Holly's screams fill the air. I bolt out of bed, my heart racing, and have no idea what I am about to walk into. When I rush into the living room to Holly, I find her staring out the open back door, her face pale and ashen.
Stepping up behind her, I wrap my arms tightly around her waist, pulling her close to my chest. "Hey, hey, it's okay," I whisper soothingly in her ear as I stare at Hades lying on the back porch, staring right into the cabin at Holly.
"There is a wolf looking at me like I'm his next meal. How will this be okay?" she whispers out of the side of her mouth.
"Mom?" Max calls out, his voice still full of sleep.
"It's okay, buddy. Go back to your room," I say.
He nods from the doorway and goes back into his room.
"Holly, this is Hades. He's kind of like the town pet. My buddy Jackson found him as a pup and nursed him back to health. We’ve noticed that he keeps an eye on all of us now. Also, he just had some pups with my buddy Mack's sled dog, Persephone."
"So, he won't hurt me or the kids?"
"Nope, he's probably looking for some peanut butter, his favorite human food. Let me see what we’ve got." I head into the kitchen.
As I rummage through the pantry, trying to find a jar of peanut butter, I can feel Holly's eyes on me. I turn around to find her still standing in the same spot as before, frozen in fear.
Spotting some peanut butter granola bars, I take one, hand it to her, and unwrap the other one.
"Why don't you feed him the granola bar?" Walking over to Hades, I give him a good rub on his head, and feed him my bar.
Tentatively, Holly takes the granola bar and slowly steps out onto the porch. Hades raises his head, sniffs the air, and then pads over to her, tail wagging.
"See, he just wanted a snack," I say, standing behind her and watching as she feeds Hades the granola bar.
"He's beautiful," she says, running her hand over his fur. "I've never seen a wolf up close before."
"He's a good boy," I say, smiling as Hades nudges her hand for more food.
As she feeds him the last bit of granola, I can feel the tension draining from her body.
Holly looks up at me and smiles. I feel a warm flutter in my chest at the sight of her, and I smile back. It’s these kinds of moments I cherish—when I can be there for her and make her feel safe.
After Hades finishes his granola bars, he runs off into the woods.
"See, he was just checking in and seeing what’s going on. I'm convinced he's a bigger gossip than Ruby," I joke.
Holly smiles as we head inside, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes.
"What do you say we take the kids out and have a snow day after breakfast? I promised them snowmen and snowball fights."
"I think they'd like it," she says.
As we bundle up the kids and head outside, the winter air is biting cold. The snow is piled high, and everything is draped in white. It's beautiful, and I'm grateful to share it with Holly and the kids.
We spend the morning building a snowman and having a snowball fight. When Holly's laughter fills the air, it makes me feel alive and happy. Her joy is contagious, and I find myself smiling at everything she does.
I'm glad to be able to give them this to make their day just a little brighter.
Taking a break to sit down to rest, I notice that Holly's eyes keep going back to the spot in the woods where Hades disappeared earlier.
"Why don't we go inside and warm up with some lunch? I saw Gracie yawn, so I'm sure she could use a nap," I say, with Holly agreeing.
As we make our way back into the cabin, I enjoy the calm that washes over me. Being out in the snow with Holly and the kids is everything I've been dreaming of on a winter day with a family.
Inside, I start working on lunch while Holly helps the kids unbundle.
The kids eat lunch and talk about who won the snowball fight. When they’re done, they don't even protest a nap. They are both tired from all the fun outside this morning.
Holly joins me on the couch once the kids are asleep.
"You seemed to enjoy yourself out there. I've been wanting to take the kids on a snow day all season, and you finally made it happen," she says, her eyes glittering in gratitude.
We sit in comfortable silence for a few moments before Holly speaks again. "So, you must have had many days like today out here growing up."
I nod, memories of my childhood flooding back. "Yeah, my brother and I used to spend all day outside, playing in the snow. My mom always made us hot cocoa, and we would warm up by the fire. It was the best. I loved summers out here, too, fishing and hiking. In the fall, we'd even pitch a tent in the yard just to sleep outside."
Holly smiles. "It sounds like a wonderful childhood."
"What about you? What was your childhood like? Where did you grow up?"
Holly's smile fades slightly as she looks off into the distance. I can see a hint of sadness in her eyes as she speaks.
"I grew up in the city—New York City, to be exact. My parents were always working, so I spent a lot of time with my grandmother in her apartment. She was the one who taught me how to bake and read me stories. She was my constant, my rock."
Before continuing, she takes a deep breath. "But after she passed away, things were never the same. My parents were still always working, and I was left alone a lot. We moved out to Denver with my mom's parents when I was in high school after my dad left Mom. I didn't have many friends and never felt like I fit in. I always felt like something was missing. That is until I met Ollie, the kids’ dad."
"I'm sorry that you had to go through that," I say softly, placing a hand over hers.
She shakes her head like she is trying to shake away the memories.
"What about you? Did you always live in Mustang Mountain?"
"Yeah, my family has been here for generations. We've had this cabin for as long as I can remember. It's where I feel the most at home. After college, I did some traveling. My mind was set on seeing the country. I visited Chicago, LA, the Grand Canyon, and did some hiking in the Smoky Mountains. I think it's why I knew for sure this was home."
