Cabin Fever With My First Flame (Sweet Christmas Kisses)

4. Finn

Chapter four

Finn

Chief Zimmerman was a Lieutenant in the fire department when I was a junior firefighter and has been a friend and mentor to me for two decades. He was there for me when my best friend, Daniel, dropped the bomb that he and Bailey were dating and had been getting together behind my back for the entirety of my senior year.

I turn the volume down on the radio and step into the other room. “I don’t have a choice, Chief. It’s not safe to travel, and they have nowhere else to go. You always go on and on, preaching about learning from our mistakes. I’ve taken that to heart and don’t intend to make the same one twice.”

“Is Bailey home for the holidays or for good? I heard through the grapevine that she and Daniel got a divorce. I never liked him much,” he says with mild disdain.

I purse my lips in frustration. “How did you hear about that? I figured if the gossip were going to get around town, it would have made its way to me first.” There are pros and cons to living in a small town. The pro is that everyone knows your name and will support you in every way. The con is that everyone knows your name, and they aren’t afraid to get all up in your business.

I can hear the smile in Zimmerman’s voice when he says, “Barb told Joan, who told Alice, who then told Nancy. Nancy told her husband, Bart, who then told me. It’s bad enough getting information third-hand. When you’re the seventh in line to hear the news, it’s bound to be skewed.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose while simultaneously hitting the talk key. “It’s messed up, that’s for sure. However, I can validate that the information is, in fact, correct. Bailey and Daniel got a divorce, and she was driving a food truck, not a car or rental. I’m going out on a limb and saying that she’s either home for good or at least planning on staying in one of the local towns. Maybe Ticonderoga?”

“So, Bailey is single, and you’re single, trapped in a cabin together for the next few days. Be careful, Buddy. Don’t let her beautiful blue eyes ensnare you again,” he warns and then amends, “Unless you want to get ensnared. Then go for it and know that I’m rooting for you.”

I’m not about to tell him it’s her lips that have always enticed me. “You don’t have to worry about us. There are six kids in the house, which guarantees that there wouldn’t be any privacy.”

Zimmerman grunts a reply. “Yeah, right. If people can find a way to make out on an airplane with 300 other people, you guys can find a way to be alone.”

I growl low and dangerous. “You know me better than that. I’m not that type of guy.”

“I know you aren’t, and I wasn’t trying to imply that you are, Finn. All I meant was that the two of you can find some time alone to work some stuff out. If you’re going to be living in the same town, it’s better to get some things straightened out. I recommend doing it sooner rather than later.”

“You guys realize you’re speaking on an open channel, right?” Bryce asks. He’s a royal pain in my rear end and is still good friends with Daniel. “You should stay as far away from Bailey as possible, Finn. She’s bad news and will only hurt you in the end. She did it before. She’ll do it again.”

“Thanks for the advice. Hollister out.”

“Hollister!” Bryce yells over the radio. He has more to say, but I’m in no mood to listen.

I ignore Bryce. “Zimmerman, I’m changing frequencies. You know which channel to reach me on if there’s another emergency. I’m supposed to be on leave and spending time with the boys.”

“Copy, Hollister. Zimmerman out.”

I change the channel to a preset frequency that we should have been using in the first place. I have been so focused on the conversation with the chief that I managed to tune out the screaming filtering in from the living room. When I enter, my mouth drops open, and my eyes bulge when Mia swan dives over the back of the couch and lands on top of Isaac, rubbing her sock in his face.

“Mia, that’s enough! Get off him right now!” Bailey shouts.

Micah and Ella are bent over laughing, doing nothing to help Bailey gain control of the situation. I don’t know what to do, so I stand back and watch. I’ll run into a burning building without fear, but pit me against six kids, and I’m out of my depth.

“Isaac started it when he sat on Ava and tooted! He’s lucky I didn’t have ice cream, or otherwise, it wouldn’t be a sock in his face!” Mia shouts, still rubbing her dirty footwear up Isaac’s nostrils.

Bailey marches over to the sofa and plucks the sock from Mia’s grasp, picking up Mia in the process and separating the two delinquents. Isaac points at Ava, who is red-faced and has tears streaming down her face. “She…She…” he stutters as he prepares to lay blame, realizing that his joke wasn’t as funny as he intended.

Isaac walks over to Ava and gives her a hug. Without being told, he apologizes. “I’m sorry.”

Ava sniffles and hiccups. “It’s all… hiccup …all right.” Then, she surprises me by returning Isaac’s embrace. When she turns away from him, she lifts her leg and lets one rip. The rest of the room absolutely loses it while Bailey shakes her head in dismay.

Bailey starts collecting the couch cushions strewn about the living room, placing them back in their proper spot. When she notices my arrival, her shoulders sag, and she plops down on the sofa. “Finn, I promise you that I have taught my girls to behave better than that. We’ll be out of your hair as soon as the storm passes.”

