19. Wolf
19
WOLF
W olf awoke the next day to soft morning light, feeling better than he had in a long time.
It was probably the first time he’d slept all the way through the night since…
Ezra.
The sight of the empty crib sent his heart pounding for a second before he remembered that Sam and Amelia were there.
The breath came back into his chest, and he felt a burst of warmth, followed by a pang of guilt.
Sam had probably been up super early with Ezra, trying to let Wolf sleep in. The sweet young woman likely felt guilty for imposing on him, even though all he wanted was to beg her never to go back to her own apartment again.
He got cleaned up and dressed quickly, then padded down the stairs. It was barely after seven in the morning, but it still felt like sleeping late to Wolf.
A sweet, delicious fragrance greeted him. But when he reached the living room he had to smile at an even sweeter sight. The sofa cushions were on the floor under the Christmas tree that his Aunt and Uncle had been kind enough to bring over for him, forming a half circle around Ezra, who was sleeping peacefully in his car seat.
Amelia slept on the cushions next to him, her little body curled around the car seat, and the duvet from the big bedroom snuggled around her.
He took a picture with his mind of the two little angels, then slipped through the dining room and into the kitchen to find Sam pulling a pan from the oven.
“Hey,” he said softly, not wanting to scare her.
“Hi,” she whispered back with a brilliant smile. “Good morning. I hope you don’t mind I sort of took over your kitchen.”
“Not at all,” he said. “I hope you two weren’t up all night with Ezra.”
“Oh, he’s no trouble at all,” she told him. “At least not for me - I’ve been getting a whole night’s sleep every night for years—this was just a fun early morning adventure.”
Her eyes danced with humor, and he had to chuckle.
“Really though,” she told him. “He slept until about three, and Amelia woke me. He was barely making any noise at all, so we snuck in and brought him downstairs. He got a fresh diaper and a bottle, and he’s been sleeping ever since. Amelia too.”
“Wow,” Wolf said, impressed. “I guess he had a busy day yesterday.”
“Thank you again for letting us stay,” Sam said, her eyes luminous. “It’s still snowing, but not as hard now. You were right. It wouldn’t have been safe to walk in it when the cars couldn’t tell the street from the sidewalk.”
The sunshine in her eyes seemed to light up all the dark corners of his soul and his heart ached with the need to hold her close.
“Hey, looks like it paid off for me,” he teased, tearing his eyes from hers to the confection she had placed on the counter. “What’s that?”
“Coffee cake,” she told him with a big grin. “And now that you’re up, I’ll start the coffee to go with it.”
She moved to the coffee machine which she must have already prepared. She flicked a delicate finger and the machine gurgled obediently to life.
She could crook that little finger and I would follow her to the ends of the earth…
“Samantha,” Wolf heard himself say.
She froze in place, as if she knew what was coming next, even though Wolf wasn’t sure himself.
“I know you don’t feel the same,” he told her, moving closer, too close. “But I have to get this off my chest.”
She didn’t move away, and she didn’t speak. But he could sense the tension shivering through her body, like a tuning fork humming from the faraway footsteps of a giant.
“I care about you,” he murmured, close enough now to see her pulse thrumming in her throat. “I’m glad to be your friend, but if you let me, I would be so much more to you…”
“I can’t,” she said suddenly, her voice soft but bell-clear. “I can’t get involved with someone unless it’s serious.”
He met her hazel gaze. Though he was certain she meant to be fierce, he could see sadness in her eyes too. The combination was arresting.
“I won’t put my sister through losing people who are important to her again,” she whispered. “So if I had a boyfriend, he would have to be dead serious—about both of us.”
Her words landed on him like a bucket of cold water.
I have a baby. And I don’t have a job unless I leave this tiny town behind. I wouldn’t do anything but drag her down.
“You’re right,” he muttered, backing up and shaking his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking. I can’t be serious about anything but Ezra right now.”
She nodded once and he felt like his heart was breaking.
Before he could think of anything else to say, Ezra’s wail interrupted the moment, and they both headed for the living room.
At first, Wolf thought Amelia must be having a bad dream. Her whole body was jerking rapidly as she made a moaning sound. Then it clicked for him.
“ Amelia ,” Sam said, throwing herself on the ground beside her. “Wolf, she’s having a seizure.”