AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I give them both a nod. “Thank you. Both of you.”
I move toward Hartley, who’s got an oxygen mask strapped across her face.
“How’s she doing? Is she okay?” I run a hand through my hair.
Cross, the EMT and someone I went to high school with, gives me a chin lift. “She’s gonna be okay,” he says. “But the fact you both suffered smoke inhalation for an extended period means you gotta come in and we’ll run some tests, just to be sure.”
I nod. “Alright.”
I hold Hartley’s hands as she holds them out to me. I kiss both of her knuckles.
“I’m gonna find out what happened,” I promise. “And if this was intentional, so help me…”
Her eyes go wide and I realize I’m frightening her.
That makes me feel terrible so I take her hand in mine and rub my thumb over her skin soothingly.
My gut tells me this was no accident.
If Gabe hadn’t seen the smoke…
I sit on the stretcher while Cross and his partner, Jessie, both work on us.
I kiss the top of Hartley’s head. My heart hammers so loud in my chest at the thought of what could’ve happened to us.
I see headlights heading up the road leading toward us and flashing police lights.
We watch the cabin burn and I know there is no way to save it now.
I close my eyes and remind myself how lucky we are to have made it out alive.
She pulls her mask to one side. “Gray. Are you okay?”
I turn and give her a smile, putting her mask back over her mouth and nose. “I’m fine, baby girl. As long as I have you in my arms.”
Two weeks later
“Is that the last of it?” Hartley hollers.
I chuckle. “The last of it? I’ve got three boxes. I might remind you my entire life went up in flames.”
She stops and gives me a sympathetic look. “Gray, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”
I pull her into my arms. Kissing her nose. “I’m just being stupid. That’s not what I meant.” We’ve temporarily moved into Hartley’s townhouse, since I’m now officially homeless.
That night of the fire, we gave our statements to the police, and they told us a few days later that it was deliberately lit. There’s only one person who was in town that night that would want me dead, and I know exactly who.
Of course, Keira tried to get out of it, claiming she left town right after our meeting, but we discovered it was a lie. Something else that doesn’t lie is security footage.
Unaware of the cameras my parents had installed near the distillery entrance, Keira had no way of denying that the silver Mercedes, with the exact license plate, was her car. I knew she was a vicious woman, but I never imagined that she’d try to kill us. The police arrested her a few days later, and she’s now in custody, awaiting trial for attempted murder. What a fucking way to go.
The only saving grace, aside from me and Hartley making it out alive, was the fact I’d left the divorce papers in the truck that night. The Nashville house was sold and everything was settled. Not that Keira can enjoy anything in jail.
“You know there was all this talk about you being a good cook,” Hartley says, kissing me chastely. “Tonight could be the ideal time to put those skills to the test.”
I grin against her mouth. “Getting bossy now? I kinda like the idea of cooking for my woman.”
She laughs. “Me too. I’m not a fussy eater.”
