Page 18 of Grumped By the Mountain Man

There. I finally blurted it all out. There’s no going back now.

Her eyes are wide, her lips parted. “W-what I need? What are you talking about?”

Just say it. Tell your fears.

“Ayla, I’m not some traveler. I’m not a partygoer. A city hopper. A socialite who wants to be plastered all over social media and in your photos.”

Her brow wrinkles. “I never asked you to be those things.”

“But it would cause a problem that I’m not.” I shake my head. “Because that’s who you are. It’s not me. I like being here in my cabin—”

“All alone?” she asks seriously.

“If no one’s here, no one can leave.”

She gasps. “You’re worried about people walking out of your life? Because they don’t understand you? Because you’re not compatible? Is that what this is all about?”

Not entirely.

I shrug. “If they don’t come in the first place, I don’t have to worry about it. I don’t want to worry about it again.”

“Again...like me. I left.”

Chapter Six

Ayla

Is that why he was so cold to me? Did he feel like I’d abandoned him?

“You didn’t leave me. You went to get your degree and live your dream. Ayla, trust me when I say no one could be happier for you than I am.”

“Then why do you seem so disappointed to see me every time I come back?”

“I’m not disappointed with you. More with myself. Every time you leave I think it gets easier to live without you. But then when you return all these old feelings come up again, even stronger than the last time.”

My heart pounds faster, my voice dropping an octave when I ask, “What’s wrong with that? Why is missing me...wanting me a bad thing?”

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