Page 90 of Boss of Attraction
27
DECLAN
I stoodin Sean’s over-the-top kitchen, enjoying the aromas of bacon sizzling in the oven and coffee brewing in the machine as I flipped pancakes on the griddle. Over the last few weeks, we’d spent most nights together at his place, and on the weekends, I cooked us breakfast while he drank his cup of coffee and caught up on world news.
Despite staying together during the week, we still drove to the office separately because we weren’t ready to tell everyone at work about our business.
The shit between Luke, his wife, and Emily had gotten wild. After the holiday party, Luke’s wife found out about his affair and served him with divorce papers—at work—once everyone had returned to the office following the week-long break. That was enough drama to keep the rumor mill going for a while, and I wasn’t ready to be the source of any more.
As I flipped the last pancake, my phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, I saw my mom’s name flash on the screen. It was a little early for her to be calling, so I was instantly worried.
“Hey, Mom, what’s up?” I greeted, trying to keep my tone light.
“Declan ...” Her voice trembled, and I sucked in a breath. “My trailer burnt down.”
My heart sank at her words, the spatula in my hand tumbling to the counter. “What? Are you okay? What happened?”
Sean looked up from his iPad and lifted a brow.
“I barely got out in time,” she sobbed. “It happened so fast. I don’t know what to do.”
“Where are you now? Are you hurt?” I quickly turned off the burner and headed to the bedroom for my clothes.
“I’m fine, just ... shaken,” she replied between sniffles. “I’m at Virginia’s.”
Virginia was her neighbor and friend.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can, Mom. Just hang tight, okay?” I promised.
“You’re coming?”
“Of course I am.” I could sense Sean right behind me as I grabbed my jeans off the chair in the corner.
“Okay. I don’t know what you can do. Everything is gone,” she said, her voice trembling, and I pictured tears streaming down her cheeks.
“We’ll figure it out. I’ll be there as soon as I can,” I repeated to assure her I was on my way.
“Thank you. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
Ending the call, I tossed the phone onto the bed and stepped into my pants as I spoke to Sean who was standing in the doorway to the bedroom. “I need to go,” I said urgently, my mind racing. “My mom’s trailer burned down.”
“Oh, no!” he gasped and walked toward his walk-in closet. “Is she okay?”
I nodded as I buttoned my jeans. “Yeah, just shaken up, but I need to go and …” I wasn’t sure what I could do, but I knew she and I would both feel better if I was with her and doing whatever I could.
“Of course. I’ll drive you,” Sean said without hesitation, already grabbing clothes.
“Drive me? Are you sure?”
“One hundred percent. I don’t want you getting into a wreck while worrying about her. We’ll get you there safely and then see what we can do to help her out.”
We.My heart swelled as he used that word.
“Thank you.” I grabbed a sweater and threw it on. “I’ll go pack up our breakfast and then we can head out when you’re ready.”
We were makinggood time as Sean drove the Escalade toward my mom’s place. Well, I supposed she no longer had a place, and the thought made me want to crawl into the back seat and cry. Not only was it my mom’s home that burned down, but it was mine as well. It was where I grew up. Where I learned to tie my shoelaces. Where I stayed up past bedtime, hiding under the covers and reading books with a flashlight. Where I kissed a boy for the first time while Mom was at work and Tony and I were supposed to be studying for a test. Where Mom and I had so many holidays together and laughter and tears and everything else that came with life.
