Page 27 of Meant To Be

I chuckled. “Did Wade seriously ask you to text him?”

He gave me an apologetic smile. “He sure did.”

I rolled my eyes. “Of course he did.”

I sat down again, my brain swimming by the many introductions of people. At one point, I leaned over to Alice seated beside me. “You all have a lot of friends, and there are a lot of firefighters.”

She grinned. “There are. You know how it is with small towns. I visited you in Stolen Hearts Valley once during the summer. You eventually get to know lots of people.”

I liked the sense of camaraderie and friendship. It was different but also similar to Stolen Hearts Valley. That night, I lay in my bed in my new apartment. I missed Dylan but also felt a curl of anticipation. He would be here in a week, and maybe, just maybe, our flourishing relationship could actually become real.

He had texted me to check in multiple times today. I’d kept him updated and sent him a few photographs of the town and my apartment.

I just hoped the feelings would hold. The further away we got from that weekend at the inn, the more it felt like a mirage.

Chapter Twenty-One

PIPER

“So how’s it going?” Wade asked.

I sat at the small round table in my apartment while talking with him on the phone. I looked out over Main Street at the snow-covered mountains in the distance and the cute little town with its colorful storefronts.

“Good so far. Did you seriously ask Rowan to give you an update?”

“Of course,” Wade said easily. “Him and Delilah.”

“Oh my God,” I grumbled. I wanted to ask how Dylan was. Badly. But I didn’t want to cue Wade into curiosity about why I was asking. My brother could be too perceptive sometimes.

Whether or not he knew what I was thinking, he spoke, offering, “Dylan will be out there next week. He’s sowing the last of his oats here before he goes. He’s staying true to form.”

“Huh?”

“His old situationship, Tonya, was here at the lodge last night. You know Dylan. It’s never more than a night.”

My gut twisted bitterly. The disappointment I expected pierced my heart.

“Oh,” I said.

My throat ached and my eyes stung. I didn’t want Wade to suspect anything, so I exclaimed, “Oh! I just realized the time. I’ve gotta go.” I was lying, but I didn’t care.

I got off the phone just as a text came in from Dylan.

Dylan: How’s day three?

I stared at my phone screen. Maybe it was impulsive, but I decided I didn’t want to drag this out. It was better if I reset everything right now.

Me: I’ve been thinking. I think it’s best if we just forget everything that happened. It was just a weekend.

As soon as I sent the text, I turned my phone off. I had to go to work anyway. There was no sense in even trying to have a dialogue about this.

It was a full two hours later at the clinic when I finally turned my phone back on.

Dylan: What the hell is going on? What are you talking about?

He’d sent the next text only a minute after that.

Dylan: At least give me the decency of an explanation.

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