Page 16
Story: Ferocious Mountain Man
I’d come here and set up this tent, hoping to catch a glimpse of the man everyone was talking about. I’d had no idea that by the time the sun rose the next day, I’d be well on my way to falling in love with him. But now that it had happened, I couldn’t imagine any other outcome.
The video may have drawn me here, but I’d stay. As it turned out, I was meant to be here all along.
EPILOGUE
RAFE
Grand opening.
I stopped to take a picture of the large banner hanging above my wife’s new store. I was standing in front of the small souvenir shop that had been part of Seduction Summit for as long as anyone could remember. Sahara’s new shop was across the street in a strip mall that included a café and a cabin rental office.
“Sketch and Sip Lodge,” I read aloud as I looked at the sign below the banner.
No one was around to overhear me talking to myself. No one, that was, except our eight-month-old, Ethan. Elana was our oldest, and she was at her grandmother’s house. After Sahara’s dad died, her mom moved up here to be closer to her grandkids, so we had a built-in babysitter for things like this. But Ethan was still nursing, so I’d strapped him on my back, and we’d be celebrating his mom’s grand opening together.
“Okay, come on,” I said as I saw Enzo’s truck approaching.
As he pulled into one of the street parking spaces, I looked both ways and rushed across the street. Enzo and Larsen were early too. I’d better get inside so I could give my wife a kissbefore our other friends started arriving. Hell, I might kiss her in front of God and everyone anyway, but I wanted a moment alone with her.
I found Sahara in the center of her new shop, holding the usual tumbler she carried around, which would be full of fruit-flavored water. Her back was to me.
“Yes, I’m here to see about taking a class,” I said.
She spun, her mouth spreading into a big smile when she saw me. That smile would only grow bigger once I turned around and she saw the happy face of our youngest.
“I booked my first bachelorette party,” she said, setting her tumbler down and coming toward us. “They’re from Wildwood Valley.”
Wildwood Valley was a small town just twenty minutes from Seduction Summit. But unlike our town, which had once been full of single mountain men with very few women, Wildwood Valley had a large share of young, single women and no eligible men. At least that was the rumor I’d heard.
That town had made national news when a matchmaker arrived to start her matchmaking service. They seemed to be coming up here regularly to get married or honeymoon or celebrate their anniversaries, so it was no surprise that one of Sahara’s first bookings was related to that.
“Yay!” I said in an overly enthusiastic voice.
I knew that would light up Ethan’s face. I gave my wife a kiss, then she went around the back to give Ethan some attention.
“I’m so proud of you, honey,” I said.
“Thank you.”
There was a weight to those two words, and I knew they meant much more than just a response to my congratulatory comment. She was constantly thanking me for supporting her, which seemed odd. I couldn’t help but be proud of my wifeand encourage her to follow her dreams. Her happiness meant everything to me. She was my world.
Running this paint-and-sip shop was Sahara’s dream come true. She still did plenty of writing—she’d written and published so many stories about this town, she’d pretty much made it famous. But being able to walk people through making artwork of their own had reenergized her. She woke up every morning, excited for what the rest of the year would bring.
“Enzo and Larsen are here,” I said.
And chances were the rest of our friends would follow. Not that we minded. Even though we appreciated every second of alone time we got, we both loved being around our friends.
“It’s so nice of the guys to support me,” she said, coming around to face me again. “It means a lot.”
“They’re your friends too,” I said.
And that was beyond the truth. All the wives were close, which was no surprise, considering they were around the same age. As much as I loved my alone time with my wife, I felt a surprising peace when we were all together. Our friends were family.
“Here comes the crowd,” I said, nodding toward the door.
I’d sensed movement behind her, and finally I’d dragged my gaze off her. We’d been married over a decade, but my desire for her hadn’t cooled in the slightest. It helped that before the kids came, we’d gotten plenty of alone time. We’d traveled, using my vacation time to hang out on tropical islands and see parts of America I’d never seen. Once the kids were a little older, we’d probably take a couple of vacations without them, just to get that one-on-one time we needed, but for now, I couldn’t wait to take family trips.
