Living In Flames. by Emily Zimmerman. (always you kirsty moseley txt) 📖

My name is Skylar Grey. I’m twenty five years old, and I live in the small town of Sabadell. My hair is naturally blonde, and insanely curly. My eyes are bright blue, and my style in clothing is too expensive for my wallet to handle. Right now, I’m living in a two story apartment building, right beside my Aunt Mabel and Uncle Jess’s Bakery. They named it Sweetie pies. I’m guessing because Uncle Jess always called Aunt Mabel.
Aunt Mabel offered me a Job as a cashier, and I accepted because I was low on money, and I didn’t have a chance of being late to the job unless I slept through my shift.
I used to live with Daniel a few months back, but I refused after I came back from Belview, a small town that I stayed in for a little more than three weeks.
Right now, I was on my break, sitting by the window, eating a piece of pizza I got from across the street. Blake strolled in and looked at me. “You on brake?” he asked me.
I nodded. “Jess and Mabel are gone for the evening, had to drive some donuts up to Brentville because apparently they don’t sell jellies there.” I explained.
He nodded. “Okay. Mind if I sit in for a while?” he asked me.
I raised an eyebrow. “Why?” I asked slowly.
He shrugged. “Just curious about what goes on in here.”
I studied him for a moment, wondering what the heck was going on in his head, before shrugging. “Suit yourself.”
I threw my pizza in the trash and wiped the crumbs from my hands. My first customer came in just as I was done washing my hands. “Hi, can I help you?” I asked, approaching the desk.
It was a woman I didn’t recognize, she had long, smooth black hair pulled back into a pony tail and grey eyes that were a little apprehensive. She looked around the store, and when her eyes landed on Blake, her face changed. She smiled at me, her eyes turning friendly. “Can I get a dozen chocolates? The office is having a lunch party and I’m in charge of the donuts. I’m just getting chocolate because I have no idea what everyone likes and I’m certainly not going to ask them all,” She babbled.
I smiled, this happened all the time. “Sounds fun. Here you go, a dozen chocolate donuts. I hope you all have a fun time at the office. That’ll be five twenty five.” I said to her with a friendly smile.
“Thanks.” She said, pulling her wallet.
After she left, I glanced at Blake with a shrug. “People get nervous when a hot guy like you is around.” I said.
He cracked a smile. We’d become good friends after the scene at the police station, so we have this kind of playful banter a lot. I still remember the day at the police station with a smile. Dan and I are together, he comes to visit me sometimes on his break, which was how I knew that people got nervous around a hot guy; my customers would just start babbling almost incoherently when Dan was around.
Linda came strolling in a few minutes later. I was helping Mrs. Vale pick out some cupcakes for a birthday party this evening. She was an old woman with wrinkles upon wrinkles, her once vibrant blue eyes were grey and her once dark brown hair was white. “How about the strawberry icing with pink and white sprinkles, didn’t you say she loves pink?” I asked her.
“You’re right! Why didn’t I think of that before? I’ll take a dozen of those, followed by a dozen of the blue ones for the boys.” She said.
After I checked her out, Linda stepped up and smiled at me. “Hello sweetheart. I need a half dozen sprinkled donuts, and another half dozen chocolate.” She said.
“Right. And may I ask who these are for?” I asked her.
“My grandniece is visiting and she just loves donuts, I thought I’d surprise her this morning.” She said.
I smiled. “Well that’s very sweet of you.”
She laughed. “I try my best. Bye sweetie, I’ll see you later.” She said, handing me the money to cover it.
“Bye.” I said.

Blake left at three as Mabel and Jess strolled in, and at five Mabel and I were singing loudly to the radio as we cleaned up shop. A few months back the bakery was burned down by a kitchen fire started by a faulty oven. Jess was cooking dinner at the time that the oven burst into flames, so he came out with multiple burns on his arms and legs, and he dropped a crock pot full of food on his foot, fracturing it in two places. They got the shop rebuilt, but they don’t live above it anymore, they live in an apartment building a few blocks away.
“Are we human, or are we Dancers!” Mabel sang loudly and I giggled.
She turned the radio off as I finished mopping the floor. “Alright. Let’s call it a night. I’ll see you tomorrow, sweetheart.” Mabel said.
“Okay.”
Mabel usually left out the back, because she parked her car there, and I just walked home because I was right next door. Mabel gave me the keys to the front, and she got the keys to the back. We hugged and went our separate ways.
I locked the front door and turned to walk back to the apartment, only to bump into a sturdy chest. I yelped and looked up at Dan. “You scared me.” I said, putting my hand to my heart.
He pressed his lips to mine in a brief kiss. “How was your day, love?” he asked me, steering me in the opposite direction of my apartment.
“It was okay. Blake was acting like a bodyguard. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?” I asked him.
“No. He told me he wanted to visit you, I knew nothing about guard duty.” He told me.
“Oh.” I said, a blush creeping up. Dan pulled me to his car and I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “Where are we going?” I asked him.
“To my house. I want you to meet Linda’s niece. She’s like a sister to me, and she wants to meet the girl that stole my heart.” He said with a small smile.
“Okay, but then you’re taking me home. I need sleep.” I groaned.
He laughed and opened my door for me. “As you wish, my love.”

