Page 44 of The Fire Captain's Unexpected Baby
“For telling you the truth about one of my men?” Levi laughs and wraps a heavy arm around my shoulders, pulling me into a side hug. “I would tell you anything you wanted to know. I’m always here for you.”
Noah squeals from the playground, reminding us that both of us have other things to do this afternoon. Levi has endless chores, keeping up with two kids on his rare days off. And so do I.
He helps me corral Noah off the playset and back in the car. As soon as the door slams shut, the high-pitched wailing begins.
Sounds like we made a good choice leaving Levi’s house when we did. Nap time is right around the corner.
“Let’s get you in bed,” I murmur to Noah when we get home.
I read him a story, tuck him in with his favorite fleece blanket, and nestle the stuffed bunny beside him. Five minutes later, I see the pale blue veins that crisscross his eyelids as they flutter down—my cue to leave.
I head downstairs, intending to finish some housework in the quiet. Instead, I end up on the couch with the photo book in my lap again.
Last night was the first time I picked up the album in months. It’s easier simply not to think about what Noah and I lost when James died. We have never been on this earth, all three of us at the same time. There has never been any sense in wishing for more.
I flip through the pages, running my fingers over the planes of my husband’s face.
“You would have hated this,” I whisper.
He might have loved his son, maybe even enough to give up alcohol and drugs, but he would never have wanted to stay in Crown Hill. He would have hated the idea of permanent small-town living.
Unlike Aaron.
I snap the photo album shut, refusing to make a comparison. This iscasual, I remind myself. James and I were anything but.
With a sigh, I lean back on the cushions and tilt my head back. Of their own accord, my eyes drift shut, and I sleep without any thought of the future.
* * *
Aaron
“Did I catch you at a bad time?”
I regret not calling before I headed to see Paige and Noah. The guys told me they had the station handled for a couple of hours, giving me a much-needed break from those four walls. I could go to the store, take a nap at home, or change the oil in my car.
Instead, I find myself on the porch of the small house, ringing the bell.
Paige answers, her hair mussed and her eyes heavier. The only time I have ever seen her look like this was when she just woke up. I peek at the watch on my wrist—late afternoon.
“No, not at all,” she answers, rubbing her eyes. “Noah was taking a nap, and I just…”
“Needed to take one with him?”
She laughs and stands back from the door to let me in.
I walk inside, breathing in the familiar air. Her home always smells like apples and cinnamon, courtesy of the fragrance she plugs in near the kitchen.
Upstairs, Noah begins to cry.
“I’m sorry. You just got here, and I should go—” Paige starts to say, but I don’t let her finish.
“I’ve got this,” I assure her, confidently striding up the stairs to the room in the middle of the hall.
As soon as I open the door, Noah sits up in his tiny toddler bed. His fine brown hair stands straight up from the static electricity of his fleece blanket. A toothy grin breaks across his face.
“My man,” I greet him loudly.
I cross the room and sit down on the edge of his bed, my weight shifting the mattress to the side. Without a second thought, he climbs into my lap and tucks his head under my chin.
