Chapter 10
Nick
“Here we are, home sweet home,” I say, jiggling the key to my house and giving the front door a good shove.
I’ve only been gone since mid-October, but it feels like I’ve been gone longer.
My body vibrates with the hustle and bustle energy of the city as it’s already grown accustomed to the slower living of Evergreen.
It’s crazy how quickly we fall back into old patterns.
“Wow, this place is stunning.”
Speaking of old patterns.
Stepping out of the way so she can come in, Noelle drags in her suitcase and takes in my historic home. I’m suddenly glad I left it as clean as I did when I left for Vermont last month even though, at the time, I had no idea I’d be bringing my childhood love back with me to become my wife.
Fake wife.
Temporary wife.
I have to remind myself more than I should that what we’re doing is only a means to an end—not some long lost fated lovers finding one another again type deal.
We’re only doing what we’re doing so that she can take over Holly House and keep the inn in the family.
Once she does that, I’ll be on my merry way, free as a bird once more.
Why does the sound of that make me feel so miserable?
“Did you restore it yourself?”
The sound of her voice pulls me from my own thoughts. Looking at her, I find she’s made her way into my living room and is running her hand along the original wainscoting I painstakingly stripped from years of paint and refinished by hand.
“I sure did. Top to bottom. I bought it a few years ago and hired some of the best restoration crews to help me bring her back to life.”
“Her?” she asks, raising a presumptuous brow at me.
I shrug. “The place has always felt like a ‘her.’”
She laughs and nods her head like she understands.
I watch her as she moves from room to room, finding new things to look at and admire as she goes.
While she takes in the place I call home, I take in her.
How she walks with a softness many people lack even though she’s lost more than most people ever will.
The way her eyes light up and her lips curl when she spots the family photo sitting on the mantel.
For a moment, my mind plays a cruel trick on me and causes me to believe this could be real one day.
Coming home from work, seeing her here, waiting for me.
The illusion is shattered though when I follow her into the kitchen and she spots the small stone I keep on the windowsill behind the sink.
Brows furrowed, she reaches for it and holds it in her hand before turning to look at me.
“Why do you still have this?” Her voice has a hint of hurt in it when she speaks. She drops her gaze to stare at the stone, turning it over in her hand.
To most people who come over and see it, it’s nothing more than a random rock I keep on my windowsill. To us though, it’s a memory preserved in something that will be around longer than either of us ever will be.
We were out at the lake taking a swim together after being let out of school early.
It was the last week of junior year and we both had a free afternoon since we didn’t have any exams. By this point we had been dating for almost a year and spent almost every free minute we had together.
When she told me she wanted to go for a dip, I happily obliged.
Who was I to tell a pretty girl no when it meant I’d get to see her in her swimsuit.
We swam around for an hour before I climbed out to dry off.
Always finding joy in the smallest things, she brought me the stone she’s currently holding after carefully searching for the one she liked the most on the rocky shore.
Looking at me with a smile, hair wet and eyes full of life, I held the small stone in the palm of my hand and told her I loved her.
She said it back without hesitation, throwing herself over me and kissing me hard, stone still clutched in my fist. I put the tiny rock in my pocket that day and vowed to carry it with me so long as I was breathing.
I’m still breathing, so I still have it.
I close the space between us and take it from her fingers, looking down at it then back at her.
“Because it’s one of my favorite memories from Evergreen,” I admit easily, leaning over the sink to put it back in its resting spot. “I’m surprised you recognize it at all.”
“Why wouldn’t I recognize it?”
“Why do you?”
“Because it’s one of my favorite memories from Evergreen,” she repeats, moving her eyes from the rock to me. She releases a small sigh and wipes her forehead with the back of her hand. “I’m tired, I think I’m going to go get some rest.”
“Here, let me show you to your room.” I step around her and grab her suitcase that she’s left in the entryway.
“Give that to me, I can take it,” she protests but I’m already moving up the stairs.
“You’re my guest, I carry your bags. Isn’t that how you do it at that inn of yours?” I joke, sending her a smirk from over my shoulder.
“It’s not mine yet,” she mutters as we reach the top of the stairs. She follows me down the hall and into the guest room I keep made up and ready. Setting her bag down at the foot of the bed, I smile at her.
“Well after tomorrow, that won’t be something you have to worry about anymore. We’ll go to the courthouse, sign the papers, grab a couple of rings and bing, bang, boom, we’re husband and wife. Temporarily, of course.”
“Temporarily, of course,” she repeats. She rolls her bottom lip over her teeth and looks at me. “Thank you again, Nick. I know I’m asking you for a lot. You can change your mind, you know. You don’t have to do this.”
Closing the space between us in a few quick strides, I pull her hand into mine. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you, Noelle. I’m not changing my mind. I’m all in,” I affirm with a closed lip smile and a head nod.
She nods in response before dropping my hand. Knowing she’s tired and wanting to get some rest, I go to leave. Before closing the door behind me, I turn to look at her once more.
“If you need anything, I’m just down the hall. Don’t feel like you’re bothering me if you need something, okay?”
“Okay.” She smiles at me then and it nearly knocks the breath clean out of me. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“See you in the morning.”
Closing the door behind me, I close my eyes and take a steadying breath. Tomorrow I’ll be marrying the girl I’ve been in love with since I was seventeen. Not because she loves me but because she needs me to help her out. I don’t care if she saw this as only temporary, I meant what I told her.
I’m all in on this.
And I’m not going to change my mind this time.