Page 14 of Memories with Fire

I glance up at Carter, my eyebrows pulling together in confusion. “Why do you have a picture of Hailey?”

After my initial shift at the fire house, Carter was my first call. He was witness to that summer and knew exactly how I felt about Hailey. He was the only one who would understand the gravity of the two of us being under the same roof now. It didn’t hurt that he was the only one in my family who’d had my back the last several months.

“So, my mom joined a new book club. It’s her new thing, I guess,” he says, dragging his coffee closer to him. The tiny white cup looks a bit ridiculous in his big paws. “She met this other woman, and the two of them got talking about me and this woman’s daughter.”

I lean forward in my seat, pointing at his phone. At Hailey. “The daughter?”

Carter nods, a shit eating grin splitting his face. “Yep. Apparently Hailey’s mom has been trying to hook her up with guys, but all the dates she goes on have been shit. And you know how my mom’s been trying to set me up since Sarah and I broke up.”

Sarah was Carter’s long-time girlfriend, but they broke up three months ago when Sarah accepted a job in Ohio. Carter tries to convince himself that he’s okay, but I don’t think he is. I think his mom, my aunt Darlene, sees that, and is trying to fix it for him.

“The other day one of the girls at the station asked Hailey about a blind date,” I say, almost to myself as I recall Quinn asking the question that led to the showdown between Liam and me. “You’re the blind date.”

“My mom called yesterday and asked if I was free tonight. Guess who wants to go on a date,” he says, wearing a smug grin. “And guess who said yes.”

A million questions fill my brain all at once. Carter and Hailey? On a date? What the?—

And what does he mean tonight? Tonight is the engagement party for Nate and Savanna.

And if Carter has a picture of Hailey, did he talk to her? Or did my aunt send it to him? And if she sent it to him, why didn’t she recognize Hailey? Or did she? She knew how screwed up I was after that summer.

“Bro, it’s brilliant watching the tires spin up there,” he says, bringing me out of my question spiral, tapping his temple and then pointing at me. “If you’re wondering whether you’re going to kick my ass for taking Hailey out or not, never fear cousin. I have zero plans on taking her anywhere. But you, my friend…”

My eyes widen after a moment of staring, his words sinking in. “Par-pardon?”

“It’s the perfect plan,” Carter says, picking up his coffee mug to take a sip before he waves it at me. “You show up as her blind date, and then the magic between the two of you starts working just like it did ten years ago, and pretty soon you’re in her pants, and the world rights itself.”

There’s nothing I can do but blink. Thoughts don’t fully exist in my brain. I’ve entered some kind of weird twilight zone where my cousin has frickin’ lost it.

“Are you out of your mind?” I hiss at him, leaning forward, my forearms resting on the table. “Hailey hates me. If I show up there, I’ll be lucky to survive with my balls intact.”

Carter waves me off dismissively. “Bro, please. That woman wants your balls, she isn’t going to do anything to jeopardize them.”

“Oh lord, you are out of your mind,” I mumble, rubbing my hand over my forehead before pushing it through my hair which has grown just a little bit more. Soon I’ll be able to run my fingers through it. If I live that long. “You realize that you’re talking like the last ten years haven’t passed us by, and things between Hailey and me never went sideways?”

“Oh fuck, c’mon. She’s the one that deserted you, remember? I still don’t understand why she’s so angry with you after that bullshit she pulled,” he says, spinning what I presume to be an empty mug between his hands. “Have you asked her yet?”

“And give her a chance to bite my head off? No,” I tell him, glancing to my left when the waitress sidles up to the table.

The place is busy, so the fact that she hasn’t come by yet is no surprise, but I’m thankful that she brings a pot of coffee with her. She fills Carter’s cup, then mine, and even though I haven’t fully looked over the menu, the special on the front with bacon and eggs, a couple pancakes, hashbrowns, and sausage links looks good, so I order that.

When she’s gone, I turn my attention back to my crazy cousin. “How’d you get her picture?”

“My mom got it from her mom, I think.”

My brows furrow. “Didn’t she recognize Hailey?”

Carter laughs, dumping a couple packets of sugar into his coffee cup. “Man, you were such a goner back then. My mom never actually met Hailey. The couple of times she was at the house, no one else was around. Though, with eyes only for Hailey, it shouldn’t surprise me that you don’t remember.”

I sift back through my memories, trying to recall the times she was at the house that summer, but he’s right. Hailey is at the forefront and the rest is mostly a blur. I could probably conjure every single outfit she owned and wore in my mind, but who was near, and who wasn’t? I have no recollection of that.

“Are you sure it was tonight?” I ask, diverting the conversation a different way.

While it doesn’t bother me to think about that summer, I don’t want to do any kind of deep dive and get myself trudging up more memories than have already assaulted me in the last ten days. Longer, if I’m being honest. Since I decided to move to Santa Rosé, I’ve had memories of Hailey come up, especially when my brain is silent. One reason I seek thrills and try to keep myself busy at all times.

“Yeah, there’s some party going on,” Carter says, reaching for his phone. He swipes through it for a second and then nods like he’s confirming. “Hailey and I talked a bit?—”

My tone is sharper than I intend when I snap, “What?”

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