Then Naomi texted. “Use with caution around exes who look like Finn Ryder.”
She stared at the screen and laughed. Finn was slowly worming his way into her life and now into the group chat, too.
Looking for love, huh?
Was she?
Lainey took a long sip of her now-cold coffee and groaned. No more thinking about life or Finn Ryder. He left a while ago to check in with Caleb on his own project and said he’d be back. That was over an hour ago.
She stretched and rubbed her eyes.
The spreadsheet wasn’t looking any better. In fact, it was bleeding red. Something good had to happen soon. She couldn’t keep financing the project if it didn’t.
She was neck-deep in numbers when a siren went off in the distance. Wailed once, then cut off.
Lainey paid it no mind. Until she heard shouting.
She shot to her feet and rushed to the window.
Finn was sprinting across the lot toward the back gate.
Her stomach dropped. What the hell? She bolted for the door.
The smoke hit her first, acrid and sharp, burning the back of her throat. Heat clung in the air.
Then she saw the blackened skeleton of the temporary supply shed, still burning. The metal roof had collapsed inward. Charred wood and a plume of smoke hissed from inside.
Lainey skidded to a stop. Sirens in the distance came closer until two fire trucks rolled up, lights flashing red against the buildings.
Firefighters in full turnout gear jumped out, already pulling hoses. One took command, shouting to the others. Another walked the perimeter, checking for hotspots.
Lainey could only focus on the shed. The plywood, paint cans and tools. Gone.
The crew members gathered nearby, talking amongst themselves and casting worried glances her way. Of course, they were worried. She would be too.
“This can’t be happening,” she whispered. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping the burning building wouldn’t be there when she opened them.
But it was.
Finn appeared beside her, jaw tight, eyes stormy. “No one was hurt,” he said. “We lost some supplies. Mostly plywood.”
She nodded once. “Doesn’t matter,” she said quietly. “This is just another setback, another way to get the crew to walk. How the hell did this happen? We have cameras everywhere.”
“Don’t know, but I’ll find out,” he said. “I’m going to check the cameras and call Chase, see what happened.” He walked back into the building.
Lainey remained rooted by the shed.
The firefighters finished and started packing up. One of them stopped by to let her know that the fire marshal would file an incident report within forty-eight hours. “Looks like it burned hot and fast. Accelerants possible,” he said, handing her a card.
She nodded and thanked him.
At some point, she knew she had to deal with the crew. Eventually.
She wasn’t sure how long she stood there until Finn came back holding a phone to his ear.
“There was a blind spot. The shed blocked portions of the camera. It must have been knocked out of position after the last delivery. No one noticed.”
Lainey blinked at him. “This happened because of a camera angle?”
