Page 105 of She Likes It, Hey Micah
“Always.”
***
October 27
I wake in a tangle of blankets, the sun poking out over the hill to the east. Everything is slightly frosty, and my nose is completely frozen, but the fire still cheerily burns with enough heat that I didn’t notice how cool the night got as we slept. Still, a shiver runs through me, and I wrap myself more securely around Micah.
She murmurs with contentment and snuggles in. “You fell asleep.”
“Yep. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. My dad doesn’t like camping, so I’ve never slept outside before.”
I haven’t either, and I can’t say that I’m a fan. My back is completely stiff, not to mention ridiculously cold. “I’m glad you got the experience,” I mutter, “but can I recommend we take this inside? Maybe with some coffee. Your dad will kill me if I let you freeze.”
She giggles. “He might kill you if he finds out we slept together on the deck.”
Groaning at her choice of words, I force myself to move, though getting up isn’t easy. This might be the first time I truly feel old, especially when Micah hops right up as soon as she’s free. As long as she doesn’t tell her dad we slept together, I’ll be fine. We didn’t sleep together. I mean, we did, but not like…
When we get inside, Derek Riley is already up, sitting on one of the couches in the lobby with a steaming mug as he scrolls what looks like a script on his phone. He greets us with a nod.
“Oh, is that a new movie?” Micah asks, bouncing forward before I can hold her back. I’m pretty sure Derek can’t show—
“What do you think?” he asks, handing over his phone.
I head to the kitchen, relieved to find a couple of staff prepping food. They probably came back because they realized they would get a chance to serve Bonnie Aiken and Derek Riley breakfast, and I don’t blame them. Thanking them for the coffee they hand me, I return to the lobby to find Micah sitting side by side with Derek and in deep discussion of the script he was looking at.
He’s smiling gently, probably a little bit in love with Micah already as she explains why the love story in the movie is one worth telling and he should take the role.
“Will Bonnie star in it with you?” she asks.
Derek shrugs. “Depends on the casting director, but I hope so.”
“You guys make such a cute couple. I hope it wasn’t weird with Houston here.”
Chuckling, he pockets his phone as he rises to his feet. “Nah. Briggs is a good guy.” In sweats and a t-shirt like he is now, he looks more human, but there’s a reason he’s on the big screen. I’m sure he has most of the country in love with him with that dark scruff and perfect smile. Plus, you know, the kind of body that makes a guy like me think about ramping up his basic workout routine.
“Thank you,” I tell him when he approaches me. “You have no idea what it means to us that you came last night.”
He shrugs. “Bonnie loves helping people out. It’s the only time she’s okay with the spotlight. You’ve made a good place here, and I’m thinking of recommending it for a movie location. Any objections?”
I have to actively keep my jaw shut as I shake my head. Using the lodge as a filming location would solidify its existence and bring in more business than I can fathom. “That…” I choke on the word and clear my throat. “That sounds like a great idea. You would have to take it up with the owner, but he’d be an idiot to say no.”
Pulling his phone out of his pocket, Derek frowns at the screen and then says, “We’ll be in touch,” before lifting the phone to his ear and disappearing down the hall.
As soon as I sit next to Micah, handing her a cup of coffee, she loops her arm through mine and cuddles up close. “I think I might be in love with Derek Riley,” she whispers.
“You and me both.”
We sit in silence for a while, enjoying the peace of the morning and letting the success of the night sink in. I genuinely don’t know if I’ve ever been this content, and I owe that all to the woman next to me. Maybe someday I’ll figure out how I got so lucky to fall for her, but more than likely it will remain a mystery for the rest of my life. That’s okay. I don’t have to know why I found her, as long as I get to keep her.
Someone clears their throat behind us, pulling me out of the hazy peace, and I glance behind me, expecting to see Micah’s dad.
“Grant?” I scramble to my feet, nearly knocking Micah’s coffee out of her hands. “What are you—”
“I thought we were canceling the event.” He looks awful. A bit green, he looks like he hasn’t eaten or slept in days, and I can’t imagine what the food poisoning did to him over the last couple of days. His weary eyes linger on Micah, though I can’t quite read his expression. “Lila said her team would reschedule once she hired a new assistant.”
I swallow. I was hoping to delay this moment and spare Micah if I could, but she stands next to me and takes my hand. “I can ex—”
