“You don’t want the business?” Moose asked, the corners of his eyes crinkling with intensity.
Zach paused, not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings. He’d wrestled with this decision for months, and now that he had another option, he didn’t want to let this opportunity pass him by. But the funeral home was his safety net. He took a deep breath and shook his head. “No,” he said softly, still trying to gauge their reactions. “I don’t.” Relief washed over him.
His father laughed and threw his hands into the air. “I told you,” he said to his father.
Moose shook his head. “How long have you been feeling this way?”
Zach grimaced. “Since mortuary school?” It wasn’t quite that long. “Okay, I’ve only been this antsy for the last year or so.”
Dad put a hand on his shoulder. “That’s a long time,” he said with compassion.
Zach was touched that he cared so much about how he was feeling.
“I wish you would have said something,” Moose grumbled. “I could have sold the business to your uncle Eddy.”
Zach tried to stifle a laugh. So much for feeling bad for him; Grandpa wanted to cash out.
“You mean Zach’s portion,” his dad said. “Because I’m still here.”
Both of them were teasing, and their light-heartedness added to Zach’s relief.
“And now you’re going to try to convince me your decision to move to Harvest Ranch has nothing to do with a certain ambitious drive-in owner?” Moose said, a twinkle in the old man’s eye.
Moose started walking them back to the rest of the group, and Zach’s stomach lurched. It was hard enough to tell these two his plans, but he wasn’t ready to lay it out for everyone when there was just so much uncertainty—especially with Lucy.
Before Carter and Lucy’s engagement was announced officially, Zach could harbor some hope that matrimony wasn’t actually pending. Yesterday, when she’d had the chance, she hadn’t even brought it up as one of her reasons for inviting Carter to speak. Perhaps he ought to just say something, remove the dread he felt, but he selfishly enjoyed spending time with her. It was so easy to convince himself she was interested in him—a harmless fantasy that would change when Carter got back into town that evening.
Instead of answering the question about his motive having anything to do with his interest in Lucy, Zach shrugged. There was too much and too little he could say on the matter.
“That’s what I thought.” Moose clapped a hand on his shoulder. “This town and the Starlight Drive-In can be a pretty magical place to find your one. Leaving home and coming to Harvest Ranch was the best decision I ever made.” He looked over at Mikki, who was playing hide-and-seek behind a tree with Leah, and his face softened with obvious fondness. “The second best,” he corrected himself.
“You’re not upset, are you?” Zach asked his father. “About me leaving the business?”
“Are you crazy?” His dad side-eyed him. “You are crazy. You want to move to a small town in the middle of nowhere so you can build more hidden doorways and rotating bookcases.”
Those, of course, would be the fun projects, but Zach’s bread and butter would be built-in bookcases, custom kitchen cabinets, and never having to go to another stranger’s funeral.
“Where to next?” Marnie asked when the three men joined the rest of the group. She threw Zach that look that said you’ll fill me in later, and he was grateful she wasn’t pushing for now.
“Unless there’s somewhere left on the nostalgia tour—” Zach’s mother raised a hopeful smile. “—I’d love to get out to the tulip field one more time.”
With most everyone agreeing, Zach climbed into the car Marnie was not in. He wasn’t worried she would share more theories about Lucy, since he’d already set her straight about that the night before, but he wasn’t ready to be grilled about his conversation with their dad and grandpa yet either.
From the back seat, Zach leaned up between the front two. “Moose, if I give you directions, could you drop me off somewhere?”
Within minutes, Moose left Zach at David Daley’s shop outside of town. Zach entered, inhaling deeply. There was something intoxicating about pinewood sawdust. Peace swirled like dust motes around him, confirming the decision he’d made to have a go of it here in what would be his new town.
Dave stepped out of a small office to the right of the entrance. “Wanted to check it out?” He offered a hand to Zach.
“I needed to see what I’d be working with—if you’re serious about that job.”
“If I was serious?” Dave scoffed. He motioned toward the ample room with every tool Zach could have wanted, and gave him a moment to take it all in. Then he tipped his head toward the office. “Let me show you what we’ve got in the works.”
They took the few steps into the office, where Dave woke his computer with a flick of the mouse. “You know we’ve been handling the Cornucopia Inn remodels, but that’s not all.” He clicked on a tab. “Here’s another of our current projects.”
