The police station was located at the base of the mountain, a twenty-minute drive from my cabin. Trying to describe the way up to the cabin was difficult, especially on Christmas Eve. The cops were hesitant, some of them halfway through their first celebration drink and groaning inwardly. “Why tonight?” I could hear them whispering in the background.

But I was insistent, my voice taking on that gruff professionalism that I’d mastered as a younger man.

“Yes, Ethan Tiller here,” I boomed. “For the past several years, I’ve been off-duty. But before that, I worked as a bounty hunter in the state of California. You can look me up in your system.”

“A bounty hunter? All the way up here in the mountains?” the officer said, scoffing. “This ain’t a prank, is it?”

“I assure you, it’s not,” I said, my nostrils flaring. I stood with my arm around Serena, hearing Shane creak back and forth in his chair inside. The Christmas tree continued to sparkle in the window, adding a kind of morbid Christmas cheer.

“A perp from the old days tracked me down,” I continued. “I’ve been able to hold him, for now. But he’s going to need a jail cell, and a first-class ticket back to the city. Any chance you fellas can arrange something like that?”

“What’s the guy’s name?” the officer asked, his voice slow, each word oozing into the next. “Want to look up the record.”

“Shane Merkley,” I said, watching as Serena bit her lip. “I think you’ll find a pretty stacked record. The man’s been everywhere. Picked him up for murder last time.”

“This was a revenge plot, then?” the officer mumbled, aghast. “Nothing like that happens around here. And on Christmas!”

“Can you just get an officer up here, stat?”

Serena and I remained on the porch, perched on the edge of the step, waiting for the police to show. We sat in silence, holding hands as the car grumbled up the gravel road. The flashlights swept across the forest floor and between the trees. Flashing my light back, I guided them toward us—allowing them into our little canopy of trees, our cozy corner of the world.

The three police officers were bumbling and wide-shouldered, with large stomachs. After speaking with Serena and I for only a few minutes more, they burst into the cabin. As they handcuffed him tightly, Shane protested, his voice more boisterous and boy-like than the gruff man who’d threatened to murder both Serena and me.

“You don’t understand. She invited me up here. She’s my fucking lawyer, and she’s crazy!” he blurted, jostling his shoulder toward Serena.

“I think we’ve heard enough from you,” I boomed, drawing Serena closer.

Her chin quivering, Serena said, “Don’t waste another attorney’s time, you asshole.”

“Admit it,” Shane said, his voice slimy. “You liked when I flirted with you. I can peg a lonely little nobody from a mile away—”

“That’s enough,” the cop said, thrusting Shane toward the forest, where he fell to his knees. The cop gave Serena and me each a sturdy handshake, wishing us Merry Christmas before guiding Shane back toward the cop car.

With Shane disappearing through the trees, Serena and I made our way back into the cabin, taking tentative steps. Whisking the chair toward the corner, I tossed the last of the rope into the cabinet, trying to make it seem like the cabin hadn’t been the scene of a crime only moments before. I unplugged the coffee maker, tossed several logs on the dying embers in the fireplace, and slumped on the couch.

“Come on, baby. Let’s collapse together.”

Serena slipped in beside me, wrapping her arms around my neck. Gazing into my eyes, she gushed with excitement, her eyes gleaming.

“I can’t believe we’re really here. I can’t believe it’s over. When he drew out that gun, I thought…”

“I know. I know,” I whispered, kissing her nose once more. “But come now. Let’s talk about the good things. The things we’ve only just learned.” I placed my hand on her stomach, feeling the slight bump.

“It’s barely even there,” she murmured, squeezing my hand.

“When did you find out?”

“Just today.”

I chuckled, sliding my fingers through her hair. “Surely you must have noticed before now?”

“I’ve been so lost in my own thoughts the past few weeks. I could hardly concentrate on anything. Just wondering if I would ever see you again. If it was too late to call you…”

“It was never too late,” I said, remembering the long, lonesome, chilly nights.

“I wouldn’t have come. Not if I hadn’t learned I was pregnant,” Serena breathed. “I was too frightened.”

“And maybe just a little stubborn,” I said, giving her a smile.

“But I remembered what you said about Gracie. That you missed all those precious years.”

“I want to be there for every single step,” I said, reaching for her hand and kissing her fingers, one after another. It nearly broke my heart, hearing her say she’d thought about Gracie in that way. That it had stuck with her that I’d missed so much.

I continued, growing more wistful. “I want to be there to help you with morning sickness, and put cool cloths on your head. I want to make you dinner, help our baby grow.” I sighed, feeling a wave of emotion flow through me. “I want to put the past away, and build our family. Together.”

Wrapping my arms around her, I stroked Serena’s head. I felt I could hear the whirling thoughts in her mind. Her skin shimmered. Above the crackling fire, the clock’s long hand ticked over the top. My face broke into a smile, realizing.

