Chapter Eighteen
Nash
The storm cleared up sometime after we all made it to bed last night. Standing against the counter this morning, I take a sip of coffee while waiting for everyone else to wake up. I’m zoned out when Cole makes his appearance.
“Hey man,” I say, grabbing a cup down for him. He grunts in return, and I know he won’t talk until he gets the first taste of coffee down. I wait a few minutes before trying to speak to him again.
“I talked to the chief this morning.” Cole looks at me over his mug and nods for me to continue. “He said we can head over whenever we’re ready, but we can’t go in without him there, so I’ll give him a call before we leave.”
“Did he say how bad the damage was?”
“Not really. Just said there was damage to the living room area.”
Cole pauses and then asks, “Isn’t that her favorite part of the house?”
I cock an eyebrow at Cole. “I don’t know. You seem to know more than I do.”
He shrugs. “I may be an asshole, but even assholes have ears. I heard her talking to Ren last night.” He brings his cup to his lips.
“Shit.” The only sound surrounding us is the steady stream of coffee pouring from the coffeemaker until Cole starts talking.
“She’s going to stay here, right? She won’t actually move back with Ember?” he asks, staring at the cup in his hands.
“I’m not sure, Cole.” I take a second before something clicks. “You care for her.” It’s a statement, not a question.
He snaps his eyes up to mine and glares. “It’s going to be a pain in the ass to call her every time we need approval for something for the house.”
I nod my head and smile. “I know.”
We let silence blanket us until we hear footsteps. I stand up straight, waiting for them to enter the kitchen.
Lucy is the first to enter. She makes her way over to the coffeemaker beside me, and when I see her, my breath hitches.
Fuck, she’s beautiful.
Her hair is thrown into a bun on the top of her head and her face is bare of makeup. Her eyes are grey, void of the icy blue color they normally are. She’s in an oversized cream sweater and black leggings that hug her hips perfectly. I can’t take my eyes off of her until Ren’s voice pulls my stare.
“Good morning, Pookie,” Ren says to Cole, sitting down beside him at the island.
A growl comes from Cole. Standing up, he drains his drink and starts walking out. Before he’s completely gone, he yells over his shoulder, “Let me know when we’re leaving.”
Ren throws his hands in the air. “What’s his problem this morning?”
“You know he hates that nickname,” I say with a chuckle. Turning to Lucy, she has a lost expression on her face. “Did you sleep alright, Darlin’?”
“Not really. I’m ready to head to the house and get this over with, though. Is Chief Lawson meeting us there?” She doesn’t look at me, just drags her foot in front of her. It reminds me of the first time we met.
“Yeah, I just have to call him first. Give me a minute and we’ll head over.” I place my hand softly on her shoulder before finishing my cup and grabbing my phone.
Colson
Standing in the middle of what should be the living room, I look around.
The walls are covered in burn marks from the fire, and everything is soaking wet.
The water damage from the rain and the fire truck is a little worse than I thought.
The entire room needs to be redone, along with whatever room is above this.
Once Lucy saw the broken fireplace, her eyes filled with tears.
She walked out pretty quickly after seeing the damage.
I turn towards one of the windows to see Ren and Lucy sitting on the tailgate of the truck talking with each other.
Ren has his arm around her shoulder, and he reaches his other hand to push the hair from in front of her eyes.
I feel something stir in my chest, and I squeeze my fists at the familiar emotions.
The anger in me rises, and I feel jealousy coming up right behind it.
What am I mad about?
I think about the comment Nash made in the kitchen earlier. Do I care for Lucy? Or am I jealous that Ren and her are so close? When did that happen anyway? Shaking the thoughts away, I walk outside and meet Nash and the fire chief.
“As soon as we get our stuff cleaned up, you are welcome to start working on the place. We should be done in a couple days.” Chief Lawson rubs the back of his neck.
“Thanks, Chief.” Nash reaches out for a handshake.
“Let me know if you need any help with anything. I’d be more than happy to come out here and work with you guys to get the place fixed.”
“We’ll let you know when we need you. Thanks again.”
I shift on my feet so I’m standing in front of Nash. Over his shoulder, I see the fire chief saying goodbye to Lucy and Ren.
“How are we going to do this, Nash? Our busy season starts in two weeks. We’re at the end of May already.”
“I know.” He lets out a deep breath. “We promised her, though. I’m not goin’ back on that promise. Are you?” He looks me dead in the eyes.
Rolling my eyes, I answer, “Of course not. But we’re going to have to be doing this work every second we aren’t on a job. You realize that, right?”
“I don’t think Lucy is going to care how long it takes us as long as it’s done right. We need to talk to her, though; figure out a plan. We have a couple days before we can get in here anyway, so we can use that time to come up with one and start getting stuff ordered.”
I look past him at Lucy again, and Ren has finally got her to smile today.
His animated face tells me he’s having to try pretty hard, but at least it’s working.
The sun peeking through the leftover clouds is shining right on them, and there’s an unfamiliar feeling creeping into my chest. The soft wind blows the hair that frames her face around as her eyes light up at whatever Ren is saying to her.
“It’s okay to care for her, Cole.” I bring my attention back to Nash with confusion swirling in them.
“What the fuck do you mean? I never said—”
“You don’t have to say anything. You were just lookin’ at her and smilin’, Cole. Give her a chance. It’s okay.”
“Whatever. I was smiling at Ren.” The lie comes out rushed, and Nash chuckles as he turns to walk away.
I don’t care about her.
Liar.