7. Zoe

What in theworld was I doing?

I grimaced as I drove to the station the next morning, my head still spinning from my kiss with Matty last night. I probably shouldn’t have kissed him back, given the fact that I was here for business, and he was part of the business.

But that kiss… it was amazing. Hot and sweet and electric. I swore my lips tingled just from thinking about it.

I had thought about kissing him a handful of times in high school, but I never expected to actually do it. Now that I had, what came next? It wouldn’t be a good idea to deepen things, but I would’ve been lying if I said that I didn’t want to kiss him again.

At the end of the day, I was only here for work, and I needed to put that at the forefront of my mind. Today, I had to talk to the others some more so that I could hopefully get more insight into what was going on and what to look for when arson incidents did happen. They were the experts, after all, while I also had some expertise of my own.

I had to take their knowledge, the local people’s experiences, and my writing ability, mix them all together, and craft the best story that my boss had ever read before. And damn it, I was going to do that.

When I parked next to the fire station, I took a deep breath, straightened myself out, and headed inside, hoping for a productive day. I had to get these guys to like me and open up to me because that would allow me more access to places and situations that I needed to write the best story.

And I was immediately off to a bad start because the first person that I saw was Cohen as he stood next to the fire truck in a gray tank top and dark blue khaki pants. As good as his body looked, I didn’t particularly like the unimpressed expression on his face.

“Morning,” I said with a dazzle of fake cheeriness. Someone had to be the bigger person, right? Or at least pretend to be.

“Morning,” Cohen replied, his eyes lingering on me longer than I expected.

Interesting.

The side of my mouth curled up a little as I passed him and headed out of the apparatus bay, listening closely for any other sound of life in the station. I heard what sounded like cabinets shutting to the right and followed the noise until I walked into a small kitchen where Tobin was scrubbing the countertop.

“Oh, hey. I didn’t know there was a kitchen in here,” I said with a surprised look on my face.

Tobin paused and glanced over his shoulder at me.

“Everything you could ever need is in here,” he replied before tossing the old, used sponge in the trash can. He washed his hands before turning back to me, resting his back against the edge of the counter. His gaze shifted to me, having a sort of intensity that stole my breath for a second. “Have a good time last night?”

My face burned when I thought about the kiss, but I doubted he was talking about that. He probably didn’t even know about it.

“I did. Did you?” I asked as I tilted my head at him. He was so mysterious. What all was he hiding beneath his shell?

The corner of his mouth turned up as he nodded.

“It’s nice getting out every once in a while,” he replied. “Especially lately.”

My face softened as I heard the clear exhaustion in his voice.

“You guys really have your work cut out for you lately,” I noted.

Tobin rubbed the back of his neck as he gave it a loose roll to relax the muscles.

“That’s an understatement. And my job isn’t done when the fire is put out. I could be out there on the scene for a while afterward,” he said.

“What does being an arson investigator consist of?” I asked as I stepped closer to him, feeling genuinely curious. I could use any sort of investigating tips that he was willing to share with me.

“I mainly search the scene of a fire and gather evidence to determine the cause of it,” Tobin explained, his hands resting on the counter on either side of him. When I came closer, he gripped the edge slightly. “I use the evidence to figure out if the fire was accidental or deliberate.”

“What kind of evidence have you been finding lately to know that these fires are deliberate and not accidental?” I questioned him. “How can you tell which ones are the work of an arsonist and someone who accidentally left the stove on?”

Tobin smirked a little.

“Curious one, aren’t you?” he replied.

I smiled and shrugged.

“I’m curious about you, yes,” I said. I wanted him to unravel a little for me.

Tobin briefly pressed his teeth into the corner of his bottom lip like he was trying to stifle a smile. He failed.

“Well, deliberate fires have evidence of accelerants on the scene,” he told me.

“Like gasoline?” I asked as my eyes widened.

Tobin nodded.

“Kind of weird to find around a house fire. I’ll find all sorts of weird things in house and car fires. Fuses. Lighter fluid. Matches. I can tell when something odd is going on and when someone just left the stove on or forgot a candle was burning,” he explained to me.

I noted every single thing that he said in my head, knowing that I needed to keep a look out for things like that. I had to find all sorts of evidence if I wanted any chance of figuring out who was behind all of this. Within the ashes, there was the truth.

“Anything I can look for with my civilian eyes?” I replied with a light laugh.

Tobin smirked and pushed off the counter to step closer to me.

“From what Matty has told us, I think you have sharp eyes. I’ll search the ashes and let you know what I find. You should probably focus on the surrounding area and any possible witnesses,” he said before rubbing the back of his neck. “You’d be better at coaxing people to talk than me.”

I gave him a pointed look.

“You’re just fine at talking to people. You’ve already really helped me,” I told him, noting the tension building between us.

“You’re easy to talk to,” Tobin replied. “Learn that on the job?”

I smiled and shook my head.

“From my mom. We would talk for hours about anything and everything. My dad has always been quieter, but I think that leveled them out perfectly,” I said as a bittersweet feeling swelled in my chest. I missed those long talks at night with my mom and the quiet, peaceful mornings with my dad.

“My dad wasn’t the quiet type at all,” Tobin told me with a light laugh. “He had this loud, booming voice that you could hear on the other side of the house.”

My heart fluttered as I heard him laugh, but I detected the same bittersweet feeling that I felt myself. Plus, he spoke about his dad in the past tense.

“When did he pass?” I asked in a gentle voice.

