Page 9 of When It Burns

“Hey! Glad y’all made it. Y’all come on in,” I say amicably, as I motion for them to come inside. As Caroline enters the house, I’m suddenly struck by how beautiful she is. Of course yesterday, I’d thought she was pretty, but without my anger clouding my vision I see that she is one of the most gorgeous women I have ever seen. She’s wearing denim shorts that show off her perfect ass and legs with a black short sleeve shirt. Her long, dark brown hair is pulled away from her face, and she’s wearing just enough eye makeup to bring out the green in her hazel eyes. How the hell did I miss this yesterday? Not only am I an asshole, but I must be blind as well.

Trying to refocus myself on the current moment, I walk to the kitchen and ask, “Would y’all like something to drink? We have sweet tea, water, wine, and beer.”

Will looks at me for a minute like he’s sizing me up and finally replies with, “Sweet tea is fine for me. I have to drive this girl home.” He says it casually, but I can’t help but wonder if there is something between the two of them.

Caroline must pick up on the questions I want to ask because she replies, “Will and I both live in the same apartment building along with our friend Seth. Since Will insisted on coming along, I let him drive my car in exchange for serving as my DD. Anyway, we live above the post office. A few years ago the city converted some old retail spaces into apartments, since single-person housing options are pretty much nonexistent in Springside.

“Have you met Seth yet? He teaches the construction classes at Springside and coaches the Varsity baseball team.”

I’m spared from having to come up with a response to that when Margaret walks into the room. Caroline’s face brightens as she stands and makes her way over to my sister and gives her a hug. They start talking immediately as if they’ve been friends for years instead of less than twenty-four hours.

I set to work fixing Will a glass of tea and waiting for the girls to take a breath so I can ask them what they want to drink. As I’m waiting, Margaret walks over to the fridge, grabs the bottle of wine and the corkscrew out of the drawer, and pops the top without ever leaving a pause in their discussion. She pours them both a glass and looks over to me as if I’m a moron.

“Well, are you going to give our guest something to drink or not?” she asks.

I realize I’ve been standing here with Will’s drink in my hand for the last several minutes. I hand it over to him as he glares at me. It’s clear his amicable behavior isn’t going to extend past practice.

“Hannah said she’s on time for once and will be here in just a minute. Who knew all it would take for her to be on time is the new fire chief to act like an asshole and then be forced to grovel at my feet,” Caroline announces with a laugh after hearing her phone ping. She looks at me and gives me a wink that has my dick starting to grow hard in my jeans.

“Why is she always late?” I ask, feeling like I’ve been left out of a joke and trying to calm myself down. What am I twelve?

Caroline opens her mouth to answer as Margaret and I listen, but Will cuts her off before she can start. “Because she has the shittiest parents on the planet. They moved away when she was in middle school because they wanted more freedom and said Hannah was ‘too needy’ because she needed dinner at night and clothes to wear to school.” Will's face is overcome with contempt as he talks. “She became the caretaker for her aging grandfather and a shit ton of animals last year, and she’s barely keeping her head above water with everything on her plate.”

“She’s managing just fine, Will. You just worry too much,” Caroline responds with a laugh.

“Whatever,” Will retorts. “She’s just so damn stubborn. I’ve tried to help her, and she won’t listen. Huey taught me everything he knows about farm animals, but she tells me she has it under control.”

“These two are like oil and water,” Caroline announces as Will stands to get the door for Hannah. “You’ll get used to their constant bickering eventually but for now, buckle up because you’re about to get your first show. I always say they’re meant to end up together, but no one in town believes me.”

“Oh I wish you’d drop that shit,” the girl I’m assuming is Hannah says as she blows into the room with Will right behind her. The new girl and Caroline couldn’t be more opposite physically if they tried. Where Caroline is brunette with hazel eyes, Hannah is blonde with blue eyes. Caroline has curves and can’t be taller than five-four while Hannah is tall and slim. “It’ll be a cold day in hell when I let him anywhere near my pussy.”

“Hannah!” Caroline exclaims. “You don’t have to be crass. We’re guests here too!”

