Amongst The Flames: A Contemporary Christian Romance (Embers and Ashes Book 1) by T.K. Chapin Page B

our house a few years back. She and Megan were watching an episode of a talk show where each guest interviewed was from an abused home. So basically, she was thankful I wasn’t beating my children.
    As I set my plate and cup into the sink that evening after eating, I looked at the picture of Megan and her father that hung on the fridge beneath the lime green butterfly magnet. Will I ever be good enough for your daughter?
    Heading up the stairs, I made my way into the bedroom and lay down for the night. This was no way to live, I thought to myself as I stared blankly at the white textured ceiling. I had to get something going. I picked up the phone and called down to the station to speak with the Chief, Paul Jensen.
    “How are you, Taylor?” He asked.
    “I’m healing up… I was curious, is there anything I can do?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Like some light-weight work or something… I’m going crazy lying in this bed all day, every day.”
    “I know what you mean. I broke my arm back about twelve years ago and felt the same way.” He paused for a moment. “We do have some kids coming by the station tomorrow who are going to be doing a tour. You could help with that?”
    “That’d be great,” I said grinning.
    “You better not injure yourself more. The guys are struggling without you here to pick up all their slack,” he said with a light-hearted laugh.
    I laughed. “I’ll be careful, Sir.”
    “Be here by eight at the latest.”
    Hanging up the phone, I couldn’t help but fall asleep that night with a smile from ear to ear. To finally be able to do something. Thinking about being back in that building just brought a sense of happiness.

CHAPTER 7
    A rriving at the station at seven in the morning the next day, I found Ted mopping the bay floors. He was mumbling to himself incoherently as I walked the cement floors up behind him.
    “Sherman!” I shouted, startling him. I laughed.
    He leaped about a foot off the ground. Turning around, he pulled an ear bud out and said, “You know those politicians in Washington are trying to get all those illegal immigrants more rights?”
    I wasn’t much for politics, but I respected Ted’s obsession for them. “I can hardly believe it,” I replied, shaking my head. I patted him on the shoulder and continued onward. He nodded as he popped his ear bud back into place, thus returning to his own little world. I laughed a little as he didn’t even seem to care or wonder what I was doing there.
    Climbing the stairs to the second level of the fire station, I felt like I was climbing a ladder up to my old tree house in the backyard out in Suncrest. It was my home away from home. Cutting through the exercise room on the hunt for my co-workers, I came to the hallway that had Tom’s office attached to it. I tried to move quickly past the doorway, but I was stopped as he hollered out to me. “Taylor!” he said, grinding my pace to a halt. I bit my lip as I backed up to his doorway.
    “What is it, Sir?” I asked.
    “Chief told me you were coming by for the kid’s tour today. But that’s not until eight o’clock. Why are you here so early?”
    “I wanted to chat with the guys. Haven’t seen much of them lately.”
    He nodded. “Proceed.”
    “Took a poop this morning too, want to hear about that?” I said under my breath as I proceeded into the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee. Leaning over to see into the dining hall through the connecting door, I spotted Micah at the table with his Bible lying open as he read. Man, that guy was dedicated, I thought to myself as I poured the coffee into my cup. I read my Bible occasionally, but nothing like Micah. He was a walking testimony for Christ.
    “Good morning, Freeman,” I said as I walked into the dining hall with a smile.
    He smiled back at me as he closed his Bible. “How are you doing Brother?”
    Sitting in a chair across from him, I set my coffee down and rubbed the corner of my cup with my thumb. “I’m