Page 64 of Falling for Finn

I shrug.

“I wish I could paint a series of landscapes in Maplewood Falls. Every canvas would be vibrant with colors but also different.”

“Too bad you won’t be around to see it during the winter. It looks like a wonderland when there’s a fresh coat of snow on the ground and the sun is high in the sky. The views are like nothing else. Ski tourists travel from all over to experience it.”

“You’re making me want to start a Christmas landscape.” She playfully pouts. “I bet it’s gorgeous here.”

Greta delivers our plates and we make small talk while we eat. I chat about the festival and some of our traditions. Then she shares her plans as I promise to show her my favorite parts of downtown. Her excitement is contagious as she scribbles down her ideas.

Once we clear our plates and I pay, we make our way down the street.

“There are so many shops!” She sounds amazed. “The town I grew up in has mostly vacant buildings. After the recession, a lot of local businesses went under. It was sad to see,” Oakley tells me.

“Nearly happened here too, but the mayor gave grants to help them stay afloat until the economy picked up.”

“Wow, that’s amazing. I can tell it’s a tight-knit community here.”

“Always has been,” I admit. “Everyone knows everyone. We all have a lot of history here too. In fact, that candy store on the corner is where I had my first kiss.” I point at Kari’s Kandy Korner.

She laughs. “Do you remember her name?”

“Gabby Jameson. The owner’s daughter.”

Oakley’s mouth drops open, and she bursts out laughing. “Scandalous.”

“Oh, it was. At the time, I was dating her older sister, Madeline.”

“Finn!” She smacks my chest. “You werethatguy in high school?”

“No! To be fair, I was thirteen, and we were playing spin the bottle in the back office when Madeline was closing the shop.”

“With a whole bunch of other kids or what?”

I scratch my cheek and purse my lips. “Uh, no. It was only Gabby and me…”

“Spin the bottle with two people?” She gives me a knowing look.

“Like I said, I was thirteen. And mostly horny.”

She snorts as we move closer to the candy shop. “Small-town shenanigans. Guess I can’t be that shocked. My friends and I used to have weed circles in the middle of fields.”

“Jesus. Here I am getting scolded for a kiss and my fake girlfriend’s a pothead.”

Oakley rolls her eyes with a grin. “We lived very different small-town lives. Never mind I was a teenager only like five years ago. Don’t act like it’sillegal. Has tons of medicinal purposes!”

“Your parents didn’t smell it on you?”

“Nah, I always carried a bottle of body spray and some breath mints. As long as I wasn’t being escorted home by the sheriff, they let me do whatever I wanted. Mostly, I sketched and painted. When I was seventeen, I got a job at the local sub place. It smelled like feet and hadn’t seen a health inspector in years, but the owner let me draw when it was slow.”

“Got paid to draw before your job commissions, then?” I tease.

“Ha! Pretty much. I love my parents, but I didn’t want to stay in my hometown. Way too small.”

“And no opportunities for a brilliant artist like you,” I confirm.

“Right. I couldn’t wait to go to college. Now I’m twenty-three with a master’s degree and have to figure out my living situation before I’m on the street. Living the dream!”

“What do you mean?” I ask as we cross the road. The movie theater is a block away, and I can’t wait to show her the inside.

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