Page 32 of Twins for the Mountain Daddies

The bell above the door chimes as we enter the coffee shop, a cozy haven of warmth filled with the rich scent of roasted beans.

It’s not the high-end coffee shops I’m used to—no sleek marble counters, no baristas in crisp aprons crafting intricate latte art—but it’s cute. The kind of place where the menu is handwritten on a chalkboard, and the pastries sit under a glass dome that’s just slightly smudged. A few patrons are scattered throughout the small shop, bundled in flannels and knit caps, hunched over steaming mugs, or chatting quietly in the corners.

Wyatt doesn’t hesitate, heading straight to the counter like he’s been here a hundred times before. He orders for both of us without even glancing my way, his voice steady, confident.

I don’t correct him. He already knows my order.

"Here." He hands me a steaming cup, the ceramic warm against my cold fingers. "Stay put, make your calls. I'll be back in an hour or so."

“You’re going?”

“I’ve got my own errands to run, City Girl. They’re not calling for snow the next couple of days, but you never know.”

Before I can respond, he leans down, his lips brushing mine in a kiss so casual, so effortless, it takes me a second to process that it even happened. The same shock zips through me as when Holt kissed me—like my body is one step behind, trying to catch up to this new reality.

Wyatt pulls back like it was nothing, like he hasn’t just flipped my entire morning upside down. “I’ll be back soon,” he says again.

I nod, already peeling off my jacket, finding a seat by the window where the light is good and the Wi-Fi signal is the strongest. Settling down, I pull out my phone, the screen lightingup with missed notifications. Time to reconnect, to untangle the web of my life left hanging when I got stranded here.

And, you know, try and figure out where the heck I’m going to stay. Wyatt, Hank, and Holt aren’t going to want to house me long-term. They were quite literally stuck with me. And, now they’re not.

"Any problems, you call me." Wyatt's voice cuts through my focus, his presence commanding even as he stands by the door, keys jangling in his hand.

"Got it. Thanks, Wyatt." My words are brief, but the gratitude is real.

He winks, a flash of mischief that doesn't quite hide his concern, then steps out into the morning chill. The door closes behind him, leaving me surrounded by the soft murmur of conversations and the clatter of cups.

There are eyes on me. I can feel them. But I know they’re not staring because they recognize me. They’re staring because Wyatt just laid claim to me very publicly and none of them have ever seen me before.

I take a deep breath and dive into my digital world, where life has churned on without me.

Fingers swipe, tap. The screen floods with the bizarre and the ludicrous—headlines all about me. I'm missing? I snort. No, I’m just sipping coffee in a town so small it's barely a whisper on the map.

"Changed her name," I mutter under my breath, then scoff. A chuckle bubbles up, tinged with disbelief. Plastic surgery? In Bali? My reflection in the window shows the same pretty face, no hint of a scalpel's touch.

A ping signals another message, another shard of reality intruding. It's from my brother, his words dripping with self-interest, not concern.

I roll my eyes before I even open it.

You could’ve at least given us a heads-up. Do you know how this makes us look?

Of course. Not,are you okay?Orwhere are you?

Just how my disappearance is inconvenient forthem.

Another ping. My mother this time.

This is reckless, Ivy. The press is spinning out of control. Call me back immediately.

I inhale slowly, exhale even slower. I don’t know why I expected anything different. Maybe I didn’t. Maybe I just hoped, for once, that my well-being mattered more than the optics.

I tap out a single message to the group chat.

I’m fine. I’m safe. I’ll be back when I’m ready.

Then I turn my phone face down on the table, wrap my hands around my coffee, and stare out the window at a town that, for the first time in a long time, expects nothing from me at all.

Chapter 14

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