“More comfortable than those stilts you’re wearing,” Bea said to Harper. “I don’t know how you don’t fall over in those.”
“Practice, Bea, practice.” She turned to Riley. “Now, about your hair—”
“Riley, don’t you think you should get back in your own clothes?” Erma asked. Not only was Riley’s hair fine as it was, but a new hairstyle would also be a bridge too far for her granddaughter’s comfort. But Harper didn’t know that. “In case we have customers.”
“Yes, I should.” She turned and hustled to the back room.
Erma had been disappointed this morning when her appointment was canceled, but spending the morning with Bea and window-shopping antique stores had put her in a better mood. Besides, she was finally getting pretty good at maneuvering her chair.
Erma spun in her wheelchair and faced Harper. “That was very sweet of you, Harper,” she said, meaning every word. She took the young woman’s hand and squeezed it. “Just let me know how I need to pay.”
“I’ll take care of it, and you can pay me back,” Harper said, packing the rest of the clothes back in the bag. “That will be the easiest.”
“I can reimburse you in yarn, then.” Mimi winked.
Harper laughed. “No, thank you. Crafting is Mother’s thing, not mine.” She smiled at Erma and Bea. “She does look pretty, doesn’t she?”
Erma nodded. “She certainly does.” She was positive Hayden would think so too.
* * *
When Riley came out of the bathroom, Erma and Bea were already in the back room discussing the work Riley had done in the shop so far. She left the outfit on its hangers in the bathroom so it wouldn’t wrinkle.
“I’m going to say goodbye to Harper,” she told the ladies. “I’m sure she has to get back to work.”
Mimi nodded, giving Riley a wink, then turned back to Bea.
Riley walked up to the front of the store. Harper was sitting in the Man Chair, scrolling through her phone, the bag on the floor next to her.
Riley pulled over the stool she’d used to reach the top of the shelves and sat near Harper. “I can’t believe you got my sizes right.”
“Fashion is my passion. Besides, you have such a cute figure. You need to show it off more.”
Cute wasn’t the word Riley would use, especially next to the lithe Harper. Still, that didn’t change the fact that the new clothes had made her feel good and attractive. That wasn’t the goal, of course, especially since tonight wasn’t a date. It was a meeting between two friends to discuss a common interest. She wished she didn’t have to keep reminding herself of that.
“What time is Hayden picking you up?” Harper asked, slipping her phone into her purse.
“Five thirty.” Her nerves spiked again, and to distract herself, she continued talking. “He’s taking me to some steakhouse a little ways past Maple Falls.”
Harper chuckled. “Sounds like you’re getting some of your Southern accent back.”
Riley frowned. “I am?”
“A touch. You don’t have a New York accent for sure, but you don’t sound Southern either.” She leaned forward. “Once you start callin’ me sugah dumplin’, then I know you’re here to stay,” she drawled.
Riley didn’t bother to correct her. She couldn’t keep telling everyone she would be leaving soon. They would find out when she was gone.
Harper got up from the chair and grabbed the bag of clothes. “Have a great time with Hayden,” she said, hitching her purse strap over her shoulder. “He’s a good guy.”
“You’re not interested in him?” She hadn’t meant to ask the question out loud. It just popped out. She couldn’t imagine anyone not being attracted to Hayden.
“Oh, he’s cute. Can’t deny that. But he’s not my type.” She smirked. “He’s definitely yours, though.” She walked over to the door and opened it, letting in warm, humid air. “We girls will expect a full report later on,” she said.
“Girls?”
But Harper was already out the door.
Riley stood there, stunned by what had just happened. She figured Harper meant herself, Anita, and Olivia. But a full report of what, Riley wasn’t sure. She wasn’t used to having girlfriends to report to. She was also finding she didn’t mind it so much.
She thought about the pink outfit again and Harper’s thoughtfulness. This was the nicest thing any woman had ever done for her, with the exception of Mimi or one of the BBs.
