Page 16 of Duty and Desire
“Yes, and no.” I rub my hand down my jaw rough with a thick layer of stubble. “There was a fire in the unit next to yours today.”
“What?” she whispers, spinning around to look at the large structure. “Is everyone all right?”
“The woman who lives there went to the hospital for smoke inhalation but was released shortly after. No one else was home.” She turns to face me. “That said, the building is uninhabitable and will be until the inspector can make it out, and the damage can be repaired.”
“So I can’t stay here?”
I shake my head, and my gut twists as her chin wobbles. “I got clearance from the chief to take you in to get your stuff.”
“Okay.” She drags in a deep breath. “Okay, sure, that would be great.”
I lift my chin, then lead her up to her entryway, taking her key from her when I notice her hands shaking, making it difficult for her to unlock the door. I let us inside, then take my flashlight off my hip and flip it on. With it still being winter, it’s dark even now.
“They shut the electricity off earlier as a precaution,” I tell her, then hand her the light. “Lead the way.”
She takes it and drops her bag onto the couch, shining the beam through the room and pausing in the kitchen, where the wall has a gaping black hole that looks like something out of a horror movie.
“Thank goodness no one was hurt,” she says. I don’t know if she’s talking to me or herself.
“Are you going to stay with Aiden?”
“No.” Her voice is quiet as we walk down the hall and enter her room. “I think there is a hotel just outside of town that does weekly rentals. Maybe I’ll see if they have something available.”
“You’re not staying there,” I bite out without thinking. I know the hotel she’s talking about and answer the weekly calls we get from there when shit goes down. “What about your parents’ place or Aiden’s?”
“No.” Her laugh is humorless. “My parents’ place is not an option, and I know Aiden doesn’t want me staying with him and May.” She goes to the closet and comes out with a suitcase that she tosses up onto the bed a second later. Then she places the flashlight on the edge of the dresser, pointing it in the bed’s direction. “I’ll stay at that hotel.”
“It’s not safe.”
“I’ll be fine.” She disappears into the closet again, and I hear the rattle of hangers before she comes back out with an armful of clothes, dumping them haphazardly into the bag before going back once more.
“I’ve got a room,” I tell her when she comes out with another armful of stuff. “There isn’t a bed, but there’s a pull-out couch. You can crash on it until things get sorted and you can get back in here.”
“That’s very kind, but it’s not necessary.” I step forward to help her zip the bag.
“I know it’s not necessary, but if you refuse to stay with your parents, Aiden, or me, I’m telling you now, I’ll arrest you to keep you from staying at that hotel.”
“You wouldn’t!” She gasps, and I grin wickedly.
“Try me.”
“You can’t just arrest people. You need a reason.” She goes back into the closet, grabbing another large suitcase.
“Yeah, but I know enough people that I could keep you there for a while before any real questions are asked.”
“You’re ridiculous,” she huffs, going to the bathroom and taking the flashlight with her.
“You’re staying with me.” I scrub my hands over my head, knowing I’m setting myself up for disaster. I have a hard enough time keeping myself in check around her without her living under my roof, but here we fucking are. “I work a lot. We’ll hardly see each other,” I tell myself more than her.
“I don’t want to impose.”
“Just fucking accept my offer,” I grit out and swear I hear her laugh.
“Okay, if you’re sure you don’t mind.”
“I don’t.” I watch her come out with a small bag that looks like a purse, along with shower shit, a curling iron, and a blow-dryer. She puts it all into the bag, then picks up a laundry basket from the floor, turns it upside down, and dumps the contents in there, as well.
I ignore the fact that it’s all lacy shit in a multitude of colors.
