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After finishing breakfast, we said goodbye in the parking lot. Logan was headed to his office at the firehouse. I pulled out of the parking lot and headed for home, still thinking about the beautiful, dark-haired waitress.
Logan
It was 6:00 a.m. Thursday morning. I had been awake for the last hour, but stayed in bed until I heard Aiden leave for his shift at the firehouse. He would be on duty for the next 24 hours, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Do not misunderstand. There is no animosity between the two of us. In fact, I consider him to be my best friend. After all, he did once save my life.
I was just tired of him mothering me. A couple of days earlier, I had a tussle with a young punk, who was bothering the waitress where we were eating breakfast. He got rough with her and I did not hesitate to put him in his place. The only mistake I made was letting Aiden see I was limping afterwards. Whenever he was around, he insisted I keep the leg elevated and iced. If he had his way, I would have stayed home from work so he could monitor me 24/7.
He wouldn’t even let me get up for dinner, instead he served my meals on a table he had placed next to the couch. I guess I should be grateful he didn’t spoon feed me. Having someone in my life that cares so much about me, should make me feel blessed. But it is complicated.
It isn't easy for me to accept my bisexuality. In high school, I was captain of the football team, a state champion wrestler, and very popular with the ladies, if you know what I mean. But I always knew there was something different about me. I was attracted to guys as much as I was to women.
For 25 years, I resisted those urges and then Aiden came back to town. He joined the squad before the accident, which ended my time with the department. If you know anything about firefighters, then you know we spend a lot of time together. We live, eat, and work together for 24 hours at a time.
You can't spend that much time with someone without getting to know them pretty well. And in mine and Aiden’s case, developing feelings for one another. I tried to convince myself that what I was feeling was gratitude for him saving my life and giving me a place to live while I rehabbed. But I knew it was more than that. I was falling in love with him. I will not draw you a picture, but let's just say we began expressing our feelings in physical ways.
Sometimes I still think it would be easier for me to accept the things we do in bed if there was a woman involved with us. But so far, Aiden has shown no interest in the idea. He says he needs to feel an emotional as well as a physical connection with the people he sleeps with.
As he puts it, he is not willing to have some random women in bed with us just to ease my guilt while I’m fucking him in the ass. He tells me I can sleep with anyone I want, but I love the guy too much to have sex with someone else if he is not a part of it.
I looked at the clock and realized I would have to hurry if I wanted to get to the gym. I crawled out of bed and put on a pair of shorts and a RFD t-shirt. Aiden had insisted I skip my regular workout this week. Only relenting when I told him I would just work on my upper body.
An hour later, I stepped off the treadmill and headed to the office. My official title is Fire Inspector. In larger municipalities, that would mean I investigate the cause of all fires within the city. Riverdell is not that large, so there are not enough fires to justify a full-time investigator. I also do quarterly inspections of businesses in the community, mostly checking for Code violations. You would be surprised how many people don’t realize the importance of being prepared before a fire breaks out. It could mean the difference between life and death. I take the job seriously.
With no major fires for me to investigate in the last week and a half, I was ahead of schedule on the inspections and intended to stay that way. I gathered the files for locations on the north side of town and headed out.
The first part of my day went smoothly, just a couple of minor violations which I helped the business owners correct while I was on site. That’s another thing people don’t understand. I am not looking to violate or fine anybody. My primary concern is keeping the employees and customers safe by doing what I can to help them prevent fires. And in the worst-case scenario-give the men and women whose job it is to run into a burning building, a fighting chance of coming out alive.
At Frank’s Meating Place, I picked up a thick ribeye after giving him a 100% passing grade. He handed me the steak wrapped in brown butcher paper. When I took out my wallet, he waved me off, saying it was on the house. If I accepted his kindness, I explained to him, it could be seen as unethical and against the law. I could tell he was embarrassed, but charged me full price.
The one advantage of Aiden working 24-hour shifts is that every third night, I get to eat meat without feeling guilty. I walked into the last stop on my list, Kay’s Kustom Kakes, with my mouth watering. I would be home soon and could fire up the grill.
Kay’s was a fairly new business. I had never met the owner and assumed the woman behind the counter with her hair in a bun and grandmotherly glasses was her. While waiting for her to finish with a customer, I checked the extinguishers near the front door and rear of the store. Both were fully charged. I took off the old tags and put on a new one with the date, my initials and badge number already filled in.
Once her customer left, Kay removed her glasses and apron before coming around the counter to greet me. “Hello there.” The breathlessness with which she spoke made me wonder if she was catching a cold.
“Evening. I am Inspector White with the Riverdell Fire Department. I need to speak with the owner or the manager on duty.”
“Lucky for me, I’m Kay Marsh, the owner.” The way she looked me up and down made me uncomfortable. “What would you like to inspect first?”
She stepped so close, I thought she might be hard of hearing. I spoke my next words more loudly. “I’ve already checked the extinguishers up here. They’re up to code. I see the exit sign above the front door is working.”
“My, you’re an excitable one.” She touched a hand to my bicep. “There’s no need to yell.”
More softly I said, “All I need to do now is see the back room and I’ll be out of your hair.”
“I was just about to lock up. Give me a second and I’ll show you anything you want.” She winked and went to the front door. There she turned the sign to CLOSED and locked the door. Then she removed the pins holding her bun in place before shaking out her long, blonde hair. She took my hand and escorted me through the swinging doors into the kitchen.
While I was checking the fire extinguisher and making sure the back exit was not blocked, she lifted herself onto a counter with her toned legs spread slightly. “What else would you like to see, Inspector?”
“I just need to see your evacuation plan and I’ll be on my way.”
She bit at her lower lip before asking me what an evacuation plan was. Were it not for the confused look in her eyes, I would have thought she was joking.
“Article seven of the Riverdell Fire Code states—and I quote—Any business within the city limits must maintain a written Fire Safety and Evacuation Plan on site at all times This plan must set forth the circumstances and procedures for the evacuation of building occupants during a fire emergency. Maps with evacuation routes clearly marked are to be posted in every room of said business.”
“What happens if I don’t have one?”
“It would be a very serious violation. A first offense carries a $1000 fine. A second offense could cause closure of said business.”
