Even before moving day arrived, Matt made good on his word that he wanted to help. Two days later, he met Natasha and Emily for lunch when she had back-to-back appointments with the bank and the lawyer. It was an unseasonably warm day so he took Emily to the park so Tasha could focus.

After she finished her meetings, she went to find them at the park.

Emily was running around the climbers and Matt was chasing her, letting her stay just ahead of him as she giggled with glee. Just as he closed in to “catch” her, she leapt onto the first rung of the climber and screamed that she was safe.

Tasha slowed her approach and watched them repeat the game again, and this time, when Emily leapt onto the climber, she kept going up the vertical ladder, all the way to the top. Her mom instincts freaked out, but Matt was watching closely—and worrying, too, from the sounds of it.

“You’re seriously going to give me a heart attack, Miss Monkey,” he said as Emily laughed hysterically and scampered faster across the horizontal bars. Beneath the climber, he spotted her the entire way, and when she carefully wiggled between the bars and dropped into his arms, he gave her a tight squeeze before setting her down.

He squatted down to her level, and Natasha’s heart just about exploded with happiness.

“That was a fun game,” he said. “Thank you for teaching it to me.”

“My Daddy taught me,” she said, and Tasha’s heart careened wildly in a different direction. “He’s coming to visit tomorrow.”

Maybe, Natasha thought. She pulled out her phone and took a picture of Emily climbing. She sent it to David.

She shoved her phone away and went to join them, trying hard not to worry when so much was going right for them all.

It took David ages to reply. Not until after they got home and Matt had headed back to Pine Harbour did he send a message back.

Tasha exhaled roughly. Great, she thought. But it wasn’t great that she’d worried for a while. Or at all. Or had three years of history behind her to justify that worry.

It occurred to her while she was at work that night that if Emily was talking to Matt freely about David, it would probably be true the other way around as well. And she’d made a point to her ex about knowing Sable’s name before she spent time with Emily, so she should probably reciprocate the information sharing.

But what would she say about Matt? She had a friend Emily was getting to know?

Yes, that’s exactly what you say.

Why was it so hard? She didn’t know what she was balking at, but she didn’t text David in the end.

She waited until they arrived the next day, and while Sable—still nice, still annoyingly young—was helping Emily into her coat and gloves, Natasha pointed outside. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

David stepped onto the front porch with her, and she took a deep breath. “First of all, I’m really glad that you guys are coming up to see Emily.”

He rubbed his hands together. “Good. I know this is a change in, uh, how we were doing things…”

“Yeah. We should talk about that sometime.” Wow, her voice sounded so distant to her own ear. This was a man she’d once been intimate with on every level, thought she might even love, and now it was like she’d never truly known him at all.

And maybe she hadn’t, because she couldn’t read him right now. Hadn’t been able to ever since he’d started expressing more of an interest in parenting.

She’d gotten so used to parenting entirely on her own, but now here he was, on her sister’s porch, and she needed to open up to him.

It was terrifying.

“I’m moving,” she blurted out. “Not far.” Was forty-five minutes north not far? “To Wiarton. It’s closer to your family cottage, actually.”

“Oh.” He frowned. “So…not closer to the city?”

“I have a limited budget.” And big plans. Those two did not mesh anywhere near the city.

“I understand.”

“Good.”

“Was there anything else?”

“Emily might mention a guy. Matt. He’s a friend of mine. We met in cooking class. He decorated cupcakes with Em.”

David smirked, and that was the end of her goodwill toward him for the day. Sure, if he wanted to judge where she met a man, that was his prerogative, but she’d shared everything she needed to and now had a clear conscience.

“That’s it,” she said brightly. “Have a great day. Text me if you need anything, I’ll just be packing.”

When all your earthly possessions fit in eight boxes, plus two beds, three dressers, and a few garbage bags of precious pink toys, it didn’t take long to get ready on moving day. Tasha was up at six and had her bed dismantled before seven, when Matt showed up.

He brought coffee and donuts, and barely had a chance to hand them over before Emily flew into his arms.

