Page 24 of Melting for the Firefighter
“I know what she just did.”
His voice stays level.
That makes it worse.
I want him to shout so I can shout back and pretend this is about his manners instead of my mother’s complete lack of concern.
“Give me my phone.”
He places it in my palm immediately.
“Cora.”
“I need a minute.”
I walk toward the alley and breathe through the sting in my eyes.
The back of the shop smells wet and burned. The trellis Grandma built from scraps of wood lies broken near the door.
My mother has always been this way.
Lance noticing should change nothing.
Instead, shame crawls beneath my skin.
He sees me clearly now. A grown woman buying scraps of attention from someone who abandoned her. Eight hundred dollars at a time.
Footsteps stop behind me.
“I’m sorry,” Lance says.
I turn.
“You were right.”
“Still shouldn’t have taken the phone.”
His apology leaves me with nowhere to put my anger.
“Why do you care?”
The question surprises both of us.
His hazel eyes hold mine.
“Because you deserve better.”
My throat tightens.
“You barely know me.”
“I know enough.”
The same words he used at the hospital.
Before I can ask what they mean, Tessa approaches carrying two lemonades and a clipboard.
Her dark hair is braided down her back. Her sharp eyes move between Lance and me, taking in the tension without comment.
