Page 66 of (Un)Spoken

I almost dropped my water cup. “Wh–What do you mean?”

“Come on, Vic.” He smiled at me. “I’d have to be blind not to see how much you love it here. You’ve got your man, your brother—a whole life in this little town. Back home, you’ve been coasting for years.”

“Ouch.”

Cam chuckled, pulling me into a hug. “That’s not how I meant it. I’m just saying that I’m happy for you. And if you want to stay here, we’ll make it work.”

I pulled back, searching his eyes. “But that wasn’t the plan. We were supposed to–”

“Plans change, Vic,” he said, leaning back to squeeze my shoulders. “You’ve spent the last eight years working around my schedule. You’re at every game, even lived with my parents to make my life easier. It’s my turn to do the same for you. Besides,” he nodded behind me, “then I get to hang out with Adam Rice and Gray Anders regularly. Pretty surethat would make any length of drive worth it.” He bopped me on the nose. “And I guess seeing you girls.”

“Funny,” I deadpanned. But as I turned to look at Adam on the other side of the room, my heart almost burst with happiness. In truth, I’d been dreading going back to Texas, not wanting to give up this little life I was creating here. I’d found a family beyond my brother, people who would be in our corner no matter what. It was a sense of belonging I never realized I was missing, and now that I’d experienced it, I didn’t think I’d be able to live without it.

And not to mention, Adam. We’d already talked about how life would look different if he went back to taking acting roles, but his home base would likely be here. He felt the same way I did—despite there being bigger, more luxurious places in the world, Saint Stephen’s Lake felt right.

Knowing I might be able to build a real life with him in a town we both loved, with our newfound family surrounding us, made my heart almost burst with hope for the future.

My words got caught in my throat as my eyes filled with happy tears. “Thank you,” I choked out to Cam, reaching out to pull him into a hug. “For everything.”

“Anything for you, Vic,” he mumbled. “After all, you gave me the best thing in my life. I’ll never be able to repay you for that.” He pulled back, “If anyone deserves to be happy, it’s you. And I’m rooting for you. Always and forever.”

He held up his pinkie, one of our childish habits that followed us into adulthood. I smiled and wrapped my own around his. “Always and forever.”

THIRTY-NINE

“Shit,” Alex hissed, running her hand over her face. “Where are all the medium-sized shirts? I swear, I had them in this bin.”

“I’ve got them,” Victoria called out from under the table, lifting one up into the air. “You put them in the green bin at the last minute.”

Alex let out a relieved sigh then tightly hugged her sister-in-law. “Thank fuck you’re here. If it was just me, I would have lost my mind hours ago.”

“What about me?” I smirked from the other side of the booth.

She rolled her eyes after handing the customer a Fox Creek shirt. “You, my friend, are eye candy. So smile big, pretty boy.”

I shook my head, returning to the back of the Fox Creek booth to restock some of our supplies. We were on hour three of the Fall Fest, and there had been a steady stream of guests ever since we opened. Everywhere you looked, people were enjoying the festivities, families and childrenrunning down Main Street without a care in the world. The air smelled of spiced apple cider and fresh fried donuts, filled with laughter that brought a smile to my face without even trying.

I took a moment to look around, letting a sense of rightness wash over me. Ever since I came to this town, I wanted to be a part of its community, and I never felt like more of it than today. When Alex and Cole first asked if I wanted to help out at their booth, I hesitated, unsure if I was ready to show my face to so many strangers. But after months of tucking myself away, I was done letting anyone else decide my fate. With Victoria at my side, I felt invincible, as if I could take on the world if she asked me to. So, when I left my hat and sunglasses at home and walked out into the world, I felt a new sense of hope.

Maybe, if I was lucky, this could be my life. The audition still hung over my head, but instead of nerves, excitement filled my chest. Last night, after Cam put Emilia to bed, Victoria came over and helped me run lines. It was the kind of quiet domesticity I always thought would bore me, but with her, everything else made sense.

As Alex turned toward a new group of visitors, Victoria nuzzled up to my side. I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. She sighed against my chest. “You know, when you said this was a big deal, I didn’t quite realize how many people would be here. It’s kind of insane.”

“Seriously,” I chuckled. “Glad Alex made me make another hundred buttons, even if my fingers were about to bleed.”

Victoria’s phone vibrated in her pocket, and she pulled it out and smiled at the photo filling her screen. She tiltedit so I could see the image of Cam covered in purple glitter makeup, Emilia placing a headband in his hair. Victoria chuckled. “Glad to see they’re having a good time.”

“Me too,” I answered. As much as I was looking forward to spending the day with Emilia, after weeks apart, she needed this time with her dad. While they were hanging out at the apartment, Hadley had decided to make herself the unofficial photographer of the event, running around to try to get as many portraits of our town’s residents as possible.

Meanwhile, the rest of us were on booth duty. Victoria and I agreed to help Alex at Fox Creek’s booth while Cole assisted Gray at his food stand down the street. In the booth next to us, Calla had enlisted her sister and Theo’s assistant, Eloise, to help her with her business. The only people missing were Marta and Curt, but they were taking the year off. After twenty years, they’d passed their duties on to the new generation, enjoying the festivities as guests for the first time.

As much as I loved seeing all my friends in action, a part of me was itching for the next part of the day. Cam was going to bring Emilia by this afternoon so she could see the animals and enjoy the carnival in the Town Square. I couldn’t wait to see her face when she saw the pony ride we’d arranged with the local farm.

I looked down at Victoria in my arms as she texted Cam, a slight grin on her face. There would always be a tiny nudge of jealousy at their tight bond, but I had no question that Tori and I belonged together. I wasn’t the kind of man who believed in destiny or fate, but if I did, I would think the stars sent this woman right to me. There was no other explanation for how she came into my life at the exact right moment and fit so perfectlyagainst me.

As I held her a little tighter, Eloise came over, staring at my arms wrapped around Victoria. For a moment, something passed over her features that I hadn’t seen before, but it passed as quickly as it came, and she gave me her usual shy smile. “Hey, Adam. Theo told me about the audition. I’m glad you found a script that worked for you.”

“Thanks,” I chuckled. “Hopefully, I’ll do okay. I’m feeling a little rusty.”

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