Page 82 of Make It Last

“Fireweed Winery.”

My eyes lit up. “Yes. Absolutely yes! I love that place. I went there on my divorce trip, and Tori waited on us. She was so awesome when I told her it was my divorce trip.”

“Of course she was.” Josie snorted. “I love Tori. Tomorrow night?”

“I’ll need a ride,” I admitted. “Even if I can walk, I can’t drive yet.”

“I’ll make sure someone can pick you up,” she said immediately.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Tanner

Burn lines & boundaries

I fucking missed Ava. But fortunately, fighting a wildfire kept me occupied. It was a grueling fire. There was thick brush everywhere, and we had to cut wide swaths to establish a perimeter. Planes buzzed overhead all day, dropping water and fire retardant in steady passes. We were working alongside three other state crews.

By the time we ended each day, we were all filthy, smeared in soot and dirt, and exhausted down to the bone.

“Fuck me,” Kincaid muttered as he plunked down on the ground and rolled a stump closer to lean against it. “We’re all fucking wrecked. There hasn’t been a fire out here in a while, which means we’ve got twice the work.”

“No shit,” I said, lifting a hand to catch the water bottle Graham tossed my way. He was playing delivery boy, lobbing them at whoever looked closest to passing out.

Leo dragged his sleeve across his face, leaving a darker streak in the soot. “How much longer are we gonna be out here?”

“Two weeks,” I said. “This one’s a set schedule.”

“I wish they did that more often,” Graham commented. “Nice to know the timeline.”

“When we’ve got enough crews, we can,” I replied. “Only unknown variable is if this thing flares up worse, or if something else ignites and they start shuffling us around.”

Parker leaned back on his elbows and stared at the smoky sky. “Even though I’m exhausted, I love this work.”

“Same,” Leo added, then huffed a quiet laugh. “Still getting used to missing Casey, though.”

“No shit,” Kincaid said. “Never thought that’d be the hard part.”

Leo nodded. “I had to make some adjustments when I found out I was a surprise single dad.”

We all sobered at that. Leo had found out he had a daughter only after her mother passed away. Life had dropped that on him without warning. “I’m gonna transition to the town crew after this summer. I think.”

“Totally get that,” I said. “Being away from Dora and Casey has to suck.”

“Yeah,” he admitted. “Not easy. I used to think I’d be a hotshot forever. Freedom, travel, and so on. Loved it. I still do. But…” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “Fuck, I miss Casey.”

Something inside my chest twisted. Because I fucking missed Ava.

“Speaking of,” Graham said as he dropped down beside us, “how are you and Ava?”

I hesitated. “What do you mean?”

Kincaid chuckled. “Don’t play dumb.”

Hudson snorted. “We all know, man. Not because we’re gossiping. Because our girlfriends and wives are. Word is we’re supposed to find out if you’re serious, and if you’re not, they’re gonna tell Ava to be careful.”

My gaze bounced among my friends. “What the hell did I do to deserve this interrogation? I’ve never been an asshole to anyone.”

“No,” Graham agreed. “You haven’t. You got engaged to your high school sweetheart in college. Moved back home, did the whole solid guy thing.”