Riley smiled, blinking back something she wasn’t used to—happy tears.
Chapter 11
Hayden slicked back his hair, the ends still damp from the quick shower he took before he went to pick up Riley from Knots and Tangles. He could have just changed his work shirt in the back room of the hardware store, then got in his car and picked her up behind the store instead of rushing home first, but that didn’t feel right for some reason. Even though he spent the day reminding himself that dinner tonight wasn’t a date, his nerves sure made it feel like one.
At 5:30 p.m. sharp he opened the door to the yarn shop. The bell above him dinged as he walked inside. When he didn’t see her right away, he paused in the middle of the shop, noticing how much room there was now since Riley had arrived and put her organizing skills to work. He wasn’t sure what to do. Should he wait for her at the counter? Holler that he was here? Text her? He was pulling out his phone from the pocket of his jeans when she walked through the doorway that led to the back of the store.
He froze, phone in hand, unable to take his eyes off her. She was wearing a light-pink top that dipped a little low, but not too low to be indecent, and a flowing skirt that skimmed the tops of her knees. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail with a few strands framing her face. At the base of her neck was a simple gold necklace. Her cheeks were rosy, as if she were blushing. She was so beautiful he could hardly breathe.
“Hi,” she said, looking at him but keeping her distance.
He swallowed. “Hey.” Great, he sounded like a bullfrog. He cleared his throat. “Uh, ready to go?”
Riley nodded. “Let me get my purse.” She went behind the counter and picked up her crossbody bag, hanging it over her shoulder.
“I parked in the back,” he said, walking over to her.
She nodded and walked around the counter. Then she suddenly tripped and started to fall forward.
Hayden curved his arm around her waist, steadying her, seeing that she’d tripped over the corner of an old area rug that was curling at the edges. He noticed she had on a pair of white strappy shoes with cork-colored heels. When he faced her, he realized they were nearly nose to nose.
“New shoes.” She sounded like she’d swallowed a squeaky dog toy. “I’m not used to them.”
The words hardly registered. Besides their kiss the other day, he’d never been this close to Riley before, not that he hadn’t wanted to be. He should let go of her, but his arm remained firmly in place. He could feel the softness of her shirt and the curves underneath, see the light sprinkling of freckles across her nose that were only visible this close up. Kissing her again would be so easy, so pleasurable—so wrong.
He dropped his arm and stepped away. “Can’t help you with that,” he said, letting out a chuckle about her new shoes and hoping he didn’t sound stupid. “I prefer cleats myself.”
“They wouldn’t exactly go with the outfit.”
That made him laugh—and broke the awkwardness of him holding on to her longer than was polite. Before he could say anything, she started walking away.
“I don’t want to be late for our reservation,” she said.
The steakhouse didn’t take reservations, but he didn’t correct her. He followed her out the door, trying to keep his gaze straight ahead and not on her. He wanted to blame the clothing for his intense attraction, but who was he kidding? She could wear a muumuu and he’d find her just as desirable.
When he saw that she was almost to the passenger door, he hurried and opened it for her. He couldn’t decip
her the look she gave him before getting in the car, and he figured he was really pushing things now. But he’d open the door for any woman. Those manners were ingrained in him since his youth.
As he drove to the restaurant, he searched for something to say. This was supposed to be supper with a friend, and conversation should have been easy. Instead, he turned on the radio and they listened to country music on the way to the steakhouse. When he pulled into the parking lot and turned off the engine, she started to open the door.
“Wait,” he said, instinctively touching her arm to stop her. When she glanced down at his hand on her arm, he pulled it back. “My mother would never forgive me if I didn’t open the door for you.”
Her lips curved into a half smile. “Southern manners?”
“You know it.” Relieved, he smiled back, then dashed out of the car and opened her door, holding out his hand. When she slipped her hand into his palm, he tried to imagine he was helping one of the BBs out of a car, something he had done a time or two. It didn’t work, of course, and he realized how nice Riley’s hand fit in his the same moment she let go.