We sit and talk for a while more about growing up in the city versus a small town, our parents, and much more. Our talk is interrupted when Gracie appears.
"Mommy, can we have some hot chocolate?" Gracie asks in the sweetest voice that just pulls at my heartstrings.
I look over at Holly, and she nods her head with a smile.
"Let's do it. I'm going to teach you my momma's super-secret recipe. It's a Hershey Kiss hot chocolate, the best in the world. But you have to help me make it, okay?" I say, standing. She nods with a huge smile, and I swoop in and pick her up, carrying her to the kitchen while she giggles the whole way.
Setting her on the counter, I grab the bag of Hershey Kisses my brother brought just as Max comes out of the room from his nap.
"Hot chocolate time?" he asks.
"Yep, you’ve got to come in here and help, though. You’re going to be in charge of stirring," I say, getting a pot out and the wooden spoon my mom always used for hot chocolate.
"But I want to stir," Gracie says with a little pout on her lip.
"Oh, I have an even more important job for you. You need to open the Hershey Kisses. You know, that was my job when I was a kid." I tell her, opening the bag and putting it on the counter next to her.
"How many do we need?" she asks, her eyes going wide.
"Well, do we want normal hot chocolate or extra chocolatey hot chocolate?" I ask, already knowing the answer.
"Extra chocolate!" Both Max and Gracie shout as Holly walks into the kitchen.
"What can I do to help?" Holly asks.
"Can you grab us coffee mugs and make sure they're washed and ready, please?" I ask her. "Okay, for extra chocolatey hot chocolate, we're going to need eight Hershey Kisses per cup, so since there are four of us, that means we're going to need eight times four people. So, my mom always counted out four piles of eight Hershey Kisses."
Max and Gracie hurry to make the piles.
"Now what?" Max asks.
"Now we each eat a Hershey kiss out of the bag for good luck," I say, and they all giggle as we reach in to get our chocolate.
As Gracie works on unwrapping them, we get the milk warming up, and then put in the Hershey kisses and stir until they are melted, adding a little of Hershey's cocoa powder.
Once done, I carefully pour the hot chocolate into each mug and top with a few marshmallows.
"Mmmmmm!" Gracie says as she kicks her little legs in excitement after taking the first sip.
"That's a lot of sugar in a cup of hot chocolate," Holly says, watching the kids enjoy the hot chocolate.
"It is, but Mom's secret was to always send us outside to run and play in the snow while we had the sugar high. Then we’d come in and she would feed us dinner. By that point, we were exhausted, so we would end up in bed early that night," I tell her.
"Your mom sounds like a really smart woman," she says with a gentle smile.
"She is, and I think you two are going to get along really well."
After hot chocolate, we take the kids outside and let them run off all their energy. For dinner we have spaghetti, and as predicted, there are lots of yawns at the dinner table.
The kids get ready for bed and are passed out on the living room couch before we even get ten minutes into a movie.
While helping Holly get them to bed, I notice how clear the night sky is. So, I reach into the closet and pull out the large electric blanket my mom keeps there.
"Why don’t we head outside to the porch? It's a really clear night, and let's see what we can find," I say to Holly when she comes out of the kids’ room.
We make our way to the porch and wrap ourselves in the heated blanket. The night air is crisp and cold, and I can feel the chill on my cheeks. Holly snuggles closer to me, and I wrap my arm around her, pulling her close. We gaze up at the night sky, and it's like nothing I've ever seen before. The stars are so bright and clear, and they seem to be so close I could reach out and touch them.
I point up towards the sky and begin to name the constellations as we see them. Holly listens intently as I explain the stories behind each name, at least the names my dad told me.
"I've never seen the stars so clearly before," Holly says, her voice filled with wonder.
"Yeah, Mustang Mountain is pretty remote, so there's not a lot of light pollution. That's what makes the stars so visible," I explain.
We fall into a comfortable silence, wrapped up in each other's arms as we continue to stargaze. I feel Holly's hand slip into mine, and I interlace our fingers.
As we sit there, time seems to slow. The rest of the world fades away, and it's just me and Holly, wrapped in our own private universe. With her hand in mine, I feel like I can take on anything the universe might throw at us.
She looks up at me with a smile. My eyes are drawn to her lips. When she moves closer to me, I know that she wants me to kiss her.
Though, I hesitate for a moment—unsure if she feels the same way. But then she licks her lips slightly, and all of my doubts fly away in an instant. My heart is pounding as I lean in towards her, and slowly, our lips touch for the first time.
The kiss is soft and sweet at first, then simmering. Our pulses quicken in anticipation. Then our kiss was like lightning. Sizzling and explosive. Passionate. Her lips are warm and inviting, and my cock has never been this hard from just a kiss. Taking her into my arms, I can feel her body responding to mine, and I know that she wants me just as badly as I want her.
We break apart, gasping for breath, and I look into her eyes. They are filled with a mixture of joy, desire, and uncertainty. Her mind is battling what she should do and what she wants. That's okay. I'm not going anywhere.
She may not know it yet, but she is mine. I know it one-hundred percent in my soul. With everything I am.