Page 31 of Packed in the Fire house

That evening, once Walker had left his office and Luka was asleep, I fully went through the plastic bins of what remained of my belongings.

While I was thankful the guys had managed to pull some of my stuff out of the ruins of my building, I couldn’t help but wince when I rummaged through the plastic bins. The clothes were from before I had Luka. My hips were wider now, so a lot of the scraps of lace I used to wear would be a little tight now.

Thankfully, one of the bins contained thrifted clothes I had bought for Luka. They’d all been too big when I bought them, hence storing them under the bed in the sealed tubs, but now that he’d grown a little, a few of the items would fit perfectly.

My choices were limited from my old wardrobe. I had two or three pairs of threadbare old yoga pants that were slightly too tight on my ass, but they were still comfortable. The tops were a lost cause. They were far too low-cut now, and the bras were too small. I had opted to breastfeed Luka for the first year of his life—mainly because it was free. For some reason, though, my chest hadn’t deflated when I stopped, and I still had quite a large chest, much to my displeasure.

If I wore any of my old tank tops, I would look like a medieval wench with titties up to my eyeballs. Thankfully, I had a few of Blaze’s T-shirts. Several of them had appeared in my room. They weren't ideal, but when worn with the yoga pants, they were somewhat passable. I was honestly just thankful I didn't have to wear the sweatpants anymore, because I had been tripping over them all day.

I was also happy for the items I had picked up on my little shopping trip with Rune. Even if none of the salvaged items fit, at least I had a few things I could wear.

As I folded up the few items of clothing I had, I began to get teary. Sure, my apartment had been run-down, and most of the items inside had been thrifted or repaired a million times, but now I was starting from scratch…again.

I had worked my ass off to get Luka his baby clothes and everything he could need. Now I needed to rebuild it. These firefighters had been more than generous, replacing his sippy cup and getting diapers. Not to mention what I’d purchased for him with Rune’s gift card. Still, a small part of me felt like I was failing as a mother because I couldn't provide for his basic needs.

Realistically, I knew it wasn't my fault that my building had caught on fire, but it was the building that I chose to move into because it was cheap. I didn’t have any insurance, because that was an extra expense, so I was screwed.

Then again, it may have been someone’s fault the building caught fire. Blaze had mentioned the arson investigator. That’s what I got for moving into a bad neighborhood.

My laptop had been completely destroyed, so there was no chance of me getting any of my college work done anytime soon. Part of me had already accepted that I was probably repeating this semester, so I was focusing more on making sure Luka was okay and getting back on our feet. I didn’t have a phone or a computer, but as soon as I was able, I would message myprofessors and beg for leniency. An apartment building burning down certainly qualified as extenuating circumstances.

Not that I had a single clue how I was going to get back on my feet. I had next to no money and no possessions. Part of me wanted to insist that the firefighters send me to the shelter, but deep down, I was comfortable at the firehouse. After only a few days, I felt oddly comfortable in their space.

I feltsafe. Logically, I should have been panicking and freaking out, trying to figure out my next moves, but all I wanted was a few more days to catch my breath. When I was around these alphas, I felt so unusually comfortable. Would it be the worst thing to let my guard down and take my time getting my act together?

Who was I kidding? Walker probably wanted his room back. I was a burden to them.

Luka was already asleep in bed, and I was doing my best to tidy the few possessions I had when Rune’s soft Cajun voice sounded from the doorway.“You’re thinking mighty hard there.”

“Lost in thought,” I said softly. “I think it's only just starting to hit me how much I've lost.”

“They’re only things. I know it hurts, but I'm sure you'll get back on your feet. You're not going anywhere until you've got somewhere better to stay,” he reassured me.

I snorted lightly, putting the last pair of yoga pants back in the box. “Rune, that's a nice sentiment, but I'm a single mother with no job, trying to go to school, and I've just lost everything. I think it's going to be a while before I can find myself a good place.”

Rune beamed at me and shrugged. “Then I guess you're going to be here for a while,” he said simply.

“I can't just live at a firehouse,” I pointed out.

“Why not? If it's a problem, we've got a spare room at our apartment. You could stay there instead.”

My eyes widened at his invitation. He was offering to let me go home with him? That was downright insane. We had only known each other for a few days!

“You don’t even know me.”

“I can tell you're a good person who's in a bad situation. Plus, it would be nice to have someone around the house who knows how to be in the kitchen without burning it to the ground. But don't tell Blaze about that offer, because he will probably beg you to move in just so you can make cookies for him.”

I snorted. Blaze was obsessed with the cookies.

“It’ll be our secret. I will get back on my feet, I assure you. I will only be here for a few more days, I hope.”

“We will be happy for however long you stay because you are a treat to have around, and not just because of the cookies.”

My face heated, and I looked down at the tub of clothing I had been sorting, trying to find words.

“Hey, I have a question. Last night, your team went on another call, and you stayed behind, right? Why didn't I hear any alarms?” I frowned. That thought had been plaguing me throughout the day, and I hadn't found a good time to ask it.

Rune pursed his lips. “I bet Walker turned off the alarms in this room. One of the impressive things about the captain’s room is that it has thick doors and the option to turn the alarms on or off. Sometimes the captain doesn’t go on calls and has day meetings and stuff that means they need to sleep… not that I’ve ever seen Walker take advantage of that option. I kind of forgot it was a thing.”

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