Taron suddenly yelps, slams the laptop shut. His cheeks flame red. “Kaleb! You scared me!”
I chuckle, kiss the top of his head. “Morning to you too, darling.”
He spins in the chair, looks up at me with those wide hazel eyes. Still blushing furious. “How long were you watching?”
“Long enough.” I grin. “Steamy scene, huh?”
He covers his face with his hands. “Oh god. Yeah. I… I’ve never written one before. Not really. Pace always pushed me to, said it’d sell better, but I hated the idea. Felt forced.Fake. But now… now it’s on my terms…”
I pull his hands away gently, crouch so we’re eye level. “Pace sounds like a total asshole.”
He laughs—a small, relieved sound. “He is. Was. But now… I don’t know. After last night…” His blush deepens. “It feels different. Real. I want to try it. For the story. For me.”
I nod. “Then go for it. If it feels right, don’t hold back. Your words, your rules.”
He smiles, soft and grateful. “Thanks. It’s scary, but…exciting.”
My stomach growls—loud, obnoxious. We both laugh.
“I’ll tell you what sounds exciting to me,” I chuckle. “Food.”
“Hungry much?” he asks, a sweet smile on his face. “I guess it’s my fault you’re so hungry. That second time in the middle of the night was…wow.”
“Yup, it sure was,” I say as I stand and stretch. “I could eat a whole stack of Miles’s pancakes.”
He glances at his laptop. “Give me ten? I’m almost done with this chapter. Then breakfast. Promise.”
I ruffle his hair. “Take your time. I’ll wait.”
I climb back into bed, prop myself against the headboard. I watch him dive back in—fingers flying again, that focused glow on his face. He’s a hard worker. I can totally get on board with that.
Life’s never felt this good.
Simple. Right. Like everything clicked into place overnight.
Him here. Me here.Us.
But I’m going to need some food sooner rather than later or the grumpy old version of me might come back to the fore in short order…
The woods look like perfection, the sun filtering through the trees in lazy beams that light up Taron’s face in a way I can only describe as magical.
Damn, am I getting soft?Whatever. Right now I wouldn’t even care if I was.
Racer’s off-leash, bounding ahead then circling back, tail a blur. Taron’s beside me, hand in mine, steps matching my longer stride easy now. He’s changed into hiking boots and jeans, that red jacket tied around his waist in a way that accentuates his physique’s curves.
We’ve been walking an hour—easy trail, no rush. Talking about nothing and everything. His book. My next felling job. How Racer once chased a squirrel up a tree and got stuck barking at it for an hour. All the usual topics.
It’s good.Natural.
I squeeze his hand. “Hey. Tonight… you wanna stay at the cabin? Let me repay the favor from last night.”
Taron looks up, surprised but pleased. “Really?”
“Yeah. With Robbie coming tomorrow, we can drive to the bus station, pick him up. Head straight out for camping after.”
The boy’s face lights up. “That’s perfect! Yes. I’d love that.”
I nod. “Good. Racer will be thrilled too.”