Page 38 of My Greatest Joy

“I never doubted the scenery was gorgeous,” she counters. “I’ll decide on the rest once I meet more people and hear some of their stories.”

“Have you figured out what you’ll write about my family’s farm?”

“Not yet, but considering I’ve had an insider’s view and learned some of the history, I’ll probably start there. I plan on integrating the other businesses and farms into the story too.”

“I left a message for the mayor so you can meet him personally before the festival. Until then, I’ll show ya around, and you’ll learn all the things in no time. But first, I want to show you Oakley’s painting hung in the town hall. Then we’ll stop for lunch.”

“So when can I meet Finn and Oakley?” she asks, and I love that she sounds genuinely interested.

“I chatted with Willa this morning. We’re going to stop by on Sunday, and I told them we’d visit after seeing the inn.” That gives us two days.

She nods as I park in front of the diner right in the downtown square.

“Well, I can’t deny it’s giving me Christmas Hallmark vibes with a side of mountain rustic.”

I tug on the strings of her hat and smirk. “Please tell me that’s the name of the article.”

She rolls her eyes, batting my hand away. “You’ll find out once I’m done.”

“I don’t even get a sneak peek?”

“We’ll see…” she taunts, bracing herself for the cold air before I hop out of the truck and open her door.

“Fuck.” She shivers.

“At least the sun is out.” I smirk, resting a palm on the small of her back as I guide her down the sidewalk.

“Well, it must be for show only because it’s not warming up a damn thing,” she groans, and I chuckle at her dramatics.

The town hall building is a few blocks away, and she soaks in the heat as soon as we enter. “Now this is what I’m talking about.”

“When Oakley arrived here last fall, she was hired to paint a canvas of Bennett’s Orchard Farm for the centennial celebration. Once the mayor saw it, he begged her to stay and paint one of the annual fall festival,” I explain as we admire the large canvas proudly displayed on the wall.

“Wow…” Her eyes scan over every inch. “Look at those colors.”

“There’s nothing like seeing Vermont in the fall,” I say. “When we visit, I’ll show you the painting she did for the Bennetts. She nailed the orange and red trees that line the hillside behind the original buildings on the farm.”

“So Oakley ended up staying after her projects were finished?” she asks as we make our way toward the diner.

I chuckle. “No. She left.”

Fallon looks confused, so I continue.

“Her entire life was in LA, but after a couple of weeks, she came back to tell Finn she didn’t want to live without him. They’ve been together ever since.”

“Wow. Sounds like a movie.” Fallon is quiet for a moment. “I bet leaving the city was a huge change for her.”

“I think it was at first, but she’s settled in just fine. Now she does most of her artwork online and gets commissioned for paintings from businesses all over. She sometimes travels on the weekends for special projects but not often. They’re still in that honeymoon phase when they can’t keep their hands off each other. They’re perfect for one another.”

“Hmm…that’s an adorable story the magazine would eat up.”

“Vermont orchard brings two unlikely people together in a whirlwind romance for the ages…” I say. “Found your title.”

“Geez. You want my job, too?”

Laughing, I shake my head as I open the door to the diner, and we walk in.

“I’ll leave that to the expert,” I tease.

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