“No,” I said with a roll of my eyes.
“You better be careful with cowboy sperm on the loose,” Hadley teased.
I wasn’t about to admit to her that I’d been less than careful with Brooks more than once already. I paused and internally thanked God for my period arriving when it did.
“Guys, look,” I said. “Since Wyn doesn’t have a lot of time, let me lay it all out for you. Brooks and I are together.”
“We know this,” Hadley said.
“No, you don’t understand . . . we’retogethertogether,” I emphasized. “He moved in with me. Your dad pointed at him during a family dinner and said there was going to be a wedding. Brooks didn’t even flinch.”
“Honey, it’s so fast,” Salem said. “Like an insta-husband.”
“Just add water,” Wyn quipped.
“It’s just a lot,” Hadley said.
“It’s a lot for me too,” I said quietly. “But I’m happy. Can’t you all be happy for me?”
“I’m happy for you,” Wyn said. “But you have to admit that it’s kind of nuts. You do get that right? All three of you actually . . . what the hell is it about Huckleberry Hill? You guys move there and find your dream man andpoof, happily-ever-after. One of you I could chalk it up to luck. Two, coincidence. Three? That’s magic. That town is magic, I swear. Is there like some secret magic wishing well or something you guys toss coins into?”
“No wishing well,” Hadley said. “But we do have the hot spring.”
“Right, the hot spring!” Wyn exclaimed.
One night a few days before Hadley’s wedding, the four of us had gone camping for a night under the stars. There was a hot spring on their family’s land, a hot spring with healing waters. Or so the story went.
“Who’s picking me up from the airport next week?” Wyn asked.
“All of us,” Salem said. “Obviously.”
“We’ll bring snacks,” Hadley said.
“I can’t wait to see you guys,” Wyn said with a sigh. “It’s lonely here without you.”
“It’s lonely here withoutyou,” I said back.
“Liar,” she teased. “The three of you are busy. And looking very well satisfied. If you weren’t my best friends, I’d be very jealous. Fuck that. Iamjealous.”
“No time to date?” Salem asked.
“No time. No inclination. I’m on a hiatus. I paused all my dating apps.”
“No way,” Hadley said.
“Way. It was getting depressing—not to mention acomplete waste of time. These city boys . . . who raised them?”
“Note the use of the wordboys,” Salem said. “You need a man.”
“You need a cowboy,” Hadley said.
“Like I’d find that here in the city,” Wyn said with a sigh. “Okay, kids. I’m off. Congrats on your new sweet ride, Poet. And the new car too.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
The Airport
“You look like a different person,” Wyn said as she pulled back from hugging me.
