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I recall the way Kellie moved underneath me the night before and feel a touch of guilt. Apparently, I’m not above sleeping with the enemy, even when that enemy represents a real threat to my friend’s future.
I think about his brother Jason. I don’t know him very well. He lives in the big city, the same as Kellie, and only visits occasionally. He’s not a shifter. Not all children of shifters end up shifters and in the case of the Underwoods, Reggie got the gift and Jason didn’t.
The few times I did see Jason, he seemed pleasant enough. He definitely seemed to love his brother. I wonder if that’s why he panicked and called the insurance company so fast. Maybe he was trying to prevent them from ripping Reggie off and thought if he filed the claim quickly, he would be more likely to prevent that.
Whatever the reason, his call brought Kellie here and now I’m torn between frustration with him for jumping the gun and gratitude to him for bringing Kellie into my life. I don’t particularly love either of those feelings right now, so I put them from my mind and focus on the job ahead.
I finally reach the homestead and see Rory, Brett, and a few of the other firefighters talking with someone. When I round the corner, I’m not very surprised to see the someone is Kellie.
I park and walk over to them. Kellie glances at me and a look that might be frustration and might be lust and was probably both crosses her face.
“Good morning!” I call cheerfully. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“Stone?” Brett says before Kelli can respond. “What are you doing here? it’s your day off.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Kellie
I’m not surprised to see Stone here. I’m sure he’s not surprised to see me. Whatever might have happened last night, I’m still dedicated to my job, and he’s still dedicated to my friend. It’s unfortunate that in his mind, my job and his friend’s welfare are mutually exclusive but that’s just the nature of the business. When people think of claims adjustors and insurance investigators, they think only of the few claims we deny, never of the hundreds of claims we approve. It’s a tough stereotype to break and I admittedly have never made much effort.
I wake before him and I am still somewhat in the physical throes of our coupling the night before, so I nearly decide to wake him with my mouth and enjoy another climax or two before moving on. I don’t because like I said, I’m dedicated to my job and the best chance I have of doing my job is doing it without distractions. So, I leave a note and leave without waking him.
My first stop is the hospital to talk to Reggie Underwood, but the hospital is very firm on the visiting hours policy, and I’m stuck until at least eight before I can talk to him. So, I head to the next best place—the scene of the fire.
I show up at the farm and am surprised to see that the firefighters have already arrived. So much for a chance to look myself without having people looking over my shoulder.
Stone greets me and I offer him a look that doesn’t quite disguise the lust I feel. God, how can he be so sexy? One of the other firefighters points out that it’s his day off and Stone replies, “I didn’t have anything better to do, so I thought I’d assist with the investigation.”
Rory frowns and says, “Look man, I get that Reggie’s your friend, but we can’t afford to break protocol.”
He glances at me as he says this and I say, “Don’t worry about me. I want the truth as fast as possible. If Stone can help with that, by all means, let him help.”
Stone looks at me with surprise and the other firefighters exchange glances. Rory pauses a moment, then sighs and says, “Aw, hell. It’s not like I could stop you if I wanted to. Here, follow me.”
I start to follow them, and Brett puts a hand up. “Woah, woah. Firefighters only. We’ll let you know what we see.”
I’m about to protest when Stone picks up. “Let her come with us, Brett. I’m sure she’ll be very careful to observe and not interfere.”
Brett doesn’t look happy with it, but he nods and allows me to follow. We walk up to the wreckage of the house, and I wait outside with Stone while Rory and Brett pick through the wreckage and try to find any clue as to what might have started the fire.
“Why are you here?” Stone asks me when the others are out of earshot.
“Same as you,” I reply. “I have a stake in this.”
“You have a paycheck in this,” he says. “One you’ll receive no matter how this plays out.Ihave a stake in this. Reggie’s my friend.”
“Yeah, how did that happen?” I ask. “According to his file, he’s nearly thirty years older than you are.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” he asks.
“Maybe nothing,” I say. “I’m asking you.”
He sighs. “He helped me out of a jam when I was a kid. He and a few of my friends. He and I have remained close throughout the years.” He looks me squarely in the eyes and adds, “He’s a good man, Kellie.”
“I’m sure he is,” I say. “And what’s more, I actually hope I can approve his claim. Contrary to what you might think, I’m not looking for an excuse to deny his claim. I just want the truth.”
“Then why are you here?” he asks again. “I’ve dealt with insurance before. Nine times out of ten they just let us do our job and correspond by phone. They only show up when someone doesn’t trust that we’re doing our jobs. Either the owner insists on their presence or the company has reason to suspect foul play. So which is it?”