“Hi, Miss Monkey,” he said, giving her a soft smile.

“Hi, Matt. I get a new bedroom today,” she told him, pressing her hands on either side of his face to hold his attention.

“I know,” he said. His eyes were bright with amusement. “Can I help you carry your bed into your new room?”

“I can’t carry it. I’ll be the boss, though.”

“That sounds fair.” He cleared his throat. “Hey, can you introduce me to your aunt and uncle?”

Emily twisted in his arms and pointed to Meredith and Dan. “This is Auntie Mer and this is Uncle Dan. They’re moving far away.”

Tasha groaned and pressed her hand to her chest. “The ruthless honesty of children, eh?”

Meredith brushed a knuckle beneath her eye.

“Sorry,” Matt said, holding out his arm and giving Mer his most charming smile. “But I brought you donuts.”

She laughed and took the box from him. “Apology accepted. Nice to meet you for real this time.”

Matt winked at her and then offered his hand to Dan. “I may have flirted with your wife from a distance a while back. It was all a ruse to impress Natasha, I promise.”

Dan chuckled. “I appreciate the honesty. And the use of your truck today.”

“Wouldn’t miss moving day for the world.” Matt finally turned his attention to Tasha, and even though they were surrounded by people, the room felt suddenly hot and the way he was looking at her purely indecent.

“I’ll be sure to order beer and pizza later,” she said softly. “Or something.”

His eyebrows twitched just enough to make it clear he’d be up for something.

“Donuts, eh?” She spun on her heel and opened the box Meredith had set on the table. “Yum.”

Everyone else gathered around, and once she’d snagged an apple fritter, she moved out of the way.

Matt followed. His hand landed on her hip briefly, just long enough to give a reassuring squeeze, then he crossed his arms over his chest. “Okay, so what’s the plan today?”

She swiped a bit of icing off her apple fritter. “Well, first we put all my stuff in as many vehicles as it takes…and then we unload it all into a big, old, empty house that I’m going to start demolishing tomorrow.”

He choked on a laugh. “Excellent.”

“I’m terrified,” she whispered. “I know you already know that, but…”

“Hey, you aren’t alone today.” He lowered his voice. “And you don’t need to be alone tonight, either.”

Her cheeks heated up and she shoved a bite of donut into her mouth to keep from babbling about how much she liked that offer. Liked it, couldn’t take him up on it, and was already thinking about when she could.

They loaded up Matt’s truck, and her Jeep. Dan and Meredith ended up only having to put Emily’s toys in their van, which left lots of room for the kids, Emily riding along with her cousins so she could guard her toys. And off they went in a caravan of three vehicles.

Once they were on the highway, her phone rang, and she told the hands-free device to answer the call.

“Now that we’re all alone,” Matt said over his own speakerphone. “I thought I’d be more specific about my earlier offer.”

Tasha glanced in her rearview mirror. She could just barely make him out behind the sun-glare on his windscreen. “I liked the idea of you hanging around after we finish unloading. I don’t have that much stuff.” She smiled. “But my sister and brother-in-law know that. They’ll probably leave after lunch.”

“They have their own packing to do, right?” Matt was so smooth, so slick, he followed the narrative she needed.

“Yeah. It would be a great help if we could send them off pretty quickly.”

“I can definitely help with that.” He made a warm, welcoming sound, like a cross between a sigh and hum. “But seriously, I’ll stay all night if you want. On the couch.”

“I don’t have a couch.”

“Right. I knew that. Didn’t load one into the back of my truck.”

Her pulse jumped a gear. She had a big bed. And once upon a time, she’d have happily pulled anyone into it.

A part of her really missed that easy sexuality. She wanted to get back there, but she just wasn’t quite there yet. “Company into the evening is good,” she whispered. “But I think tonight, overnight, it should just be me and Emily.” For the first time since Emily had been born, it would just be the two of them in their very own house. It was a big milestone. She wanted to forever remember this night, and tomorrow morning, as her and Emily’s. Just the two of them. There was something sacred and special about that.

