"Clearly." I pull out my phone. "Let's create our love story. We met... how about at Ridge's wedding last year?"
"Ridge isn't married. He only just got with Stella. Do you even know your foster brother at all?"
I glare at him, trying hard not to roll my eyes. "Your aunt won't know that. Fine. At a wilderness survival course you were teaching. I was hopeless at starting fires and you took pity on me."
He frowns. "You don't seem like someone who'd be hopeless at anything."
The unexpected compliment catches me off guard. "Thank you? I think?"
"And you wouldn't have taken a wilderness survival course. You've been living in San Diego until last week."
"How do you know what kind of girl I am?" I challenge. "You haven't seen me in what, fifteen years? And even then, I was just Ridge's annoying foster sister who followed you guys around."
Something flickers in his eyes. "You were never annoying."
"Please. I was thirteen and had braces. I spent an entire summer trailing after you and Ridge with a notebook, documenting the types of fish you caught because I thought it would impress you."
"I remember." His voice is unexpectedly soft. "You had a system. Color coding for species, size, location. You were thorough."
The fact that he remembers this ridiculous detail about teenage me does something funny to my heart rate.
"Well," I clear my throat. "The point is, we need a believable backstory. One that explains why a reclusive mountain man and a graphic designer who just moved back to town would be secretly married."
"Long-distance relationship," he suggests. "We reconnected online after you reached out to Ridge about moving back.Started talking, met up a few times when you came to visit over the year before we got married."
"That's... actually not bad." I type it into my notes app. "We reconnected online through Ridge, fell for each other through video calls and texts, and got married during one of my visits to Whisper Vale a year ago. Quick courtship because when you know, you know."
"Is that believable?"
"It's practically a modern romance cliche. Childhood acquaintances reconnect online as adults and fall in love despite the distance. No one in town knew because I wasn't living here yet. Works for me." I look up from my phone. "What else should Aunt Mildred know about us?"
For the next hour, we construct our fake relationship. Jared is surprisingly detailed once he gets going. Our first date was a hike to Eagle's Peak followed by a picnic he packed. He proposed six months after we reconnected, during the first snowfall of last winter. Simple gold bands because I supposedly don't like flashy jewelry. A small wedding at the courthouse with just Ridge and Chloe as witnesses.
"You've thought a lot about this," I observe.
He shrugs, looking slightly embarrassed. "I wanted it to sound real."
"It does. Almost like you've imagined your ideal relationship."
His eyes meet mine, and for a moment, something electric passes between us. "Just trying to be thorough."
"Like me with my fish notebook."
"Exactly."
Clearing my throat, I stand and move to the large windows that overlook the valley. "This view is incredible. Do you ever get tired of it?"
"Never." He comes to stand beside me, close enough that I can feel his warmth but not quite touching. "That's Baker's Peak to the west. The valley floor is about two thousand feet below us. In spring, the whole meadow fills with wildflowers."
His voice softens when he talks about the mountains. Like they're old friends.
"It's beautiful," I say honestly. "I can see why you stay up here."
"People think I'm hiding," he says quietly. "Maybe I am. But there's a peace here I've never found anywhere else."
The vulnerability in his voice surprises me. I turn to look at him, really look at him, and for a moment the gruff exterior falls away. There's sadness there. And something else. Loneliness, maybe.
"So," he says, abruptly stepping back. "When can you move in?"
