"I'd like that." I smile back at him. I think it'd be the perfect way for us to open up and find out about each other.
Plus, I really do enjoy camping and it's been a long time since I've gone.
"Do you see that spot on the other side of the lake where the big boulders are stacked in almost a hump shape?" he asks, pointing across the lake.
I nod because it's pretty hard to miss the boulders as they are pretty freaking huge.
"Directly behind there is a cave. When I've been out hunting and got caught in really bad weather, I've had to use it a few times. I make it a point to keep it free of animals and stocked with blankets and some dry wood for a fire. There’s also a bear-proof crate in there with some canned foods. When we come camping, I'll take you over there and show it to you. It'll make a nice hike around the lake."
Instant dread settles in the pit of my stomach. Why is he telling me this? He has to know I'm hiding something, and that I'm running from something. If he knows that, it means he's going to ask.
I wait for the question that I don't want to answer, the one that will send him running and maybe ask me to leave. I don't know if I can trust this man. After all, he moved up here for a much more peaceful and simpler life.
If he knew my situation, he wouldn't want me here because there's a very good chance, I could be the disruption to his peace. Yesterday, his friends had been so nice to me, would they still if they knew the truth?
What if he asks me to leave? Where the hell would I go? I have absolutely nothing except the two suitcases I came here with and a box of photos that Aspen is storing at her house for me.
I wonder if hitchhiking is still a thing and how far I'd be able to get.
"You, okay?" Bennett pulls me from my thoughts with concern all over his face. Its then I realize it's been quite a while and he hasn't asked me the dreaded question.
"Yes, just got lost in my head. Do you often get trapped in bad weather out here?" Holding my breath, I’m hoping he will take the bait on the subject change, and thankfully, he does.
"At least once a year. It's not uncommon when you're on long hunting trips to not make it back before the weather hits."
We finish lunch and begin the trek back home.
"It sounds like you and your dad were really close," he says.
"Yeah, it's always just been him and me. We took care of each other, and he was always my biggest cheerleader. What about your parents?"
"We were pretty close, but they're no longer around."
I don't miss the short and vague answer, but I want to use this time to try to get to know him a little more.
"Is that why you moved out here to the mountain?"
"Partly." While his tone is friendly, it’s also vague, and if the short answers are any indication, he really doesn't want to talk about this. Deciding to let it go, as it wouldn't be fair for me to press an issue with him when I'm not willing to talk about things myself. When I don’t press, he seems relieved and we talk about some of our favorite camping moments with our families.
He’s definitely easy to talk to and we have a lot of the same interests. I find myself smiling quite a bit and it's all about stuff I wasn't expecting.
My expectations were more along the line that I’d be with some guy that I could barely stand, and if I was lucky, would ignore me until it was time to talk about having kids. What I wasn't expecting was to actually like my husband or for him to be this handsome man and to be such a good person. I had assumed that the only guys that would do the mail-order bride thing are ones that couldn't get a wife in real life and so they had to resort to getting one via the website. I've never been happier to be wrong.
The problem is the more that I like him, the worse I feel about keeping a secret from him. It would be better if he wasn't a good guy, then I wouldn't have felt so bad about keeping all this to myself. But the nicer he is and the closer we get, the more I want to tell him. I can't take that chance just yet.
Chapter 6
Bennett
TodayI'mtakingWillowinto town. We have a few things to do but she seems a little uncomfortable and on edge today. When I told her about the cave, I picked up on something yesterday out by the lake. I wanted her to know that there is a safe place for her here if she ever needs it. But she got real quiet afterward, and I think she's starting to suspect that I know something or suspect something but neither of us has brought it up. While I have no intention of bringing it up unless she does, the last thing I need is for her to think that she can't trust me or that she gets too uncomfortable and decides not to stay. If she's not here, I can't help protect her.
I park my truck behind Jack's shop because I know he won't mind, and we walk down Main Street stopping at a few stores before she finds a dress she really likes for Cash's wedding. As she casually takes in the town, we visit a few other stores
When she doesn't think I'm looking, she's hyperaware of her surroundings which only confirms my suspicions that she's worried about something.
Our last stop for the day is to see Jack. I have a box of things for him in the back of my truck. Mostly some bows and arrows that I've made for hunting. The tourists seemed to eat that kind of stuff up when they visit so long as they keep buying, I'll keep making them.
After I finish unloading the stuff for my truck, I see she's talking to Jack with a big smile on her face.