Page 26 of Burn for Me
Chapter Ten
Stretching out on the sofa,Kitty groaned. Her mother had made lasagne for supper, and, as always, she’d eaten too much of it. Nobody made lasagne like her mom. Despite the gravity of her situation, she’d enjoyed having her mother with her enormously. They hadn’t done this in the longest time. Since leaving home for college.
Her mom returned from doing the dishes – she hadn’t been able to talk her out of it, hard as she’d tried. Taking a seat in an armchair opposite her, Kitty noticed Elenore running a maternal eye over her as she lay on the sofa, though pretended not to. She knew her mother was worried about her. It had been a pretty rough day, and in the days ahead, she was sure it would be equally as rough.
There were a lot of decisions to be made, along with a ton of arrangements. Her first priority was her staff. Thank god, she’d taken her broker’s advice and invested in contingency insurance. At least salaries were covered, for her and them. One less thing to worry about on a long list of issues.
She was feeling a bit better, not quite as shattered as earlier. Hopefully, she was looking better on the outside too, not so pale and drawn. If she were honest, she’d enjoyed her evening in with her mom. She missed being at home and spending time like they had this evening. It was just what she’d needed.
“So...…” Elenore began. Clearing her throat, she paused a moment, seeming to gather her thoughts.
Kitty sat up to look at her mother. “So?”
Elenore blushed. “Well, I, er…...” Again, she paused.
All Kitty could do was gape. Her mother was, honest to goodness, blushing. This had to be good. She could probably count on one hand the amount of times she’d seen her mother blush in all of her twenty-eight years. And then it had only been when her father had teased her mother.
“Well, now,” she said, drawing the words out. “That’s interesting. Out with it, Mom. What’s got you all a-tizzy?” she couldn’t help teasing.
Taking a deep breath, Elenore finally said, “Well, Dad’s been gone for a long time now. And you and Philip have your own lives. You don’t need me as much as you used to, so I was thinking of finding myself a companion.”
Kitty’s father had been a wonderful man who had adored her mother. They had seemed to live their own fairy tale right up until the day he’d died. Theirs had been a happy marriage, filled with love and laughter. Like any couple, they’d had their ups and downs. But it had been a rule in the house never to go to bed angry.
She and her brother, Philip, had always known they were loved. Their parents had made sure of that. Kitty wanted the love her parents had shared for herself. And she had a sneaking suspicion it was a love she could find with Gray. In many ways, he reminded her of her dad.
They had lost him so suddenly. No one had been prepared for it, least of all her mom. He’d gotten up healthy and happy, had breakfast with her, his beloved Elenore, as usual. He’d left for work, and that was the last time they’d seen him alive. He’d suffered a sudden, massive heart attack. He’d been dead before he hit the floor, leaving his family devastated and his wife lost without him.
Now with him gone, and both she and Philip out of the house, Kitty could only imagine how lonely it must be for her mom without her darling William. In the years since he’d passed, Elenore at least had her children to focus on until they left home for college. Maybe itwastime for some companionship for her mom. Lord knew, they pushed her about it often enough. And she might know just the man for the job.
“Ah, a companion is it? Well, you’re in luck. I happen to know somebody who knows somebody.”
Elenore couldn’t help it. She burst out laughing. “If that’s your best mafia impersonation, baby, best you stick to cupcakes.”
Kitty threw a scatter cushion at her mother, snorting with laugher.
“Seriously though, Mom. I think it’s long overdue. Dad would want you to be happy. There’s this really nice guy who works with Gray, and I think you’d get on well. I can arrange an introduction, if you like. Think about it and let me know.”
Clearly uncomfortable with the conversation, her mother replied, “Thank you, darling, I will. Now, how about some dessert? I made Baked Alaska.”
“Hmm, yum. Yes, please. I’ll come give you a hand.” As she got to her feet, her cell phone rang.
“I’ll be there in a sec, Mom.”
* * *
All Gray wanted wasto go home. He was tired, his body aching from constantly bracing against a hose that exerted unimaginable pressure on the body. He’d been at it for more hours than he wanted to acknowledge, and the end was nowhere near in sight. And he wanted to see Kitty.
Although she’d seemed a little less distraught when he’d seen her earlier, he’d really rather be checking in on her to make sure she was doing okay. Instead, he’d be headed back into the bowels of hell itself.
With the fire in Silvermine that had been raging for days, they were severely short-handed and being hampered at every turn. It was going to be a long, hard fight to get this blaze under control, and there was no knowing when they’d get it done. They were in it for the long haul. The warehouse currently burning housed flammable liquids, which made putting the flame out a nightmare.
And once they finally got it out, he’d have to wait just long enough for the ashes and debris to cool down before he went in to start his investigation. But for now, he had a fifteen-minute break, and he was going to use it wisely.
Pulling his cell phone out of his shirt pocket, he searched Kitty’s number in his contact list and hit go. He’d better let her know what was going on. He didn’t want her worrying where he was. She had enough going on as it was.
“Hello?”
Just hearing her voice made him smile. “Hey, honey.”