And her first night with Matt was worthy of its own time and space, too. They’d have that soon enough.

“Then I’ll stay and help unpack as long as you need me to, and then we can have a celebratory nightcap before a good night kiss.”

She sighed happily. “That sounds amazing.”

“Damn straight. Now drive safe. I’m right behind you.”

When they arrived, the realtor was waiting out front to give her the keys. She parked in the drive, right close to the house so someone could pull in behind her, then hopped out.

Matt parked on the street, leaving the space in the drive for Meredith’s minivan. She waved to the realtor, then went to the van to get Emily first.

“Ready?” she asked her daughter.

Emily craned her head to the side and gasped. “Oh, this house! Mommy, I love it!”

Yeah, they were both ready for this.

Each step she took up the walk toward the front door felt huge, momentous—and filled with emotion. By the time she was standing in front of the realtor, her eyes were wet and she tried to make an excuse.

“Congratulations,” he said. “And it’s okay to cry.”

“I don’t want to,” she whispered. “I’m happy.”

“That’s a legitimate reason to cry, I’m afraid to break it to you.” He handed over the keys. “Here you go. Welcome home.”

Her hands shook as she unlocked the door. Emily helped her push it open, then they stepped together into their first house as a family of two.

Behind her, everyone else filed in. Heavy footsteps, little footsteps, and a flurry of excited noises.

She wasn’t really absorbing any of it.

The house was empty, exactly as it had been when she’d looked at it before. But today, even though it was cold and grey out, a typically gross early November day, it glowed for her.

All she could see was the potential.

And when she turned around, she saw the same enthusiasm for it reflected in the faces of Meredith and Dan. She held her breath as she glanced past them to Matt, who was standing in the doorway.

His eyes were cast upward, checking out the ceiling. But when her gaze settled on him, he immediately gave her his attention.

And he beamed.

“Wow,” he said. “It’s even better than you described. What amazing bones.”

“Exactly.” Her voice came out all whispery and weak, and she tried again. “I mean, right? I’m…” She shook her head. Damn it. She was totally going to cry, and this was not a crying situation. “I’m so glad everyone likes it.”

She whirled around and walked briskly through the front room to the kitchen in the back corner. Definitely the ugliest room in the house, she was looking forward to taking a sledgehammer to the ancient cupboards and the awful bulkheads that ruined the lines of the twelve-foot ceilings.

“Hey.”

Natasha waved her hand at the sound of her sister’s voice. “Hi.”

“Overwhelming, eh?”

“Little bit.”

“The guys took the kids into the backyard.” Meredith came closer, and when Natasha turned around, she saw her sister was holding a gift bag. “Here. Happy New Home Day.”

“What is this?” And how had she missed her sister carrying it inside?

“A little housewarming present.”

Natasha took the bag and pulled out the tissue paper on top. Inside were three things. A brand-new kettle, shiny and red, a box of instant oatmeal, and a tin of English Breakfast tea.

“Oh, Mer…”

“There are going to be times when you need tea,” her sister said. “Like now, for example.”

“I need to unpack the mugs first.”

“Yeah.”

She set down the bag and gave her sister a tight squeeze. “I’m going to miss you.”

“Me too. But you’re also going to have an amazing adventure here. And whenever you need me, you pick up the phone and we’ll make tea together from a distance.”

The side door slammed open, and Emily came sprinting in. “Mommy, can I have a swing?”

“Uh…yes. Of course. We’ll keep our eyes out for a good deal on one, okay?”

Matt appeared in the door behind her. “That’s my fault. I said to Dan that the big oak tree would be perfect for a tire swing, and…”

“Little ears.” She nodded and smiled. “Story of my life.”

She made a mental note to search online for a used tire.

“Should we start bringing stuff in?” Meredith asked.

“First I want to do a quick scrub down of Emily’s room.”

“I can help with that,” her sister said. “I’ll grab the box of cleaning supplies from your car.”

