Page 31 of Striking Out In The Mountains

“Can we put cheese on mine?” Daniel asks as he steps into the house, looking excited about my visitor.

Graham glances up at me. “Do we have cheese?”

I can’t help but smile at him. “Yes, we have cheese.”

Arabella looks so relieved. “Thank you so much, guys. I’ll be back by lunchtime, I promise.”

She kisses Daniel on the head, waves at us, and hurries off before I can change my mind.

Daniel stares up at Graham as I close the door. His little face looks skeptical. “Are you really a fireman?”

Graham grins as he looks down at him with his hands on his hips. “I am. Chief of the fire station, actually.”

“Whoa,” Daniel breathes. “Do you drive the firetruck?”

“Sometimes,” Graham says with a shrug of those sexy shoulders. “But only if I’ve had my omelette first.”

Daniel giggles and runs into the kitchen to get started.

I grab Graham’s arm before he can follow him in. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s all good,” he says, kissing my cheek. “He looks like a cool kid and it’s nice to help your neighbors out.”

I watch him in awe as he enters the kitchen. He really is the perfect man.

“The key to a great omelette is to keep the eggshells out,” he says as he rolls his sleeves up his thick forearms. Daniel is sitting on the stool at the counter, staring up at him in wonder.

I grab my coffee and sit beside the little guy, staring at Graham in wonder too.

This is what I want. To spend every morning like this with this incredible man. If I can have that, I’ll be happy forever.

Daniel peppers Graham with questions the entire time he cooks. “How many fires have you put out? Do you have a dog at the fire station? Have you ever saved a cat from a tree?”

Graham patiently answers each question, making us both laugh and ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ with his clever answers.

“A lot of cats,” he says with a laugh. “You have to make sure you’re wearing a coat or they’ll scratch your arms up. I learned that my first week and never forgot it.”

“What other pets did you rescue?” he asks as Graham flips an omelette in the pan.

“We rescued a pet snake once.”

Daniel gasps. “A snake? No way! Were you scared?”

“Nah,” Graham says, winking at him. “It was scared of me.”

Graham is amazing with Daniel and it’s more of a turn on than I would have thought. He even gets him to eat his whole omelette without complaining, which I know Arabella will appreciate.

After breakfast, we head into the front yard and I sit down with my second cup of coffee as Graham pops the trunk of his car. Daniel is in fireman heaven as Graham pulls out his gear, showing him his helmet and coat. I snap a picture of the cute kid wearing it all and send it to Arabella.

The sight of the two boys together sends an ache through my chest—an ache I never expected to feel.

I’ve never wanted kids. Not really. The idea of family always felt so abstract, like something meant for other people. But watching Graham with Daniel, seeing how natural he is, how much they’re both enjoying each other—it’s like a switch flips inside me. Suddenly, I can picture it. A home filled with laughter, a yard with toys scattered everywhere, a life that’s messy and beautiful and full of love. And Graham is at the center of it all.

I’ve never wanted this with anyone else. But with him? I want it so badly it scares me.

“Cara?” Graham’s deep voice pulls me from my thoughts. He’s watching me with a small smile, like he knows exactly what I’m thinking.

“Yeah?” I say, trying to act normal.

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