Page 13 of Unpredictable Flames

“Or what?” Liam glared at me as he spoke.

My mind raced with what to say to him, but unfortunately, I kept coming up short.

“Or I’ll have to throw you off my property,” came Jake’s voice from behind us.

Liam turned to face Jake and growled. “You can’t do shit.”

“How about you wait while I count to five and you’ll find out,” Jake said, clenching his jaw and folding his fist as he stared down at Liam.

“One. Two. Three.”

“Fuck this,” Liam scoffed, brushing Jake’s shoulder with his as he walked past. “You can have the fucking bitch.”

As the words left Liam’s mouth, I watched Jake grab Liam’s uniform and pull him back. As he staggered, Jake flung his fist, catching Liam square in the nose, causing him to stumble and fall to the floor.

“Don’t you ever disrespect her like that ever again. Now, get the fuck out of my house.”

CHAPTER SEVEN - EMBERS OF DOUBT

“Aren’t military personnel not supposed to drink coffee?” I said, as Cole led me to my coffee machine in the kitchen.

“Ha-ha, very funny, Jake,” Cole said sarcastically.

“Thanks, man, I knew you would get it,” I laughed, teasing him further.

I handed Cole a cup of coffee, the warmth seeping through the ceramic and into my hands as we leaned against the familiar kitchen counter. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, serving as a comforting presence for such an intense morning.

Cole sighed, then looked at me, his eyes reflecting his concern. “How is she, really?”

“Who, Lily?” I asked, as though I didn’t know who he was obviously talking about.

“Yeah, she must have been shaken up about the fire.” I looked down and noticed his hands shake as he tried to hold on to his cup. “I can’t stop thinking about her being unconscious in that burning building.”

I took a sip of my coffee, gathering my thoughts before responding. “She’s okay, Cole. It was a close call, but she survived and you’ve seen her. She’s fine, man.”

I met his gaze, wanting to reassure him as much as he needed. “She just had some minor bruises here and there, nothing serious. The doctor said she’ll make a full recovery.”

Cole let out a sigh of relief, the tension in his shoulders visibly easing. “Thank you, Jake. I don’t know what we’d do without you and your team,” he laughed.

“For God's sake, man. I told you that you don’t need to thank me. I did what I had to do.” I smiled.

“And Liam’s here so he’ll definitely cheer her up,” Cole said, taking another sip of his coffee.

“I wanted to ask, who is Liam?”

“Oh him?” Cole chuckled, “He’s my buddy in the army and apparently he has a thing for Lily.”

“How long has that been going on?” I found myself asking, but quickly took a sip of my coffee to avoid Cole’s eye contact.

“Honestly, I can’t say.” Cole let out a puff of air. “They don’t really talk much when Liam’s away. Only when he comes back.”

“Right.” I gazed out toward the backyard but couldn’t see much, except for Liam standing up, and what looked like a heated argument with Lily.

“Hey, what’s going on out there?” I asked, moving closer to the window to have a better look.

Cole glanced up. “What is it?”

“Seems like they’re having some sort of argument.”

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