Tobin’s smile wilted a little as he sighed.

“About five years ago. I always admired him for being a firefighter. And for being a damn good dad,” he said. “He died in a fire, but the exact circumstances are unknown. Dealing with a family death is hard enough, but not knowing the details is even worse.”

“And as an arson investigator, you can help people understand what happened,” I replied, a feeling of awe soaring within me. When it came to dealing with the grief of a family death, I completely understood how he felt. There was also mystery behind my mom’s death because the person who hit her was never caught.

“It just made sense to me. It’s kept me pieced together,” Tobin admitted as he lowered his eyes for a moment.

I walked closer and breezed my fingers along the side of his arm, drawing his eyes to mine. That intense gaze of his made my stomach flip, nervousness taking hold of me. He was incredibly handsome, and the fact that he was opening up to me like this just made me want to get even closer.

“I know what you mean. You don’t ever really shake the grief. I think my work as a journalist would make my mom proud. She was a researcher,” I explained. “She studied criminal behavior.”

Tobin smiled a little.

“A researcher. That makes sense,” he said. “I’m sure she’d be proud.”

“Your dad would be proud too,” I assured him, sharing a warm look with him before we both turned toward the entrance of the kitchen at the sound of approaching footsteps.

Angus paused in the doorway, his eyes darting between the two of us as we stood close together.

“Am I interrupting something?” he asked.

“Bonding over dead parents,” Tobin replied. Something about the dryness of his answer made me laugh a little.

Angus seemed a little taken aback by Tobin’s answer.

“Not what I expected to hear. Are you two alright?” he questioned us as he walked into the kitchen.

“We’re doing fine. Just talking,” I assured him. Grief made us talk in an odd language, but I could see some light in Tobin’s eyes. He was doing okay today and so was I.

“I’m just here for a snack. Gotta take care of your body,” Angus said as he shuffled past us to dig around in the fridge for a cup of yogurt.

“I have to clean the locker room next. Good talking to you, Zoe,” Tobin told me, his hand brushing my waist as he walked past me.

“You too,” I said, my eyes trailing him until he disappeared from sight.

“Help yourself to anything. There are plenty of snacks in the fridge and in the cabinet up there,” Angus said as he gestured around the small kitchen.

I reached up to open the wooden cabinet, but an ache in my back made me wince.

“Ouch,” I gritted out.

Angus frowned and abandoned his yogurt on the counter to walk over to me.

“What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” he asked as his eyes swept over me.

“I’m just sore when I fell the other day,” I told him as I gingerly gestured to my back.

Angus placed a hand on my hip to steady me and then a gentle hand on the back of my right shoulder, putting a little bit of pressure.

“Here?” he asked.

I grimaced a little and nodded.

Angus removed his hands.

“Over the counter pain relievers will be your best friend. An ice pack won’t hurt either,” he said. “If you need any of those, let me know. There are plenty of medical supplies around here.”

“Thank you. I’ve been trying to tough it out since I left the hospital,” I admitted. I was so busy with everything else that I didn’t care to pick up any Tylenol.

“No need to do that. I’m no doctor, but I know my way around a bump or a bruise,” Angus replied as he leaned against the counter, his tone having an air of playfulness.

“So, if I need heart surgery, I’m out of luck?” I asked with a wry smile.

Angus chuckled and nodded.

“Pretty much,” he said.

“The guys are lucky to have you on the crew. I’m sure they rack up quite a few injuries running into fires,” I told him.

“It doesn’t help that we have adrenaline junkies in the crew either. Other than Matty, Cohen is the one you have to watch. If there’s a risk, he’ll take it,” Angus replied as he shook his head.

I wrinkled my nose.

“Cohen?” I questioned him, making sure I heard him right.

Angus nodded.

“Oh, yeah. I don’t think he’s afraid of much of anything,” he replied. “Makes him a damn good mentor too. He gives it to you straight.”

I had to withhold a laugh. Cohen didn’t exactly seem like the mentoring type.

“Who did he mentor? Matty?” I asked.

“Me,” Angus said with a proud look on his face.

“Really? How did this happen?” I replied, needing to know this surprising connection. He seemed so composed and calm. I couldn’t picture him needing so much guidance from another person.

Angus crossed his arms over his chest and glanced away from me.

“Well, I got myself in some trouble when I was a teenager. I was… misguided. I met Cohen one day, and he saw that I needed help straightening up. He took me under his wing and showed me what he did. How he helped people and felt fulfilled. That encouraged me to turn my life around and pursue a career in emergency services,” he explained. “He helped me become a better person, and he’s one of the best people that I know.”

I couldn’t help but blink in surprise, not expecting to hear that. Cohen didn’t seem all that personable to me, but he obviously had a heart and wanted to help people. Why else would he be a firefighter? Why else would he take a troubled kid under his wing?

I just didn’t know him like the others did. If he allowed me, I wanted to, but it came down to him.

“Whenever he’s up for it, I look forward to getting to know him better,” I told Angus, prompting an amused grin to cross his face.

Angus picked up his yogurt cup and headed toward the exit of the kitchen.

“Don’t worry. He’ll let you know,” he said before motioning to the door with his head. “Come on. I’ll give you a proper tour of the place.”

With a grateful look, I nodded and followed close behind him.

At the least the others were warming up to me, and I was certainly heating up around them. I still didn’t understand how there were so many handsome firefighters in one fire station. The help I would get from them would be priceless, but I had to say that their company would definitely be a cherished, dangerous bonus.