Page 4 of Every Beat of My Heart

I cleared my throat, placing two of the extinguishers on the planked floor, and lifted the one I’d use for the demonstration. “Fires in the kitchen are common so you have to be careful there aren’t any wooden spoons, hot pads, or towels near the burner.”

“I know that now,” Owen said.

I suspected Claire had read him the riot act the night of the fire.

“It’s up to you whether you’re okay with him cooking when you’re not home to supervise.” When Claire opened her mouth to respond, I added, “I promise you; I’m not judging the situation. You’re the parent, and you know him best. I just wanted to go over the easy ways to avoid something like this happening again.”

Claire nodded. “Okay.”

“My sister was a single mom for the first seven years of my niece’s life. I know how hard it is. How you can be pulled into two different directions, never feeling like you’re doing the right thing.”

Her face immediately softened.

I turned my attention to Owen and flashed my most charming smile. “You want to know how to use this?”

He nodded eagerly.

“We call it the PASS method. Pull the pin at the top of the extinguisher, which will break the seal. The pin prevents it from accidentally discharging.” I showed him where to find the pin and pulled it. “Aim it at the base of the fire, giving yourself some distance. Squeeze the handles together like this for it to discharge. Sweep the nozzle from side to side as you approach the fire, directing it at the base of the flames.” I handed the extinguisher to Owen so he could show me how well he’d listened.

When he didn’t squeeze it hard enough, I showed him the amount of pressure that would be necessary. When I was satisfied he knew what to do in the future, I asked, “Now in a real fire, what are you going to do?”

Owen’s cheeks flushed, and he looked at his mother, who I’d bet gave him an earful. “Get out and call 911.”

“Remember what I said, if you don’t have your cell phone, leave it. You can always go to your neighbors and make the call. You are more important than any physical item in this house.” He was the most important thing in his mother’s life. I was positive of that. I remembered how easily my mother loved, and how good my sister Daphne was with her daughter, Izzy.

Owen nodded. “I know.”

“I’m showing you this so you know what to do, but I don’t want you to fight a fire, no matter how small it seems.” Then I turned my attention to Claire. “It’s your turn.”

She moved toward me, so close that I could smell a citrus scent, most likely from her shampoo or her lotion. “What do you want me to do? Should I extinguish the fire or get out?”

“You get your son out. If you’re home alone, and it’s contained to the stove, you can try the extinguisher. If at any point, it spreads and you are not actively discharging the agent, you get out of there. A fire like this spreads quickly, leaving you in a perilous situation.”

Claire bit her lip. “That makes sense.”

“Why don’t you show me how well you paid attention?” I smirked at her, knowing she’d had her gaze on me engaging with her son the entire time. I knew the affect I had on women. But Claire was a little different. Was her attention for me as a firefighter or something more physical? I preferred the physical, but I’d take both. Very few people in my life thought my job choice was a good one.

Claire took the extinguisher from me, removing the pin I’d replaced, then squeezed the handles.

“On a live canister, you’d need to use a bit more force.”

Claire’s lips quirked. “If I’m in that position, I’ll probably have superhuman strength because I won’t want my house to burn down.”

I couldn’t help but wonder why she hadn’t included her own safety in that scenario. “You should want to save yourself too. Your son needs you.”

Something flashed in her eyes. I wished I could put my finger on it. “I’d do anything to protect Owen.”

“I know you would. Moms are kick ass.” My voice softened.

Claire raised her brow.

“Sorry. We swear a lot at the firehouse.” I directed my apology to Owen.

Claire shook her head.

“I’m starving,” Owen said as if he’d die if he didn’t get something in his stomach soon.

Claire smiled apologetically. “Would you like to stay for dinner? We were just going to eat.”

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