Free A Fire That Burns by Kirsty-Anne Still Page A

meek comment, “I will be with you through this all.”
    Nodding she accepted and knew he would look after her.
    Apparently a few hours changed everything again as Austin ran, unable to
face up to the truths of reality.

 
    Chapter Thirteen

 
 
    Present Day

 
    “I can’t stop it!”
Tyler exclaimed as he used his hands to shield him from the burst water pipe.
“Shit, Austin!” he cried out again in the hope she would come in before the
room completely flooded. “Help me!”
    Running into the room to find Tyler reduced to the floor by water,
Austin had to laugh. The man that was the high school heart throb and
quarterback, who worked out daily and was one of the finest police officers in
the local department. She couldn’t resist laughing at him.
    “Don’t laugh! I need you to come and help me,” he tried to get her to
stop but she didn’t, so he moved slightly and moved his hands and got her
soaked immediately. “Now will you help me?”
    Gasping at him for the sudden burst of cold water, she looked at him,
“Tyler, you are so dead!”
    He smirked and gave her another burst of water, laughing himself now.
“Can you go and turn the water valve off please? I couldn’t get to it while
trying to stop water from ruining the entire room.”
    Springing to action, she went under the sink and found the valve.
Pushing it off, she heard the whooshing of water silenced and she pulled back
out to see the soaking wet Tyler looking absolutely exasperated and elated by
the peace.
    He laughed again and looked to her. “I’ll go and grab us some dry
cloths,” Tyler remarked as they stood drenched from the water. He watched her
laugh at the sight of the pair of them and then rushed to find cloths to get
them dry and sort out the mess. Coming back, he half expected her to be making
use of the moment to start cleaning up but she hadn’t moved and if he had to
say she looked pale and half asleep. “You look exhausted, Aus,” Tyler commented
as he came back in and found her still sitting on the wet floor, staring at the
flooded flooring.
    “My mom still won’t speak to me and is taking it out on the others that’s all,” she told him with a smile. “It’s weighing on my
mind and I don’t sleep well when I can’t switch it off.” Her eyes began to
stream tears and she shook her head, “I have no right to cry over this!” She
started berating herself for how easily she cried and it was only since coming
back she had done that. For years she had been an ice queen to strangers, and
she only cried in private.
    “Why not?” Tyler asked as he sat back on the floor with her.
    Austin looked up with wide eyes, “I deserve the cold shoulder treatment
and everyone leaving me to get on with it on my own. Everyone should be doing
that. You especially.”
    “We’ve been over this. I don’t want to hold grudges,” he responded
honestly and he knew he could hate her and loathe the mere sight of her but he
never wanted to lose her from his life again. “Your mom is just adjusting. We
know she doesn’t deal well at the best of time and you coming back,” he laughed
nervously, “It was a shock to the system.”
    “You know I like shocking people,” she teased and attempted to pull
herself together and began to stand up. “It’s a forte.”
    “Oh yeah, it definitely is,” Tyler commented and shook his head as
memories burst into mind of how she shocked him from even a young age. He
should have known it wouldn’t change. Standing up with her, he decided to get
on with the newest plans of the house now that the kitchen and part of the
dining room were flooded. “We’re going to have to rip all of
this up,” he remarked as he looked at the water making its damage
prevalent.
    “Minor setback that’s all,” she quipped at him optimistically as she
tried to dry off some and as she looked to Tyler she caught him just staring at
her. “What?” she asked shyly and felt exposed by his gaze.  
    She knew this