Page 61 of Making the Save
I wasn’t a princess. Far from it. But I couldn’t help but think that the woman who was lucky enough to get Wyatt to fall for her would feel like a princess every day.
Too bad it wouldn’t be me.
12
Where in the world is Sydney Malloy? Honeymooning or hiding?
Liam Locke, Wyatt’s younger (and better looking) brother, says the couple is extremely happy. But it looks like Liam’s got his hands full. Being a daddy? Sydney has found a family as dramatic as she is…
-Celebrity Truth
Wyatt
My back hurt. I pulled off my shirt and tossed it to the side to give my arms a little more freedom and picked up the axe again, bringing it down heavily on the round log I’d set up to split.
The satisfaction of watching the wood split barely outweighed the twinge in my lower back.
It was that damn couch. It came with the cabin and had to be about fifty years old. Every spring was busted, as Liam pointedout when he stayed over. And it was too damn small for a man of my size. What the hell was I supposed to do, though?
I couldn’t drag her up to this mountain and then take the only bed.
I heard the soft strumming of a guitar and looked up to see Syd in one of the Adirondack chairs on the porch, holding her guitar on her lap. She wore an oversized t-shirt that swallowed her up. She strummed again and started singing.
“He’s a mountain man. He ain’t scared of spiders and he splits logs with his bare hands…”
“I’m using an axe.”
“Creative license,” she said and kept strumming. “He’s a gentleman but he doesn’t like to show it. He has a heart of gold but he has to hide it. He kisses like Prince Charming but looks like a bear…”
“This is a terrible song.”
“It’s for posterity. For our children,” she said, laughing at me. But at the mention of children, I felt a flush across my skin. Two kids up here with us. Maybe more. I’d have to build that loft.
“Keep chopping mountain man, you’re inspiring me.”
I laughed. Fuck me, she was cute.
Why not oblige her? I set a round log on the tree stump, and picked up my axe, flexing with all my might.
“I’m only doing this because we need wood for the fire. It’s still cold at night this high up on the mountain.”
“If that’s what you want to tell yourself,” Syd said with a smirk.
I brought the axe down on the log and split it in two.
“You know, there’s a guy who makes Tik Toks of himself splitting wood shirtless,” she said, still strumming her guitar. “I think he’s like a gazillionaire now.”
“Yeah, well I can tell you that’s not something I’m going to be doing in retirement. Too hard on my back.”
I stretched my arms above my head, trying to elongate my spine, which was something my trainers were always harping on.
I looked over at Syd, her eyes were glued to my chest.
“I feel so objectified,” I teased.
She blinked a few times, then wet her lips. “Sorry,” she mumbled, “Not sorry.”
“Make it up to me by singing a real song.”