Page 8 of My Mountain Man Grump
Carrie’s vibrant, full of youthful energy. I can feel it radiating across the lawn. I’m not going to sit here like a creep and watch her all night. But while I’m in my office, I may as well keep the blinds up. It’s like having the TV going in the background. Carrie dancing and singing inher cabin across the yard is comforting. It makes me feel warm inside, and there’s not a lot of things besides my girls that do that these days.
The blinds stay up, and I take a seat at my laptop. I pick up the invitation to the nail parlor birthday party and email the mom organizing it to say no, Olivia won’t be attending.
I don’t give a reason why; I don’t have to. Just because every other parent lets their kids do a thing doesn’t mean I have to.
Giving a nine-year old girl the belief that her appearance is the most important thing is not what I want to encourage in my girls. I want them to be fierce and strong and confident. I want them to be so goddamn happy they sing and dance in the kitchen of a stranger’s cabin.
5
CARRIE
“He’s nice and the girls are sweet.” I cross my fingers when I say it so the lie doesn’t count.
“You didn’t sleep with him, did you? Not on the first night?” Suzie has that bossy big sister tone to her voice.
I think about Cole’s thick arms and solid chest and the grumpy way he looked at me like I was a pest on his land. “No. I definitely did not sleep with him on the first night.”
“Good.”
It seems to mollify Suzie. “Just wait to get to know him a bit better first.”
Which is rich coming from her, considering how she got together with her husband.
“Look, I’ve got to go. Cole’s taking me, um, horse riding.” I wince at yet another lie. But there is no way I’m telling Suzie what really happened. She practically begged me not to come here, warning me Cole might notbe what he seems, and I can’t bear to tell her she was right.
I get off the call and chuck my phone on the couch next to me. I’ll tell Suzie once I’m back safe and sound in Hope, the small town at the base of Wild Heart Mountain where we live. She’ll only worry if she knows the truth. That I’ve been catfished by a granny. A sweet, kind granny, but still.
Joyce has been nothing but kind. When I asked if she had any baking ingredients last night, she stopped by with everything I need for cupcakes.
It’s what I do to feel better. When mom was sick, the house was full of baked goods. The neighbors must have gotten tired of eating the cookies and cupcakes and cakes I brought them every few days. But they always took them with smiles on their faces, trying to mask the pity they must have felt for an eighteen-year-old nursing her mother through cancer.
I wonder how many of my creations got eaten and how many ended up in the trash. It doesn’t matter. Baking made me feel better at the time, and it always has since.
Probably because it’s the one thing I used to do with my mother without Suzie. My sister never liked baking. When we got the mixing bowls out, she’d screw her face up and go outside to practice basketball instead, although she always came back to lick the bowl.
I push thoughts of Suzie out of my head. She’d flip if she knew what had really happened here, and it’d be even worse if she knew I’d stayed the night once finding outCole wasn’t real. I think about his solid bulk and the scent I caught of pinewood and diesel and the way it made my lower belly pull up tight. He’s real all right.
He just doesn’t want anything to do with me. If only my car can get fixed today, and I can get the heck out of here. Maybe I can rent a hotel room somewhere for a week, and when I get back to Hope, I’ll tell Suzie it didn’t work out.
The cupboards are well stocked for a holiday home, although it dawns on me that this isn’t an AirBnB either. It’s probably the spare family cabin for when visitors come to stay.
I’ve worked out that Joyce lives on the property in her cabin alone, but there’s no mention of Cole’s parents. I wonder what happened to them and if it’s as tragic as what happened to his wife.
I shake my head to clear the thought. It’s none of my business. As soon as my car’s fixed I’ll be driving out of here and leaving this family to get on with their lives.
I choose pink food coloring for the frosting and make it up in a big silver bowl I find in the cupboard. It’s Saturday today and I watched Cole leave with the girls, their curious faces peering out at me from the pickup truck. I suppose they’re heading off for Saturday sports and dance class. Cole, I mean Joyce, told me all about what the girls are into.
I waved at them from the porch, and two small arms tentatively waved back. Only Cole maintained a stony expression. Like it’s my fault his grandma tricked me into coming here.
I spend the morning icing the cupcakes and eating one as I sit on the porch reading a paperback.
Joyce comes over to tell me Gus needs to order in a part for the car and it could take a few days. I call the rental company again hoping the situation has changed and they miraculously have a car in the area today. The woman seems bored and unhelpful.
There are no cars available.
I’m stranded here until the part for the Jeep turns up.
I grab another cupcake and stuff it in my mouth.
