Page 93 of Hero's Heart

Bear shot to his feet, relief stark on his face. “He’s all yours. I’m going to hit the showers. Callum, I… Good luck, man. Or condolences. Whichever. I mean that.” He clapped Callum on the shoulder before practically bolting for the door.

The kid was freaked. Callum wondered if all men handled the news of arriving babies like complete morons, or if it was just Oak Creek. So far, they were zero for two.

Zac tossed Callum a water bottle, which he caught reflexively. “Sounds like life’s taken an exciting turn for you.”

Callum twisted off the cap and took a long swig, the cool liquid soothing his parched throat. “I never expected this,” he admitted, his voice rough with emotion. “Never expected Sloane. She and I had sex in Moldova. I know it isn’t okay. I know that. Even though she wanted it, I shouldn’t have let it happen.”

Zac settled onto the bench across from Callum, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. “I wasn’t in Moldova. I don’t know what happened. But tensions and emotions run high on a mission like that. You’re bonded in a way that defies normal relational factors. Turning to each other for comfort and passion…it happens.”

Callum scrubbed a hand over his jaw, the rasp of stubble loud in the quiet gym. “But is that all it was for me? A one-week stand that now has a permanent souvenir?” The question hung heavy in the air between them.

Zac regarded him steadily. “It doesn’t make you a jerk if you never wanted more from Sloane than that one week. You’ll have to help financially with the kid either way?—”

“Of course,” Callum interjected. “I would never even consider anything else.”

“I know.” Zac nodded. “But before you can go any further with plans about this baby, you’ve first got to decide how you feel about the mom.”

Callum blew out a breath, his shoulders drooping. “It’s more complicated than that. Sloane…she’s an incredible person. Beautiful, smart, kind. She has this quiet strength that most people wouldn’t notice, but it’s definitely there.”

He shook his head, a wry smile tugging at his mouth. “The question isn’t whether I want her. It’s whether I’m right for her.”

Zac raised an eyebrow. “Because…?”

“I’m old, Zac. Twenty years her senior. I’m a gruff workaholic who can’t remember the last time I took a vacation. Hell, my porch doesn’t even have any flowers, for Christ’s sake.” The words tumbled out in a rush, all the doubts and insecurities he’d been grappling with laid bare.

Zac was silent for a long moment, his expression thoughtful. Callum could practically see the gears turning in his friend’s head as he weighed his response. When he finally spoke, his voice was gentle but firm.

“Look, I don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about with porch flowers, but Callum, if Sloane wants you—if she sees something in you that makes her believe you’re worth taking a chance on, despite your age and your gruff exterior—then maybe you need to trust her judgment. Maybe you need to give yourself permission to grab on to this unexpected gift with both hands and never let go.”

Callum huffed out a breath, scrubbing a hand over his face. Deep down, he knew Zac was right. If Sloane wanted him, flaws and all, then who was he to question it? But still, a niggling doubt persisted.

Zac seemed to sense his hesitation. He leaned forward, his gaze intent. “Can I ask you something? As one widower to another?”

Callum nodded.

“Does any of your hesitation have to do with your feelings for Amelia?”

The question hung in the air between them, heavy with unspoken understanding. Zac, of all people, knew what it was like to lose a spouse, to feel like your heart had been ripped out of your chest and you’d never be whole again.

Callum swallowed hard, memories of Amelia flashing through his mind. Her smile, her laugh, the way she’d fit so perfectly in his arms. But even as the pain of her loss washed over him, he knew with startling clarity that this wasn’t about her.

“No,” he said quietly, meeting Zac’s gaze head on. “I’ll always love Amelia, always miss her. But I know she’s gone. Sloane doesn’t have to compete with her for my heart.”

Zac nodded, a hint of approval in his eyes. “Good. Because back when Becky died, I never thought I’d get over it. Never thought I’d be able to love anyone else. But then Annie came back to Oak Creek, and everything changed.”

“I know that feeling, but I think it’s a little more.” Callum swallowed hard, the words sticking in his throat. “When Amelia died, I not only buried her, I buried a future that involved children. I figured that even if I did remarry, it would be to someone my own age, someone past their childbearing years. But now…”

He trailed off, the magnitude of the situation hitting him all over again.He was going to be a father.

Zac chuckled. “Scary as shit, isn’t it?”

Callum nodded, a shaky laugh escaping his own lips. “You can say that again.”

“Nothing in this world can prepare you for it.”

“Amelia…she got pregnant once. But it was right when she was diagnosed with cancer. She miscarried.”

“Shit, man. I’m sorry.”

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