between seven and nine in the morning—he’d insisted on buying me a full week’s worth of clothes by the time we were done. “Just to wind down.”
“Yes,” I said quickly. “Please.”
I should probably be exhausted, since it was nearly two o’clock in the morning, but the events of the night had me feeling wired and restless.
But while the movie was playing on the screen in front of us, I couldn’t have told you what it was about. My body was still buzzing, like the adrenaline hadn’t gotten the memo that I was safe at Theo’s house now.
“Thanks again for saving me,” I said, looking up at Theo, who sat on the cushion beside me.
“I’m glad I was there.” He looked down at me with soft eyes.
“I’m glad you were, too.” I swallowed. Then the question that had been circling my mind all night finally slipped out. “Why were you in my neighborhood that late, anyway?” I hesitated. “Do you usually drive the streets of Eden Falls at night?”
Seemed like a strange coincidence to me.
A strange coincidence I was deeply grateful for.
He stared at the TV for a second before answering. “I was heading home from The Garden. Stopped at Charlie’s for a burger and decided to take the long way home.” He gave me a sheepish look and shrugged. “Didn’t feel like going to bed yet.”
“Why not?”
He hesitated.
“I have a hard time being home alone when Charlotte’s at her grandparents’.
” His voice softened. “I probably should’ve gone to my parents’ place since that would’ve been more productive.
Definitely healthier than drowning my discomfort with scotch.
” He released a small breath. “But, yeah… I went out to drink instead.”
“We all have our coping mechanisms, I guess.” I gave him what I hoped was an understanding look.
“Anyway,” he continued, the corner of his mouth lifting faintly. “While I was driving around, I thought about stopping by to see Lucy.”
“Oh.”
The word came out flatter than I intended.
Had I been hoping he’d been coming to see me?
That didn’t make sense.
“And then I saw the smoke,” he continued, something flickering across his face. “And I just ran.”
My throat tightened.
“I’m really glad you did.”
The words felt insignificant compared to what he’d done for me tonight.
He’d saved my life.
The fire inspector’s voice echoed in my head. Old wiring. Likely electrical. Probably smoldering in the attic insulation for a while before it fully ignited.
I could have died tonight and never even known it was happening.
My body shuddered before I could stop it.
Theo must have noticed because his arm slid around my shoulders, slow but certain, like he was giving me the option to move away if I wanted to.
But I didn’t.
His chest was solid and warm against my side. And when I trembled again, his arm tightened protectively around me.
“It’s okay,” he murmured.
And for the first time since I’d opened my eyes to smoke and panic, I believed it.
The movie had been playing for at least twenty minutes, but neither of us had laughed or reacted to anything on screen.
Theo’s arm was still around me.
But he was rigid.
Too rigid.
His jaw was tight. His gaze distant.
“You okay?” I asked softly.
He blinked, as if he hadn’t realized I was watching him.
“Yeah.”
I waited.
“I just…” He exhaled slowly. “I had a lot of déjà vu tonight.”
My chest tightened.
“You did?”
He nodded once.
Then his gaze drifted past the television to a photo on a shelf beside it. A family portrait of Alisha, Charlotte, and him—probably taken a month or so before the accident.
When he finally spoke again, his voice was quieter. “I haven’t felt that kind of panic since… that night.”
“What night?” I asked, though I was pretty sure I knew what he was talking about.
He swallowed, licking his lips.
“Since the night Alisha died.”