CHAPTER 73 — “The Mountain Day”

The next morning greeted us with a sky so blue it almost didn’t look real.

Sunlight filtered through the tall pines surrounding the cabin, reflecting off dew-damp ground and filling the world with a fresh, earthy scent. The girls were already awake, their excited whispers ricocheting down the hallway.

Aria: “Mommy said we’re going hiking today.”

Arian: “We’re gonna find a baby deer.”

Arianna: “We’re gonna catch a baby deer.”

Cassian: “WE ARE DOING NO SUCH THING.”

His voice cracked a little.

The girls giggled.

I stretched, feeling that pleasant, warm ache of having slept deeply. Lucian stirred beside me, his fingers finding mine under the blankets.

“Morning,” he murmured.

I smiled. “Morning.”

He pulled me in for a lazy kiss, slow and soft.

I melted.

He smirked.

I pushed his shoulder lightly. “The kids are awake.”

He groaned. “Tragic.”

I kissed him again, just to torture him a little. “Come on. If we don’t get moving, Cass will have a meltdown before breakfast.”

Lucian sighed dramatically. “Then we should hurry. No one deserves that.”

Breakfast was pancakes again because the girls demanded it.

Cassian groaned when he heard. “I’m going to turn into a pancake. I’ll be flat.”

“You’re already flat,” Arian said.

Cass gasped. “EXCUSE ME?”

Arian shrugged. “Mommy says grownups flatten when they get older.”

I slapped a hand over my mouth. “I said TIRED. I said grownups get TIRED.”

Arian blinked. “Ohhhh.”

Cassian pointed at me accusingly. “Slander.”

Adrian sipped his coffee without looking up. “You brought this on yourself.”

Lucian simply flipped another pancake, unbothered. “He does get flat.”

“I DO NOT—”

Aria stuck a blueberry up her nose.

“No—!” I lunged.

Adrian gently removed it, absolutely unfazed. “Not like that.”

Arianna clapped. “Uncle Adrian saved her nose!”

Cassian whispered loudly, “I would’ve let it stay. Natural consequences.”

Lucian didn’t even glance up. “No, you wouldn’t.”

Cass lowered his voice. “No… I wouldn’t.”

We laughed through the whole meal.

It felt like family.

Messy, loud, chaotic family.

My heart felt full.

The trailhead wasn’t far from the cabin.

Pines rose tall on both sides, the air cool and crisp. The girls held new “explorer backpacks,” which were really just tiny bags with granola bars and miniature notebooks.

Cassian had bought them.

He puffed his chest. “They are adventurers. They need gear.”

Adrian murmured, “They don’t need a compass shaped like a unicorn.”

“Yes, they do.”

The girls agreed loudly.

My father walked beside Arianna, holding her hand. He looked peaceful—almost like he belonged in the woods. His shoulders weren’t tight anymore. His eyes weren’t haunted. He looked like a grandfather on a simple morning hike, nothing more.

The realization made my chest ache with joy.

Lucian walked at my side, his fingers brushing mine as we started up the trail.

“How far are we going?” I asked.

“Just until the lookout point,” he said. “The kids will love the view.”

“And Cass?” I teased.

Lucian smirked. “He’ll complain.”

Cassian, overhearing, said, “I do NOT complain—”

He tripped over a tree root.

Adrian caught him by the back of his jacket.

“…I complain a little,” Cass whispered.

I laughed.

Adrian quickly became the girls’ favorite hiking guide.

He pointed at different plants and taught them what they were:

“That one is wild mint. If you rub the leaves, it smells good.”

The girls all rubbed leaves.

Arian shouted, “IT SMELLS LIKE TOOTHPASTE!”

Adrian nodded. “Yes. Exactly.”

He pointed at a tree. “This one is a fir tree. Soft needles.”

Aria touched it. “It feels like a hedgehog.”

Adrian blinked. “Not… quite.”

Cassian: “She’s right. Very hedgehog vibes.”

Adrian ignored him.

At one point, Adrian crouched near the ground.

“Footprints,” he said.

All three girls gasped.

“IT’S THE BABY DEER,” Arianna whispered dramatically.

“What direction did it go in?” Aria asked.

Adrian smiled softly. “Let’s find out.”

