Page 75 of Love in the Time of Wildfires

“Logan, I’ve known you were a boob guy since the first day I met you. I’ve been purposely not wearing a bra since my parents left town.”

“Come on.”

She turned her head, smiling smugly and circling her face with a finger. “Wildlife behaviorist.”

He laughed before throwing the comforter over both their heads, giving them the privacy to do as much wildlifing as their hearts desired.

Epilogue

Ten months later

The first thing Logan did when returning from a job was stop by the museum. Melissa was helping at the front ticketing desk but waved him in with a smile and the comment, “Someone is going to be happy to see you.”

The next person he came across was Jefferson, who loudly said, “Hey, firefighter! Welcome back,” before giving him a quick hug with a pat on the shoulder.

Logan had learned to get used to the hugs from people around him, coming to the conclusion they weren’t half bad. In fact, when he was home the last time, he and River went to his parents’ for dinner—he didn’t even think about it and gave one to his dad, who stiffened in his arms at this. Logan wanted to laugh, but then River followed suit, and his dad hugged her as well. His dad had been changing a lot, softening, and maybe he’d become a hugger too.

While it remained a sticking point that his father never apologized for his past behavior, he did seem like he was trying to make up for it. Logan hoped it would at least continue to get better because having full support helped with his mental health. He’d never had this many people around to not only boost him up, but also give their support to River when he was gone. Turned out, having a community, even when he wasn’t there, made all the difference.

“River around?” he asked Jefferson.

The older man cupped one side of his mouth as though revealing inside info. “You can find her in her secret spot,” he replied with a friendly wink. “You should go see her.”

Logan found her on the usual bench. Her back was to him as she ate baby carrots while scrolling through her phone. He smiled to himself at Goldie chilling on the back of the bench as though also interested in River’s activities.

“You’re not still feeding that squirrel, are you?”

River whipped around, sending Goldie bolting for safety. His girlfriend gasped, releasing the biggest smile before jumping up, running, and leaping into his arms. He caught her as she wrapped her limbs around him. “I’m so happy you’re back. I’ve missed you, osito.” She pressed kisses across the different parts of his face.

Good fires or not, Logan didn’t like to leave these days, even while knowing he had a job to do and did it to protect communities like his. Even so, he did enjoy the coming home part. He liked the excited way River greeted him, as though seeing him was the best part of her life. He felt the same way.

“I’ve missed you too,” he said, pressing a kiss to her mouth before carefully setting her on the ground. River was a hundred percent physically healed by this point, and yet, he found himself trying to be careful with her. Her injuries would haunt him for awhile.

At least her medical bills were no longer a concern. Logan did his best to pull every trick in the book when talking to the billings department, mentioning he was a poor firefighter, getting the mayor involved as a favor after offering to speak at some youth group, and agreeing to pay in cash upfront. In the end, they made a deal and he felt lucky to pull only seventeen thousand from his bank account. It didn’t matter. She was worth it—he would have paid more. Plus, sharing the same apartment lease helped things financially.

“How have you been? How was your visit with your sister?”

Mimi had come with her kid for a visit while he’d been gone on a job. It gave him some peace of mind to know River wasn’t alone. Although his spirited girlfriend didn’t always care about his peace. She was as independent as ever and always had something going on. That she managed to fit him into her life kept him thankful enough.

“Oh my gosh, yes. We did a small camping trip, and it was the first time the kid had s’mores. We did it over a small propane stove, don’t worry. It was so much fun.”

Logan had worried her ordeal might have changed her mind about going into the forest. Luckily, this wasn’t the case. One positive change was River took many more precautions, filling her fox backpack with everything she could need and never hiking alone.

“I’ve been dying for you to come home because I have the biggest surprise for you. Oh my goodness, you’re going to love it!” Her eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Oh yeah? What is it?”

“Not yet. I have to show you after work.”

Now he was intrigued, hoping her surprise was something shown in the bedroom. It had been several weeks since adding a new pair of panties to his to-go bag.

“Go home. Take a nap. And I’ll pick you up after I get off of work.”

“We’re going out?” He wasn’t sure he liked this. They were getting further away from a bedroom. “What if you come home and crawl into bed with me?”

“That’s going to have to wait.”

He pulled close, pressing kisses along her neck that released ticklish giggles from her. “Come on, River. I really missed you.”