Page 8 of Love in the Time of Wildfires

Logan made some indistinguishable grumble while rolling his eyes.

The other man laughed. “Yeah, I bet he’s in charge of the building’s welcome wagon.” He stepped closer, an obvious spark in his eyes, reaching out a hand. “I’m Damon. Sonny’s right-hand man and best wingman when it comes to firefighting.”

She shook his hand, instantly liking the guy. “Does he hate that you call him Sunny? He has to hate it with a passion, right?”

“Nah, he secretly loves it, but it’s his fault for having the last name Sonelli.”

“Oh, got it. How unfortunate for him and fortunate for his friends.” So it wasn’t Sunny, but his last name shortened. How come no one had ever given her a cool nickname? The only one she had was papita—little potato—which these days she only tolerated from her grandparents because River was a full-fledged adult.

“You guys know that I’m still here, right?” Logan asked with impatience.

“Oh yeah, we know. I also know you’re probably screwing things up again,” Damon replied, keeping his gaze on River.

“I’m not screwing anything up. I’m just doing my job.”

“Yeah, and now our job is over. Also, the squad wants to go out tonight, to Lucky Duck for drinks and karaoke—”

“No,” Logan interrupted bluntly.

“Ah, come on, boss. You need to have some down time and get out before the next job.”

“Why are you suddenly hung up on that place when the other one was fine?” Logan asked.

It was the first time Damon’s grin slipped away, looking somewhat unsure of himself. “I don’t know. It has great atmosphere?”

“Oh my god,” Logan muttered, rolling his neck. “It’s that bartender, isn’t it?”

River was no longer part of this conversation, but she was interested anyway. The right thing would be to politely excuse herself and return to work. Except she did love juicy gossip even if she had no idea who the players were.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Damon replied, sounding a little annoyed himself. “It’s just a fun place to visit, and the squad likes karaoke. The place you like has a bunch of old, cranky guys, and no one is singing . . . at least not to real music. Let’s ask River.” He turned his attention on her. “Would you rather go to Lucky Duck or Tahoe Tavern?”

She coughed at being put on the spot. “Oh, um.” River didn’t want to continue being on the bad side of her new neighbor, and it would be easy to lie and say Tahoe Tavern sounded great in order to earn half a brownie point. But she wasn’t invited, so why did it matter? Also, River never chose the easy path. “Well, I’ve never been to either one, but I do like karaoke.” She used to go with Mimi and her friends all the time. Great. She was feeling homesick again.

Damon gestured with a hand as though her opinion settled the argument. “See? Everyone prefers Lucky Duck.”

“I don’t want to go,” Logan said.

“What else is new? You always say that and you always show up because it’s what a good leader does.”

“Someone has to keep you guys out of trouble.”

“So, River, if you want to join us, we’re going to be over there around seven-thirtyish. Does that work for you?”

“I don’t think that’s a—” Logan started to say.

“Oh my gosh,” River replied, feeling awkward but also excited. She didn’t want it to come off as though she was begging for an invitation, although she was touched to be included, even if it was from Damon and not Logan. Perhaps, though, this was the thing she needed today. “That’s very nice of you. I was actually just talking to someone—definitely not a squirrel . . . just some other random friend of mine—about how I was looking for something to do tonight because it’s my birthday and I’m new to the area.” River was laying it on thick, but what the heck. Logan would have to be cruel to pull the invitation now.

“Oh, happy birthday! Logan, tell your neighbor happy birthday.” Damon jabbed an elbow into his partner’s side.

“Happy birthday.” River wanted to laugh at Logan’s complete lack of enthusiasm. He likely needed someone like Damon in his life to make him more human. It was an interesting dynamic. “But you don’t have to come if you don’t want to,” he added.

Damon swung a glare at him. “What the hell, bro. She has to come. It’s her birthday, and she’s your new neighbor. What’s wrong with you?” He turned to River again. “Don’t listen to him. We want you to come.”

“Well . . .” River was unsure if she should agree when it clearly made Logan unhappy. Screw it! She wanted to have a good time tonight, and he’d probably be unhappy either way. “Okay! I don’t get off work until six-thirty, but I’ll definitely try. It sounds fun.” She sent a special smile toward Logan. “Thanks for the invite, neighbor.”

Chapter Five

As much as Logan would rather go to the DMV than some hipster bar with karaoke like Lucky Duck, he reluctantly forced himself to push through the doors with as much protest as possible.