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I laugh. “I’m not sure I have a choice now, do I?”
“Probably not, but we could circle back to the drunk thing if you really want to.”
I shake my head and close my eyes as I lay warm in his arms. “No, you were right. There’s no point in hiding who we are. We need to give Wayne more credit. He loves us. He’ll understand.”
“No… he won’t,” Wayne’s voice echoes in from the hallway. “You two are filthy and you deserve each other. Also, I have to move now.”
“You love us! You know it,” I say back, playfully.
“Or I’m scarred for life.” If his tone weren’t so playful, I’d go after him, but I think it’s best that Bodie and I stay locked in this room for now. Heck, maybe it’s best if we stay locked in here forever.
“I love you, little one.” Bodie peppers a soft kiss on my forehead and pulls me in closer and finally, the ache is gone.
Epilogue
Bodie
Two Weeks Later
The lodge is decked out for the holidays. Balsam wreaths, pine boughs, fresh berries, and an overload of Christmas music. Guests seem to love it, and I’ve melted in seamlessly. Henry offered me the job right away.
Being a general manager wasn’t part of my plan all those years ago, but there’s nothing like being home, and you can find opportunities to grow anywhere… if you look. As Poppy and I walk the immaculate hallways of this pristine lodge, I just wish I had been open to trying to get everything I wanted earlier in life, rather than focusing solely on my job and letting my other hopes and dreams eat me up from the inside.
Henry even had a ranch for sale nearby that turned out to be perfect. Though, I think a blizzard would look perfect right now. It’d give me a reason to stay tucked inside with Poppy for weeks on end.
“You two make me sick.” Wayne rolls his eyes and tucks a hand into his jeans. “Seriously? I already had to buy a new mattress and burn my sheets. I don’t think eye transplants are a thing, so just stop.” I know he’s still working through this whole situation, but it’s not as bad as we thought it would be. For the most part, he’s been supportive. Of course, I got the‘don’t ever hurt my sister or die thing,’but that was never going to be a problem. My only goal is to keep Poppy happy and safe.
“You can’t do that anymore. We’re married. It’s like… official.” Poppy smiles sweetly and taps her brother on the shoulder.
“I know, but there’s only so much therapy a man can take at my age.”
“What are you going to do when we start having babies?” Poppy says with a chuckle.
“Don’t talk about babies yet. I’m not ready for babies yet.” He looks away. “You two need to slow down. You’re doing everything at a lightning pace… and don’t say you’ve been in love forever because I can’t handle it.” Part of him is joking, but the other part is totally weirded out by this. “I just stopped by to see how the new job was going and to ask if anyone had seen the bear recently. The lodge seems to be where most of the sightings have been these past few weeks. I’m curious if the efforts to drive him out of town have done anything.”
“The cook, Arnie, said he had eyes on him late last night out by the storage shed, but no one has seen him since. I was talking to Henry’s brother Maddox and we’re thinking of putting up some humane traps to see if we can slow him down and point him in another direction. Thoughts?”
“What’s a humane bear trap look like?”
“I’d have to show you. It’s a tunnel like thing that they crawl inside for food. When they do, the door closes, and the tunnel is moved, and the bear is relocated. I think it would make everyone in town feel better knowing one that size was far away from civilization. I know it would make lodge guests feel better.”
Wayne nods. “Yeah, I agree. We’ll try it this way. If that doesn’t work, we’ll talk about calling in help.”
I don’t know what kind of help he’s going to call out for, but I’m sure this will work. We’ve had bears up here before and they usually run off quickly once people start showing interest.
Poppy drags in a deep breath. “Anyway… I have to go because Mae and I are having lunch in ten minutes. Arnie is making his famous lasagna and there’s like thirteen different cakes to choose from. You know I won’t be late for cake.”
She leans up and kisses my lips gently, this time without a peep from her brother. I glance back to make sure he’s still breathing.
“Wait, how is Mae? She still having trouble with her boss?”
“Yeah, so much drama. Get this… the only way he’s going to give her Christmas day off is if she goes to his family Christmas party as his fake girlfriend. I… don’t even know. I can’t believe she’s considering it.”
“Who is she working for?”
“That guy who is doing all the computer work in town. She’s been working for that IT company for a bit but everyone who meets her boss realizes he’s an asshole.”
“I hate business types. They’re such pieces of shit.” I smile and nudge Poppy playfully.
