Page 3 of Wildfire
"Chief."
"Huh?"
"I'm the Fire Chief. Not a captain."
"I was just sort of… you know what? Never mind."
I can tell she's still got her hackles raised, so I point toward The Daily Dose, our local hip breakfast joint, and start walking.
Chapter Three: Renée
He holds the door for me like a real gentleman, and as soon as we step inside, I see all eyes on us. This is what I hate about small towns like where I grew up. Everybody is up in your business.
"Usual table, Chief?"
He nods, walks over to the corner table, and sits against the wall, looking over the restaurant. It's like a king just sat on his throne, looking at his subjects, and it's kind of sexy how I can tell people respect him. It must be nice to be looked at that way. My family isn't considered the worst in town, but we're not winning any citizen's awards either.
The waitress walks over and plunks down two menus, two sets of cutlery, and two coffee cups. I put my hand over the cup so she doesn't fill it from the steaming pot on the warmer beside us. "What kinds of tea do you have?"
"Tea drinker, huh? Me too." She winks at me and rattles off a few different kinds I haven't heard of.
"Got any plain black tea?"
"English Breakfast?"
"Perfect, thank you."
"I'll take coffee, Avery. Thanks."
She walks away to get my tea, and I turn to the Chief.
"Her name is Avery?"
"Yeah, why?"
"I like that name. It's got a nice ring to it. Like a stage name or something."
"Stage name?"
"Yeah, you know, for a performer. An actress or a singer."
"Is that what you are? A performer?"
I feel my chest puff up a little and jut out my chin. "I am. Got my guitar in the back of the car."
"On your way to a gig or something?"
"N—no. Nothing quite that cool. Not yet, anyway. Thanks for giving me a ride and everything. I had no cell service, so I couldn't call for a tow truck."
"Yeah, that's the problem out here. The county commissioners are in the middle of public hearings to discuss building more cell towers so we can have service. It's a real hazard if—"
"Here's your drinks." Avery sets down a steeping teapot and fills the Chief’s mug with hot coffee. "Do you know what you want to eat?"
"I'll have my usual, Avery. Know what you want, Renée?"
I scan the menu but know I will get the same thing I do in every restaurant. Two eggs over hard, two pieces of sourdough toast heavy on the butter, hash browns that are super crispy, and a couple of pieces of bacon. I've been eating the same thing since I was a little kid when my mom used to take me to the diner on Sundays. We were just the two of us for our 'girl time.'
Avery doesn’t bat an eye when I give her my specific order, making me like her even more than I did when I heard her name. She's pretty, but not too pretty. She's the kind of pretty that doesn't make her a bitch because she's so hot, but she's pretty enough to make you want to go to a bar with her to flirt the night away. Have some drinks and fun, go home, eat frozen pizza, and regret the last beer you drank.
