Page 7 of The Fireman and the Flirt

Cal returned to the table and cleared the boys’ plates. “Everyone does something stupid when they’re sixteen.”

“I jumped off my friend’s roof when I was sixteen,” Charlie said.

“Why?” Russ asked.

“What do you mean why?” Charlie laughed off the question.

Jolene was three years away from that age...and from guys that age. I gulped back a nervous lump in my throat.

“Dad, can Josh and I jump off the roof?” Quentin asked.

“No,” said Russ and Cal in unison.

Cal turned his laser focus on me, his dark eyes burrowing into me, cutting past all my bullshit as only brothers could. “Cary is a great real estate agent. Call him. At least discuss your options. You might even be able to move into a place and be settled by the time winter break is over in January.”

I knew what he was getting at. It’d be an easier transition for Jolene, one less interruption in her school year. Uprooting her two months into a new year wasn’t my smartest move. But I couldn’t stay in Alaska and be reminded of Paula.

“Fine. I will call Weird Cary.”

“It’s just Cary,” Cal said.

3

DEREK

That night, I tucked Jolene into bed. Yeah, yeah she was a strong, nimble young woman, but there were still times when I wanted to baby my little girl. I wanted to cherish these moments together, since we hadn’t had enough of them when I worked on the oil rig.

“How you doing, Jo?” I asked her as I pulled the covers up to her neck. She pushed them down to her chest, a reminder that she wasn’t a little kid anymore.

“Good. I like it here so far,” she said. “Uncle Cal has a friend with twins around my age. We’re going to meet up tomorrow for hot chocolate.”

“Are you talking about Ari and Lucy, Leo’s kids?”

She nodded yes. “Lucy likes to make movies, and Ari makes video games. They sound cool.”

“Before he was Uncle Cal’s friend, he was my friend. Leo, Mitch, and I hung out in high school.” I was glad that Cal had become friends with Leo and Mitch. They were good guys. But a part of me had a twinge of jealousy at what I’d been missing out on. I had some friends in Alaska, but they weren’t keepers like my Sourwood crew had been.

I adjusted Jolene’s pillow behind her.

“I know things happened pretty fast, moving here, and this is a big transition. Thank you for going along with it.”

“Did I have a choice?”

“You know what I mean.” I wasn’t yet used to having a sarcastic teenager in the house. “I did this for us. We’ll have family here. You can spend more time with your uncles and cousins.”

“The sky won’t be as clear here, though.” She glanced at her telescope, shoved in the corner of her guest room.

“We’ll find a good place for stargazing. I’ll drive us out to the country. And we can go into New York City to their planetarium.”

“Deal,” she said.

“I love you.” I stroked a hand down her soft hair. There was no better feeling than spending time with my daughter.

She looked down at her comforter, her eyes getting cloudy. “I miss Mom.”

“Me, too, Jo. Me, too.”

“I was thinking about going to the storage locker, maybe get some stuff of hers I could keep in my room.” Cal and I had already owned a storage locker where we put our parents’ old stuff. Piles of memories from growing up were collecting dust, but neither of us had the heart to get rid of anything. There was enough space to store my and Jolene’s items from Alaska for the time being.

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