His uncle chuckled as he closed the lid on the grill, placed the tongs on one of the side shelves, and turned to face Ridge. “I’m not sure how I did it either, to be honest. It probably explains that separation from Amy when I was a stupid kid in my twenties. Thank goodness she is one of the most understanding and remarkable women I know.”
“Aunt Amy is one of a kind.”
“That she is, son. Actually, now that I’m getting up there in age, I’m not sure I’m cut out for this much longer.”
Alarm resounded in Ridge’s chest. His uncle wasn’t old. He still saw him as the young and fun man who taught Ridge how to fight his first fire and properly aim and shoot a gun.
“Cut out for what exactly?”
His uncle sighed as he turned his attention to the paver stone patio. That was the moment Ridge noticed the lines of age taking their toll on Joseph’s tanned skin.
“Now, you can’t go telling anyone yet, but I’m thinking of retiring. Amy and I want to travel while we’re still young enough to enjoy it.”
Envy. That’s what Ridge felt when he thought about the love Joseph and Amy shared. His uncle and aunt had been one of those fortunate couples that found each other young and still enjoyed their time together, despite some hardships. Hell, his cousins had found their happily ever after too. Somehow he must have missed that gene.
“Well, I think it’s time if you’re ready. I’ll miss seeing you around the fire station, of course. Is there someone you’re hoping to groom into the position? I know It can’t take a while for the adjustment period.”
“It’s interesting that you say that, Ridge. You’ve been in the field for about as long as anyone else I have working for me. I was thinking that it was a position that you may be curious about taking.”
“Me?” Ridge was surprised at the suggestion. The last time his uncle had been on the scene with him, Ridge had frozen in his boots as the flames ate away at the building's timber.
“You’re a natural-born leader, Ridge, and you have a good head on your shoulders. I think you’d surprise yourself if you let yourself consider the position.”
“I, well, I don’t know what to say.”
“You have time to think about it. I haven’t made an official announcement or anything, plus it would take a good year or so to transition.”
“Well, you’ve given me a lot to think about. That’s for sure.”
“It’s no pressure, son. I know that you have a family and you’re still young. There is no obligation as family to take over for me.”
Joseph stepped away from the grill, placing his hand on Ridge’s shoulder, gripping the flesh and bone in a way that implied understanding. Ridge watched his uncle walk over to the playground where his grandchildren immediately assaulted him as they found him more exciting than the jungle gym.
Ridge’s attention traveled to where his daughter crawled from the sandbox to join her cousins. She wobbled as she walked, but her smile entranced him. She was the reason for his hesitation. He already felt that he had so little time with her, and taking the fire chief position would mean even more hours and on-call. But on the other hand, he would have more stability in the long term and a hefty pay increase to boot.
He had some serious thinking to do, but for now, he planned to enjoy the rest of his afternoon with his family – the reason he made the move in the first place.
***
Every time River left Delilah and Ridge in the mornings, she felt as if she was leaving a piece of herself behind. With each passing day, she was losing her heart further and further to them, though she fought against it tooth and nail.
She had thought she had been successful at ignoring the attraction between her and Ridge, but he had shocked her silly when he asked her on a date.
As she drove toward her grandmother’s facility, River had to remind herself that she was overreacting. He hadn’t technically called it a date. He simply asked her to dinner. She was torn between wanting the request to be a date and to be just two friends eating dinner together like they did most nights.
His friendship meant more to her than any other relationship she had ever had. River enjoyed her time with him and Delilah, even when it was doing nothing more than eating a bowl of cereal in the morning or meeting in the middle of the street exchanging mail that had been placed in the wrong mailbox. An occurrence that happened far too frequently, but she secretly enjoyed their mini meet-ups. She actually had a few envelopes at her place she needed to give him that had no return address.
What would she do if she decided to go to dinner with Ridge and things didn’t work out? He and his daughter were her favorite parts of the day. Honestly, she had already lost her heart to the little girl and Ridge wasn’t far behind.
The assisted living facility sign came into view and River’s heart lodged in her throat for an entirely different reason. Since dropping her grandmother off a little over two weeks ago, River hadn’t been able to visit, per their request to allow their patient’s time to transition. River understood, but that didn’t mean she liked it. There was a good chance that her Grandma Sue wouldn’t recognize her at all, especially if she was having a bad day. And if she was having a good day, she may get upset that River had left her in an unfamiliar place. Either way, it wasn’t looking good for River.
As River entered the facility, she recognized Mark, the same nurse who helped move her grandmother into the center.
“Ms. Mathews, good to see you. I’m glad you were able to make it in today.”
“Thanks, Mark,” she greeted in return. River was afraid to ask but took a deep breath and said, “How is she today?”
“She’s doing really well. We’re seeing more good days than bad, which is always a good thing.”