Page 16 of Searching for Sunshine

Wyatt: Hey, I’m done for the day and am about to head over. Are y’all around?

Stella: Yeah, we’re here. We’ll meet you in the lobby.

Wyatt: Sounds good. I’ll see you then.

It only takes a few minutes to make the short drive over to the High Tide Hideaway, and as I pull into the parking lot my throat tightens with nerves. With the business of the last few days, I haven’t had time to give the whole situation too much thought, but now that I’m here, it hits me that I’m really doing this. I don’t regret making the suggestion to Stella that we get married, and I stand by the idea that it doesn’t have to mean anything serious between the two of us. But at the same time, I’ve never done anything this impulsive in my life.

Taking a deep breath, I make my way inside and see Stella and another girl, who I’m assuming is the friend she told me about, sitting together on the sofa in the corner.

“Hey, Stella,” I say, and she looks up to smile at me.

“Oh my god, he’s even hotter in person,” her friend says loudly, and Stella bumps her with her leg to silence her.

“Hey, Wyatt,” Stella says, walking over to give me a hug. “This is my best friend, Avery. Avery, this is Wyatt.”

“Nice to meet you,” I say to Avery, who smiles at me.

“Likewise. I’ve heard a lot about you these last few days, but I’m happy to put a face with the name,” she says, causing Stella to roll her eyes.

“Okay, enough of that,” Stella interrupts.

Before she can say anything else, a dog emerges from under the coffee table, dragging his leash on the ground and running over to where we’re standing.

“Uh, I’m hoping this is your dog?” I ask, looking down at the lab at our feet.

“Yep. This is Duke, and he’s the best boy,” Stella answers, her eyes widening. “Oh my god, I just realized I never even told you I had a dog. I hope that’s okay.”

I nod, bending over to pet the pup. “Yeah, that’s totally fine. I’ve always loved dogs.”

“Oh my god, do you remember the time one of the guests brought their dog and it escaped from their room? Pretty sure we spent the entire day looking for him, and we found him asleep in the linen closet buried under all the towels?” Stella asks with a laugh.

“Yeah, I got the little guy out and he spent the rest of the trip escaping out of his room to find me because I gave him all those treats,” I respond, chuckling at the memory.

“All right, I hate to break up the walk down memory lane, but we’ve got a shit ton of stuff to move and a wedding to plan,” Avery points out.

“You’re right. Why don’t we talk about tomorrow while we wait on the rest of the moving crew to get here?” I suggest.

“That sounds perfect,” Stella agrees, and we move to sit on the couch.

“Before we get too far into this, I just have to make sure, are you sure you’re still good with this whole situation? I still can’t believe we’re doing this,” she starts, and I hold up my hand to interrupt her.

“Stella, I told you that I promise I’m good with it. Remember, one year with no strings, and then the hotel’s yours,” I tell her.

“Hell yeah it is,” Avery interjects.

“Okay, as for tomorrow, I figured we could do the ceremony on the docks after I finish my tours for the day. It’s private enough so maybe we can keep the rest of the town from sticking their damn noses in our business. I took care of the marriage license and my brother also got ordained yesterday so he’s good to go.”

“Damn, Wyatt, you’ve kinda already taken care of everything,” Stella says.

“It really wasn’t a big deal. A quick visit to the county clerk and that was it.”

“Well, still, I’m grateful,” she tells me just as the front door of the lobby opens and Everett, Bennett, and Trent come in the front door.

“Moving crew’s here,” Bennett yells as he walks in the door.

The three of us stand and make our way over, and Trent’s the first to speak. “There she is. Hey, Stella. Long time no see,” he says, reaching out to hug her. “Are you sure about marrying this grumpy old fella?”

“Hey, Trent. I know it’s been a long time. And oh yeah, I’m sure.” She laughs, before turning to Everett. “And hi, Everett. It’s good to see you again too.”

---