Page 15 of Crowe
“Yeah.” I shrugged. “Originally it was a one-room cabin, but don’t worry, Wyatt and I added a full bathroom a couple of years ago.”
“It didn’t have a bathroom? And who’s Wyatt?”
“Wyatt’s my brother, and there’s still an old outhouse out back, not that anyone uses it anymore.” I couldn’t help but smile at the memories. “My grandfather built this place, and trust me, it’s sturdy, but he wasn’t much of one for creature comforts. When Wyatt and I inherited the place, we made some changes.”
“Like adding a bathroom.”
“Exactly. We also turned this area up here into a living room.” I pointed to the oversized leather couch and recliner that satfacing a television. “When we were growing up, there were two twin beds for my grandfather and my father and a set of bunk beds for me and Wyatt. Those and the kitchen table were the only furniture in the whole place.
“I always wished I had a brother to share bunk beds with,” he said wistfully.
“It was a lot of fun when we were kids, not so much once we hit our growth spurts and had to squeeze our six-foot-plus frames into those bunk beds.”
“So you got rid of the bunks and replaced them with a single bed.”
“Right. Don’t worry, the bed is yours. I’ll sleep on the couch. I usually sleep there when Wyatt and I are both here. It’s pretty comfortable.”
“Why are you the one who sleeps on the couch?”
I chuckled. “Because he’s the older brother, something he never lets me forget.”
He nodded and went to look out the back window. “This is a really nice view.”
I walked over to stand beside him. “The cabin sits on fifteen wooded acres, and those acres back up to the state park.”
“I bet you and your brother had fun out there.”
“We did.”
“Where’s your brother now?” he asked.
“Ohio. He was a cop in Dallas for years. He got tired of all the crime and the big city politics. He took a job in a small town up there, and he’s about bored out of his mind.”
“Ohio is a long way to go to find a small town.”
“It is. He’d just gone through a divorce, and he was looking for… well, something. I don’t like him being so far away, but I hope he finds what he’s looking for.”
We stood there for a minute looking out over the backyard, neither of us saying anything. Finally, he let out a long sigh. “I can’t believe they found me.”
I glanced over at him, and he looked so tired, and not just physically. “You know what? You’ve had a rough day. Just what you did for work would be enough to wear you out, and with all of this on top of it”—I shook my head—“I’m surprised you’re still standing. Let me run you a bath, and while you decompress, I’ll fix us something to eat. How does that sound?”
He gave me a hopeful look. “A bath sounds amazing.”
“Okay, you grab your stuff, and I’ll get the bath started for you.”
I’d never been so grateful that Wyatt had insisted on putting that old claw-foot tub in the bathroom here. I’d thought it was a waste at the time since I took nothing but showers, but he’d insisted it fit the aesthetic of the cabin.
I turned on the water and waited a second for it to get nice and hot. Then I went over to the cabinet, took out a towel and a washcloth for him, and laid them on the sink. I stood there and watched the tub fill until he entered the bathroom.
“Oh wow. That looks amazing. I didn’t expect such a deep tub.”
“It’s all ready for you. Do you have everything you need?”
“I do.”
I reached over and turned off the water. “Okay, if you need anything else, just holler. Is there anything food-wise you don’t eat or are allergic to?”
“No, I eat pretty much everything.”
