Page 48 of Courageous Yearnings

“He grows on you.”

“Like spores grow on rotting animal flesh… or poop?”

“Oh gosh,” Blythe chuckled, surprised, and leaned toward Lance, whispering like they were telling each other a secret. “You’re right about the spores thing.”

“Of course I am,” he chuckled… and then his smile faded.

“What condition did you have?” she repeated softly, trying to urge him to hurry so she could get the next customer taken care of. “What’s on your mind?”

“If we have squishies…”

“Excuse me?”

“Children,” Lance said. “Little human squishies that are all wobbly, helpless, with big, beautiful, little bellies and rolls of fat on their tiny legs…”

“Squishies?” she smiled in disbelief, staring at him and feeling so much love for this wild man that could side-track her like no other. Her boss could have walked in and announced the building was on fire – and she wouldn’t leave this room until the man of her dreams finished his request.

Squishies? She thought wildly, trying to keep from laughing at the sweet term he was using to describe a newborn child. Could this beautiful man be any more adorable?

“If we have squishies together someday, I want to take a ton of photos and videos for them… in case anything ever happens,” he said hoarsely looking away from her – and her eyes stung with comprehension and understanding. “Memories fade, Blythe. I have a dangerous job, accidents happen, but somehow life goes on – and I need to know that if we have a beautiful squishy with soft black curls like her Mama, or a thick skull like his Papa, our children will never wonder or forget that they came from a true miracle, you know?”

“You think this… is a miracle?” she asked tearfully, her voice hoarse with emotion, and saw him look at her tenderly.

There was a sort of broken awareness and vulnerability in his eyes. Yes, he wanted all of this – her, a family, a home, everything. He might be scared, nervous, or not sure how to go about it, but he wasn’t giving up. He was going to fight for this, to lay down his shields and beg if he had to – and she comprehended what he couldn’t put into so many words.

Oh, she understood completely with a level within her soul that was beyond anything she knew was even there. Lance was asking and testing the waters, because this meant everything to him, and he was letting her see the real boy, frightened and hiding deep down inside of the man before her.

Lance grew up in a home, an orphanage, and wanted a family of his own. He was also terrified to have a child miss out on the same things that he’d lost along the way. He needed to make sure his child never yearned for those faded memories of a family; a close-knit family that deeply loved each other. He wanted those memories of his family, and they were gone, but the fact that he wanted to make sure they had something for their children, if something ever happened to destroy what they were slowly building?

‘Love’ was a combination of four simple letters that paled in comparison to what she was feeling right now for this man before her… and his request. She would do anything he asked, give up vital organs for this man, and defend their precious world with her very life - simply because he cared enough for her and their ‘someday family’ to make sure they never suffered or felt loss like he had.

This feeling, this miracle was love, felt with every single fiber of her being.

Blythe loved Lance.

“I do…” he whispered and cleared his throat, giving her a shy smile that made her heart nearly burst into uncontrollable emotion. She let out a tearful laugh, stood up from her chair, and hugged him tightly in the middle of her glass office. He sighed so hard his frame trembled, but she was here for it – and would always be here for him.

“We’ll say that together in three days, Hero – and we are most certainly someday having squishies together.”

Twenty-four hours later, Blythe was walking into the house and smiled. Yes, he might be working at the fire station for the next three days, but he was still ‘here’ in a way, looking out for her. She could smell something fragrant from the kitchen and saw that Lance had set a crockpot on the countertop. This was his silent way of making sure she had something for dinner ever since she admitted to being a ‘frozen dinner queen.’ He was certainly the chef in the relationship – and it showed.

Lifting the lid, she saw the small pot roast in there that was practically falling apart. Tiny potatoes, green beans, and mushrooms were lying in the gravy surrounding the cut of meat, and it was enough for leftovers. As she was putting the lid back on and turning off the heat, her phone beeped in her pocket.

Let me know when you get home. We’re on the truck and headed to a car accident, so I might not respond for a bit.

I just walked in, and thank you for dinner!

Gotta take care of my girl.

My Jeep was towed in today – and I’m going to have two keys made.

Do you have someone on the side?

Well, my husband will probably want a key.

You’re married?!

It’s you, silly!

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