“Serena. It’s Christmas.”

She had a beaming, bright smile. Turning to face the fire, I watched as the flames reflected in her eyes. She tossed her shoulders back, chuckling.

“After all that, and it’s still only a few hours later.”

“Time moves strangely when you’re not paying attention,” I agreed, rubbing at the base of her spine. As I rubbed, I watched as her eyes changed, as they grew dark and wide. I sensed the air shift around us. Diving toward her, I brought my lips to hers, sucking at her bottom one. Deep within her, she released a gorgeous moan. I felt it vibrate along my neck, in my chest, in my arms.

As we kissed, I lifted her into me and whirled her around. As she giggled, our kiss broke, but the tension remained. Her breasts heaved against my chest as her passion rose and I burst toward the bedroom, tossing her onto the top of the sheets.

Animalistic aggression took over me. My hands tingled, yearning to rip at her clothes. She looked at me like a small, innocent animal, with wide eyes blinking up.

As she sat, she slowly brought her legs apart, revealing a glistening wetness between her thighs. My cock grew insistent, hard against my pant leg. I could see the shape of my girth—the veiny, pulsing member against the softness of my boxers.

Entranced, I brought my hands along the length, feeling the weight of my cock. I yearned to be inside this woman, to feel the softness of her pussy, the wet tightness between her thighs.

“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” I breathed.

“Come here,” she whispered, biting her lip. Reaching down, she tore at her blouse, exposing the top crest of her breast.

Without hesitation, I reached forward, gripping the fabric. I tore it from her breast down to her belly button. Bringing my face forward, I kissed at the softness of her skin, closing my eyes.

I drew my head upward, peppering light kisses from her belly button to her breasts to her soft, round, brown nipples. Catching the small, tart blueberry of her nipple in my mouth, I brought my tongue over and over the ridge, hearing a moan escape her mouth.

“Do you like that, baby?” I asked her, my voice gruff and wild.

“Don’t stop touching me,” she ordered. Reaching for my shoulders, she drew me over her and kissed me. I pressed my body across hers, forcing my cock against her leg, still straining inside my pants.

Taking my cue, Serena reached toward my belt and unlatched it, bringing my massive, rock-hard cock into her hand. Her eyes were wide at its girth, its length—as if she’d forgotten.

“It’s even better than I remembered,” she whispered, her shoulders shaking with delight.

I brought myself onto my feet, on the side of the bed, and drew off the rest of my clothes and hers. She sat on all fours, completely naked, with her ass skyward and her back arched. I swept a hand down her back, toward the crest of her ass, as she moved her lips toward my cock.

With her eyes closed, Serena brought her lips around the edge and then slowly eased down the thickness of my member, bringing the tip into the smoothest, darkest ridge of her throat. Knocking my head back, I let out a long, wonderful moan.

At my cue, Serena’s mouth lifted upward, smiling. She knew exactly what she was doing to me. Reaching up, she cupped my balls with her hand, then drew her other hand along my ass. Her blond hair hung in curls on either side of my cock, and I tucked it behind her ears, wanting to see her face.

When I felt I was about to come all over her lips and tits and face, I brought myself back and whipped her around, still on all fours. Revving forward, I fucked her doggy style, with my fingers along her clit, rubbing at the hard, wet bud.

She cried out as I fucked her, arching her back and bringing her hands against the wall. She beat at the wooden wall with her fists, telling me she was going to come. She was so close.

As I revved my cock deep within her, I placed my hand at the base of her stomach, kissing her back. With this final thrust, I felt her begin to come around my cock. And with these spasms, my cock gave in, orgasming explosively, like never before. I cried out, closing my eyes.

Moments later, we were gasping, staring at one another. Serena placed her hand on her lower belly, her cheeks growing red. She was cupping our baby, our child. Reaching forward, I laced my fingers with hers. Sweat continued to run down our cheeks, falling to the comforter.

“Merry Christmas, baby,” I whispered.

“Merry Christmas,” she cooed back.

We wrapped our arms around one another that night, safe from the rustling world around the cabin, and fell into a deep and wonderful slumber. We slept until after noon the next day—not waking until the sun crept up over the trees along the lake.

Exhausted and wordless, we met the remainder of the day with a hike, walking hand in hand and inhaling the crisp chill of the forest. Serena’s cheeks were bright red, healthy—like those of an apple in an orchard. For a full hour, we sat at the edge of the lake, staring out at the reflection of the water and the orange and dulling yellow light.

We would collect Gracie and meet with my parents the next day. We would tell the good news to our separate families in the days to come. But on this day, the news of our baby was only for us. And we used it for fuel, building the kind of happiness that would last forever.

* * *