Embracing Today, a firefighter romance: (The Trading Yesterday Series, #3), Kahlen Aymes [essential reading txt] 📗

task of sorting through, and getting rid of, Uncle Leonard’s things remained. I hadn’t been strong enough before, and now I’d have to rummage through Carter’s belongings to find any information about his family, but then remembered it all exploded with my car.

In the months that we’d dated, he always brushed off any of my inquiries, saying he preferred to be alone and his family were a bunch of assholes. Over time, I’d come to realize he was probably the cause of the problems. He had me convinced he was sweet and loving until Uncle Leonard died, then he snapped, and everything changed overnight. If they were anything like Carter, I wasn’t looking forward to meeting his family, but under the circumstances, I had no choice but to try and find them. Surely the fire had been on the news. If they were anywhere close, then they would have heard.

I sucked in a deep breath as the gravity of what was in front of me settled around me. I still felt grimy from the night before and all I wanted was a hot bath and a nap. Thankfully, Gina had taken me to the Verizon store before we went to the firehouse and I was able to get my cell phone replaced, so in the event that Carter had told his family about me, they knew where he was, or did hear about the accident they could reach out.

I glanced down at the new one and Googled “Fire in Jackson” and there it was plain as day… the headline story on both of the local papers. It probably hit the local TV and radio stations, as well.

Sitting on the top step, I leaned against the railing. I felt so tired as I watched my innocent puppy frolicking in the yard and wished I could be so carefree.

“Go potty, Sweet face,” I urged, again. As if she understood every word, the puppy squatted in the grass. “Come on, honey,” I encouraged. I reached down when she bounded up the stairs and lifted her on my lap, then stood, kissing her velvety head. “I’m lucky I have you, baby. You’re going to make this bearable.”

I wondered if Ben had locked up the house after he was here the night before as I pulled on the screen door. It opened, but the one behind it was locked. After I’d managed to find the spare key under the pot, I unlocked the door and went into the house, then straight up to my room, carrying Gem with me. I walked into my room and sat her on my bed. She looked up at me with those soulful brown eyes, as if knowing I felt like hell. I reached out and scratched her head, lovingly.

Crying had made my eyes tired, and a bath might ease the soreness from my body. The air conditioner kept the house cool which was a welcome change from the afternoon heat, but it only emphasized my need for sleep. I kicked off my shoes and then crawled onto the bed, pulling the soft chenille throw over my body. Gem thought this was a fine situation and snuggled into its fluffy folds in the crook of my body as I curled on my side.

The house was filled with looming silence that seemed to boom. I had never felt so alone, and I dreaded the job of contacting Carter’s family and making his arrangements.

BEN

“Uncle Ben!”

The young exuberant voice of my nephew bounded through my phone. I had him on speaker as I drove out to the Landry ranch after my shift ended. We had a small house fire in town, and I was a couple of hours later than Marin expected me.

The gravel roads were bumpy, and dusk was beginning to fill the sky with beautiful colors as the sun started to set behind the majestic Teton mountain range. I loved the scenery and the fresh air that Wyoming offered, but Dylan’s call reminded me how much I missed my family.

“Heeeeyyyy, Sport! What are you doing?”

“We’re having a barbecue and I played baseball all day! My dad got me and Remi these cool baseball jerseys from the World Series! The real one! We’re wearing ‘em, right now! Some of my friends are at our house, too!” Dylan could barely contain his excitement.

“Cool! Sounds like a great party!” I couldn’t help being slightly jealous that Missy’s new husband, Jensen, was able to spend so much quality time with Dylan, not to mention how he could lavish all of these amazing gifts on him because he had access through his job. But most of all, I felt melancholy that I was missing Dylan’s eighth birthday.

I really liked Jensen when I’d met him a few times over the past eighteen months, though, and I felt good that Dylan finally had a real father figure. After that bastard Missy had married the first time, I couldn’t be happier about how things were turning out for them. They had moved away to Atlanta, Georgia for Missy’s new job at ESPN and though I had been sad to see them go, things seemed to be working out for the best for all of us.

Shortly after they left Billings, my best friend, Davis, moved back to Jackson Hole to help out his parents after his father’s diabetes got out of control. He was always bragging about how gorgeous the area was, so when another spot opened up on his team, with a lot of prodding from Davis, and a solid offer from his chief, I put my house on the market and followed him to Wyoming.

After Missy, Dylan, and then Davis, left Billings behind there wasn’t much to keep me there. Billings wasn’t huge, but Jackson was only a tenth of the size, the landscape more striking, and I loved the idea of a small-town.

I was still getting settled, but I really enjoyed it here, and as my mom used to say, everything happens for a reason.