The afternoon light was fading, painting long shadows across the snow-covered hill. Daniel watched as Holly kneeled beside Teddy, helping him shake the packed snow from his boot treads.
“If you don’t get all the snow out now, buddy, it’ll melt in the truck and make it all soggy,” she explained, her breath clouding in the winter air.
Teddy nodded seriously, concentrating on the task as if it were the most important mission in the world. Beside them, Maisie stood watching, drawn to Holly in a way Daniel had never seen before.
To anyone looking in, they probably looked like the perfect family.
We are the perfect family,his bear said.
Aren’t we just,Daniel said, his heart filled with love for the three people in front of him.
But were they a forever family?
The roads were clear now. The storm had passed. There was nothing keeping her here anymore.
Although she hadn’t mentioned her car all day. Maybe she’d forgotten about it. Or maybe she hadn’t.
Any minute, he expected her to say something about her next steps, about needing to retrieve her car, about sorting out her life now that the weather had improved. About leaving them.
His bear growled at the thought.She belongs here.
Yes, she might be his mate, but she didn’t know that. She’d stumbled into their lives by accident—a beautiful, perfect accident that had changed everything in just a few days.
But accidents weren’t the same as choices.
“All done!” Teddy declared, stomping his now-clean boots in demonstration.
“Good job,” Holly said, ruffling his hair as she stood. “Race you to the truck!”
Teddy took off like a shot, laughing as Holly pretended to struggle through the snow behind him. Daniel watched them, memorizing the moment, the way her laugh carried in the cold air, the way his son’s face lit up as he glanced back to make sure she was still following.
How would Teddy’s face look when she left? When would that brightness fade from his eyes?
“Dad?” Maisie tugged at his sleeve. “Are you okay?”
Daniel blinked, forcing a smile. “Just tired from all that sledding. You kids wore me out.”
Maisie studied him with that too-perceptive gaze she sometimes had. “Holly had fun too. I could tell.”
“Yeah,” Daniel whispered. “I think she did.”
They reached the truck just as Teddy was claiming victory in his race with Holly, who dramatically collapsed against the passenger door, hand to her forehead.
“You’re too fast for me,” she gasped between exaggerated breaths. “I never stood a chance.”
Teddy beamed with pride. “I’m the fastest in my class.”
Daniel helped the kids climb into the back seat, making sure their seat belts were secure before closing the door. When he turned, Holly was already sliding into the passenger seat, her cheeks flushed from cold and laughter, her hair slightly mussed from their afternoon adventures.
She looked so right there. So perfectly, completely right.
His bear purred at the sight of her buckling in as if it were the most natural thing in the world. As if she’d been riding shotgun in his truck for years rather than days.
Daniel climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine, waiting for the words he dreaded. The casual mention of her car, her apartment, or whatever life was waiting for her beyond Bear Creek.
But Holly just smiled at him. “That was the most fun I’ve had in years,” she said, her voice soft enough that the kids couldn’t hear over their own excited chatter.
“Me too,” Daniel admitted, pulling onto the road that would take them home. His home. Their home?
