Page 3 of Playing with Fire

Did she not get I'd already said yes? Was she trying to talk me out of it now?

“And when we're on call, we'll expect you to stay over on those nights.”

So they were going to pay me to sleep at their house? Again, I didn't see the drawback to any of this. I started to feel ridiculous as I continued to nod like a bobblehead doll, trying to convince her I understood.

“It's a lot of work, and the hours aren’t consistent.” She paused, searching my face. “I completely understand if you need some time to think about it.”

“No!” I blurted before feeling my cheeks redden. I didn't want to risk her finding someone else. Not when I was sure this was the perfect fit for me. “I'm totally on board. I just moved out on my own, and the hospital job is part-time. I really need something else that’s nights and weekends, so this is great.”

“Okay. If you're sure.”

“Totally.”

“You can start this afternoon if you'd like.” Her shoulders dropped, and her lips lifted into a wide smile. “I have extra booster seats you can leave in your car. And we have an extra vehicle you can use if you'd prefer that sometimes.”

“Perfect.” I listened intently as she explained what I would need to do this afternoon.

But when she mentioned I would be at Logan's house this evening, it finally dawned on me—I would need to deal with him a lot more. And not just in a personal setting, but as my new boss. Somehow, in this whole conversation, the thought of working for the guy who didn't appear to like me very much never crossed my mind.

Rather than let that tank my excitement, I wondered if this was the perfect opportunity to show him who I really was and remedy whatever issue he had with me.

Chapter Three

LOGAN

I grippedthe steering wheel of the rig tightly as I maneuvered it down the street and back toward the firehouse. The fire was out, and other than wait for word from the investigators if this was arson or not, there wasn't anything else we could do.

We were pretty sure the result would come back as an intentionally set blaze. Secluded, uninhabited buildings, early morning hours, and no obvious cause were the hallmarks of our arsonist lately. If anything, at least he was predictable. The thing that worried us was the moment he decided he needed more of a thrill. When old barns and run-down buildings weren't enough.

Jesus. I flinched and prayed they’d catch him before that happened.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, and I bit back a groan. I needed to deal with my ex-wife and our current childcare problem once I was back at the station.

Betty, our previous nanny, finally called it quits. Her increasing unreliability had been a constant frustration factor for us, but quitting on us last minute went way beyond our expectations. Alice and Nikki, our five-year-old twin girls, would probably throw a party once we told them the news, though. They were just as done with the older woman as we were. Guess this was the push we needed to find someone new.

In the seat next to me, Jay looked down at his phone. “Sarah says she can bring the girls home with her after school today. Then you can pick them up after your shift.”

I nodded. “Thanks, man. That would be a huge help.”

Jay's wife, Sarah, worked at the local elementary where my daughters went to school. On a couple of occasions when our childcare fell through, she was kind enough to bring them home and drop them off at the fire station. But those were times I was close to the end of my shift, and tonight I still had five more hours. By the time I would pick them up from Jay’s house and get them home, it would be well after eight, and it was a school night. I would have little to no quality time with them, and they would be getting to sleep way past their bedtime.

It wasn't like I could leave my shift early. And although Maggie would take them if needed, I didn't want to give up the little time I had with them. It was the last night of my five-day stretch with them before they would go back to Maggie’s after school tomorrow, so I had to make it work.

“What are you going to do about tomorrow morning?” Jay's voice cut through my thoughts.

I shrugged. “Not really sure. I can ask Dylan and Hattie.”

For the umpteenth time, I attempted to brush away the worry about my current child care situation. Dylan, my neighbor and a detective with the Half Moon Lake Police Department, had been giving me crap for months about the multiple unreliable old ladies we’d hired over the last couple of years. Betty was just one of many, and a few weren’t even unreliable—they just weren’t good fits for a slew of reasons.

But Dylan was always willing to help if he could, and his girlfriend Hattie adored the twins too. Now that she was living there, I was hopeful between the two of them, one of them could watch my girls and then drop them at school. If I absolutely had to, I could come in late. But we were already short-staffed, so leaving the guys one man down didn’t sit right with me if I could avoid it.

All of it was only a temporary fix. My mom and stepfather lived three hours north in Virginia, but they still worked. Asking them to come visit at the last minute was a dick move. We really needed to find a full-time,reliablenanny, and soon.

“I told you, you should ask Izzy.”

That was definitely not happening. But I couldn't tell him that.

“She said something about looking for another part-time job.”

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