Page 23 of Where There's Smoke
Time at a fire station was a bizarre thing too. It passed extremely quickly and agonizingly slowly at the same time. Sometimes, it was full of people and bustling with noise and conversation. Other times, it was dead silent.
I had taken up Samson on his offer to borrow a few books, so I'd spent most of my days reading with a puppy in my lap. Thankfully, I didn't have to venture into his stinky bunk room to get the books. He had actually brought a selection to me one evening after dinner. I had been staying in my room, so he’d come by with a bowl of chili and a pile of books, grinning.
That was the kind of treatment a girl could get used to.
I had also become quite fond of the deck out back. It was a light, bleached wood with several flower beds surrounding it. The deck chairs were comfortable and squishy, and given the early autumn weather, it was quite nice to sit outside and read.
It also meant that the puppy got plenty of outside time. She was just starting to scamper around a bit, so I had to keep a good eye on her, unless she was napping. I estimated her age at somewhere between three weeks and four weeks now. I wish I knew her date of birth, but she was coming along splendidly and was going to be an excellent dog. I could just tell.
And the name Dotty had apparently stuck. I had been trying to avoid any names that were too on the nose, but there was no denying that was her name now. All the firefighters were obsessed with her and called her by name too often for it to be anything else. She already had more toys and treats than she knew what to do with.
Poor Freddie had looked heartbroken when I told him that she couldn’t eat the little puppy treats he’d gotten her yet. She was still a milk-only baby, but I knew if I stayed at the firehouse much longer, I would have plenty of volunteers to walk the sweet, pampered pooch and buy her age-appropriate goodies. After gently explaining to the firefighter that it would be a few weeks before Dotty could eat those particular treats, he had accepted it graciously.
My life was in a weird holding pattern. Until the cause of the fire had been determined and the structural integrity of the building fully assessed, I couldn't start working on rebuilding. All I could do was wait, and I hated waiting.
“Donuts?”
The grumbly voice pulled me out of my thoughts. Turning to the door to the firehouse, I paused when my eyes landed on Elliot. A very sweaty and dirty Elliot. He was wearing his turnout pants, the suspenders hanging loose, and a gray T-shirt. In his hand, he held a large bakery box.
“You look like you just came out of a fire. How are you holding a box of donuts?” I laughed, standing up and approaching him. He looked far too attractive, considering hewas covered in grime… but somehow that just added to the appeal.
“Well, I pretty much just came out of a fire,” he said, taking a deep breath. “I was asked to go up to the convict firefighter training camp today and help them out with some practice exercises. Turns out, they provide donuts.” He opened the box with a flourish. “I thought I'd best offer you one before handing them over to the heathens, because they'll be gone in three seconds.”
“I appreciate it,” I said, reaching forward and taking one of the chocolate-glazed donuts with sprinkles. “Though…convict firefighter camp?”
Elliot nodded. “There is a program here that incarcerated inmates can serve on a firefighting crew to help take time off their sentence.”
I raised my brows, still a little surprised. Programs like that weren’t anything new, but I hadn't actually seen any in person or heard about one close to me. “I guess…that sounds really sensible… They can help the community while they do their time.”
“Exactly. It's usually people with lower-level offenses who are close to release, anyway. They’re good guys, for the most part. Not scary criminals. The facility is only an hour away from here, too. It's a combination between a camp and a prison since there has to be some security. After all, they are inmates. But they sometimes end up at the same fires as us.”
“How often do you work with them?”
“Once or twice a month, I would say. Several months back, there was a massive wildfire over the summer, and they called in people from all the stations and the convict firefighters, and we all just worked as one big team for several weeks, trying to get the fire under control. Annoyingly enough, the fire startedbecause a couple of teenagers were out in the forest, smoking pot in the height of summer.”
I winced. “That’s worse than faulty microwaves.”
Elliot snorted, sinking into one of the desk chairs, donuts on his lap. “About that, I've been meaning to ask. Where did you get your kitchen appliances, because the microwave looked like it was straight out of the ’80s.”
Cocking my head to the side, I delicately nibbled on my donut, trying to bury my embarrassment behind the food. “I mean, you're not that far off. Most of them came from garage sales or donations.”
Elliot groaned, throwing his head back. “Old appliances are going to be the death of me. I swear, half the fires we get called to are because of them.”
“I suppose this is a bad time to ask if there's been any movement on the shelter fire?” I asked sheepishly, tracking my stare down because I couldn’t meet Elliot’s eyes.
“Sadly not. I've been inundated with so many calls and work things that we haven't been able to send off all the evidence yet. It should only be another week or two until we know for sure, though. I know this isn't the ideal place to wait.”
“Well, it's a lot better than my car. Thank you for that, by the way.”
I looked up, and Elliot cracked an eye open. “Are you thanking me forkidnappingyou?”
Rolling my eyes, I scoffed. “No…maybe. Shut up and eat your donut!”
I laughed, getting up and scooping the puppy into my arms before heading back into the firehouse, leaving the chuckling alpha behind me. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, the guy was growing on me. And maybe I could see why he’d needed to haul me out of that car. It hadn’t been smart for me or the puppyto be staying in it, and I knew I could be a bit stubborn. Still, you weren’t going to catch me admitting that to Elliot.
Even if he did look very good in his stripped-down gear, eating a donut.
Chapter 12
