Page 86 of The Firefighter's Fate

I shake my head.

Why do I even need to explain this?

“It is. Your first thought was to get a good photo of me, and not about how I would feel about that. I don’t want a photo of me standing here in my secret place, wearing just my underpants. I don’t want my face out there, in public.”

“It’s not that big of a deal, Connor,” Ember replies. “Look, I’ll just delete it if you don’t like it.”

“It’s not a matter of if I like it or not,” I scowl. “It’s more than that. It’s a deeper issue about my trust in you.”

Ember scoffs.

“Your trust in me?”

“Yes. Like, what do you think of me, Ember? Am I just an interview subject for you? You were hired by my father, and you accepted the assignment, so what do you think of my father’s views of me? What do you really think?”

Ember’s now shaking her head.

“You don’t need to hear what I think...”

“No, tell me.”

“I’m not going to tell you when you’re angry, Connor.”

I growl.

“I’m not angry. Tell me the truth, Ember. You’ve spent enough time with me and in my life to come to your own perspective on everything. Look, we even came here to my cabin in the woods. I’ve given you everything you’d need to form an opinion, so just tell me... what do you think of my father’s opinion of me? Is he right? Am I a disappointment?”

Ember sighs and drops her shoulders. She lowers her phone.

“I think he may be right with some things...”

“Such as?” I ask sharply.

“Like... you could be doing more meaningful things with your time than just being a firefighter...”

I turn off the stove and stand totally still for a very long time. Ember doesn’t dare move or utter anything else.

“I think it’s time for us to go back to Crystal River,” I say softly.

It’s total silence in the car all the way back to Crystal River. Ember and I don’t say a word to each other as I drive us around winding roads all the way to the town. To be honest, I don’t have anything to say – I’ve heard all I need to hear.

There’s no coming back from this now.

Ember sits so still in the passenger seat. She doesn’t look out of the window. She doesn’t move a muscle. I keep my eyes on the road, avoiding her.

We packed up fast after a silent breakfast. I didn’t have much of an appetite after Ember’s admission to me. I locked the door to the cabin without a word. Then we got in the car.

“Can we stop at The Oak?” she asks me as we finally enter Crystal River. It’s the first thing she’s said since we left the cabin.

“Why?”

Ember pulls out her phone to quickly check the time.

“I want a coffee,” she replies.

I growl, but I turn the pickup truck to head in the direction of the coffee shop.

We pull up outside the place. I don’t move.

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