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"Looks like the people who will want to talk to you." I stepped aside from the two cleaners and gave the police space to do their job. No doubt they would want to talk to me at some point as well, but Jane and Leslie were actual witnesses.
"Are you sure you trust them, babe?" Hutton said in my ear. "They could be working for him."
I would have to find a way to encourage him to stop calling me babe. "They've been working for me for years. It's possible they had something to do with it, but I think they’re genuine."
"I agree," Ben said. "That was a nice thing you did."
"Giving them time off with pay?" I asked. "It seemed like the right thing to do." I looked up at him for a moment. "Is that what you need, too? Some time off to deal with all the things that happened to us?"
"No," he said quickly. "I'm fine. What about you? Will you take some time off?" He looked like he was giving me a challenge.
"Hells no," I said. "I don't have time to take time off. No more than I have already taken off."
"I wouldn't call that time off," he said gently. He looked like he was going to step towards me but stopped when I almost took a step back.
At least the bond was good for something. Reminding him that personal space was a thing. It was a thing neither of us had had much of recently. I needed to make sure I got some from time to time.
"He's right, you know," Hutton said. "We should all take some time off. We've been through stuff."
I forgot he was behind enemy lines for longer than Ben and me. I hadn't had a chance to talk to him about it yet.
In the meantime, I asked, "Do you need time off?"
"Naw." He waved a hand in the air. "I'm good. I've had nothing but time off for the last few years. I am a man of action. I need to have things to do. I prefer those things don't include getting mauled to death by black wolves, or being exploded following a gas leak, but I'll take what I can get."
"That's good, because those things are pretty much a part of the job," I said. "Right, Ben?"
Ben gave a quick tilt of his head. "That is accurate, yes. It's a tough job, but someone has to do it."
"Yeah, I'm sure fucking the boss is a really tough job," Hutton said dryly.
The side of Ben's mouth twitched, but he didn't dignify that comment with a response. He must know I was pulling away from all the guys and wouldn't appreciate him talking to Hutton about what went on between us.
Everything in the past had to stay there. End of story.
The firefighters started to pack up their hoses and step out of the ruins of Scarlett.
With a sigh, I walked towards the woman who seemed to be in charge. "Is it gutted?" I asked.
She turned to me. "Are you the owner?" When I nodded, she said, "It's extensively damaged. We won't know the full extent until it's cold enough to go through and assess. I would think you're looking at a complete gut and rebuild of the interior. Fortunately, the fire didn't spread to the buildings on either side and the exterior seems to be intact. Again, we'll hold a full inspection in the morning. In the meantime, no one is allowed in or out. We'll put up tape. You know how people are though, they'll try to go in anyway."
She gave me a meaningful look as if she fully expected me to duck under the tape the moment they drove away.
Fuck that. I had a nasty enough dose of smoke inhalation yesterday, I didn't need one today. Or was it tomorrow already? Whatever.
"I won't be going in there," I assured her. "I let my staff know to stay out. Thank you. I'll be sure to send a few vouchers along to the station once we're back up and running. You can all have a night out on me." I really was being a fairy godmother tonight, wasn't I? I would have to be careful of that, people might start to think I was nice.
She nodded. "I don't think any of us would turn that down. If you excuse me, we should get going." She glanced at Ben and Hutton, then climbed back into the fire truck.
"See, that's another difference between you and Dagen," Hutton said. "He would have had them killed because they didn't put out the fire before it started."
I snorted. "Yeah, he would. That's the sort of asshole he is." That and so much more. So much, much more.
I ran a hand over my hair. No doubt I wouldn't be allowed to start the cleanup until after the fire investigation, and the insurance investigation. At this point, I just wanted to get started on the rebuild. Every day the restaurant was closed would cost me money. Just because I wasn't short of a dollar didn't mean I wanted to lose it. I didn't get rich by throwing it away.
I glanced over towards Crimson. Jake was pacing back and forth. Stalking, really. One man, by himself, dressed only in boxer shorts. A man I loved so much I would push him away along with the rest of them. For their own good.
"In the time it took the firefighters to arrive and put out the fire, the gas people still haven't arrived," Hutton observed.