Emily raced away right behind her aunt, heading upstairs to see her room.

Which left Tasha alone with Matt, who took a quick look around before he pulled her close.

“You haven’t had enough kisses today,” he whispered. He tugged on her braids, tipping her face up so he could lean in and remedy that.

She gave herself to him willingly. They didn’t have a lot of time and he wasn’t wrong—it was the worst kind of torture to be this close and not be able to touch him, taste him, hold him.

“More kisses tonight,” he promised.

Yes, yes, yes.

That was exactly what she needed. Matt was exactly what she needed.

Once Emily’s room was scrubbed down, Matt carried in the pieces of her bed. It was pink, of course, and impossibly small.

“Is it just me, or is her bed half the size of a regular bed?” he asked Natasha after they set it up.

She grinned. “It’s called a toddler bed. That’s her crib mattress.”

“Right. I could have figured that out myself.”

“You’re cute when you don’t know things, though. You get this little frown line between your eyes, like you’re really surprised that something is outside your grasp.”

He could feel that little frown line deepening. “I do not.”

She nodded her head happily. “You do. And it’s cute.”

Before he could respond, Emily’s cousins came parading in with the bags of toys, with the three-year-old bossily telling them to wait for her to open them.

“Guys, we’re not ready for those just yet,” Natasha said, but it was too late. Dolls and stuffed animals exploded in all directions.

She waved her hand at the bare mini-mattress. “Fine, let’s let them play while we get the other furniture up here. And if you want, I’ll give you the rest of the tour.”

The house was big, but it was divided into three separate apartments. The front half of the house, both stories, would be their personal space. Two bedrooms upstairs, one already claimed by Emily, the other for Natasha. In between was a bathroom with a big clawfoot tub that had seen better days.

From the rear of the house there were separate entrances to two studio apartments that both needed a lot of work to be functional again. He stole another kiss in the second one.

“We should get back,” she whispered against his mouth.

“Definitely.”

They kissed again instead, and by the time they got to his truck to grab her bed frame, her cheeks were pink and her lips were swollen.

Meredith gave him an approving look when they passed each other on the walk.

After they set up her bed in the cozy front bedroom, Natasha left him and Dan to carry up the dressers while she ordered pizza for lunch.

The day flew by in unpacking and scrubbing and cleaning, and by the time the afternoon light was fading, Meredith’s family was piling into their van. Matt headed back inside to give Emily and Natasha a few minutes to say goodbye in private.

There wasn’t really enough pizza left over for dinner, so when they came back inside, he offered to take them to dinner. “My treat,” he said, “to celebrate a really big day.”

“It should be my treat,” Natasha insisted. “By way of thanks.”

“Sure. But I’ve been angling for a dinner date with the two of you for months now.”

“We had lunch last week,” she protested. “And it hasn’t been months.”

Seven long weeks. “Feels like it,” he said gently. “From the minute I met you—and you,” he added, looking at Emily, who’d twisted herself around her mother’s legs, “I knew I wanted to spend a lot of time with you both.”

“With me?” Emily beamed at him.

“Yep.” It hit him squarely in the chest just how seriously he meant that. “Now, how about dinner?”

They went in Natasha’s Jeep, because Emily’s car seat was already installed in the back. He rode shotgun and gave directions to the pub the Army guys often hit up after training on Wednesday nights.

It had been a while, and he didn’t recognize anyone there, which was good. They grabbed a table, Emily claiming the chair between her mom and Matt.

They ordered burgers all around, with Emily’s coming in the form of two mini sliders. Natasha gave her a small dollop of ketchup on the side of her French fries and made her promise to actually eat her fries, and not just the sauce.

Emily carefully triple-dipped her fries, then took a bite every time her mom gave her a look. “I’m eating them slowly,” she said.

Natasha made a disbelieving noise.

“I bet I can eat a fry even slower than you,” Matt said, picking one up off his plate. No ketchup for him, just salt and vinegar. He took the tiniest nibble.

Emily giggled and matched him.

He did it again, and she repeated it, all the way down the fry.

