Page 20 of Over and Above

“The fire inspector and insurance people will have all sorts of questions for you. That alone is a reason to bring a friend, but you also don’t know yet how bad the scene is. You shouldn’t be alone.”

“I’m not sure I like your martyr complex.” I stamped down the little giddyup in my pulse at him calling us friends. Under other circumstances, that could be seen as an improvement, but my back stiffened from his reasonable tone and too-kind eyes.

“Perhaps, at a certain point, you’ll simply have to accept that I like you, Magnus.” Now Eric sounded maddeningly like I had the other week, and I groaned at his use of my own logic. “And if there’s one thing I’m good at in this world, it’s being a friend.”

I know.I bit back the retort. Eric had a strong friend group, and he was well-liked by pretty much the entire town from what I could tell from my time in Mount Hope. The problem wasn’t that I didn’t want to be friends with him, but rather that I wanted to be the kind who stuck our tongues down each other’s throats.

Since I wasn’t about to remind either of us how close we’d come to kissing the night before, I sighed instead. “Fine. You can come.”

“Good. I made you coffee for the road.” Eric produced a travel mug out of seemingly thin air. He must have grabbed it when he put his cup in the dishwasher, but I’d been distracted by my own frustrations, his lean muscles, and his rather perfect ass yet again.

“Thanks.” It was likely for the best that we didn’t discuss last night. Especially since a lot of my ire and confusion was at myself. If I hadn’t stopped things, we likely would have hooked up, which was the outcome I’d sought for months. But I’d had to open my mouth, and not in a fun way. After the night I’d experienced, I would have thought I’d jump at the chance for stress relief via Eric, but apparently, my body had another agenda I couldn’t quite figure out yet.

And that made me cranky. We ended up leaving the dogs snoozing in Eric’s kitchen and taking his far-better-smelling SUV. Rather than subject either of us to small talk, I flipped on the radio for the short drive.

True local boy, Eric had it tuned to one of the Gorge’s own stations rather than a streaming service or a Portland-area station. Of course, this meant suffering through Mount Hope’s ode to the oldies before getting a chipper DJ warning about an incoming July heat wave.

Cranky. Hot. It was barely eight a.m., and I was already in a terrible mood by the time the fire inspector, a younger brunette with a stoic demeanor, started in on her lengthy list of questions.

“I already know what caused the fire.” I swiped at the sweat gathering on my forehead. We stood in what had been my driveway. When Diesel and I left yesterday, the driveway had ended in the carport, which led to the kitchen’s side door. All that was left of the carport and kitchen area was twisted metal and piles of burned debris, which I preferred not to look too hard at. Instead, I directed my gaze to the relatively intact portions of the house, not that there were many standing walls. “The iron?—”

“Was found unplugged.” The inspector gave me an arch look not unlike that perfected by several of the teachers I’d had to deal with over the years for Diesel. “Old faulty wiring is the likely culprit, but I’ll also check any window AC units, stoves, wiring, and signs of arson. I prefer to rule everything out rather than reach for the first conclusion.”

“Point taken. And I guess it’s a relief that it might not have been my fault.” I exhaled hard, swinging my arms to circulate the oxygen through. “And that we have insurance.”

“Insurance is huge,” Eric added in a supportive tone. Like mine, his gaze kept flitting away from the house. He wasn’t kidding about fires leaving invisible scars. I’d assumed the worst had been the night before, but it was here, in the light of day, that I truly felt the burn and scrape of what had been lost. I felt raw and exposed, and no amount of deep breathing or stretching was helping me regain my equilibrium.

“In my experience, the insurance will take a while to pay out.” The inspector had no problems staring at the wreckage of the house, going as far as to gesture at where the roof had been. “You’ll want a place to stay for more than a night or two because the insurance payout, the decision to rebuild, and all the associated permits can take months, if not longer.”

“Months.” I squished my eyes shut like that might change the reality. “Fuck. Sorry. Excuse my language.”

“I’ve heard worse,” the inspector said mildly. “Curse away if it helps.”

“Thanks. Like my son recently discovered, the rental market around here is tight. And I have two large breed pit mix dogs.”

“You can rent the carriage house at my place.” Eric was only too quick with the solution. “Dogs welcome.”

“What? No, I can’t do that.” I waved away the idea before giving him a harsh stare. “You’ve done far too much already, and you’re going to have your hands full with Maren and Diesel as renters already.”

“Exactly. What’s one more?” Eric shrugged. “And you can help with the newlyweds. You’ll be around more for baby help while being close to The Heist and your house if you decide to rebuild.”

“I’m not sure,” I hedged. Eric made sense from a practical standpoint. But from the perspective of my frustrated, fickle libido, this was a terrible idea. Seeing each other on the regular could only mean more temptation and awkwardness.

“This isn’t a handout.” Eric used an even more reasonable tone than the fire inspector. “You’d be replacing Sean’s rent, which would help me financially and save me the trouble of advertising the space.”

“You sure you want me around that much more?” I leveled him with another pointed look, forcing him to meet my gaze until dusky heat darkened his cheeks. But in his eyes was the most surprising thing of all:want.

“Yeah.” Perhaps he hadn’t been ready to own up to wanting me last night, but here, in the light of the morning, his desire was plainly evident.

“Well, okay then,” I agreed, keeping an amicable tone even as I celebrated this latest victory in the battle to get Eric in my bed. The inspector finished her series of questions, and while we awaited the arrival of the insurance person, Diesel pulled up behind Eric’s car.

“Dad! Why didn’t you call?” He sprinted out of the car, coming to stand in front of me with a thunderous look and a matching tone. He’d grown slightly taller than me, and he used that to full effect now, looming into my personal space.

“And interrupt your wedding night?” I stepped back, matching his agitation with a more calming vibe. I didn’t feel very centered, but I could pretend for Diesel’s sake. “There was nothing anyone could do last night. The fire department did their best, but the fire was already out of control when Shelby discovered it.”

“Shelby!” Diesel glanced over at our neighbor’s house. “Is she okay?”

“Yep. And the dogs.” I jerked my head in Eric’s direction. To his credit, he’d hung back, letting Diesel have center stage. “We spent the night at Eric’s. We’re all okay.”

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