“Whatever,” Hannah says, blowing off Caroline’s concerns. She turns to me and her eyes narrow as she puts together who I am. “So you’re the dickwad new fire chief, huh? You know everyone hates you right? If you’d asked me on Sunday I would have said it’s impossible to make the whole town of Springside hate you in less than a day, but you my friend have talent. I think you may be less popular than Mrs. Sally and she once started a rumor that everyone that worked in the hospital had a drug addiction. The rumor made it all the way up to the Medical Board of Alabama. They came down and shut us down for almost a week while they investigated. Even after that, they all had to have drug tests done every day for a month. Apparently, she started the rumor because the hospital staff made her wait ten minutes past her appointment time for her colonoscopy. She’s a royal bitch, but I’m pretty sure they hate you more now. That must really suck. Oh my God what a day, I need a drink,” she announces as she walks to the fridge and helps herself to a bottle of water.

I swear this woman is a walking tornado. I have no idea how to respond to the monologue she just gave, so I decide to take the path of less resistance and simply settle for an introduction. “Hey, I’m the new asshole fire chief everyone’s talking about. I appreciate the honesty, and I think this is a new record. I usually don't get the title of ‘Biggest Asshole’ until at least a month in. But anyway, you can call me Theo,” I state, sticking out my hand to shake hers and smiling. I feel discomfort surging down my spine but I’m trying to be charming and polite.

Hannah just looks at my outstretched hand and frowns at me. “Caroline and I have been best friends since we were in elementary school. She forgives way too easily in my opinion, and even if she forgives you, I won’t until I decide you’ve suffered enough. Do you know how toxic teaching has become? The last thing we need is someone coming and yelling at us in front of our students. Society already doesn’t respect us, and you certainly didn’t help that yesterday when you came in acting like you have never made a mistake in your life. So I’m sure once you apologize, Caroline is gonna tell you everything is rainbows and butterflies, but before you tear into anyone else, you need to remember that your actions have a consequence.” With that Hannah walks over to Caroline who is deep in a conversation with Will on the sofa in the living room.

Damn. I hadn’t thought about my actions that way. In my attempt to keep everyone safe and do my job well, I’d not only been a jerk, but I’d undermined Caroline’s authority in front of her students. I knew from the last two days working with the football team that respect and authority were essential, and it hadn’t been my intention to undermine hers. But, now that I think about it, I totally see where Hannah was coming from. Fuck.

Margaret just gives me a sad smile, letting me know that she overheard that exchange. “I’ll be outside.” I walk to the fridge and grab out the pan of steaks that had been marinating since lunch. I need some air and to figure out how to get the beautiful brunette out of my head. I couldn’t ever deserve her anyway.

CHAPTER EIGHT

CAROLINE

Inotice Theo looks frustrated as he walks outside to put the steaks on the grill. Margaret walks over and launches into a conversation with Hannah and Will about her new coffee shop and I decide there’s no time like the present to make up with Theo. If nothing else, I at least should let him plead his case, if he wants to.

“Be right back,” I tell the group as I go to follow Theo outside, “he forgot the tray to put the steaks on.”

“Give him hell!” Hannah yells out at me as I close the door to the porch behind me.

Theo is standing mostly in the dark at the edge of the porch beside a large gas grill. The lid to the grill is up, and he seems focused on placing the steaks carefully on the metal grate. I think he is oblivious to my presence until he speaks without looking up, “What are you doing out here, Caro?”

I normally hate being called Caro, but the gruff way he just said my name has me blushing. I quickly imagine him growling it in my ear as he slides into me from behind, and I can feel the desire course through my veins. I remind myself that he asked me a question, and I try to refocus my attention on the question he asked me.

“I was bringing you the tray for the steaks. And I-I- I feel like we need to talk,” I stammer, suddenly incredibly nervous. I force myself to take a few steps closer to him so that I can see his face, setting the platter on the table beside the grill. The light from inside the house casts shadows on his face, and another jolt of desire runs through me as I finally get close enough to stare at him for a moment.

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