“Fine, you got me. You can eat a fry just as slow as me.” He exaggerated a sigh. “But can you eat one faster than me? Should we race?”

“Okay.” Emily picked one up. “One-two-three-go.”

“That’s cheating,” Matt protested, gobbling his fry down.

She giggled and grabbed another one. “One-two-three—”

“Go!”

They kept that up until both of their plates were clean and Emily was curled up in her mom’s lap.

Matt leaned back in his chair. “So, I met your sister and survived to tell the tale.”

“Dan’s the one you need to watch out for.” Tasha glanced at Emily, and Matt guessed at the unspoken next sentence. Her brother-in-law didn’t like the ex.

Good. Matt imagined there was a lot not to like about the guy. Although since the ex was Emily’s dad, that probably wasn’t the healthiest attitude.

Would Matt get a chance to meet him? How would that go?

Not fucking well. He should work on that attitude more just in case. He grinned. “I like Dan. And your sister. They seem genuinely nice.”

“They really are.” She lowered her voice. “We weren’t that close in the past—they married young, and have a delightfully square life, so they had lots of concern about my lifestyle that I read as judgement. But as soon as I found out I was pregnant, they didn’t hesitate to take me in. Not just that, they were happy to have me.” She ran her hand over Emily’s curls. “Have both of us. They’re so close to Emily now. It’s going to be a hard transition. Isn’t it, baby?”

Emily gave her a sleepy smile and yawned.

By the time they got back to the house, Emily’s eyes were drifting shut. “I want a story,” she protested as Natasha handed Matt the keys so he could unlock the front door.

“Sure thing.”

The stairs were immediately inside, so Matt got out of the way and Natasha started to climb.

“I want Matt, too,” Emily whispered.

His heart squeezed. Natasha glanced at him, and he gestured that he would follow.

She hit the light at the top of the stairs and quietly stepped into Emily’s room. They’d transformed it this afternoon. The rest of the house was empty, echo-y, and waiting for Natasha to pour her personality into the rooms, but this space was cozy and perfect.

Dark curtains covered the unfamiliar window. A low, wide dresser was covered in toys, a rug warmed up the floor, and her wee toddler bed had pink princess bedding ready for her to curl up in.

Even though she was nearly asleep, her eyes still popped open when her head touched the pillow. “Story,” was the stern reminder.

“Please,” her mother said before picking a short book off the shelf.

“Please,” Emily whispered, her eyes drifting shut again.

By the time the book was done, she was out like a light.

Matt led the way back downstairs.

“It’s weird how empty this place is,” Natasha said once they were on the main level. “Do you want a drink?”

He grinned. “Sure.”

“As you know, we’re working on limited resources here,” she said as he followed her into the kitchen. She opened the only occupied cupboard that held her handful of dishes, plus some paper plates and plastic cutlery. And behind those, a bag of…pink cups.

“Emily picked these out?” He closed the gap between them and grabbed the bag.

She twisted in his arms. “Yes.”

“Cute.” But he wasn’t looking at the cups anymore. He was looking at her. “Really cute.”

“You’re distracting me from getting us drinks.”

“Right. What did you want?”

She lifted her chin, her eyes bright, and her lips parted. You. She didn’t actually say it, but she didn’t need to.

They came together. Neither of them made the first move, but suddenly they were kissing. Soft, endless tastes that made his head spin and his balls pull tight. He braced his hand against the cupboards and arched over her. Deeper, hotter, until they were both panting.

He’d made some crazy promises to take things slow. Then he’d blown that out of the water two weeks ago, although he’d been good since.

“You are irresistible,” he finally said, tugging on one of her braids.

Her eyes flashed dark and glittery as she smiled up at him. “A girl likes to hear that.”

“Should we have that drink?”

She nodded. And she didn’t move.

He chuckled and kissed her cheek before reaching into the cupboard again and grabbing two glasses.

“I have beer,” she said. “Or rye.”

He made a face.

“I have ginger ale too, if you want a mix.”

