CHAPTER 72 — “Mornings Like This”

Sophie’s POV

I woke up to the faint smell of pine and sunlight warming my face.

The cabin was quiet—soft, peaceful, the kind of quiet that only exists in the mountains. No sirens. No cars. No echoes of danger. Just birdsong and the gentle creak of wood settling.

Lucian’s arm was draped across my waist, holding me close even in sleep. His breath brushed the back of my neck, steady and warm. For a moment, I didn’t move. I simply let myself feel him—the solidity of him, the warmth, the quiet love that lived in the way he held me without thinking.

He murmured something against my shoulder and pulled me closer.

I smiled.

“You awake?” I whispered.

His voice was hoarse with sleep. “Barely.”

I turned in his arms, facing him. His eyes cracked open, still heavy, still soft.

“Stay,” he whispered.

“We have three children. And three grown men who will probably start a war over breakfast.”

Lucian sighed, kissing my forehead. “Five minutes.”

I let myself melt into him for five minutes more, listening to the birds, feeling the rise and fall of his breathing.

Then—

A loud scream echoed upstairs.

I jolted upright.

Lucian groaned into the pillow. “That’s Cassian. That was definitely an adult scream.”

I laughed. Loudly.

We reached the loft ladder to find Cassian standing at the top step, frozen, pointing an accusing finger toward the girls.

“They… they ambushed me,” he said dramatically.

Aria stood with her hands on her hips. “Uncle Cass tried to steal the blankets.”

Arian added, “And he stepped on my stuffed bear!”

Arianna glared with narrowed eyes. “He needs to go to jail.”

Cassian gasped. “Jail? For stepping on Mr. Puffington? It was ACCIDENTAL.”

Lucian crossed his arms. “Cassian…”

Cassian pointed at him. “Don’t parent me. I’m innocent.”

Arian stomped her tiny foot. “He’s GUILTY!”

Adrian appeared behind Cassian silently, which made Cass jump six inches.

Adrian deadpanned, “I saw the whole thing. He’s guilty.”

“TRAITOR!” Cassian cried.

I covered my mouth, laughing. “Cass, they’re five and six. Just let them win.”

Cass pressed his hand over his heart. “Never. I have dignity.”

Arianna held up a prison of pillows. “Uncle Cass must go to time-out.”

Cassian groaned. “This family is out of control.”

Lucian whispered to me, “It begins.”

I nodded, lowering my voice. “May God help us all.”

Eventually, Cassian was sentenced to a dramatic three-minute time-out in the beanbag chair.

He served it with the solemn dignity of a man being marched to the gallows.

The kitchen was a flurry of movement.

Lucian made pancakes.

Cassian (freed from time-out) made scrambled eggs.

Adrian cut fruit with surgical precision.

My father brewed coffee like a man preparing for battle.

The girls danced around the kitchen singing something that sounded halfway between a pop song and a pirate chant.

I leaned against the counter, taking it all in with a full heart.

“They’re loud today,” I said.

My father smiled into his mug. “It’s a good loud.”

Adrian nodded in agreement. “Better than silence.”

Cassian flipped an egg onto the floor.

Arian screamed. “UNCLE CASS DROPPED AN EGG!”

Lucian didn’t look up. “I’m not surprised.”

Cassian held up the spatula. “It LEAPED.”

“It didn’t,” Adrian muttered.

“It leapt with intent,” Cassian insisted.

I nearly snorted.

Breakfast was a beautiful mess—sticky syrup, falling berries, Cassian arguing with a six-year-old over who got the last pancake (“It’s about principle!”), Adrian quietly sliding fruit onto my plate, Lucian watching all of us with the softest gaze…

My father suddenly looked younger in this kitchen.

Lighter.

More like the man he could have been if life had been gentler.

I touched his arm. “You okay?”

He nodded slowly. “I’m… happy.”

My chest warmed.

“Good,” I whispered. “You deserve that.”

Mid-morning sunlight shimmered off the lake like a thousand silver coins scattered across the water.

The girls gasped.

Cassian whistled.

Adrian crossed his arms like he was surveying tactical terrain.

Lucian brushed his hand along my back.

My father inhaled deeply, closing his eyes as if memorizing the air.

The lake was surrounded by tall pines, the water so clear we could see fish darting along the shallows.

“You ever skip stones?” Cassian asked the girls.

They shook their heads.

Cass crouched down, picked up a small flat rock, and tossed it across the water.

It skipped four times.

Arian shrieked.

Arianna clapped.

Aria asked if she could throw an entire log.

Cassian said, “No,” very, very quickly.

Lucian chuckled. “Let’s stick to stones, sweetheart.”

