Page 104 of Avery's Hero

Like lasers, her eyes lock on Gunnar. Oh boy. Here it comes.

With a snarl, staring right at him, she says, “The stampede over my head. First, all the screaming this morning, now this! How am I supposed to?—”

Gunnar’s eyes spark. “Want some breakfast, firecracker?”

Her mouth drops open and her fists clench into tiny balls. “Firecracker!?!”

I know the expression on his angular face. Lust. Hunger. Challenge.

She’s wearing a tight black T-shirt and black leggings beneath her pink florist apron. He lets out a rumble. “Suit yourself, but I’m about to eat because that looks fucking amazing.”

I grin and turn my back.Oh shit.

He’s playing with fire. That’s the kind of innuendo that either gets you smacked or gets you laid.

The air in the kitchen crackles until Elena lets out a little pfft sound. “If I hadn't skipped eating all day, I’d tell you off. But it does smell good.”

I grab a plate. “Here, let me help you, then.”

She grumbles about someone being a smartass as I load her up. “Feel free to stay.”

“I’ve got to go. The shop is so busy. I don’t have good help and I can hardly keep up with all the demand. If you don’t scare it all away!” She storms out the door with one last glare at Gunnar.

When she’s finished stomping her way down the stairs, we share a laugh.

“Aye, aye, aye,” he groans as he fills his own plate. “That woman. I’d like to spank her curvy ass. Of course, she’d try to tear my head off.”

“Sounds like the future is bright. I’ll make sure to keep Avery at my house a lot so you have some privacy.”

As he hefts a plate and loads it with food, he says, “Just be sure to check for my dead body. I’ll probably have claw marks everywhere and flowers shoved down my throat.”

Knowing Elena, I suspect he might be right. She’s loved by everyone, but they also know not to cross her.

After everyone gets their plates and settles around the expansive living room, I open the conversation. “I thought it would be easier if we all got together to debrief over this thing. The papers are making a mess out of the facts, and this way, we can clear it all up. Figured we might as well do it over food.”

Reeves smiles around a big mouthful. He gives me a thumbs up.

After everyone’s had time to enjoy their food and share some relaxing laughs, I get to the point. “So, Belle, if you’d like, you can tell us how you and the arsonist came to a point of conflict.”

Sitting between Linc and her mom, she places her plate on the coffee table, and grips Linc’s hand. Her breathing is steady as she gathers her thoughts. If I thought this was too much for her, I’d never have set it up. But now that I’ve spent some time with her, I know how strong she is.

I wasn’t ready for Linc to have a girlfriend, but I think he made a damned good choice.

Belle’s voice is soft and shows her youthfulness. “Well… like, I first met Thomas Penn when I transferred to school here. He was popular. But I didn’t like his attitude. Not to sound mean, but he was always saying cruel things about other people. It didn’t take long for me to see that he was just mean.”

She gives herself a little shake. “So, when he started paying attention to me, I tried to be nice but distant. Then he asked me to the Spring dance. I said that I had plans that night, that I wouldn’t be in town.”

Her mom rests her hand on Belle’s knee. Rose’s eyes are shining with pain. Belle told Avery they didn’t have the money to buy her a dress, but that’s not important. And if I can do something about it, I’m going to make sure she has stable work through some of the business contacts I have.

Belle clasps her mom’s fingers in hers. “So, he decided to make my life hell. And Mom’s too. That’s when things got really bad.”

Rose dabs at the tears in her eyes with the heel of her hand. Her voice is shaky. “I had no idea the fire at the warehouse was because of me. Then when the restaurant fire happened, I thought it was just horrible luck.” She sighs deeply, her shoulders sagging. “I’ve had my fair share of that, so it wasn’t that far of a stretch.”

Linc says, “This is about the same time that Thomas was really getting aggressive at school. Dad, that’s when I got suspended the first time.”

Avery says, “Then the fire at the bookstore, where Belle volunteered, happened. But Reeves and Detective Martin didn't have strong enough clues to tie the fires toanyone. Once I started digging around and asking more questions, Thomas got nervous.”

I say, “That’s when his behavior got even more aggressive at school.”

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