Page 56 of Say We've Found Forever
He follows them up the stairs and to the last bedroom at the end of the hall.
Addison flings open the door after a long pause, holding her hands out Vanna White style. “What do you think?”
This room was dirty and dark the last time he saw it, but they’ve clearly worked on it in secret.
“Looks good.” He squints. “When did you do this?”
“Oh, here and there. While you were cursing at that baby cow that keeps escaping and trying to herd it back into the pen, and then today, while you were hunting.”
“That cow is a menace.” So that’s why she’s been so eager to shove him out the door and why no one helped him corral that calf.
“We washed the curtains and took the boards off the windows, and there was even some clean bedding in the dryer. And the flowers, did you see them? Aren’t they pretty? We picked those from the other house.” Emma says, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
“Knocked it outta the park. It’ll be a good spot for you two to sleep if something happens and we gotta stay here,” he agrees.
Emma’s face falls.
Addison goes quiet, one hand landing lightly on his arm. “No, Wyatt, it’s for you. We fixed this room up for you.”
He gapes at her. Suddenly, all the hard work put into this space jumps out at him like he’s seeing it for the first time. The windows are clean, not a spot of dirt or dust.
The bed is made up with fresh sheets, and the corner is turned down like a fancy hotel.
All the stains on the hardwood floors are gone, and a small cup holds several stems of yellow flowers.
They did this all for him.
“We’ve been thinking,” Addison continues. “That moving here might be a good idea. This place is bigger, it has more resources and fireplaces for winter. It’s safer to be here if Vincent comes looking. To be honest, it just feels more like a fresh start. It could be good for all of us. What do you think? I um…I know that you’re attached to the other house for good reason. You grew up there after all, and I’m not suggesting that we abandon it. I just hope that you might see fit to join us here for the majority of our time?”
This is what he wanted but was too afraid to ask for, fearing she might say no. Now, she’s done up this room for him as if he needs a fancy place to stay to sway his opinion on the matter. Asif the two of them aren’t enough all on their own to make him stick around.
She fears he may let them split off into two separate living situations, and not for the first time, he wants to punch her husband square in the jaw for shucking them like trash on the sidewalk.
“Only if you want to,” Addison continues quickly when he fails to answer right away. “We can keep supplies at the other house for safety reasons. And some of the animals can stay there, too. It doesn’t mean we never go back. I know you wanna stay there, I get that. This is only an option, and if you hate it here, that’s okay too.”
“We’ll need to bring the goats over,” he agrees. “We can still tend the land over there and keep both places running, but I think staying here full time is the best plan, at least over winter. You know this farm is an easier target, though, right? It’s got better fences for the dead, but if other people find it, they could try to take it from us.”
“I know. I still think it’s worth it.”
“Okay then. Let’s stay here.”
Addison grins, her hand on his arm, giving it a little squeeze.
Emma twirls in the middle of the room, arms out wide. “I love our new house!”
Our house. That’s got him ready to get choked up if he’s not careful.
“You didn’t have to do all this. Fixing the room up. But thank you. And I um…about the other place and me growing up there, I think we need to talk about—”
“You deserve to have somewhere peaceful, Wyatt,” Addison tells him with a dismissive wave. “You haven’t seemed very happy there, and I got to thinking that maybe you might not have the best memories of that place. A change of scenery for a while could be nice. You don’t have to explain anything.”
Fuck, he is an asshole. A jerk. A real piece of work who is slowly ruining any chance he might have at truly being with her because he’s afraid to admit the truth now that it’s festered into such a big lie. It felt like an absent thing to say back when they first met. Easier than arguing with some stranger about his claim to that house. He gave it no thought whatsoever.
Now, it’s all he thinks about when he isn’t fantasizing about Addison or having nightmares about the baby’s birth.
“What about you?” he questions. “You need a room, too.”
She shrugs, unbothered. “Don’t worry about that, we’ll clean out the one next door. It’ll be quick.”
