Chapter 13
Taylor
The worst of the storm seemed to be over. At least the doors and windows no longer rattled ominously. I wasn’t yet sure how I felt about that, and I decided the best way to deal was to not think about it.
The fire crackling, me stretched out on the couch with a book, Michael Keaton’s head in my lap while he snored… Those were the things I preferred to focus on.
That, and Wyatt.
The way she absently twirled her hair around the tip of her pointer finger while she read, cross-legged on the rug by the hearth, her full lips moving in silence at random moments. I wanted nothing more than to taste them.
A log disintegrated and fell, sending a spurt of embers floating in the fireplace.
It all added to the soothing tapestry of sounds weaving me into the DNA of this place.
I was beginning to understand the pull of the mountains.
Why someone would choose this over a life that never stopped for anything or anyone.
After only a week and a bit, the cabin felt like a home away from home. A haven of tranquility in the midst of a tempestuous world, storm or no storm. Of course, it wasn’t just the cabin, and I knew that.
It was Wyatt.
Her presence, her unassuming charm, the way she fit effortlessly into this rustic environment. She was what made it more attractive. Made it feel like a place I wouldn’t mind being for a little longer.
A series of incessant beeps cut through the quiet, and Wyatt’s gaze snapped to her watch. She tapped it, and the beeping stopped.
“Sorry,” she mumbled, getting to her feet.
With a sudden determination that didn’t fit the serenity of silent reading by the fire, Wyatt swiftly gathered her laptop and marched over to the ladder on the back wall of the cabin.
“Everything okay?” I craned my neck to follow her movements. What I wanted most was to read her face, but I couldn’t get a good look from where I was sitting.
“It’s fine.” She didn’t look at me. “I just have a call.” Wyatt started up the ladder. “I’ll take it in the attic so I don’t disturb you. I should be back in about an hour.”
Ah… I didn’t need any further explanation.
“Online therapy, huh?”
She was almost at the top of the ladder, her head poking through the square opening that led to the attic. I noticed her body visibly tense up, her ascent frozen in time.
“Back in New York, we don’t trust anyone who isn’t in therapy.” I chuckled lightly, hoping to make her know that I didn’t judge her in the least.
Her shoulders relaxed, and she gave a stiff nod. I took that as a good sign.
“I’ll be back down in an hour,” she said again, then disappeared into the attic.
Michael Keaton licked my hand, then started nudging at it with his nose. I didn’t know much, but I’d spent enough time around him to know that meant he was looking for some love.
“Oh, all right, boy.” I scratched behind his ears and he snuggled into it, flipping all the way over onto his back. “Belly, too?”
He yapped softly, his large, pink tongue slipping out the side of his mouth.
“You know what you want, don’t you?” I shifted my attention from his head to his exposed belly. “I don’t suppose you have any intel on what it is your mommy might want?”
Michael Keaton didn’t have the answers I was looking for, obviously. He just took the rubs, and I continued giving them, laughing at myself for where my head was going.
The cheerful ringtone of my phone provided the perfect break to that train of thought. I reached for it, seeing Alex’s name on my screen. A huge smile spread across my face the second I saw hers brighten up.
“Missing me?”
She rolled her eyes but held up her thumb and forefinger with a small gap between them. “Just a little. How’s it going out there?”
I pulled up to sit, shifting Michael Keaton from my lap. He wasn’t too happy about that move and immediately tried to clamber back up.
“Is that the dog?” The incredulity in her voice was unmistakable.
I spluttered Michael Keaton’s tail from my mouth and tried to tame the emphatic wagging with my free hand.
“It’s the dog,” I replied. “He doesn’t like being called that, though.”
She raised a brow, eyeing me closely. “Taylor Kane, are you morphing into a dog person? Well, I never…”
“Shut up, no, I’m not.” I sounded more defensive than I would’ve liked. “He’s just a cool dog, that’s all. And he knows what he likes.”
“Speaking of things we like.” Alex smirked. “How’s Wyatt?”
“No juicy gossip, I’m afraid. I know that’s what you’re really after.”