After they walked into the restaurant and were taken to a table, Hayden insisting on pulling out her chair for her, they sat down and read over the menus. More silence, and that had diminished his good feelings from moments ago when she had smiled at him.
Maybe he’d made a mistake by asking her to dinner. They probably should have met at Erma’s, which would have been neutral territory, sort of. The waitress showed up and they ordered their food, then handed the menus to her before she took off. When he saw Riley fidgeting with the corner of her red cloth napkin, he was sure tonight was going to be uneasy at best, and possibly a disaster. Since his track record with her wasn’t great, he steeled himself for a long, uncomfortable evening.
* * *
Although she tried, Riley couldn’t stop feeling uncomfortable. It had started when she first saw Hayden staring at her when she came from the back of the shop. All the confidence she’d had in the bathroom evaporated when he kept gaping at her, not saying a word. That was what made her nervous—Hayden was rarely silent. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Did he think her new outfit was ugly or that she’d overdressed? She couldn’t read his expression, and when he didn’t say a word about her clothing, she figured she’d made a mistake wearing it. She should have stuck with her original jeans and T-shirt plan, although she noticed that Hayden not only looked nice but smelled amazing. She probably smelled like old yarn and cardboard boxes.
She had to admit that she was disappointed. Hayden was straightforward, and she liked that about him. If he liked her outfit, he would have said something.
Then there was the moment she tripped over the rug. She’d meant to get rid of that old thing already, but it kept slipping her mind. And while she might have caught her toe on the corner while wearing the sandals, it only made things worse that she had new shoes on—shoes Hayden didn’t seem to notice, either, until she pointed them out.
The waitress came by with glasses of water, and as she set them on the table, Riley tried to relax. She quickly picked up the glass and took a big gulp, only to spill half of it on her shirt. She was mortified. She couldn’t even do a friendly supper right. She put the glass down and picked up her cloth napkin, dabbing it at her neckline. Then she saw Hayden was staring at her again, only to clear his throat and take a sip of his own water. Of course he didn’t spill a drop.
She sat back in her chair. This was ridiculous. She refused to spend another minute ill at ease. This was Hayden, and they were here to discuss their ideas for Maple Falls, and they couldn’t do that if they weren’t speaking to each other.
“Let’s talk about Maple Falls,” she said, getting to the point. She never thought she’d ever say those words out loud.
He shifted his gaze for a split second, then looked at her again. “Okay, well, my first plan is to convince my parents to sell me the store.”
Her brow lifted. “You want to buy it?”
“Yes. I can’t accept that it won’t be our family business anymore. The only way to make sure that happens is if I own it outright.”
It didn’t escape Riley that they had very different opinions on the value of family businesses. “What about your house? Isn’t it going to be expensive to fix up?”
He shook his head. “Not if I do the work myself. I crunched some numbers, and although it will take more time than if I contract out some of the work, if I do as much as I can, I’ll save a good chunk of money, and I’ll put that toward the hardware store. Money isn’t the issue. Talking to my folks will be.”
“Why?” She took another sip of her water, this time making sure she didn’t spill it. “You have a good relationship with your family.” Something she was a bit envious of.
“I’m still irritated that they didn’t tell me about the sale.” He frowned. “I understand their reasons, at least the ones Henry told me. But they left me out of a family decision and didn’t give me a chance to put in my two cents.”
Riley was acquainted with that feeling, at least in other parts of her life. To be fair, Mimi had always tried to include her in Knots and Tangles, only to meet resistance.
The waitress brought their order—a rib eye, baked potato, and vegetable medley for Hayden, and a filet, mashed potatoes, and salad for Riley. The filet was a bit on the pricey side, but she was paying for her part of the supper, and thanks to Mimi’s generosity, she could afford to splurge a little.