I sit on the plush recliner. “It’s not a problem, Bailey. The new arrangements will just take a little getting used to. On the plus side, the kids don’t seem to have a problem communicating, and your daughters can certainly hold their own.”

Bailey cringes. “I’ve always taught them to stand up for themselves and for others, but I never taught them to use chemical warfare as a form of self-defense.” She waves her hand in front of her face. “That’s all Daniel.”

The kids have calmed down and have glued themselves in front of the video game console; this time, it’s Mia and Ava against Isaac and Jonah. Micah begins hauling the boxes of Christmas decorations out while Ella takes the seat next to her mom. “Don’t let her fool you, Finn. My mom taught us everything we know.”

Bailey blushes but doesn’t refute Ella’s statement. I’ve known Bailey for a long time, and although she can be dainty and sweet, she also grew up with her two older brothers, Baxter and Bennett, who now live in Texas. She knows how to fight dirty.

“I’m going to get started on dinner,” I say. “I had planned to make tacos. Does that work for you?”

Bailey nods, and Ella grins while elbowing her mother. “Mom loves tacos. She makes the best homemade tortillas, and her salsa is out of this world!”

I hook a thumb over my shoulder in the direction of the kitchen. “The tortillas are in a bag, and the hard shells are in a box. The salsa is from a jar, the cheese is from a resealable container, and the bag of lettuce is pre-shredded. The meat is ground beef that I have to cook, but I use a packet of seasonings that are pre-mixed and cost $1.19 from the store.”

Bailey stands up and straightens the sofa cushions. “I can help in the kitchen if you need me to.”

Before I can answer, Micah drops the set of lights he’s untangling, and his eyes become haunted as they meet Bailey’s. “Aren’t we going to start decorating?”

Bailey immediately realizes her mistake and doesn’t hesitate. “Absolutely, Micah. I’d love nothing more. Why don’t we get started?”

Micah smiles and hands Bailey and Ella each a set of lights. They spend the next hour working together to untangle and hang them while I get dinner prepared. The other children have set out figurines, wreaths, and garlands all over the living room and foyer. My inner clean freak is having a meltdown at the mess, especially since it looks like a bomb detonated in the middle of the room. It’s only the smiles and laughter from the kids that keep the “tidy monster” from emerging.

“Dinner’s ready!” I shout over the loud Christmas music Bailey has blaring through the speakers. We’re fortunate that there’s anything to eat at all after I almost burned the beef after getting lost in the way Bailey’s hips swayed to the music. It was only Micah’s goofy grin when he caught me staring that stopped me from ogling Bailey any further. Thankfully, he’s the only one who noticed, but I’m sure I’ll hear about it later.

Ava jumps up and down, bursting with excitement. “Yay for tacos!” she yells as she barrels into my legs and latches on like a leech. “Thank you, Finn! I’m so hungry I could eat a horse!”

I pick her up and point to the fixings. “Well, all I have is cow. Do you want a hard shell or a soft one?”

Ava pinches her chin, and her tongue pokes out of the side of her mouth as she thinks long and hard about the life-altering decision. “Can I have one of each?”

I grab a paper plate and make her two tacos, but I’m not entirely sure that both will fit in her tiny tummy. After all six kids load up their plates, it’s Bailey’s turn. She makes only two tacos for herself, but I know that she can put away three, if not four. At least, she used to.

“There’s plenty to go around. I’m used to preparing meals for an army,” I tease. “I usually have to feed ten or more guys at one time when it’s my turn to cook at the station.”

Bailey smiles hesitantly at me. “Ava might manage to eat one taco before she’s full. If she finishes both, I’ll be amazed. It’s not out of the realm of possibility considering how much she’s been running around, but I’m saving room to eat her leftovers so that nothing goes to waste.”

“It’s just a taco, Bailey. If it ends up in the trash, it’s no big deal. Fix what you want,” I tell her.

She shakes her head and whispers, “Daniel wouldn’t let the family leave the table until every morsel was cleared. If it was served, it was eaten—end of story. We could always go back for seconds if we wanted, but if we put it on our plate, we had to eat it. He always spouted the phrase, ‘If you dish it, you eat it.’”

I growl in frustration and step into Bailey’s personal space, just shy of our bodies touching. I whisper back, “Bailey, you’re not with Daniel anymore. It’s time for you to start living again and doing what’s best for you and the girls.”

She takes a step around me and heads toward the dining room. Just before she turns the corner, she stops and faces me. “I promise I’m trying my best to pick up the pieces of my life and move on, Finn, but it’s really none of your concern. I’m a big girl, and like you, I’ve learned from my mistakes. I, too, never plan on making the same one twice.”