Elowen chuckled. “When we were kids, I used to grab handfuls of snow and shove them down his shirt.”
Her words made him laugh out loud. He’d forgotten about her shoving snow down his shirt. “Those were good times.”
“Did he ever do that to you?” Danika asked.
She shook her head. “No. He knew I didn’t like to be cold. He said he didn’t mind.”
He shrugged. “It was cold, but whatever. There were only a few times it didn’t feel good. We had fun together.”
“What other antics did you two get into?”
Griz shrugged. “Not much.”
Elowen‘s lips curved into a sad smile. “We both learned at an early age not to upset the parents. They got mean if we did stuff that pissed them off.”
Griz nodded. “We kind of kept to ourselves.”
“We did. But I spent a lot of time enjoying our time together.”
“So you didn’t keep up with each other after graduation?” Rowan asked.
Griz shook his head. Elowen met his gaze, both of them sobered. After a moment Elowen spoke. “You haven’t told any of them?”
He shrugged. “Not much reason to. It’s just a sad story that has no bearing on me today.”
Rowan looked between them then her eyes narrowed. “Abuse at home, right?”
Griz hated talking about his past. He didn’t think sharing that part of his past was important. The guys knew what kind of man he was and trusted him. Telling them his father had beaten the shit out of him wouldn’t improve things.
Elowen cleared her throat. “When he took off, there was blood in the barn. Everyone knew we hung out in the barn and being tall and bigger than most girls, the cops decided I’d killed him. His dad knew he’d beat the shit out of Justin, well Griz, and didn’t step in. I was held in juvie for a week until they realized I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
“Holy shit,” Nichole said.
Danika shook her head then moved to Elowen, pulling her into a hug. “That’s awful.”
“I didn’t know about the cop stuff and juvie until yesterday,” Griz said.
Amelia wiped her eyes. “Damn, I would be so pissed.”
“I was. But I wasn’t pissed at Griz. For a while there, I thought he was dead. They never found a body and my parents showed proof I was at home. Still, people in our hometown were convinced I had killed him.”
Griz pulled her close and kissed the side of her head. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”
“It wasn’t your fault. You were just trying to survive.”
Sharp shook his head. “That really sucks. But you seem to have done very well.”
Elowen nodded. “I pushed myself to become something. Growing up on a farm meant I was around tools. I knew how to use them, and I jumped on it, becoming a construction worker.”
“This place is perfect,” Nichole said.
They all gushed about how perfect the cabin was. Elowen was proud of everything she’d accomplished. She’d taken a terrible situation and made it great. The people on review sites said kind things about her cabin, but these people telling her they loved her cabin made her feel amazing. Their praise meant so much more to her. Maybe it was because she knew they were friends of Griz, and she really respected him.
“Thank you. It means a lot coming from you all.”
Danika clasped her hands in front of her. “How about some food?”
“Good, I’m so hungry,” Sharp said.