“I love you,” Sahara mouthed as the door opened and our rowdy friends came barreling through.
The video may have drawn me here, but I’d stay. As it turned out, I was meant to be here all along.
EPILOGUE
RAFE
Grand opening.
I stopped to take a picture of the large banner hanging above my wife’s new store. I was standing in front of the small souvenir shop that had been part of Seduction Summit for as long as anyone could remember. Sahara’s new shop was across the street in a strip mall that included a café and a cabin rental office.
“Sketch and Sip Lodge,” I read aloud as I looked at the sign below the banner.
No one was around to overhear me talking to myself. No one, that was, except our eight-month-old, Ethan. Elana was our oldest, and she was at her grandmother’s house. After Sahara’s dad died, her mom moved up here to be closer to her grandkids, so we had a built-in babysitter for things like this. But Ethan was still nursing, so I’d strapped him on my back, and we’d be celebrating his mom’s grand opening together.
“Okay, come on,” I said as I saw Enzo’s truck approaching.
As he pulled into one of the street parking spaces, I looked both ways and rushed across the street. Enzo and Larsen were early too. I’d better get inside so I could give my wife a kissbefore our other friends started arriving. Hell, I might kiss her in front of God and everyone anyway, but I wanted a moment alone with her.
I found Sahara in the center of her new shop, holding the usual tumbler she carried around, which would be full of fruit-flavored water. Her back was to me.
“Yes, I’m here to see about taking a class,” I said.
She spun, her mouth spreading into a big smile when she saw me. That smile would only grow bigger once I turned around and she saw the happy face of our youngest.
“I booked my first bachelorette party,” she said, setting her tumbler down and coming toward us. “They’re from Wildwood Valley.”
Wildwood Valley was a small town just twenty minutes from Seduction Summit. But unlike our town, which had once been full of single mountain men with very few women, Wildwood Valley had a large share of young, single women and no eligible men. At least that was the rumor I’d heard.
That town had made national news when a matchmaker arrived to start her matchmaking service. They seemed to be coming up here regularly to get married or honeymoon or celebrate their anniversaries, so it was no surprise that one of Sahara’s first bookings was related to that.
“Yay!” I said in an overly enthusiastic voice.
I knew that would light up Ethan’s face. I gave my wife a kiss, then she went around the back to give Ethan some attention.
“I’m so proud of you, honey,” I said.
“Thank you.”
There was a weight to those two words, and I knew they meant much more than just a response to my congratulatory comment. She was constantly thanking me for supporting her, which seemed odd. I couldn’t help but be proud of my wifeand encourage her to follow her dreams. Her happiness meant everything to me. She was my world.
Running this paint-and-sip shop was Sahara’s dream come true. She still did plenty of writing—she’d written and published so many stories about this town, she’d pretty much made it famous. But being able to walk people through making artwork of their own had reenergized her. She woke up every morning, excited for what the rest of the year would bring.
“Enzo and Larsen are here,” I said.
And chances were the rest of our friends would follow. Not that we minded. Even though we appreciated every second of alone time we got, we both loved being around our friends.
“It’s so nice of the guys to support me,” she said, coming around to face me again. “It means a lot.”
“They’re your friends too,” I said.
And that was beyond the truth. All the wives were close, which was no surprise, considering they were around the same age. As much as I loved my alone time with my wife, I felt a surprising peace when we were all together. Our friends were family.
“Here comes the crowd,” I said, nodding toward the door.
I’d sensed movement behind her, and finally I’d dragged my gaze off her. We’d been married over a decade, but my desire for her hadn’t cooled in the slightest. It helped that before the kids came, we’d gotten plenty of alone time. We’d traveled, using my vacation time to hang out on tropical islands and see parts of America I’d never seen. Once the kids were a little older, we’d probably take a couple of vacations without them, just to get that one-on-one time we needed, but for now, I couldn’t wait to take family trips.
“I love you,” Sahara mouthed as the door opened and our rowdy friends came barreling through.