We pulled up to the house and I smiled at the memories. Sleeping in Dan’s bed, all the heated kisses we shared.
Dan opened my door for me and took my hand, helping me out. “I’m not a princess, Dan. I can get out of the car myself.” I told him, my cheeks pink.
“Babe, you are so much more to me than a princess.” He told me with a soft chuckle.
This made me blush deeper. Dan opened his door, pulled me inside, and the house was filled with childish laughter and pleasant voices. We strolled hand in hand into the living room and I noticed there was more than one child playing on the floor, and a few women sat in chairs that were dragged in from the kitchen, happily chatting with Linda.
Linda stood and hugged me when we entered the room. “Hi! It’s so nice to have you visit.” She told me.
I smiled. “It’s nice to be here.”
“Skylar, this is my niece, Samantha. These are Samantha’s old friends, Bailey, Loraine, and Meryl.” Linda introduced.
Samantha stood up and looked at Dan, her eyes drifted to his arm, which was tightly wrapped around my waist, and then over to my face. She took three strides, and wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug.

Samantha and I sat in the kitchen, Dan had gotten a call from work, and Linda had taken Briana, Samantha’s daughter, outside to play. “She spoils her too much.” Samantha murmured, breaking the comfortable silence as we watched them from the window.
I smiled. “My grandmother always spoiled me.” I told her.
She smiled back. “That’s a grandmother’s job.” She said, shrugging.
I leaned my cheek on my hand and watched as Linda almost fell over laughing while Briana did a little dance. “I’m glad Dan has you.” Samantha said suddenly.
I looked at her in confusion. “Why?”
She laughed softly. “You’re right for him. I see the way he looks at you. He seems happier with you around.” She explained.
I blushed. I was happier with Dan as well; I missed him when he was away. She stood up and stretched, looking at the clock. “I think I’m going to take a nap. It’s been a very long trip. It was nice meeting you, Skylar.” She told me.
“Nice meeting you too.”
She left the room and I sighed. No way to get home. What do you want to bet that Dan planned this? I thought dryly.
I sighed and got up from the table, walking into the living room, pulling my hair over my shoulder to braid it, it was making me crazy. I sat on the couch and pulled out my phone to call Lillian.
“Hello.”
“Hey Lillian! Listen, Dan gave me a ride to his home because he wanted me to meet Linda’s niece, but he got a last minute call from work and had to leave. Do you think you could give me a ride?”
“Sure, sure! I’ll be right there.”
“Thanks.” I said.
I disconnected and got up, walking into the kitchen and opening the back door. “Hey, Linda! I’m getting a ride home from Lillian. I need a nap.” I called.
“Okay, we’ll see you later sweetheart!” she called back, chasing Briana around the yard.
I smiled and closed the door. I would love to have a child of my own someday. It seems so nice to be a mother, I thought.
Ten minutes later, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to find Lillian. “Hey! You ready?” she asked me, pulling me into a hug.
“Yeah. I am so tired.” I told her when she pulled away.
“Then let’s go. I just got off of work.”

We pulled up to my apartment building and I smiled in thanks at Lillian. “Thanks for the ride.”
“You owe me.” She teased.
I rolled my eyes and got out of the car. “I’ll buy you lunch.” I told her.
“Sounds like a plan.” She said.
I closed the door and waved to her as she sped off. Stifling a yawn, I walked up the stairs and as I reached the second floor, I noticed a man was standing by my apartment door. He stood up straighter as I approached. “Hello. Can I help you with something, sir?” I asked him politely.
He had sandy blonde hair and hazel eyes, and he was a large, intimidating man. “Yes. I’m looking for Skylar