Page 10 of Up In Flames
“You say you’re a friend of Dorsey’s. But no one will ask. They’ll sell you as many burgers as you can eat and con you into playing games. It’s a lot of fun.”
The fundraiser reminded me of some of the church functions my parents used to drag me to as a kid. The community spirit had always been a draw for me. As a kid, I was just happy to scarf down endless hot dogs. I wasn’t aware of the strings that came with being part of a church community until I got older.
Much to my parent’s displeasure, I’d walked away from religion entirely. I still respected that they believed a certain way, but I didn’t. It was another thing my parents and I didn’t talk about. If we didn’t acknowledge uncomfortable things, they didn’t exist.
“You said it’s a fundraiser. Where does the money go?”
“We raise money to help people who’ve been displaced by fires. There’s a lot to worry about when you lose everything. Sometimes people aren’t insured. A lot of renters especially. They’ve already lost everything, and they have plenty to worry about without stressing over money and getting their bills paid as they try to navigate the interruption in their life.”
“That’s nice of you,” Oren said as if I was directly responsible for any of it. All I did was show up and flip burgers.
“So you’ll come. I’ll make a batch of my famous chili this year if you do.”
“Are you bribing me?”
“Only if it works.”
Oren looked at me, then looked away, then looked back at me. “Can you text me the address and the times and stuff, and I’ll think about it? I’m not exactly good company these days.”
He pulled his phone out of his pocket and slid it across the table to me. A secret thrill shot through me when I sent myself a text from his phone, connecting us. My stupid lizard brain didn’t want to listen to the fact that Oren was straight and that I wasn’t allowed to crush on him. Clearly I’d sent the memo, but my brain crumpled it up and threw it in the trash at the first sight of Oren.
I slid his phone to him, then pulled out mine and sent Oren a text.
I introduced myself before texting him that he was cordially invited to come to Wilbur Park and stuff his face with hamburgers, chili, and whatever else the guys saw fit to bring.
“I’d really like it if you came.” That level of honesty flayed my chest wide open. I feared for a second that he’d look at me and know all my secrets. I was gay. I’d turned my back on the religion I’d grown up in. I had a crush on a straight guy and was pathetically trying to be his friend, not only because he needed one, but because all my friends were firefighters and it might be nice to have someone outside of the department to hang out with. It also didn’t hurt that Oren was easy on the eyes.
I’d glimpsed a sliver of who I imagined the old Oren was. Someone witty and sharp who gave as good as he got.
Oren met my gaze. I couldn’t tell if he was particularly happy about his decision, but he accepted my invitation anyway.
“I’ll be there.” Oren glanced at the time. “I should get going. I didn’t mean to keep you so long. Thank you for this.” His voice cracked and he cleared his throat.
“I’m glad you’re okay, Oren. And I’m glad I’ll see you at the fundraiser.”
“Thanks. And, ah… yeah. I’ll be there.” He got up and it looked for a second like he was going to run straight out of the cafe, but he stopped at the counter long enough to shove a bill into the tip jar, then with a final look over his shoulder at me, he held my gaze for half a second before giving me a tight smile and then vanishing out into the street leaving me to wonder if I should’ve followed him. Rational brain said no. Horny lizard brain said yes. I ignored horny lizard brain this time.
CHAPTER 5
Oren
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to be alone with Will, or that being at a park full of firefighters and other strangers was exactly the same thing as being alone with him, but conning half the office into going with me calmed my nerves. Hal had been an easy sell. Once Simon got wind of where I was going and what it was benefitting, he declared that it would be good to get out into the community and show our support. And that’s how a casual invite to a barbeque had me milling about the park with a bunch of my coworkers.
Simon even ditched his suit. Well, his jacket and tie. He still wore the slacks and the button-up, but the sleeves were rolled up and the top two buttons left undone, making him look both relaxed and powerful.
Hal wore a plain green polo shirt and khakis, and I’d shown up in jeans and a graphic tee. How I managed to feel underdressed at a casual function was all on Simon and Hal.
Some of the other people from the office had arrived already and were spread about at various stations.
“Where’s your firefighter?” Hal asked, scanning the crowd.
“He’s notmyfirefighter.” My stomach swooped at that, but I didn’t know why. “And he said something about chili, so I’m guessing he’s near the food somewhere.”
I dragged my gaze through the park. The weather had held out, and it was a nice day to be outside. Comfortably warm with a gentle breeze blowing through now and then. I managed to catch sight of Will and, as predicted, he was in the tent where the food was being served. The event had been going for a while before we’d arrived, meaning there wasn’t a huge line of people.
Looking around for Hal, I saw that he and Simon had wandered off to try their chances at some of the carnival games. That was probably Simon’s idea. His competitive streak was no secret around the office. Most people seemed to avoid squaring off against him, but not much seemed to faze Hal.
When I turned my attention back to Will, he was looking at me. The idea of him watching me had my body warming from head to toe. Now that he’d noticed me, I forced my feet to move toward the tent where he was stationed. Food was sold by donation, so I pulled a twenty out of my wallet and handed it over to the teenager they’d put in charge of the cash box.