The Alexander Young House, it said on the side of the main floor plan. As in the Alexander Young—the movie star and real estate mogul? Couldn’t be. Zach couldn’t help being impressed. Working on this house—whether for the rich and famous or not—would be a treat. He didn’t have a lot of experience reading blueprints, but the house looked impressive and would certainly call for some beautiful cabinetry work. It was a challenge he looked forward to taking on.
“We’re still a couple months from being ready for your skills, but we’ll need you here, and here, and here—” Dave pointed to room after room. He stood up from the computer. “Don’t worry. We’ll have enough to keep you busy.” He started to walk back into the shop, and Zach followed. “But first, let’s see if you have the chops.”
“Chops?” Zach raised an eyebrow in challenge. After the time they’d spent working on the gazebo, hadn’t he already proven himself?
“Oh, I know you can build, or I wouldn’t have offered you the job. Now I’m checking your follow-through. Are you going to tell that girl what you think of her or not?”
So he was back to that. Zach chuckled. He should have known. It wasn’t a bad idea, and it was exactly the reason Zach had stopped by the shop in person.
Dusk was falling by the time Dave and Zach pulled up to the ticket booth at the Starlight Drive-In.
“Looks like this is the end of the road.” A locked bar prevented entrance, keeping Dave from driving his pickup any closer. “We’ll have to pack them in from here.”
Carrying eight solid wood Adirondack chairs to the grassy area at the front of the larger of the two screens was no small feat, and Zach was relieved to have his new boss’s help.
“Sorry I can’t stick around to help you finish it.” Dave handed him the plastic sack of supplies they’d picked up from the hardware store on Main. “But it is Friday night, and Ramona’s expecting me.”
“Of course.” Zach dismissed the apology with a wave of his hand. “You’ve helped a lot already.”
“A bunch of scraps from around the shop and some hours building?” David adjusted his ball cap. “I haven’t done that in a long time. It was fun.” He pushed out a long breath, sounding exhausted. “But I’m gonna bail.”
“No problem.” Zach didn’t want to think about the work he still had ahead of him, and yet in a way, he was looking forward to doing the rest alone. This was supposed to be his gift to Lucy, his grand gesture. He just hoped it wouldn’t make things too uncomfortable if she ended up with Carter. Words could never be taken back, and most likely wouldn’t be misunderstood, but a few new chairs for her business? That could be dismissed as an engagement gift from a soon-to-be brother-in-law, if that was how she chose to see it.
But boy, he hoped she didn’t.
Thanks to a battery-operated floodlight and several cans of spray paint, Zach spent the next few hours finishing the project. He turned on Brett Young’s “In Case You Didn’t Know” and hoped against hope that Lucy wo
uld hear all the things he couldn’t say.
17
Lucy could have sworn Friday night was the longest of the year so far. After having spent all her free time this week and more with the Hughes family, she’d spent the evening in her office catching up on all the work she’d put off and eating stale peanut butter crackers from her desk drawer. She’d had no choice but to wash them down with whatever Dr. Pepper concoction Presley had sent over this time. Raspberries and cream, if she wasn’t mistaken, and it was pretty dang good—probably even the highlight of her evening. Which said a lot about the state of her mind.
She’d had no reason to think she’d be invited to join in the Hughes family dinner the night before the cleanup, likely their last free night before going home. And yet, the void it left in her had been huge.
But that was in the past. Today was the day of the Harvest Ranch cleanup, and she had a bajillion details to oversee—and one huge bucket list item to check off. She never imagined she could actually listen to Carter Hughes in person, and at her very own drive-in? If she thought about it too much, she might swoon. Thankfully, the details of all the things she had to do would also serve to distract her. No time for passing out.
It was hardly past dawn when she started her brisk morning walk to the drive-in. Crew was planning to meet her at the corner, and together they’d unlock the gate and make sure everything was ready. She’d seen notifications from the drive-in’s security system on her phone’s app, but knowing she had Stephanie Westbrook dropping off flats of flowers for the Main Street business owners and other subcommittee members prepping last night, she hadn’t bothered to watch all the videos.
“I should have,” she muttered to herself. “What if—”
She didn’t want to finish that statement. A number of things could have gone wrong, but chances were, they didn’t. Just because she had time to fret about it didn’t mean she should.
Since Crew was doing her a favor by helping out before everyone came, she’d offered to stop by Choco-Latte. “Good morning, Presley.”
Presley returned the greeting with a huge smile. “For both of you?” she asked by way of taking Lucy’s order.
