Page 73 of Until We Come Home

The second he’s gone, the teasing starts, a chorus of oohs from the row of mirrors and somebody asking where I’ve been hiding him. I manage a weak laugh and sink back into my chair while my mind spirals.

Why isn't this working? Why doesn't seeing him fix the ache in my chest?

I turn back to the mirror, taking a deep, steadying breath. I need to push all of it out of my head and focus on the kids and the choreography. There's a show to put on, and I'm going to give it everything I've got.

CHAPTER 20

Mateo

Everyone’s dressed to the nines for the benefit tonight, and I’m out in the main hall wearing a dark suit borrowed from Jack. I spent the last hour with Jack and Calvin at a high-top near the bar, catching up about Boston and my mom and the latest from Dark River, which did a decent job of keeping my mind off the fact that Mia’s somewhere behind that curtain.

I haven’t seen her yet. I don’t know what I’m going to say when I do, and I’ve decided not to think about it until it’s happening.

I spot Barnes across the room with his wife Mary on his arm, and it takes me a second to be sure it’s him. He’s almost unrecognizable in a suit, gray hair combed flat and his mustache trimmed within an inch of its life, and Mary’s in a blue dress with her hair up, looking like she’s enjoying every second of his discomfort.

“Mateo,” she says, her face lighting up as I wander over. I’ve chatted with her at plenty of station events over the years, and she’s as warm as they come. “It feels like it’s been far too long. I haven’t dropped by the firehouse lately, so I suppose that’s on me, but Ray hasn’t stopped talking about how glad he is to have you back in town for the season.”

She pulls me into a quick, affectionate hug that I return, raising my eyebrows at Barnes over her shoulder. He finds something very interesting to look at on the ceiling.

“It’s nice to see you too, Mary. You look beautiful,” I tell her, and she waves it off but goes pink anyway. “And Barnes, I had no idea you felt that way.”

“Don’t make me hit you in public, Navarro,” he says, flat as a board.

Mary swats at his arm, though she looks delighted by how badly he wants to be anywhere else.

I shake my head and tip in toward her like we’re sharing a secret. “I always assume I get on his nerves because I’m so terrible at taking orders.”

She laughs and leans right back in. “Well, he’d hate for you to know this, but he was the exact same way when he was a young firefighter, so I think that’s why he’s got such a soft spot for you.”

“No kidding?” I turn to Barnes over a sip of my Manhattan. “Barnes. A wild card?”

“Difference was, my captain was an idiot, whereas yours happens to be the best in the state,” Barnes says, and I burst out laughing.

I spot James and Callum standing near the ice sculpture, taking photos with a few local donors. They catch my eye and make their way over through the crowd, looking sharp in their dark suits.

“Look who made it back from Boston.” James claps my shoulder. “How’re the ribs holding up?”

“Getting there. Another week or two before Barnes here will let me ride,” I tell him. “How’s the arm?”

“Taking forever to heal,” James says, lifting the cast an inch in its sling like evidence. “Which means I’ve got nothing but time on my hands. So I’ve decided to put it to use and start studying for the lieutenant’s exam.”

“Huh. You’d be great at that, actually. You’re the only one of us who reads the memos.”

“Somebody has to, I know. And it’s still a few more weeks before this thing comes off,” he says, nodding at the cast, while Barnes gives him the kind of approving look he’d never put into words. “Though I’ll tell you, it hurts like a bitch when I forget and try to use it.”

“I don’t envy you,” I say. “I think I’d take the ribs and the leftover cough over a broken arm any day.”

Callum snorts. “Well, I feel fantastic, mostly because I had the good sense not to drive a truck into a ditch.” He nudges James with an elbow.

“Where’s the rest of the crew?” I ask, grinning.

“Rebecca’s talking with the battalion chief near the entrance,” Callum says. “And we sent Ollie over to be the public face of the station, seeing as how he’s young and enthusiastic. Gotta train these probies right, you know? Though he’s currently distracted by Lainey.”

Sure enough, there’s Lainey in a green dress and her glasses, standing with Ollie, whose tall, lanky frame is swimming in a suit a size too big. They both look painfully nervous, standing about a foot apart and blushing at each other while they talk.

Barnes frowns. “I’m not sure I like one of my crew trying to charm my niece right in front of me.”

“Oh, hush,” Mary says, patting his arm. “Ollie is as sweet as they come. And just look at them! It’s adorable. I just hope one of them is brave enough to make a real move. Poor things are both so terribly shy.”