He showed them:

how the mud was displaced

how the prints pointed

how the spacing indicated a small animal, not a large one

The girls followed the prints like tiny detectives.

Cassian whispered to me, “Adrian is showing off.”

“He’s not,” I said.

“Yes, he is,” Cass insisted. “He likes them. He’s showing off for the mini-humans.”

Lucian nodded. “He’s soft.”

Adrian scowled halfheartedly. “I can hear all of you.”

Cass whistled innocently.

The girls adored Adrian more with each passing minute.

My heart warmed at the sight.

Halfway up the trail, Arian pointed at a hollow log.

“There’s something inside!”

Cassian jumped backward. “NOPE.”

Adrian crouched and looked inside. “It’s empty. Only moss.”

Cass peeked. “Are you SURE? Very sure?”

“Cass,” Adrian said slowly, “I would not let you get eaten by moss.”

The girls giggled.

Arianna touched the moss gently. “It’s soft.”

“Like cake,” Aria said.

“No,” Arian argued. “Cake is NOT green.”

Cassian snapped his fingers. “Some cakes are green.”

The girls gasped in wonder.

Lucian pressed his fingers to his temples. “Cassian…”

“Matcha cake exists!” Cass protested. “I’m providing culturally enriched education.”

Adrian: “You’re confusing them.”

Cass: “Enriching. Not confusing.”

Aria climbed on a rock and shouted, “MATCHA CAKE IS GREEN!”

Lucian sighed. “Great. Now we have a battle cry.”

When we reached the lookout point, the forest opened into a breathtaking panoramic view.

Mountains layered on the horizon.

The lake sparkled below.

Pines stretched endlessly into the distance.

The girls stood in awe.

“Wow…” Arianna breathed.

“It’s so big,” Aria whispered.

“It’s the whole world,” Arian said reverently.

Cassian wiped an imaginary tear. “They’re so dramatic. I’m proud.”

My father placed his hands on the railing, eyes shining. “This… this feels like heaven.”

I stood beside him, touching his arm gently. “You deserve beautiful things.”

He nodded, swallowing hard.

Lucian wrapped his arms around my waist from behind, chin resting on my shoulder.

“You good?” he whispered.

“I’m perfect.”

He kissed my cheek, warm and slow.

While the others took pictures with the girls, Lucian pulled me aside beneath a tall pine.

The quiet wrapped around us like a soft blanket.

“You look happy,” he murmured.

“I am happy.”

He brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, fingers lingering on my cheek.

“We built this,” he said softly. “All of us. Through hell. Through fear. Through everything.”

I leaned into his touch.

“And we’re still here,” I whispered.

He kissed me then—slow, deep, grounding.

A kiss that felt like home.

When we broke apart, his forehead rested against mine.

“I love you,” he breathed.

“I love you more.”

Cassian shouted from the lookout, “STOP MAKING OUT AND COME TAKE A PICTURE.”

Lucian groaned. “Never mind. I take it back. I don’t love him.”

I laughed so hard my ribs hurt.

Going downhill was chaos.

Cassian tripped four times.

Aria collected rocks and insisted every one of them was precious.

Arian tried to adopt a stick.

Arianna declared herself queen of the mountain.

Adrian gave the girls piggyback rides one by one.

My father told stories about me as a child, much to Lucian’s amusement.

“YOU did that?” Lucian asked, eyebrows raised.

“I was four,” I protested.

“You climbed the neighbor’s roof,” Dad clarified.

Lucian nearly choked laughing.

Cassian whispered to me, “This explains everything.”

I shoved him lightly. “Go trip again.”

He did. Immediately.

By the time we returned, the sun was dipping low.

I made hot chocolate.

Cassian burned the marshmallows.

Adrian roasted his perfectly.

Lucian stole mine and replaced it with his own.

My father read a story to the girls, his voice warm and steady.

They fell asleep on the couch, curled against him.

I watched the scene with my heart swelling so full it almost hurt.

Lucian came behind me, arms sliding around my waist.

“Good day?” he whispered.

“One of the best.”

He kissed the side of my head.

“We’ll make more,” he said softly. “As many as you want.”

I leaned into him.

And for the first time in my life…

I believed him fully.