Warnings and Wildfires

“Aw. What happened?”

“I don’t know. Sinkhole? Water main break? Something like that. She wasn’t very specific.”

The lingering happiness from talking to his daughter still surrounds him. I don’t want to ruin it by finishing our conversation. Or maybe I’m just a coward. Either way, he doesn’t mention it and I let it go.

I can always warn him about my past later, right?

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Before starting breakfast, I slip on a T-shirt and a pair of sweats and jog next door. I knock loud enough to rattle the little glass panes in the door.

My mother opens it and scowls at me. “Really? Is that your way of hinting I should knock next time?”

My lips curl into a half-smile. “No, not at all.”

She shakes her head and lets me in. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I just wanted to see how your trip was.”

“Fun, but I can tell you about it later.” She glances at the kitchen clock. “You’re usually on your way to the gym by now.”

“I know.”

“How was Madison? I’m so upset I missed her.”

“She was…a trip. I’ll have to explain later. But she and Aubrey seemed to get along well. Maddy seems to like her.”

“Oh.” Her mouth curves into a soft smile. “That’s good. I was worried she’d be a bit prickly about it.”

“Well…”

She laughs and pushes me toward the door. “You can tell me later.”

“I asked Aubrey to move in with me.”

That stops her in her tracks. “You did? That seems fast.”

Her reaction surprises me. The woman has been hinting that I needed to “settle down” for years now. “I thought you liked her?”

“I do.” She tilts her head and runs her hand over my hair. “I’m never going to stop worrying about you, though.”

Since I understand the sentiment, I don’t give her any grief.

She cocks an eyebrow, hopeful expression playing over her face. “Does she want more kids?”

“Jesus, Mom. Would you stop with the grandbabies?”

“I’ll take that as an ‘I don’t know.’”

“Her first concern was whether moving in with me would upset Madison. My already-existing daughter.” I shake my head. “She’s really sensitive to Maddy’s feelings.”

“That is important. But what about your needs?”

“We have enough chemistry to blow up a building.”

She frowns. “That’s not what I meant. Get to know her more…and not in the biblical way.”

“I know the things that matter. She’s smart. She’s supportive—I can’t tell you all the stuff she’s done to help me grow the gym. She treats me well. She treats my daughter well. Christ, she even likes Jake. What else is there?”

I don’t want to admit it, but her comment bothers me. There’s a grain of truth in it. Aubrey can be very-tight lipped when it comes to talking about her family or past. But bits and pieces slip out here and there. I figure that will continue the longer we’re together.

“What’s her family like?”

“I don’t think she’s close to her parents at all. They sound like assholes. But you saw how tight she and her sister are.” I cock my head. “Do you really think I should judge anyone based on their family ties?” That came out more dickish than I meant and my mother flinches. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way.”

Instead of kicking me out—like she should after that remark—she hugs me. “I’m sorry. The news took me by surprise. If you’re happy, I’m happy for you.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m not apologizing for wanting more grandchildren though.”

I shake with laughter as I pull away. “Wouldn’t expect you to.”

She reaches up to ruffle my hair again. “She’s a pretty girl. You’ll make beautiful babies.”

“Oh, for God’s sake.”

“Since you’re still here, how was Maddy? Did you have fun at the fair?”

I huff out a laugh and roll my eyes. “It was something.” Maddy will probably kill me, but I’m hoping for advice from my mother. “She got her period and was…upset.”

Her hand flies up, covering her mouth. “Oh, no. She’s too young for that. Poor baby. Was that her first?”

“I guess not. Lauren didn’t bother to warn me.”

Not a fan of the woman who denied my mother prime-baby-cuddling years, my mother rolls her eyes as soon as she hears Lauren’s name.

“It was…an event. Maddy was very upset.” I jerk my chin in the direction of my house. “Aubrey came over and helped me out.”

“Oh. That was very sweet. Was Madison mad?”

“No. They seemed to bond or whatever.”

Her eyes widen. “Well, that’s good. Poor Aubrey. You really threw her into the deep end, didn’t you?”

“Little bit.” I glance at the clock. “I really have to go.”

“Okay. I’ll give Maddy a call later.”

“Call her now. School’s closed. I just talked to her a little while ago.”

As if on cue, my mother’s phone rings and she smiles when she checks the screen. “Ah, it’s Maddy.”

