Page 100 of The Reason I Married Him
Aubree:What do you mean by that?
Wyatt:Well, if they read my book and my words don’t elicit any sort of emotion, good or bad, then I didn’t do my job. I didn’t captivate them. But if they read my book and they rain over me with praise and love for a job well done, or one-star me because they were pissed about a choice I made as an author, I’m happy because guess what? I made them feel something.
Aubree:You like one-star reviews?
Wyatt:I mean, no. I could do without them, but I read them because sometimes they go on and on about how I should have done something differently, that they’re mad a character ended up dead, or I didn’t write the love story they expected in the end. Sure, it sucks having to see people not like the end product, but I still pat myself on the back because I was able to make them think, feel, and escape into a world where they could immerse themselves so deep into a storyline, that they have their own opinion on how it should have worked out.
Aubree:I see what you’re getting at. Yeah, I’ve read books I haven’t been happy with, but it was because I was so involved in the story. If I didn’t care about the story, then I probably wouldn’t have developed an opinion. I would have just . . . forgotten about it.
Wyatt:I’d rather have a reader be mad at me for not writing the story they pictured in their head, than forget about the words that I wrote.
Aubree:So if I told you I completely forgot about what The Maid in 5B is all about, you’d be pissed?
Wyatt:You’re bluffing, no way you forgot about that plot. That plot still lives in the soul of everyone who’s read it. Don’t fuck with me, Aubree.
Aubree:LOL. Sensitive much?
Wyatt:With The Maid in 5B, yes. I put my entire soul into that book.
Aubree:You could tell. One of your best.
Wyatt:Wait . . . hold on, was that . . . was that a compliment? I’m screenshotting this and printing it out. My wife, Mrs. Preston, she complimented me! Huzzah!
Aubree:And now I take everything I said back.
Wyatt:Can’t, you already put it out there in the universe. Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to give you a signed copy as a wedding gift. I know it will be your most treasured possession.
Aubree:And I’m going now. Bye.
Wyatt:See you later . . . wife.
I lookup into the rearview mirror of my parked truck and wipe under my eyes. Fresh from the shower, hair still wet, I drove into town to pick up Hattie because Hayes was meeting her at thefarmhouse, and she needed a ride. Plus, I wanted to check out the space in The Almond Store to see where we can move things around.
Good to go, I hop out of my truck and head toward The Almond Store wearing a simple sundress with a built-in bra, one of the comfortable outfits I like to wear after a long day out on the farm.
The bell above me rings when I open the door to the store and find Hattie by the register closing up.
“Hey,” I say when she looks up.
“Hey, almost done here, and I’ll be ready to leave.”
“No rush. I wanted to check out the store to see where we can add a cooler and a honey spot.”
“Oh, I was thinking over there on the right. The cookbooks need to go. They are the worst sellers by far. I know Cassidy had good intentions with them, but there are like two recipes that include almond extract, so they’re pointless for us to sell. They focus more on actual almonds than the extract when we’re trying to sell the extract. They have to go.”
I walk over to where the cookbooks are, and she’s right. Some of them look bleached by the sun.
“I sold one of these to Hayes when he was trying to get back into your good graces.”
“Yeah, that was the only one that was sold in like a year. And he doesn’t use it.”
“That doesn’t shock me.” I lift one of the books and flip through it, a collection of dust particles flying up at me. “What will you do with them if you don’t sell them?”
“Donate to the library. What you see is all that’s left in stock. So we can easily just donate what’s left and be done with them. It opens up the space there, and we can start talking about how you want to set up the honey station.”
“It’s perfect,” I say. “Might have to build some new shelves, though.”
“I can have Hayes help me. Just let me know whatever you and Echo need, and we can make it happen.”
