Kemp and the rest of the crew had kicked ass and had the fire completely out within about twenty minutes. Based on what he’d said about where the fire was exactly, it was nearly a sure thing the charger was the cause. He’d pointed out how much worse it could’ve been if we hadn’t already hauled away a bunch of the crap from the inside—ancient wood shelves and counters, bins, boxes of papers, plus a bunch of paint remnants. Just thinking about it sent a chill down my spine because that could’ve ignited a fire in a different league altogether, something big enough that the restaurant could’ve been in danger.

Chloe rolled toward me, sidled up against me, traced a finger up my chest. “Mmm. Naked.”

I smiled in the dark, but letting my mind go back to the fire had put a damper on my physical needs just as I’d intended. I put my arm around her and squeezed her to my side, glad to have her there but not wanting her to feel like she had to do anything but get some sleep.

“You’re doing it again, aren’t you?” she said quietly. “Beating yourself up?”

“Not exactly. Just trying to process it all. Not three hours ago, I was on top of the world, soaking up some really good moments with my brothers.”

“Tell me about that part. The good moments.”

“They’ve always been mostly supportive, with the exception of a few dick moments from Cash, but tonight…” I shook my head, looking for a way to express it without sounding like a goober. “Promise you won’t laugh?”

“Of course.”

I hesitated, considering whether I could admit some things out loud that I’d never told another soul, not even Kemp. It wasn’t anything earth-shattering, just personal.

But this was Chloe. One of my best friends. My wife. It didn’t matter that the married part was short-term; I knew I could trust her. She’d opened up to me about her greatest insecurities, and I’d listened and weighed in but never done the same in return.

“I’ve always felt like the brother who didn’t pull my weight at the restaurant,” I began.

“I don’t think that’s true at all,” she said before I could get anything else out.

“Just like I don’t think it’s true that you have any reason to feel insecure in this town.”

I heard her suck in a breath. “Okay. Fair enough. Go on.”

“Henry’s is what it is because of two things. Cash’s cooking and Seth’s ability to run a business.”

“They’re both really talented, but so are you. And you can’t say I’m biased, because I’m only your temporary wife.”

The sound of the grin in her voice had my own lips tugging upward in spite of myself. It slipped away fast though.