5. Griffin

Chapter Five

Griffin

"How's Tish?" I asked my brother as I walked into his office a few days after the reception.

Rhys, my oldest brother and the CEO of our family's corporation, looked up from his desk. "Fine."

I wanted to press and get more details, but I didn't. I'd randomly stopped by just to see if she was here. She wasn't, but then, I didn't have a plan if she had been.

"What are you doing here?" Rhys asked.

"Just thought I'd stop in to say hi."

"You know, any day you want to stop doing the firefighter gig…"

I shook my head. "I like my job, and I'm not really an office kind of guy."

Rhys studied me for a beat as he leaned back in his chair. "I know. Whenever you decide you're too old to risk your life on the regular, you can work with Kenan." Kenan was another older brother who handled most of the odd jobs for the corporation, so he was all over the place.

"I could use a quick breakfast. Want to walk with me to Spill the Beans Café?" Rhys stood from his desk, hooking his hand on the jacket draped on the back of his chair.

"Always." I fell into step beside him as we walked down the hallway and outside into the chilly morning. Hoarfrost was covering the landscape, creating a glittery shimmer as the sun's rays began to melt the thick, spiky frost. The days were getting shorter with time rolling past the end of summer into autumn. The sky was strikingly blue, a contrast to the slate gray water. The sun struck the water at an angle, illuminating it with streaks of gold shimmering over the surface.

I zipped up my jacket as we walked. "How is it going with your crew?"

My twin brother Wyatt and I had been on a hotshot firefighter crew in Fairbanks for over five years. Wyatt had moved back to our hometown a little earlier than me to take over the head brewer job at our family's brewery and winery, part of Fireweed Industries, the heart of it because it's what started the entire corporation.

When a new hotshot firefighter expansion crew was temporarily stationed here, I took the chance to come to my hometown for a while. It might not be a permanent place for me, but it was good to be here. The rest of my siblings had migrated back once Rhys moved the corporate headquarters from Seattle back to Fireweed Harbor. It was a strategic choice now that the business no longer needed to be located in an urban center with the flexibility offered by the online world.

Wyatt and I didn't discuss it much, although we were a lot more open these days, but some of the secrets and darkness in our family's past had been busted into the open. Messy though the process felt, it was best for all of us.

"Glad to be here?" Rhys asked as we walked.

My breath misted in the air. I cast him a quick glance as I nodded. "I am. It's working out well. I get to do what I love and be here for the time being."

Fire season was winding down, but these days, fire season stretched longer, and our crew traveled wherever we were needed. Lately, there were more and more wildfires with hotter summers and more unpredictable weather.

Rhys threw me a quick grin. "Feels good to have you here."

I nudged him with my shoulder as we walked. I glanced to the side as we walked past the harbor. Living in Alaska, Fireweed Harbor specifically, felt like living in a postcard at times. The picturesque harbor glittered under the early morning sunshine. Boats were bobbing in the water, and an eagle screeched nearby with a seagull calling in return.

"We need to take a detour," Rhys commented.

I looked ahead to see a moose ambling across the road up in front of us. We immediately turned down a short side street. The moose had fully crossed the street when we came back onto Main Street and turned onto the small walkway that led to Spill the Beans Café.

Even though it was early, the café was full with most of the tables occupied when we walked in. Warm air scented with baked goods and coffee assailed us as the door swung shut. As soon as we got to the front of the line, Phyllis smiled up at us. She and her best friend Hazel owned this café together. I was convinced they knew everything about everyone in town. In fact, I was positive they ferreted out details about myself before I even knew them.

"Well, hello, boys," Phyllis said, her gray curls bouncing with her smile.

"Hey there, Phyllis," I replied. "So, you're on duty this morning? I thought you handled the afternoon."

She rested a hand on her hip. "I will have you know I cover morning duty plenty. Rhys can confirm this."

Rhys chuckled. "Confirmed."

Just then, Hazel appeared through the swinging door that led into the bakery area in the back. As soon as her gaze landed on Rhys and me, a grin stretched across her face. "Hi, boys!"

"What's with everyone calling us boys?" Rhys teased.

I nudged him with my shoulder. "Rhys is the CEO of Fireweed Industries. Give the man some respect."

Hazel rolled her eyes as she stopped at Phyllis's side. "I've known both of you since you were infants. You're boys to me. Deal with it."

"Excellent point," I offered.

"Plus, when it comes to toughness, Griffin is the toughest," Phyllis teased.

Rhys nodded vigorously in agreement. "Damn straight. You won't catch me putting out fires out in the middle of nowhere."

"And, what's this thing they're talking about now? Zombie fires?" Phyllis asked, her eyes shifting to me.

"Those are fires that never really go out. They smolder underground during colder months and pop back up later," I explained.

The bell jingled on the door behind us, just as Hazel asked, "What can we get you two?"

Rhys glanced over his shoulder. "Oh, there's Tish. I'll cover hers."

I might've guessed it was Tish based on the prickle of awareness that rose on the back of my neck.

I glanced over when she stopped behind us. Rhys stepped to the side, gesturing her forward between him and me.

He studied the bakery display case. "Are those lemon muffins?"

Phyllis nodded. "Lemon filled muffins," she said with emphasis.

"They're really a pastry disguised as a muffin," Hazel added.

I chuckled. "Kinda like a doughnut with filling, but it's a muffin?"

Tish let out a muffled laugh, and I glanced toward her. "You know you want one."

Her cheeks went a little pink when she looked up at me. "Actually, I do." She looked over at Rhys. "And, you don't have to pay for mine."

"I'm getting it for you," he insisted. "Hazel won't let you pay for it." He narrowed his eyes at Hazel.

Hazel chuckled. "It's a work expense for him, Tish. I am sure you go above and beyond for Rhys all day long at the office."

Rhys's wife, Haven, appeared through the back door. She used to work here and often stopped in to chat and occasionally fill in in a pinch. She heard the tail end of Hazel's comment, interjecting, "I don't know what I would do without Tish. She saves me every day."

Rhys looked affronted as he glanced from his wife to Hazel to Phyllis and Tish. "I don't make Tish work too much."

I chuckled. "From what I hear, Tish makes it so you don't have to ask for anything. You forget we all had to put up with your venting back before you had an assistant when you were in Seattle." I glanced to Haven. "Have we ever told you how stressed out he was back then?"

Rhys let out an aggrieved sigh. "I worked too much, and I should've gotten an assistant much sooner."

Tish stayed quiet through all of this. I glanced down at her, teasing, "You're a smart woman. Stay out of this."

Her eyes widened slightly.