Page 2 of Every Beat of My Heart

I gave them a few seconds to comfort each other, admiring the curve-hugging skirt and her long legs before she pulled back and raised a brow in my direction.

“Good afternoon, ma’am. I was just telling your son that he should have exited the house immediately, not tried to put out the fire himself. These kinds of fires ignite quickly and can take down an entire side of the house within seconds.”

Owen blanched.

The woman nodded. “I’ll talk to him.”

Anthony appeared at my side, confirmed the fire was out and that there was no longer a threat.

“I’ll be there in a minute,” I said as he went back inside. “Ma’am, it’s good you have a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. But you’ll need a new one, and you should really receive some instruction how to properly use it.”

The woman slowly nodded. Even though she wasn’t present during the fire, she looked like she was in shock.

Every instinct was directing me to get her to sit. I touched her elbow and guided her onto the porch into one of the wooden rockers.

The boy hovered nearby.

The smell of burned remains wasn’t as strong out here, but the woman trembled.

Her eyes were slightly frantic. “I probably need to call my insurance company.”

“You’ll have plenty of time for that.” I went inside and grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and unscrewed the cap before rejoining her on the porch. “Drink.”

She took the bottle from me with shaking hands. “Thank you.”

“You look familiar,” Owen said to me.

I turned my attention to him. “I substitute teach and fill in for absent bus drivers. Mainly in the middle schools. Sometimes I play basketball at recess. Maybe you saw me once.”

Owen nodded. “Maybe.”

I relaxed slightly. “We play basketball at the firehouse to relieve stress. It’s fun playing with the kids at school.”

His mother’s forehead wrinkled as she looked from Owen to me. “You teach, and you’re a firefighter?”

I gave her one of my charming smiles, the one that told people not to take me too seriously and shrugged. “What can I say? I love kids.”

She studied my face as if she was trying to figure me out.

I shifted on my feet. “You’ll need to air out the kitchen tonight, maybe set up some fans.”

She straightened her shoulders. “Can we stay here tonight?”

“Once we complete our investigation, you’ll be cleared to go inside. You might want to stay in a hotel until the smell dissipates.”

The woman stood, looking less pale than she had a few minutes ago. “Thank you for your help and for putting out the fire so quickly. I can’t even imagine what would have happened if you hadn’t arrived.”

“Thankfully, Owen called us before he attempted to put out the fire.” I need to get away from this woman; there was something about her that was drawing me to her. It was odd because I dealt with panicked people on every shift. None had affected me like this. I was usually able to keep an appropriate distance emotionally.

I turned my attention to Owen. “Next time—”

Owen nodded soberly. “I’ll get out, then call nine-one-one.”

I nodded. “If you don’t have your phone on you, don’t look for it. Just run to a neighbor’s house. They can call for you. The important thing is to get out of the house. You’re more important to your mom than this house.”

“He’s got that right,” his mother agreed.

“And I’ll drop off a fire extinguisher.”

---