He Was Reborn to Claim Me, But I'm Already Married novel · Chapter 17 of 24

Chapter 17: Fourteen Cans

The Winslow lake house sat at the end of a gravel road, with a screened porch and a red boathouse.

The water in front of it was the color of pewter.

I had not seen it since a Fourth of July that no longer existed.

We got there on the third at five in the evening.

My parents came in one car, and the grandmother, Ethan and I came in another.

Jocelyn drove her own gray hatchback behind us.

Next door, men in white shirts were putting up a striped tent.

They were setting out a row of folding tables on the lawn.

A banner already hung across the front of the tent.

It said, Prescott Foundation Independence Picnic.

I found Leighton on our dock.

He stood at the very end with his hands in his coat pockets, looking at the boathouse.

I walked out along the boards until I was beside him.

"You're early," I said.

"I'm four days early." He didn't turn. "Your caretaker is a nice man. He doesn't like me."

"He's got good judgment."

"I went into your boathouse on Friday."

My heart gave one hard knock.

"There are fourteen cans of lamp oil in there," Leighton said. "Behind the canoe, under a tarp. Your father doesn't own a single lamp that burns oil."

"My father likes to be prepared."

"For what?" He finally looked at me. "I read the fire report in the first life. A thousand times. The investigators said it began in the boathouse and spread to the house."

← Chapter 16 · All chapters · Chapter 18 →

Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend