Page 121 of Set Me On Fire

Bill was Astrid’s deadbeat ex, a guy that rarely picked the boys up for the visitation time he’d fought hard to get to lower the child support payments he rarely made. “Jesus…” I could almost hear the moment when her teeth clenched down, her breath coming noisily down the phone. “So what do I tell the boys this time?”

That wasn’t fair. I took the boys out at least every second weekend, knowing Astrid needed the break, which was more than our parents signed up to do. She didn’t mean to get short with me, but sometimes it felt like she was only just hangingon by the skin of her teeth. Astrid couldn’t cope with any more disappointment.

My side door opened and a quizzical Millie slid into the truck, taking in the phone, and the tense set of my body.

“You can tell my nephews…” I mentally pleaded with Millie to understand and I liked to think she did. Her hand slid across the seat and gripped mine. “That I’ll take them to Tree Climb tomorrow.”

“That adventure playground place?” I let out a sigh at the rapid shift in Astrid’s tone. Surprise, relief replaced judgement. My thumbs moved, rerouting the audio to the speakers. “Are you sure, Charlie?” She was using my real name. My sister must be pleased with me. I silently asked Millie the same question. “Because once I tell the boys…”

They’d be devastated if I turned around and spaced on them. Millie snorted and then nodded in agreement.

“Tell them I’ll be by at 9.30am sharp,” I said. When Astrid got off the phone I turned to Millie, an apologetic expression on my face.

“I’m sorry?—”

“You have a prior commitment,” she said. “It’s OK.”

“No, it’s not.” Millie went to pull away but I held her hand fast, reaching for the other. “It’s really not and I want to tell you that I won’t double book shit again, but…” I swallowed hard. “I’d be lying. There’s a reason why I went into the fire service.”

“Because you look amazing in the uniform?”

“What?” She stopped my train of thought cold and then I looked down at myself. “OK, cool, good to know.”

“Because you really like helping people,” she prompted.

“Yeah, that’s a big part of it, but basically it’s this.” I took off my seat belt and turned to face her. This was always going to come out, but a selfish part of me hoped that it wouldn’t become an issue for some weeks, if not months, and preferablyafter we got naked. “I work hard and do what’s needed without complaint, at least that’s what my performance review said. I’m even good at showing initiative, often able to think of faster, better ways of doing things, but…”

My eyes dropped down, not wanting to see it, the moment she processed what I was saying.

“I couldn’t organise a piss up in a brewery, that’s what my dad always said. The details, I never remember them.” I dragged out my phone and showed her my calendar. Every day was filled with notifications. From when to put the bins out, to getting the dishes done, it was the only way I could make sure any of that shit got done. Her eyes widened as she scanned the schedule I’d been forced to make for myself. “I was kinda hoping you’d have seen how good I was at… other things before you were confronted by this, but?—”

Fingers touched my lips, silencing me more definitely than any words because all I could feel was her. The warmth of her skin, the salty taste of her skin. I pressed a kiss there, wondering if this would be the last chance I got.

“You forgot that you were hanging out with your nephews, not kicked a puppy,” she told me, staring into my eyes. “I know a lot of people that are perfectly punctual and are complete arseholes.” I let out a little bark of laughter despite myself. “I’ve never seen anyone put a reminder in their phone to make sure they get the dishes done before, but…” She smiled slowly. “Do you make sure to get them all clean every night?”

“Every single one,” I said, “otherwise I just can’t. I’ll just leave them there and the pile just keeps getting bigger and bigger until I stop going into the kitchen to avoid dealing with it.” I winced, remembering how that went. “It gets ugly so I’ve learned to make sure I do every single one every night.”

“Well, that already makes you ten times better than the last guy I lived with.” My grip on her hands was punishing but Icouldn’t seem to force myself to let go. “He didn’t do the dishes because he thought that was women’s work.”

“What a fucking dick,” I rasped.

“Yeah, and that didn’t even work that well.”

Her smile was what drew me closer. I was like one of those moths, unable to stop myself from flying towards all that radiance. Millie leaned in too, meeting me halfway so our lips grazed against the others.

“I promise to make sure the dishes are always done and the bathroom is scrubbed once a week. With bleach,” I added hastily. “I’ll sort all of the rubbish into the right bins and make sure they go out each Friday night and vacuum on a Sunday.”

“Who could say no to that?” Millie said, her lips twitching. “Take me home, Charlie, and show me exactly what those hands can do.”

I kissed her properly then, the part of me responsible for holding back all day thoroughly exhausted. Not one more moment could I go without kissing her, something I mumbled before claiming her mouth as mine.

Chapter 54

Millie

“Show me this spotless kitchen…” I murmured as we slammed through his front door.

I think Charlie lived in some kind of duplex or something, but if you asked me any of the details, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you. That little moment of vulnerability, the way he seemed stricken by the idea of disappointing his sister and nephews or me, it’d made him somehow more real. Behind that too pretty face was an actual living human being apparently.

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