Page 215 of The Reason I Married Him
“Ha!” I laugh. “Seriously?”
“Oh yeah, hated them. He wasn’t the greatest uncle in the world. My dad had a few choice words to say about him that I won’t share, but Grandpa didn’t want the cabin to be sold. He wanted it kept in the family, so they made a deal that the first grandkid to get married would inherit the cabin.”
“Did your grandpa’s brother ever visit the cabin?”
“Yup,” Wyatt answers as we make a right and head into town. He told me it was a short walk, and he was right. I can see some shops up ahead. “He would come up to the cabin and have smoking and drinking benders. Grandpa’s only requirements were no smoking his pipe in the house and no women. It was a family cabin, and he didn’t want his brother bringing over a parade of women. He was known for partying and having a voracious appetite for women.”
“Yet the things we’ve done in that cabin since we’ve arrived.”
Wyatt laughs. “We’re married, Aubree. That’s different. We’re allowed to do those things.”
“I hope so. I don’t want to taint your grandpa’s requests.”
We cross the street again, right into town. From what I can tell, the town centers around a large lake with the main street flowing around it, and businesses dotted all along the road. The town is a combination of western and mountain with log-like cabin buildings and saloon façades. It’s cute and whimsical. Everything I’d want in a mountain town.
“My grandpa would have loved you.”
“You think so?” I ask as we head toward the diner. Wyatt warned me that it’s chock-full of trolls.
Yes, you read that correctly, trolls. The owner apparently collects them and has used her diner to display them on every surface she can. As a bipartisan of troll collecting, I’m fascinated to see what this troll haven might look like.
“I know so,” Wyatt says. “He always wanted me to be with someone who was—as he put it—a bit spicy. Or in your case, a lot spicy. He wanted someone to challenge me, not fall in line with my day-to-day. He wanted someone who would push my buttons, make me think, and make me work to find peace. He never ever wanted anything handed to me, and baby, you were one hell of a hard catch to land.”
“Hence the bribery at the beginning. Your grandpa would have been proud,” I joke.
“He would have.”
When we arrive at the diner, Wyatt reaches for the door just as it pops open. He steps back, and I catch a smile cross his face right before he says, “Fallon, how are you?”
“Wyatt?” a stunning woman says, pulling him into a hug. “Oh my gosh, it’s been so long. How are you doing?”
“Great,” he says and then holds up our connected hands. “Got married this weekend.”
Her eyes fall to mine, and she says, “Oh, is this Cadance?”
Cadance . . . who the hell is Cadance?
Wyatt shifts but remains cheery as he says, “No, this is Aubree Rowley. Her sister was married to my brother before he passed. Aubree runs the farm up in Almond Bay.”
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry,” she says, shaking her head. “Wow, what a dense thing of me to say.”
“It’s fine,” Wyatt says. “We haven’t seen each other in a while.”
“And whose fault is that?” she asks, hand on her hip, looking so freaking cute. “But congratulations, that’s so exciting. I actually got married myself.”
“To Peter?” Wyatt asks.
Fallon laughs and shakes her head. “Wow, we really need to update each other. No, his name is Sawyer. He came into town after running out of his best friend’s wedding, left only a shoe behind, and came rolling into Canoodle. He needed a place to stay, so he stayed at the cabins. Long story short, he became best friends with my grandpa, helped me renovate the cabins, and I fell in love. He’s a screenwriter. You two would probably get along.”
“Well, if that’s the case, we should get together at some point.”
“That would be so great. I’d say my grandpa would love to see you, but his Alzheimer’s is taking over his memory.”
“I didn’t want to ask, but are you still caring for him?”
Fallon nods. “Sawyer has been a huge help. My dads are up here a lot, helping out as well. And then everyone in town. It’s really been a community effort. Especially from Tank. You should go visit him. I know he misses your grandpa a lot. He’d love to see you.”
“I’ll stop by the hardware store and say hi. Plan on taking Aubree around and showing her everything.”
