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KIM BALDWIN. “He’s a sweetheart.” Erin’s voice was husky with emotion
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dead.
“He’s a sweetheart.” Erin’s voice was husky with emotion. “He sleeps tucked up against my neck every night.”
Gable didn’t know what to say. “Erin, do you have a place to stay after this?”
It was strange, she felt oddly protective of this woman, though she barely knew her. She felt as though she had a personal stake in Erin’s future, and that realization surprised her. Is it because we’re survivingthis together? Because we’ve had this shared, life-altering experience?
She’d heard of that happening. Bonding from sharing adversity. That’swhat makes friends for life.
“I hadn’t thought of that. I’m homeless! Jesus. That’s a reality check. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“The Red Cross will be sending people in,” Gable said. “I can put you in touch with them. Or if there’s anything I can do…” What wereyou just about to volunteer? You were going to invite her to stay withyou, weren’t you? You don’t even know her. The impulse disconcerted her. A very private person, Gable rarely welcomed overnight guests who weren’t members of her immediate family.
“Thanks, but that’s not necessary. I’ll F gure something out. I could go stay with my mother,” Erin considered aloud. “But I’ll want to be nearby while I go through everything—see what I can salvage. And F gure out what I’m going to do. Maybe I’ll stay at the Blue Moose for a while.”
Gable was familiar with the place. It was a motel on the outskirts of Pine River that consisted of neat log cabin units, set off by themselves in the woods. “Erin, I don’t mean to get too personal. If you don’t want to answer this I’ll certainly understand. But…are you insured? You going to be okay?”
“I do have insurance, and it’ll cover everything, I hope. I should be able to rebuild.”
Gable found herself unexpectedly pleased to hear that Erin would remain in the area. “I’m glad you’re not going to let this chase you away.”
“Oh, it couldn’t do that. I have a great job, and I love it up here with all the trees and animals.”
“Me too.”
“Besides, what are the chances that tornadoes would hit the same place twice?”
• 28 •
FORCE OF NATURE
Gable found herself smiling. “That’s a good way to look it at.”
“Well, my mother always told me…when things look bad, take a deep breath and count your blessings. Try to look on the bright side.
Then forge ahead! I guess the bright side of this is that I can design my new house to be exactly the way I want it. No more ratty carpet. No more drafty patio door. And I can F nally get a bathtub and some storage space.”
Gable was impressed that Erin was dealing so well with what had happened. She could tell that Erin seemed not quite as stressed as she’d been earlier. Her voice, once she relaxed, had an interesting timbre to it. Low and rich, it resonated warmth and humor.
“What about you?” Erin asked. “Forgive me if you’ve told me this already—are you a cop?”
“I’m a volunteer F reF ghter. Still a rookie. I’ve never experienced anything like this before.”
“I doubt anybody has. Are you just out of college?”
Gable smiled broadly. “Not hardly. I’m forty-six.”
“Oh! When you said you were a rookie, I pictured you in your twenties.”
“No, only that I’ve been on the squad less than a year. Right after I moved here, I went to pay my property taxes at the township hall and saw a f yer saying they needed volunteer F reF ghters. So I signed up and went through the training.”
“Have you fought a lot of F res?”
“A few. Brush F res, mostly. And we respond a lot to car accidents.”
“Where did you move here from, if you don’t mind my asking?
Do I detect a trace of a Southern accent?”
“I grew up in Chattanooga, and most of my family is still there.”
“What brought you to Michigan?” Erin asked.
“I came up here a lot over the last several years to visit my brother Stewart, who lives in Kalamazoo,” Gable explained. “We’d drive up to Pine River to go canoeing or camping, and I fell in love with the area.
In the south, you don’t really get the changes in the seasons the way you do here. And I like small-town life a lot better than the noisy sprawl of a big city.”
“I feel the same way.”
Gable shifted position to get more comfortable. She wanted to lie down, but there was not enough room. She turned on her f ashlight and
• 29 •
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