Chapter 13
Warren would have chosen an emergency call over this any day – this being thirty chatty seven-year-olds who hadn’t noticed him walk in, and probably wouldn’t notice when he started delivering his fire safety speech to them, either.
Back in Inverness, school visits had been reserved for semi-retired fire officers, those they could spare from the bustling station.
Not in Belbarrow. Warren suspected that word had gotten back to the chief about his tiff with a civilian and he was being punished for his lack of professionalism.
As though the civilian in question hadn’t already punished him enough. Several times.
He wasn’t thinking of Eiley anymore. Much. Except maybe under his duvet in the dark, and in the locker room showers, and in the café when he grabbed his mid-morning coffee.
In fact, Blair’s cheery wave was a welcome reminder that his sights would be better set elsewhere, preferably on someone who actually wanted him.
He skirted over a crumpled stick figure drawing and around a plastic chair that seemed too miniature for even these small humans, wincing at the sight of a blond boy licking his snot from his Cupid’s bow at the nearest table.
It wasn’t that he didn’t like kids. The opposite.
He wanted his own, when he eventually found the right person.
But the bogies and the noise, he’d have to learn to love.
Or tolerate. More than that, speaking in front of a crowd made him flustered.
He was excellent at fire hazard lectures when they were one-to-one, but when he was outnumbered, not so much.
He was good at hiding that, though, confidently shaking Blair’s hand and then the classroom teacher’s, who introduced herself as Mrs Crumpsall.
Warren remembered her hosting morning assemblies when he’d been a pupil, him and his mates often giggling at the back.
Since he was currently having a similar problem, the kids babbling and laughing, he could only assume this was karma.
“Hoped it might be you we’d see today,” Blair said with a disarmingly wide grin, all straight, white teeth and apple cheeks. He couldn’t help but return it.
“Aye, thanks so much for coming in.” Mrs Crumpsall patted him lightly on the arm, sending a waft of pungent floral perfume that left him having to trap a sneeze. “I know they’re a raucous lot, but they’re getting to that age now where they need to know these things.”
He nodded in agreement. Kids could never be too young to start practising proper fire safety, especially with Halloween and Bonfire Night coming up in a few weeks’ time. He said as much, foot landing on something hard as he adjusted his stance.
“ My Toothless!” The little girl’s sudden wail pierced Warren’s eardrums. She appeared seemingly from nowhere to rescue a black dragon figurine that now, thanks to the heavy soles of Warren’s boots, had a wonky wing. Oops.
“I, er, am very sorry about that,” said Warren. “I’ll try to fix Toothless after, aye? I’m an expert at setting broken bones.”
Aye, he definitely had a lot to learn about kids yet. Warren felt as though he’d stomped on her puppy rather than a bit of plastic.
Eager to move on, he produced the USB stick from his trouser pocket. “D’you mind if I plug this in for my presentation?”
“You can use my laptop,” Blair said.
She stretched over him to connect the wires, putting him eyelevel with her boobage , as Eiley had politely put it. Not that he was thinking of her.
“There we go.” Blair’s tone was saccharine, face just a little too close to pass as accidental.
Warren hunched over the laptop to open the presentation, scratching the back of his neck with a discomfited grimace. “Long time since I’ve been in a classroom.”
And the vibrant displays of smeared paintings and grammar factoids on every wall brought with them an unsettling sense of nostalgia.
He’d sat in this classroom himself once, years before his world had turned upside down.
He missed how small and safe he’d felt. Was it cruel to tell these children how quickly it could all change?
Someone had to. They’d only learn the hard way otherwise, like him.
“I’m sure you’ll be great.” Blair’s reassuring squeeze around his arm lingered longer than necessary, and he shot her a grateful smile, deciding then that he would grow some balls and ask her out later.
It would be good for him. Get all this …
Eiley out of his system. “I don’t blame you, though.
They’re an overwhelming bunch, aren’t they? ”
The presentation loaded, and Warren hoped that nobody would notice how hastily it had been put together.
The first page was filled with clip art of sparklers and bold acronyms they likely wouldn’t remember.
He supposed if just one of these children paid attention, it might save a life, and that was all he’d ever wanted when he’d decided on this career path.
“You deserve a medal,” he said, opening slideshow mode.
She leaned in close, breath filling the shell of his ear. “I’ll settle for dinner sometime.”
He paused.
He should have liked it. This was what he’d wanted, wasn’t it?
Someone who was actually properly interested, not someone difficult to read and quick to pull away.
So, why didn’t he feel that same heat that Eiley had kindled in him last weekend?
Better yet, why was he even waiting for such an obscure, unrealistic feeling?
Aye, finding a spark was great, but he didn’t require it in order to date a woman. Chemistry sometimes built over time.
But he shouldn’t need to convince himself this much. She was his usual type: curvy, sexy, easy to chat with and even easier to read. Straightforward. If he had to feel a spark for anyone, it should have been her. Instead, his thoughts slipped back to the bookstore over and over.
He was all Eiley-riddled. He needed to sort it out.
So, he feigned enthusiasm. Hoped it might come naturally next time they spoke. He wouldn’t let this fixation ruin his dating life. He’d move on. “Aye, I think that can be arranged.”
It was clearly what Blair had been hoping for, because her green eyes flared.
Before any plans could be made, Mrs Crumpsall clapped to get the children’s attention, placing her fingers on her lips.
The children mimicked her, stragglers with ants in their pants returning to their seats.
Warren’s ears throbbed in the glorious new quiet.
“Today, Mr …?” The teacher trailed off expectantly, but Warren didn’t have time to give his name.
“That’s Warren,” announced a student. A familiar freckled face appeared at the back of the classroom: Brook, with his white shirt collar stuffed wonkily into his royal-blue V-necked jumper. “He’s my friend and he’s a fireman!”
Of course he’d managed to end up in the classroom of Eiley’s son. She was inescapable, her presence all over town.
“What a flattering introduction, Brook. Thank you.” Warren bit back a smile, offering a wave to the adorable lad before turning his attention to the rest of the class.
“Brook is correct. I’m a firefighter at Belbarrow Fire Station just across the road, and since we’re all set to enjoy the fireworks displays at the beginning of next month, I’d like to talk to you today about fire safety. ”
He began his presentation, attempting to interact with the pupils as much as possible. “… Now, we all know fireworks are very fun and exciting, but if not treated properly, they can do a lot of damage.”
Warren skipped to the next slide, a photograph of second-degree burns appearing. A chorus of Ewwwwwws erupted through the classroom. “I know. Nasty, isn’t it? And also very painful! You don’t want to be caught in the crossfire of a rocket like this wee lass was.”
“Mr Warren!” Mrs Crumpsall jumped in front of the image, which only meant that the wound was projected onto her instead of the board. “This is a bit graphic for the children, don’t you think?”
“Mrs Crumpsall, I don’t feel well,” the Toothless owner whined, admittedly a shade paler than she had been when the dragon had been crushed under his foot.
“I think it’s cool!” Brook blurted from the back. “Warren saves people!”
“ I think we should skip this slide,” Blair said, rushing to the laptop to move the image along. The next slide wasn’t much better. She yelped and closed the entire screen, replacing it with a blue desktop background. Just in time, because the girl closest to the door began to cry. Loudly.
Well, this was going well.