Page 74 of Controlled Burn
“Mr. Crone? Really?” He was one of the football coaches and taught history. He wasn’t at all my mom’s type.
“Yeah. The school sent us both to a conference this spring, and we hit it off. Who knew?”
“Well, good for you, Mom. I hope you enjoy your cruise.”
“I’m sure we will. How’s the job going? And how’s your father?”
“The job is great. I don’t know how Dad is. He isn’t speaking to me right now.”
Fuck. Why did I say that? She only asked about him to be nice, so I could have just said he was fine and moved on.
“Ahh. The good old Robert Callihan silent treatment, huh? I remember that all too well. What happened?”
I didn’t really want to get into the whole story with her, which was why I should’ve just kept my mouth shut, so I gave her the quickest version I could.
“He just doesn’t approve of the guy I’m dating, is all. He’ll come around.”
“Oh, there’s a guy. And what about him does your father not like? He was always a good judge of people, you know?”
“He’s a good guy, Mom, honest. But he’s a firefighter who works at Dad’s station. I think that’s more the problem than him as a person.”
“A firefighter, really? Well, like mother like son, I guess. There’s something sexy about a man in uniform. I just hope you’re stronger than I was. The schedule is shit, and so is the pay. Not to mention the fact that the job and the brotherhood always come first. And, of course, there’s the fact that you never know if they’re coming home or not.” She let out a fake, wary sigh. “But I’m sure you already know all that.”
And I did, believe me, because I’d heard about it for most of my life. Honestly, I didn’t know if I was stronger than her, or if I would be able to handle it better than she had, but what I did know was that I wasn’t ready to give Keith up just because I was scared.
Keith
I used to laugh at Abe and tell him he’d gone soft. That he was spoiling David, and he’d come to regret it. But I got it now. I should have insisted that Caleb follow his schedule and do his food prep, but he’d worked hard the last month on that book sale, and my boy deserved a day to rest and do nothing.
“The walk at Joe Gonzales Park starts soon, so we need to leave in thirty, so finish up whatever you’re doing.” Samuel normally worked Monday through Friday, but with Robert gone on vacation, he was pulling a twenty-four with us today.
“Well, we wouldn’t want to miss the puppy parade,” Ford said, standing up.
“I thought most firehouses had a dog. Why don’t we have one?” Andy asked.
“We’re not bringing back a dog,” Samuel insisted.
Our station was providing coverage for a fundraiser for our local Human Society. The event was called Walk a Dog, and the participants were invited to bring their own dog, or they could take one of the shelter dogs with them. They would also have an area set up to take applications for the adoption of both dogs and cats.
It turned out to be a pretty uneventful afternoon, but we got to spend the day playing with the dogs that shelter workers had brought with them. There were some seriously cute puppies, and I’ll admit I was tempted. The problem was those twenty-four-hour shifts made it hard to train and care for a puppy.
About halfway through the event, one of the workers had figured out that if we were the ones holding the puppies, they got a lot more attention, and honestly, we didn’t mind. That was how I found myself holding one of the cutest little dogs ever. It was a mix of some kind and was a serious little chonk. He was mostly white, with some brown splotches on his ears and one of his legs.
“Look over here, Keith,” Andy called, and as I turned to look at him, he snapped a picture. “That’s adorable. I’m totally sending that to Caleb.”
“Hold up, you have Caleb’s number?”
“Of course I do. He gave it to me at The Spotted Dog the other night.” His thumbs flew on his phone, and then he used his finger to press the send button dramatically. “Done.”
“You’re ridiculous,” I grumbled.
“Trust me. I mean, who can resist a sexy firefighter with a puppy? You should be thanking me.”
I sighed and shook my head as my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out, and sure enough, it was him.
Rabbit: Oooh sexy Daddy, and I want one?
Me: You already have a sexy Daddy. *wink emoji*