I should’ve known that would be at the top of her list of topics to discuss. Thankfully, Wyatt was well outside of earshot, with her own concerns to deal with. That gave me the freedom to handle Alex in my own way, without worrying about what Wyatt might think.
“You’re no fun.” Alex pouted. “I took the time out of my holiday activities to make this call, you know.”
I jumped onto the opportune segue. “Is my resort still standing? I can’t believe you went ahead without me.”
“Hey, you said that I could.” Alex feigned insult. “I distinctly remember inviting you to come along, but all you wanted to do was go on that boring hike of yours.”
It was surreal hearing her talk about the seemingly random events that had led me to this mountain cabin. If I had postponed it because of the storm, then I would’ve lived my life without ever knowing Wyatt existed.
As if eavesdropping on my thoughts, Michael Keaton bounced off the couch and started jumping at me over and over again.
“I know you want to play, boy.” I scratched him behind the ears. “Just give me a sec, okay?”
He dropped to the floor with a soft yap of understanding, lying down with his head on his paws.
“I thought mountain people were supposed to be wild,” Alex said, tapping her finger against her chin. “But it seems you’ve been tamed, my friend. By a dog and his mistress, no less.”
I rolled my eyes, getting up from the couch. “You have to see this.”
It was another attempt at getting her off the topic of Wyatt, and I padded across the room to the kitchen window. Switching the camera, I held up my phone to give Alex a haphazard panoramic view of what it looked like outside.
Now that the gale force winds had simmered down, the picture wasn’t as ominous.
Alex gasped. “Looks like an actual winter wonderland out there. Kind of like the wedding, only better.”
“Right?” I switched my camera back and went to sit by the kitchen table. “Once we get the front door cleared, I’ll be able to get outside and have a proper look around. But it’s already magical, even from in here.”
“You sound enchanted, all right.” Alex fixed me with a knowing look.
But I wasn’t going to get reeled in. I rested my chin in my hand, phone propped up against the ceramic bowl of dried pine cones.
“Tell me about the resort,” I said again, gentle but firm. So that she’d know my meaning.
Alex chuckled softly, seeing right through my evasion. “You’re hiding something from me, and I want you to know that I know. But I’m not going to keep pushing. You’re welcome, by the way. If the others were here-”
“Well, they’re not, so can we move on?”
“Swiftly.” She nodded emphatically. “And to answer your question, the resort is doing great. It looks better than the pictures, and the staff has been amazing.”
A dull thud came from the attic, and Michael Keaton leapt to his feet, trotting over to the bottom of the ladder. He looked up and I watched him closely, trusting that if there was cause for alarm, he’d let me know.
“Storm picking up again?” Alex’s voice reminded me she was there, and I forced a smile.
“Uh, no, it’s-”
The sound of something dragging across the ceiling broke into my sentence, my eyes following it along until it finally came to a stop above my head.
“It’s moving day, apparently,” I joked, turning my attention back to Alex.
She smirked, one eyebrow raised conspiratorially. “Sounds like someone’s dragging a dead body. Is there something you want to tell me?”
“From love affair to murder. That escalated quickly.” I knew I’d said the wrong thing the moment it came out of my mouth.
Alex pounced on it like I knew she would.
“Love affair, huh?” Her eyes gleamed at the prospect of hearing what she’d been dying to hear.
“That’s not what I meant.” I backtracked quickly. “I was only referring to what you said before.”
But she wasn’t having it. “I only speak about what I see, Taylor,” she said. “I know how you get when you’ve got your eye on someone. First the tools, then the dog, and you turned down Hayden’s offer to rescue your butt out of there.”
Michael Keaton gave an excited bark, and I turned to see Wyatt’s feet hit the top rung of the ladder.
I muted Alex with practiced precision and stood up so the back wall wouldn’t be in the frame.
“I have to go. Send Singapore my regards.” I plastered a fake smile. It got faker when Alex frowned, saying something I couldn’t hear.
But I wasn’t about to let her loose with Wyatt in the room. Not just yet, anyway.