Page 20 of Snowed-in With The Mountain Man
"Of course he is, baby." I press a kiss to her curls. "He's just getting more fuel for the generator."
"What's genmoratator?"
"It's a machine that makes electricity when the power is out. So we can have lights and heat."
She considers this with the serious concentration only toddlers can muster. "I like Widge's house. Even with no power."
"Me too." The admission comes easily, truth I've been feeling since the moment we arrived.
"Can we stay forever?" Her simple question strikes directly at my heart.
Before I can formulate an answer, Ridge reappears, hauling a container of fuel through the deep snow. His return provides a welcome distraction from a question I'm not ready to answer definitively.
Not because I don't know what I want. But because wanting to stay and being able to are two very different things.
Once the generator is running again, Ridge joins us in the great room where we've created another blanket fort to entertain Chellie. The confined space brings us close together, shoulders touching as we sit cross-legged beneath the canopy of sheets.
"Colt texted back," Ridge says quietly as Chellie arranges her stuffed animals for a tea party. "His fiancée Savannah can connect us with a lawyer as soon as the roads are passable."
"That was fast."
"Small town connections." He takes my hand, interlacing our fingers. "Benefits of coming home."
Home.The word carries weight, meaning shifting like sand beneath my feet. For years, home was wherever I happened to be living. Now it's becoming something else entirely. Not a place, but people. Ridge. Chellie. The three of us creating something neither of us anticipated.
"Can I ask you something?" His voice drops lower, ensuring Chellie won't overhear.
I nod, suddenly nervous.
"What did you tell Chellie about her father? Before coming here?"
The question is surprising but fair. "The truth, mostly. That he wasn't ready to be a daddy. That sometimes grown-ups make choices that hurt other people."
Ridge's expression softens. "And now? Has she asked about him since you've been here?"
"No." I realize with surprise that it's true. "Not once. Actually…” My cheeks warm. "She asks more about staying here. She likes it here. Likes you."
"And her mother?" The question hangs loaded with meaning.
"Her mother is terrified," I admit, voice barely above a whisper. "Of wanting too much. Of risking everything again."
"What are you afraid of, specifically?" His thumb traces circles on my palm, grounding me.
"That this is temporary. That once the real world intrudes, once Rick causes problems, once the novelty wears off..." I swallow hard. "That you'll regret taking us in."
His laugh startles me, not at all the reaction I expected. "Novelty? Stella, I've loved you for eight years. Through college and distance and your marriage to another man. If my feelings were going to change, they would have long before now."
"But you didn't sign up for a ready-made family. For custody battles with my ex. For a two-year-old calling you 'Widge' and asking to stay forever."
"Didn't I?" His expression turns serious. "The moment you called, the moment I opened my door to you both, I was all in. This isn't a trial run for me."
The certainty in his voice makes my throat tight. "And what happens when Rick shows up?"
"Then we handle it." His free hand comes up to cup my cheek. "Together."
"Tea, Widge!" Chellie interrupts, thrusting a tiny plastic cup toward him. "Hot tea!"
He accepts it with appropriate gravity. "Why thank you, princess. Just what I needed."
