Her mom was definitely struggling with her daughter not being around as much, but Cait was doing her best to try to balance her family’s needs with her own. It wasn’t easy, but it was worth it.
“I need food, but I don’t know if I can get to the fridge,” Gavin mumbled against her hair.
“I thought firefighters were tough.”
“I was tough enough to get through my shift. It was the sex this morning that wiped me out. Also, if I’m starving, I think you have to provide me with food for my medical well-being. It’s literally your job.”
“No, my job is literally to keep you alive until we hand you over to the ER staff.” She decided to switch tactics. “A gentleman would get food for his lady.”
When he groaned, she knew she was winning. “Oh, you play dirty, ma’am. What do you want?”
“Something that doesn’t require too much effort to eat.”
She had to move to let him up—which he did with a melodramatic amount of groaning—and then she flopped over on the couch to await his return.
They’d both been on yesterday—with Cait taking a later shift than usual—for the utter chaos that was St. Patrick’s Day in Boston. There were a few days every year in the city that meant nonstop running for all the first responders, but St. Paddy definitely brought the most drunken idiots.
They’d crashed for a few hours, and then woken up and made love. Now they were just killing time until they could take a nap.
When Gavin returned with two bananas, she laughed. “I could probably have managed alittlemore effort.”
“Potassium. It might give us the strength to make a real meal.”
She sat upright until he was settled again and then leaned against his shoulder while they ate their bananas and watched guys with guns spout corny one-liners on the TV. Once they’d tossed the peels onto the coffee table, she snuggled back into her comfy spot against his chest.
When he kissed the top of her head, she smiled.
“We don’t usually talk about work much,” he said, “but I’ve been wondering something. Are you happy being an EMT?”
She didn’t even have to think about it. “Yes. Are you happy being a firefighter?”
“I can’t imagine doing anything else. During the summer I do some landscaping with a buddy of mine on my off days and I enjoy that, but I hope to retire from fire service when I’m an old man. But, you know, eventually I’ll start trying to test up the rank ladder so I can get a cushy desk job someday.”
“People often assume I want to go to nursing school or try to become a paramedic,” she said. “I’ve thought about it but, honestly, it’s a lot of time and money, and I actuallylovewhat I do now. Yes, being a paramedic would make me more helpful in the field, I guess, but there’s always a need for EMTs, too.”
“I think that’s awesome, Cait. It’s good to not only love your job, but to be able to resist pressure to do more if you don’t want to. EMTs are invaluable.”
“Thank you. Firefighters are pretty awesome, too.” She smiled, and then felt his chest heave under her as he took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“What about a family? Do you hope to have kids someday?”
It would have come off as a casual question if she hadn’t felt him take that bracing breath before he asked it. The answer mattered to him. And that might mean he was starting to think long-term when it came to their relationship. They’d been together almost two months, so it was definitely serious, but talking about kids wasverylong-term.
So she gave him an honest answer. “Someday, probably. I can’t even think about starting a family while mine’s still a mess. What about you?”
“I definitely want kids. And you can’t put your life on hold forever, you know. It seems like the longer you’re a crutch for your mother, the more she’s going to get used to leaning on you.”
It was Cait’s turn to take a deep breath, not wanting to mar their day by snapping at him. “I’m not her crutch. I’m her daughter. And she’s getting stronger. I’ve been spending a lot of time with you, even spending the night, and they’re fine. And she and Carter are communicating a lot better.”
He stroked her arm, his fingertip running from her elbow to her shoulder and back again. “But they’re still a factor in your future hopes and plans.”
“It’s not so much them as the timing, I guess. By the time I find a place of my own and get settled—while still checking in to make sure they’re doing okay—it’ll be a while. I’m not saying ten years. I just want the ducks I have to be in a row before I start adding more ducks.”
“Quack.”
“Not you.” She elbowed him. “I meant baby ducks.”
He chuckled. “So I’m already considered part of your pond of unruly ducks?”
