Page 131 of Firecracker

Crenshaw turned eerily blank eyes on him.

Christ. Crenshaw wasn’t exactly his favorite person, but Tyler felt sick seeing him like this.

Tyler turned the hose on the fire in the attic, but the longer he stood there in red hot coals trying to get Crenshaw to go, the hotter his own feet were getting, and he had to take a second to hose them down and drench them.

The other crew that had arrived pulled the ceiling for them while he and Tremon chased the fire around the attic. They were making progress, but Crenshaw was still there, now shaking. He was going to have to physically get him out of the house.

He grabbed Crenshaw and shoved him forward, both of them stumbling. Finally he wrestled him outside.

Tyler re-entered the structure. As turned the hose back on the attic, with no warning the floor moved under his feet. Shit!

The last thing he heard was Tremon yelling, “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Arden slid a tray of chocolate chip cookies into the oven. Because it was National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day. And no matter how shitty things were, there was always something to celebrate.

Sure.

The last few days she’d made a couple of cakes, some lemon bars, banana bread, and now cookies. It was a comfort baking frenzy.

It also gave her time to think.

Love is encouraging the one you love to live their best life.

Tyler did that for her. He encouraged her. He cared enough about her to let her walk home alone, even though he wanted to protect her. He encouraged her to try her new business. He encouraged her to make new friends and go to the book club meeting. He supported her in so many ways, small ones and the most important ones.

Maybe he tended to butt in a lot, but he did it with good intentions. With a good heart. The best heart.

She’d overreacted about him trying to help her. And Tyler had been right—that wasn’t therealreason she was afraid of getting involved with him.

She was terrified of messing up again. Of letting someone down in the worst way.

Was Mom right? She didn’t have control over how Michael had lived his life. She could only encourage him and support him. And honestly? Tyler didn’t have control over her life. He encouraged her and supported her…but he didn’t control her.

She moved about the kitchen, washing the bowls she’d used to make the cookie dough, loading the dishwasher, wiping the counter, her mind working.

Tyler wanted to be a firefighter against his mom’s wishes. Arden had encouraged him in that. If it was what he wanted, she wanted that for him, and she’d do anything to help him achieve his goals.

Because she loved him.

And he’d do anything to help her achieve her goals. Because he loved her.

She pressed her fingers to her mouth and froze in the middle of the kitchen.

Holy hell. She’d gone and done what she hadn’t wanted to happen. She’d fallen in love with him. And then she’d screwed things up so badly.

He loved his job so much. He was so brave. She wanted him to be happy. To have everything in life he wanted.

Because she loved him.

And maybe…that was why he was such a pain. Because he loved her. And he wanted those same things for her.

Mom was right about something else—shehadrun away. And that wasn’t acting like an adult. Mom’s words had stung, but she had to admit the truth in them. She’d screwed up again. But Mom had also said, if she learned from her mistakes, she was strong enough to do anything.

Wasn’t that exactly what she’d wanted? A new life? A chance to start over? A chance to learn from her mistakes and be a better person?

She plopped her butt onto a stool at the counter. Mom and Dad were sitting outside on the patio. She stared across the room blindly.

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