AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You don’t know that.” She swiped away a tear.
“Being angry doesn’t make you a monster. I’m still angry with him, too,” he admitted.
“Why?”
He wasn’t sure if he was ready to answer that question. She had enough demons she was fighting without him adding some of his. It was obvious Brandon had kept most of his past a secret from his wife. Before he could come up with a response, they were interrupted by a knock at the door. Samantha gave him a weary look before setting her cup on the counter and making her way to the door.
Bryce stayed put while Samantha opened the door. Chief Barnes followed her into the living room and took a seat on the sofa. Bryce drained his coffee and joined them. He chose to sit in the upholstered chair, leaving the sofa for Samantha and Chief Barnes. He was there for moral support. If they asked his opinion he would give it, but he wanted Samantha to have a chance to plan everything the way she wanted it.
Chapter 5
Samantha closed her eyes and leaned against the door after closing and locking it behind the chief. There were so many details to figure out. So many phone calls to make. So many arrangements. She took the easy way out. The department could organize it for her. He would have the hero’s farewell and all she needed to do was sign whatever needed signing and pick out a black dress. She could do that.
“Are you okay?” Bryce asked her once she opened her eyes and returned to the present.
“Yes. Are you? You didn’t say much. Are you okay with the department handling most of the arrangements?” Samantha asked.
Bryce hesitated. “I think maybe I’m the monster. I just want it to be over. Have you ever been to one of these funerals before? It’s going to be a lot. He’ll be a saint by the time this is over.”
Samantha listened wearily. She knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Whenever someone died, they were usually placed on a pedestal and treated as if they had never done any wrong. That tendency was worse when it came to any member of services, specifically police or fire. The headlines had already begun.
“Yeah. The media are going to lay it on thick regardless. At least this way I don’t have to participate as much with all the arrangements. I can just sit back, wait for it to be over,” Samantha said with a sigh. “Have you seen the news? They’ve already started.”
Bryce gave her a slow nod. “Yeah. I did see some of it. ‘Local hero dies on the way to charity event.’ I guess firefighter didn’t have the right ring to it.”
Samantha cringed. It sounded worse hearing those words out loud. “Yeah, I saw.”
“He was headed to a charity event without you?”
Walking back over to the sofa, she sat down. She knew the questions would arise when the details surrounding his death came out. He was on his way to a large charity event and his wife wasn’t with him. She was just relieved he was alone in the car. As much as the hero worship turned her stomach, she didn’t want the world to know how stupid she was for putting up with him.
“Well,” she started to explain, “that’s a whole story. I’m not sure if you want to hear it or if I want to tell it.”
Bryce moved to sit down next to her on the sofa. At the close proximity, Samantha was able to compare him to Brandon. Instead of cool eyes, Bryce’s eyes were warm and inviting. Looking into them made her feel both safe and vulnerable at the same time. She could trust him enough to share her darkest secrets, but it was also possible that he could already see them.
“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“I was at an audition,” Samantha admitted. “We fought about it. Our last interaction was him telling me that he was bringing someone else.”
Bryce stared at her in disbelief. She wasn’t sure if the look of surprise was for her choosing to go to an audition, or for his choice to go to the event with another woman. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath before he finally spoke.
“So, you’re an actress? I never did ask what you do. That’s impressive.”
Samantha didn’t know what to make of that statement. She hadn’t been expecting him to focus in on the audition. Staring hard, she tried to figure him out.
“I’m trying not to be pissed off. Thinking about my brother going to some charity event with a woman who wasn’t his wife makes me pretty angry,” he explained. “If you want to talk, I’ll listen. But if you don’t, that’s fine too.”
“I’m an aspiring actress. I’ve had a few parts in some small productions, but last night was an open call for Rent. I was ready to pass it up to go with him, but he’d already made up his mind.”
“Do you know the woman?”
“It’s not important,” was her answer. She didn’t want to go into it. Bryce was right. It didn’t do any good to be pissed off at a dead man, and she wasn’t exactly comfortable talking bad about him to his brother.
“Mom killed herself less than a month after Brandon left. He didn’t help plan her funeral. He left me to do it. And he only made it to part of the service.”
She was horrified by that bit of information. She wished she could be surprised by his behavior, but it sounded just like the Brandon she knew. Brandon really did only care about Brandon. It wasn’t likely that anything she told Bryce would come as a surprise.
“The woman he said was going with him was rumored to have been sleeping with him. It was so bad she ended up changing firehouses. Turns out, she and her husband are no longer together.”
