25. Lilly
Chapter 25
Lilly
“ N ellie, are you ready to go?” I ask as I finish packing my bag.
She comes racing down the hallway from our bedroom, her blonde pigtails bouncing behind her as the backpack on her shoulders smacks against her back. “Ready.”
I hook my tote onto my arm and grab my keys. “Then let’s get on the road.”
“Aunt Christine comes home in fourteen days!”
“That’s right, baby. She texted me this morning to say she missed us.”
“Can we FaceTime with her when we get to the fire station?”
“We can give her a call. She might be busy, though.” I get Nellie secured in the car and back down the driveway. Noah invited us to visit him at work. Rachel’s third-grade class is going to be there today. I’m looking forward to seeing her again and for Nellie to have a chance to interact with kids her age.
I used to take Nellie to a few places in Greensboro to help her socialize. One of her favorites was a chemistry class held at the science museum. Being in her element helped her be more comfortable working with other students. She felt confident about the material she was learning, which gave her brain the space to figure out how to socialize simultaneously.
I’ll have to ask Rachel if Sonoma offers anything similar. It’s unlikely, but it never hurts to ask.
“Is your friend still going to be there with her class?” Nellie asks from the back seat.
“I believe so.”
“And she’s Dad’s friend, too?”
“She was Dad’s friend first, actually.”
“Hmm,” Nellie hums. I can’t tell if she’s skeptical or if she’s just done with our conversation.
A few minutes later, I pull into the parking lot of the fire station. One of the big trucks is parked outside, and a yellow school bus is off to the side. Rachel is standing in front of her students, most likely going over the rules of the day.
My stomach swoops as I scan the lot for Noah. Getting a peek into his life like this is a little weird. I take a minute to remind myself that he’s done everything possible to include me in his life here. At the same time, a little voice in my head is trying to tell me that I don’t fit—that I’ll never fit—in here. He’s lived in this same town his entire life. The short time I spent with him here was just a drop in the bucket compared to a lifetime. What if we’re trying to fit a square peg into a round hole? Greensboro offers many more opportunities for Nellie. Am I making a mistake by uprooting our entire life?
What am I even thinking? Do I truly want to move here permanently?
“Baby Bee!” Noah’s shout pulls me from my thoughts.
“Dad!” Nellie races across the parking lot toward Noah. When she jumps toward him, Noah catches her in strong arms and spins her around. She squeals in delight.
The doubts melt away at the sound of our daughter’s happiness. This is what you’ve always wanted. Of course, I’d be willing to move here permanently.
I make it over to the two of them, grinning at their shared laughter.
“Hey, Bumblebee.” Noah leans in to kiss me, even with our daughter still in his arms. Nellie giggles at the sight. “Do you think that’s funny, little one?” Noah tickles Nellie’s ribs, and peals of laughter fill the air.
Noah blows raspberries in Nellie’s neck until she squirms out of his arms. “All done! All done!” She wiggles her hands in the air as if she’s using the sign for all done but with her fingers loose instead of straight.
“Are you ready to see the station?” Noah asks her, moving on seamlessly.
“Yes!” Nellie jumps up and down.
We follow Noah to the building while Rachel’s class heads toward the firetruck parked outside.
Noah turns toward me. “We’ve got some guys from another shift leading the student tour. If we have to take a call while the students are here, we won’t have to worry about leaving in the middle of their event.”
“That’s nice of them to volunteer on their day off.”
Noah holds the door of the station open for Nellie and me to walk through. There’s a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that look into the garage on the left side of the vestibule, and I can see some guys hanging around the trucks, talking with the students.
“Come on, I’ll give you a tour, and then we’ll head out to the bay.” Noah leads us down a wide hallway to the right. The first room to the left is the kitchen and eating area. Tables are scattered around the left side of the room, leaving a clear path to the double doors set in the wall of windows that continue over from the vestibule. On the other side of the room is a huge island separating the eating area from the kitchen lining the right side of the room.
“This is one of two places we spend the majority of our time. We rotate shifts for cooking and cleaning. For the most part, the guys on my shift are decent cooks. There’s only one of us that sucks at it, but thankfully we work in pairs, so it’s not too bad.” Noah smirks.
Nellie’s eyes are wide as she takes in the large room. “Where do you sleep?”
“We have a bunk room. It’s toward the back of the building where our locker rooms are.” Noah turns back to the hallway. “Come on, let’s see the rest of it.”
As Noah shows us a rec room, the captain’s office, and his bunk, Nellie keeps up a string of questions, barely taking a breath between each one. Somehow, Noah manages to keep up without skipping a beat. It doesn’t seem to matter what Nellie throws at him; he doesn’t bat an eye. My favorite response was when he didn’t know the answer and asked if they could research it together. Nellie lit up brighter than a sparkler at a Fourth of July party.
“I don’t think it’s possible to love her any more than I do right now,” Noah murmurs as we watch our daughter take in all the memorabilia hanging on the walls in Tucker’s office. Noah’s dad has quite a collection of certificates, equipment, and photographs displayed. Noah told us Tucker had a meeting at city hall but should be back in time to hang out with us.
“I feel that way almost every day.” I smile at him. “And then she does something else that only makes me love her more.”
Noah puts his hand on my neck, squeezing the muscles affectionately. “You’ve done an incredible job raising her, Lilly. I couldn’t be prouder of both of you.”
I have to close my eyes at the onslaught of emotions when he presses a kiss to my temple. I know that Nellie is a great kid, but having someone praise me for doing something that has stripped me to my core and exposed all the raw vulnerabilities I have… It means everything.
“Come on, Baby Bee,” Noah calls out. “It’s time to go sit in a firetruck.”
Nellie takes another minute to look at the helmet hanging from a nail and turns back to us. “Did you know the helmet was designed by Henry T. Gratacap in the early 1800s? He also designed luggage. It was made of leather.”
“I did not know that. I’m not sure I would’ve been as brave as those guys back then,” Noah says as he leads us back down the hallway.
“I think you would’ve.” Nellie’s conviction makes me smile.
“I agree. Your daddy is one of the bravest men I know.”
“How many men do you know?” Nellie asks.
Noah turns to me. “Yeah, how many men do you know?”
My face heats at Noah’s insinuation, but I can’t just ignore Nellie’s question. She would never allow it. “I’m not sure I could give you a specific number. Not very many, I guess.”
Nellie frowns as if she doesn’t like that answer. “Then saying he’s the bravest you know doesn’t mean very much.”
Noah rolls his lips between his teeth. His eyes are sparkling with laughter as I figure out how to explain what I meant to Nellie. “I was just trying to say I think your dad is courageous for doing a job that not everyone can do.”
“Okay.” Nellie walks out the front door and toward the group of kids listening to the team of firefighters talk to them about fire safety.
“I officially love her even more now.” Noah chuckles.
I elbow him in the stomach, earning a satisfying oof. “Jerk. You could’ve helped me out.”
“And miss an opportunity to watch you spin your wheels? Never.” Noah wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me in close. “I need a kiss to keep me going.”
“Do you deserve a kiss?” I pout, not quite able to hide my smirk.
“Probably not, but you do.”
I tilt my head back to accept the swoony bastard’s mouth. A hum vibrates in the back of my throat at the small contact. It’s not even that sexy of a kiss. It’s just Noah. Everything about him does it for me.
“I’ve been dying to do that again,” Noah says against my lips. “Come on, let’s go see what our girl is up to.”