Page 66 of The Firefighter's Fate

Amanda stifles a laugh.

“The Penmaynes. Of course. They’re the only reason anyone would write a story about this town.”

“You know them?” I ask.

“Of course,” Amanda says. “How can you not? Especially here, in this place...”

“I guess everyone has a story about them in Crystal River.”

Amanda turns back to the coffee machine but then spins back around to face me before I go.

“You know there was a girl who worked here... Josie,” she says quietly like it’s a secret. “We got on so well. I loved her. She was a damn good barista. You should research her for your article.”

“What about her?”

“Well, she was the one who hooked up with Victor Penmayne.”

Oh.

“The barista?” I ask. “And the bigshot actor?”

“Yeah, her,” Amanda explains. “She worked here at The Oak. I was there when they saw each other for the first time.”

I nod.

“I remember all the press talking about that when it happened. That was here?”

“Yeah, he met her where you’re standing right now.”

I look down at my feet and then smile at the manager.

“Small world, hey?”

“Yes, small world,” Amanda replies, already moving on to the next customer. “Feel free to take a seat anywhere.”

“Will do.”

I choose a spot next to the window so I can look out over the world.

This is where Josie and Victor met. God, what a story that was. A real goddamn fairytale. A friend of mine in the gossip section wrote a big scoop on it, I remember. She got a big bonus for the expose.

I drink my coffee and set up my laptop to start this article.

And...

I stare at my blank screen and...

I do absolutely nothing. I can’t put a single word down on the page.

Why not, Ember?

I’ve done this thing hundreds of times before – writing articles. I like to think of myself as being quite good at them, thank you very much. I never find a mental barrier to writing. It’s the easiest part of the job for me. But today I simply can’t find the words. They ain’t flowing. For some unknown, stupid reason, I simply can’t write about Connor freaking Penmayne.

I sigh, lean back, and close my laptop with resignation.

Yeah, I’ve never had this problem before.

There can be only one explanation...

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