I lean in and kiss her cheek. “I’ll talk to you later.”

She’s already on the phone with her granddaughter. Subtle as a brick, she asks if anything exciting happened on her visit.

“Do we have time to stop by my place?” I ask. “I really want to grab some clean clothes.”

“Yeah, of course. Sorry about that. You should grab some extra stuff to leave at my place.”

“Sure,” I answer a little too enthusiastically. Sully’s been quiet since he returned from his mother’s this morning. God, after last night, she probably told him I’m a brazen hussy and he should dump me.

“Was everything okay with your mom?” I ask, glutton for punishment that I am.

His mouth quirks into a quick smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yes. She wanted to know how you feel about babies.”

“They’re cute.” Wait a second. “Oh, how I feel about having babies you mean?”

He laughs but doesn’t confirm.

“How do you feel about having more kids?”

“Honestly, I’ve never thought about it. I guess I’m afraid it would make me realize all the stuff I missed out on with Madison. And I’ve already spent enough time being angry with Lauren.”

He’s such a good man.

“Yes,” I whisper. “I want to have kids someday.”

He glances over. “Good to know.”

We don’t take the conversation any further before we get to my apartment. Celia’s car is missing, and guilt crawls over me that I’ve barely seen her in two days.

We enter the apartment, and since we’re running late, I head straight to my bedroom for clean clothes.

In the living room, Sully chuckles.

“What’s so funny?” I call out.

“Dearest little sister,” he reads. “I hope that hot stud of yours plowed you good this weekend. I miss your face. In case you forgot who this is, your sister, Celia.”

“Oh my God,” I shriek, running out of my bedroom. “I can not believe you read that!”

He still laughing, but manages to get out, “Hot stud, huh? Is that how I’m known around here?”

“Give me that.” I grab the mail out of his hands. Good thing too, because right underneath my sister’s embarrassing note is a postcard from the Department of Corrections informing me that one Mr. Darren Bar has been released from prison and should I have any problems, call the local police department.

A freaking postcard. You’ve got to be kidding. And, oh my God, what if Sully had read this?

“Everything okay?” Sully asks, rubbing the back of his hand over my cheek. “You’re so pale.”

Shake it off. “I’m just embarrassed you read that.” Shame and guilt do a mean little tap dance over my heart for lying.

; I consider my options as I return to my bedroom. Call the police later and let them know that he already paid me a visit. Surely that’s against his conditions of parole? After that, I’ll tell Sully all about my sordid past.

Wearing clean clothes and a full backpack I meet Sully at the door. His phone rings. “Think it’s Maddy again?” I ask as he answers it.

He shakes his head and mouths, “Jake.”

“I’m on my way there.” He pauses, eyebrows shoot up then down. “What are you talking about?” His frown deepens and he motions me out the door. We hurry down the steps and into the Jeep while he listens to whatever bad news Jake has to deliver.

“I’ll be there in like five minutes. Did you call the cops yet? Fuck, yeah all right.” He disconnects the call and tosses his phone on the dashboard. Slamming his fist against the steering wheel, he lets out a curse.

The sick feeling of dread that settled in my gut yesterday intensifies with the force of a thousand destructive secrets. I’m not even sure I need Sully to tell me what happened. Somehow I just know Darren’s involved.

“Someone broke in and vandalized the gym last night,” Sully finally explains as he tears out of the parking lot. “Jake says it’s pretty bad.”

I swallow hard and force out a question. “Does he know who did it?”

“With the kind of company he keeps, who fucking knows.”

My guilt intensifies, then ebbs. Maybe Sully’s right and it has something to do with Jake, not me. I saw the way that guy went after him at the Castle after Jake won his fight. As much as I like Jake, I have to admit he involves himself in some shady business. And I’m sure what I’ve learned barely scratches the surface.

But deep down, that inner voice I’ve worked so hard to listen to, says I’m wrong.

As Sully pulls into his space, he mutters another curse. “I’ll kill Jake if he brought this on. Christ, Maddy was here yesterday. He promised to stay out of anything that would put her in danger.”

Please let me be wrong. Please let it be something unconnected to me—I glance over at Sully’s enraged expression—or Jake. Let it be a case of regular vandalism. Junkies looking for cash. Bored teenagers on a crime spree. Something impersonal.

Broken shards of glass from the back door glitter in the morning sunlight against the blacktop.