"And that's the last time we do that," I said in a tone that slammed the door shut.
"What? Jack, no!" she protested as she stood up and made her way to the bathroom in the corner. "Don't be a spoilsport!"
"I mean it, Sloan," I said looking out the window. "That was the last time I'll be your personal dildo."
"I wouldn't count on that if I were you, Jack," she said, smiling mysteriously as she returned to the office and grabbed her purse.
Then she turned on her heel and marched out the door, leaving me to wonder exactly what she'd meant by that.
BAD BOY BILLIONAIRE VOLUME III
Chapter Twenty-Four
Leah
The ride home that night felt like the longest one ever, and by the time Riley and I got off the train, it was well past dinnertime.
"How about we go home, change our clothes, order a pizza, curl up on the couch, and watch a movie?" I suggested as we rounded the corner and saw that a fleet of fire trucks were parked halfway down the block with lights flashing and equipment strewn across the road.
My heart sank as I picked up the pace and raced toward our house. I was stopped by a captain in a crisp uniform who told me that she needed to see identification.
"That's my house!" I cried as I stood looking at the charred exterior, broken windows, and the muddied lawn in front. I could see the firefighters in their bright yellow jackets and red helmets walking out of the house holding axes and yelling at one another. I thought of Mama. I yelled, “Where's my mother? My mother was in the house!"
"Ma'am," the Captain said as she put a hand on my arm. "Your mother was evacuated, treated for smoke inhalation, and transported by ambulance to the hospital."
"She's okay?" I whispered. "She's not dead?"
"No, ma'am," the Chief said with a grimace. "She was very much alive and kicking when my team pulled her out of the house."
"Did Gram swear at you?" Riley piped up as she looked expectantly a
t the Chief.
"Indeed, she did," the woman nodded. "She was quite vocal."
"Don't take it personally," Riley said as she patted the chief's arm. "She does that with everyone."
I couldn't contain a small smile as I listened to Riley describe the way Mama talked to those of us who lived with her. I turned my attention back toward the house and realized that we had nothing and nowhere to go.
"Ma'am, your mother told us you have a brother close by. Is that correct?" the chief asked as she pulled out a small notebook and began writing something in it. I nodded as she continued to write. "So you have someplace you can go tonight? Because if you don't, we can have the Red Cross provide you with resources for a hotel room and clothing and things."
"No, my brother will put us up tonight," I said not wanting to think about what came after tonight. I asked, "Do you know what caused the fire?"
"I can't say for certain, but we're pretty sure the blaze originated in the living room," she said as she continued writing. "And it looks like it was probably a cigarette or something similar. It's definitely not arson."
"I see," I said swallowing hard and fighting to keep the tears from falling. "Is the house salvageable?"
"I'm pretty sure it's going to need a whole new living room, but the rest of the house seems to have escaped severe damage," the chief said. "I'd be willing to bet that you can have it back in livable condition in a month or two. I'll give you the case number for the insurance company once the inspectors come out and investigate in a couple of days."
I ran my hand through my hair and, again, fought back the tears as I realized I'd let the insurance policy lapse a few months back when we'd been short on the mortgage payment and Riley had needed new clothes and shoes for school. I didn't want to alarm Riley, so I put my arm around her shoulder and led her away from the burned house.
"Let's go see if Patrick has somewhere we can crash tonight," I said as cheerfully as I could. "Then we'll order pizza and figure out where we're going to live for the next few months, okay?"
"Miss Walsh!" the chief called as Riley and I walked away. She ran after me and handed me a sheet of paper torn out of her notebook. On it were all the numbers to call in order to get the help I'd need to deal with the fallout from the fire. At the bottom of the page was a number with the word Al-Anon written next to it. I looked up at the chief quizzically. She shrugged and said, "In case you need a place to go to talk about it. Your mother was pretty toasted when we pulled her out of there."
"Thank you," I said as I gave her a grateful look. I tucked the paper into my purse before Riley and I continued our trek to Patrick's.
*