Page 34 of Cuddling Carly

“Holy cow, that’s Amelia Pine!” Carly said.

“Is she famous?” Wade asked.

“The actress!”

She looked vaguely familiar to him, but he couldn’t really place her. He supposed she hadn’t made any westerns.

“What did y’all think of the haunted house?” Stryker asked once everyone had their ice cream of choice and were seated.

“Take it from this Halloween lover—it was the most amazing spooky experience I’ve ever had!” Carly replied.

“How scary was it?” Harrison probed.

“Well, on the diaper scale, we all needed changed,” Eli told him.

The group laughed.

Smaller conversations broke out amongst everyone, and Dax took that time to switch seats where he could be closer to Wade.

“Your hunch was right.”

Wade grinned and took a bit of his cookies and cream before saying, “Yeah. But you knew that from the moment I rolled into town.”

Dax nodded. “Sorry I couldn’t come right out and tell you. But I needed to respect her privacy and make sure she was safe.”

“And I appreciate that. Makes me feel good knowing she was protected until I got here.”

The two men shook hands.

“What are y’all talking about?” Carly asked them after her side conversation with Stella and Katie finished up.

“You,” Wade told her. “When I came into town, the marshal couldn’t tell me you were here. It would have betrayed your privacy. He also felt me out, to make sure I wasn’t some weird stalker type.”

Dax shrugged. “Doing my job.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if you had eyes on me here and there, too, while I moseyed around town, looking for Carly.”

A grin split Dax’s lips. “Let’s just say I was aware of where you were and what you were up to.”

Wade liked that answer. He would have done the same in the marshal’s position.

“I’m much obliged for you looking out for Carly. It means more to me than you’ll ever know.”

“Thank you. But I might know how you feel. I’m a Daddy, too.”

Dax had him there, Wade thought. The people in that town could relate to one another.

He was beginning to like it there in Mountainville.

A whole lot.

Chapter Twenty-One

The ball pit had earned its stellar reputation among Littles far and wide, Carly thought just before she jumped in.

The size of an Olympic swimming pool, it was filled to the brim with blue, red, green, yellow, and pink plastic orbs. A tower jetted up from the center, resembling a lighthouse, that had two slides swirling down from each side.

“Ready?” Katie asked.