After they started eating, they continued to talk. Riley suggested telling his parents what his plans were for the hardware store, and they brainstormed ideas to get more customers into the shop. Then they switched to discussing Knots and Tangles, and Riley explained her plans concerning the shop and Mimi’s house in more detail. She pulled out the budget with the estimates she’d worked on and gave it to Hayden, who perused it before tucking it into his pocket.
“Would you two like to look at the dessert menu?” the waitress asked as she cleared their empty plates.
Riley started to shake her head, but Hayden said, “Do you still have hot fudge sundaes?” When she nodded, he told the waitress, “One sundae, two spoons.”
After the waitress left, he looked at Riley, “Just in case you want a bite or two.”
She was nearly full after the wonderful meal but wasn’t sure she could resist a sundae. “Maybe one bite,” she conceded.
As they waited on dessert, Hayden brought up his ideas for revitalizing Maple Falls. “Eventually I want to get the Too Dang Hot Parade back on track, but I know that’s going to take time. Until then I want to visit with the Main Street business owners and talk about sprucing up their storefronts. I thought we could also get the school kids involved to clean up the park and ball field. I’m going to contact the vocational school in Hot Springs, too, and ask about commissioning some new benches for the park.”
“Wow, that all sounds great.” So great that for a moment she wished she would be here to see it all come to fruition. But she couldn’t let his enthusiasm sway her into staying in Maple Falls longer than she had to.
The sundae arrived and was large enough to serve two people. Hayden moved it to the center of the table and dug his spoon into the mound of vanilla ice cream, which was melting under a puddle of thick hot fudge.
When he took a bite, he smirked. “Delicious. Bet you can’t stop at one bite.”
She took it as a challenge and lifted her brow at him, then scooped up a huge bite of the sundae. When she tried to fit it in her mouth, she had to laugh as whipped cream landed on her nose.
“Here,” he said, reaching over and wiping it off with his napkin before settling back in his chair. “That counts as two bites, by the way.”
“Oh no it doesn’t.” She grinned. “You never specified the size of the one bite.”
He lifted another spoonful. “Good point.” Then he waved the spoon a little closer to her. “Sure you don’t want another bite?”
For the first time in her life, she didn’t glance around to see if anyone was watching her. Somehow Hayden inspired her to let go of her self-consciousness, even if it took a while to get there. She shook her head, then snatched the cherry that was sliding off the top of the sundae.
“I’m done.”
“Hey, what if I wanted that cherry?”
“You did?” Her guard immediately went up again. “I’m sorry. I should have asked—”
“Riley, I’m teasing. I don’t even like cherries.”
She turned her head slightly and gave him a sidelong glance. “Is that true, or are you just being nice?”
He set down the spoon and put up his hands. “You caught me. I love any kind of cherries.”
“You’re a terrible liar too.” She grinned and crossed her hands on the table as he finished off the dessert. She was tempted to grab another bite but held her ground. He didn’t need help polishing off the ice cream anyway. The waitress dropped off the check as he was scraping the last bit of hot fudge from the bottom of the dish.
When Riley reached for her bag, Hayden shook his head. “It’s on me tonight.”
“I’m paying my share.”
He looked at her. “I suppose it’s useless to argue with you.”
“Correct.” Again, she couldn’t stop herself from smiling.
“All right. But I still get to open the car door for you, right?”
Her smile widened and she sighed dramatically. “If you insist.”
They paid the bill and made their way to the car, Riley letting Hayden open the door. As they went back to downtown Maple Falls, they continued talking about their future plans, Riley leaving out her determination to leave as soon as she could, and Hayden never bringing up the subject.
It was dark by the time he pulled into the parking space next to Erma’s car in the lot behind Knots and Tangles. She could see a few fireflies hovering around the two small bushes that edged the parking lot. She hadn’t been able to figure out if they were planted there as a beautification project that was never finished, or if they simply weren’t pulled out when the lot was poured. They had always seemed out of place to her.
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