“I drank it on ice when you served it to me last time.”

She winked. “And you hated every sip. A bartender knows.”

He groaned. “Damn it. I was trying to impress you.”

“You impress me by having French fry races with my daughter. I don’t care what you drink.”

“Then a beer sounds great.”

She grabbed him a bottle from the ancient fridge, and he twisted off the cap while she poured herself a shot of rye, neat.

He held out the bottle. “To your first night in your new home.”

She smiled and clinked her glass against the bottleneck.

They drank together in companionable silence, exchanging warm, curious looks. Sizing each other up, maybe, although they’d already shared so much.

He knew Natasha better than any woman he’d ever been with—and there was still so much more to know.

When she shifted closer, bumping against him, he snagged the elastic holding in one of her braids and tugged it loose, then the other. She shook out her hair for him and leaned back against the counter.

He remembered something he’d wanted to ask her. “Hey, when you said your sister and brother-in-law judged you in the past…”

She held up her hand. “Well they didn’t. I just thought they did. Perception is a funny thing like that.”

“Got it.”

“It’s important to me that I don’t cast them in a bad light.”

“Of course.” He tipped his head to the side and looked at her carefully. “But I want you to know that everything you share…I like all of it. I find you endlessly fascinating and interesting. I want to hear more about your nomadic life and your adventures.”

“Nomadic. I like that description.”

“Is it accurate? That’s what it sounds like to me.”

“Yeah. For years, I left most of my stuff at my parents’ place, and had a bag or two in the back of my Jeep. I’ve put so many kilometres on that thing—I had the engine replaced just before I found out I was pregnant with Emily. It was like having a whole new car again.”

“Where did you go?”

“Up north to Elliot Lake and the Sault. South to Toronto. Wherever the wind would take me.”

“For work?”

She made a face. “For David, more often than not.”

“Ah. And that fuelled some of the tension with your sister?”

“They never liked him. Never understood…”

“What you saw in him?”

She nodded. “Yep, pretty much. David is…slick. Now I see that, but before…he had a certain appeal right up until the moment he very much didn’t. In hindsight, he was a mess. I didn’t see it when we were together, because he wore a good mask. But as soon as I found out I was pregnant, suddenly it was like I could see him for who he really was.” She shook her head. “And I think there are reasons there, you know? Why he copes with life in such dysfunctional ways.” She gave him a bright smile, a little bit forced. “Anyway, none of this is about him. That’s just why I have some trust issues, and why my sister and brother-in-law are so protective. But you’re nothing like him. You’re more like me, I think. Wary but pragmatic.”

Matt wasn’t sure he was quite worthy of that assessment. But Jesus Christ, he didn’t want to be anything like her ex, either. He made a private vow that he wouldn’t let his own struggles impact her. He wouldn’t wallow in them, wouldn’t let them consume this wonderful friendship he’d discovered.

“Pragmatic,” he said slowly. “Yeah, that’s the goal. Hey…” He took a deep breath. “Since you live closer now, and I’m going to be obnoxious in my regular visits, how would you feel about me telling Jake about our friendship?”

She looked at him, not blinking, for agonizingly long seconds. Then she nodded. “I guess it’s time.”

“You sure? Because—”

She cut him off with her mouth, both of their drinks clumsily landing on the counter beside him. She tasted like whiskey and fire and sweet, victorious pride.

They kissed until they were both breathless, and then she hugged him.

Simple, long, hard.

“I’m sure,” she whispered in his ear.

He wanted to pick her up and carry her upstairs, but tonight was her night to celebrate her independence. Her motherhood and her dreams.

“I should go,” he whispered back.

“You’ll be back soon?” She looked up at him, her face soft and shining and beautiful.

Damn fucking straight.

“Wild horses couldn’t keep me away.” He leaned in and tasted her pride one more time. “I’m so impressed, Tasha. With this house, and your fierce mama bear routine, and all of your dreams. Every bit of you impresses me, and I want more.”

He just hoped that he could live up to being what she deserved.