The girls each took turns, Cass guiding their hands.

Aria got two skips.

Arian got one big splash.

Arianna accidentally threw hers backward, and Adrian caught it without blinking.

Cassian cheered like they had won a championship.

Lucian stood beside me, watching with pride.

“They’re naturals,” I said.

“They get it from you,” he replied.

I gave him a look. “Skipping stones is genetic?”

“Everything is genetic.”

I nudged him. “You’re ridiculous.”

He slid an arm around my waist. “But you love me.”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

He laughed softly, kissing the top of my head.

After stone-skipping, Adrian knelt near the edge of the water.

“There are footprints,” he said.

The girls all gasped dramatically and rushed over.

Adrian pointed at the sandy soil. “See? These are deer tracks.”

Aria crouched. “Do the deer live here?”

“Yes,” he said.

Arianna whispered, “Are they friendly?”

“They avoid humans,” Adrian explained. “But they’re harmless.”

Arian studied the footprints. “Can we see one?”

“Maybe if we’re quiet,” he said.

Cassian nodded sagely. “We are never quiet.”

Adrian sighed. “I know.”

The girls giggled.

Still, they followed Adrian around the lakeshore, hanging onto every word.

He showed them:

How to tell deer prints from raccoon prints

Which direction they were moving

How deep footprints mean the animal paused

The girls adored him.

And I watched, a little stunned at how gentle he was with them. How patient. How soft.

Lucian leaned beside me. “He acts like he doesn’t care. But they’re his weakness.”

“He’s good with them,” I said.

“He would die for them,” Lucian replied quietly. “Without hesitation.”

I looked at Adrian again.

I believed him.

We returned to the cabin hungry, sun-warmed, and exhilarated.

Lunch was simple:

Cold sandwiches

Chips

Fruit

Lemonade

And cookies the girls “helped” Cassian bake

Cass handed me a cookie proudly. “Aria added the chocolate chips. Arianna taste-tested. Arian oversaw quality control.”

“I ate the dough,” Arian announced proudly.

Lucian groaned. “Of course you did.”

The deck was warm under our feet.

Mountains stretched endlessly around us.

The air tasted like citrus and sunlight.

My father sat beside the girls, listening to their rambling stories about:

Deer detectives

Stone-skipping world championships

A stick that looked like a dragon

How Cassian almost fell in the water (“I didn’t!” — “You DID!”)

Dad laughed so hard he wiped his eyes.

I leaned back into Lucian’s lap, letting him wrap his arms around me.

“You look relaxed,” he murmured.

“I feel relaxed.”

He kissed my temple. “Good.”

I looked out over the mountains.

“This… this feels like the life we fought for.”

Lucian squeezed my waist gently. “It is.”

After lunch, the girls lay on the deck, staring up at the sky.

Aria pointed. “That cloud looks like a rabbit.”

“That one looks like Uncle Cass falling in the lake,” Arian said.

Cassian gasped. “I did NOT fall in the lake!”

Arianna giggled. “Yes you did.”

Cassian held his heart. “You three are going to destroy my reputation.”

“What reputation?” Adrian murmured.

Cass threw a chip at him.

The girls giggled so hard they rolled onto their sides.

I couldn’t stop smiling.

Eventually, the warm sun lulled everyone into a quiet hush.

Aria’s breathing deepened.

Arian’s hand slipped into mine.

Arianna curled up between her sisters.

Lucian whispered, “They’re asleep.”

“Finally,” Cassian sighed.

Adrian lay back on the deck, closing his eyes.

My father dozed in his chair.

Lucian rested his chin on my shoulder, arms around me.

I kissed his forearm gently.

“I love you,” I whispered.

He inhaled softly, kissing my neck. “I love you too.”

The afternoon drifted slowly, like honey in warm tea.

Soft.

Sweet.

Peaceful.

As the sun dipped behind the mountains, the golden light wrapped around the cabin like a blessing.

Dad joined me at the railing quietly.

“I’ve never seen them this happy,” he murmured.

“Me either.”

He swallowed. “Thank you… for letting me be here.”

I leaned my head on his shoulder. “You’re their grandfather. They adore you.”

He let out a shaky breath.

“I’m trying, Sophie.”

“I know,” I whispered.

“And I’ll never run again.”

I squeezed his hand. “Good.”

He kissed the top of my head, something he hadn’t done since I was a child.

“We’re healing,” he said.

“We are.”

Lucian came up behind me, wrapping me gently in his arms.

My father stepped aside with a smile.

And as the sky turned violet and the scent of pine filled the air…

For the first time in my life, I felt truly whole.