blended family, separate expectations; When her marriage fell apart, Maggie McGuane found romance with a firefighter.

Byline: Maggie Mcguane

In the early, most vitriolic stages of my divorce, when it felt as if the life I'd built with my husband of nearly a decade was burning to the ground and I was desperately in need of rescuing, I walked into the local steakhouse and met a fireman.

Chris sat at the front of the restaurant, bottle of beer in hand, laughing and catching up with everyone passing, like the town mayor. He smiled easily, and his face was freshly freckled, as though he'd just come inside from a hike or bike ride or run, which in fact he had. I was immediately drawn to his affable nature, and it was not long before we began seeing each other.

A ...