“Yes, the usual—a Dr. Pepper—” She emphasized. “—for me, and something warm for Crew. Whatever hot chocolate it is he likes.”
Lucy’s eyes flicked to the front page of the Harvest Ranch Times at the end of the counter, thinking Presley would already be busy mixing the drinks, but when she looked back, she stared at her in confusion.
“What?” Lucy asked.
“I just—” Presley gave a small shake of her head, twisted the end of her braid, and then tossed it over her shoulder. “I figured you were picking up something for your fiancé.”
“My fiancé?” Lucy and Zach had spent a lot of time together that week, but that was quick by anyone’s standards.
“Yes, Carter Hughes? I heard Zach and his mother—” Presley shook her head more adamantly now as if changing her mind. She smiled. “Drinks for you and Crew. Got it. Can I sneak in a couple of croissants? It’s going to be a long day.”
Lucy’s heart slammed to a stop. Engaged? “That’s a . . . good idea. Thank you,” she said absently, her mind a tangled mess of confusion. Lucy reminded herself to breathe.
Zach thought she was engaged to his brother? Her mind whirled with images of her and Zach spending time together. Times she thought that were bordering on attraction only to have him pushing away. Now things were making a whole lot more sense. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. What must he think of her? She hadn’t exactly hidden her attraction to him.
But why would he think she was engaged to Carter? She had no idea how that rumor could have gotten started.
“Lucy?” Presley held a drink carrier with two cups and a paper sack.
“Oh, thank you.” She took them and headed toward the corner where she would meet Crew, thankful for the crisp morning air that cooled her hot cheeks. How could she face any members of the Hughes family today?
“Are you ready for this?” Crew greeted her with his morning-person chipper-ness. Being a morning-drive DJ wasn’t just a persona for him. “No Dr. Pepper? Who are you?” He raised an eyebrow at the drink carrier that clearly held two warm drinks. Reaching forward, he removed both cups, waited for her to throw away the drink carrier, and handed her the one with her name scrawled on it with a little star at the end of the “y.”
She’d been so distracted, she hadn’t even noticed that Presley had skipped the Dr. Pepper altogether this time. Did she know her at all? Lucy needed the caffeine jolt of the soda to kick her into gear today of all days.
She accepted the cup and took a sip, unable to resent the hot chocolate once the sea salt chocolate caramel warmed her through. It was like burning off the morning fog. She breathed out a quiet, derisive laugh. Hot chocolate was exactly what she’d needed, even if she hadn’t known it. She needed to start trusting Presley.
“Of course I’m ready,” she said, though it was a blatant lie, depending on what he was referring to. She’d been ready for the day until this thing with the Hughes family had thrown her for a loop, and she was still feeling around for her footing.
“Not buying it.” Crew didn’t stop walking to look at her, for which she was grateful if he was going to press her to answer. “I’ve known you too long not to know when something’s wrong, so you might as well tell me now.”
“Or what?” She laughed. The empty threat was a great distraction. Not that she would ever give him a chance to scheme. He knew everything about her—including her most embarrassing moments—he had access to the public arena via that microphone of his, and she had no way to control what came out of his mouth. But he wouldn’t actually do anything.
He crossed his arms and tapped his fingers against his biceps in impatience.
Knowing he wouldn’t give up, she sighed. “The Hughes family think I’m engaged to their son.”
He started walking again. “And you’re not?”
She swatted his arm. “No, of course I’m not.”
“Then tell them.” He took the bakery sack from her hand and pulled out the croissant, biting into it with gusto as if he’d just solved the problem.
“It’s not that easy, Crew. Yesterday, Zach thought I was using Carter to save the Starlight, which put all of the time I’ve spent with the Hughes family under the microscope. I don’t have an ulterior motive.” The idea that they thought she did made her want to run home and hide away until they left town. “I was being friendly. I enjoyed spending time with them, and I thought they liked me too.” It was as if she’d had a family; she’d missed that feeling. “They’re going to hate me if they think I’ve been lying to them all this time.”
“Lying to them? It’s a simple misunderstanding. And ‘all this time’? It’s been, what, five days? Be straight with them, and it’ll all work out.”
Lucy nibbled on her own croissant. She shrugged, not trusting herself to speak, but she couldn’t keep her mind from marching into dangerous territory. No wonder that when they’d had opportunities to kiss, Zach had backed away. Because he thought she was in a relationship with his brother. But it hurt, because she’d thought that if they spent more time together, he’d see how great they were together. She thought of that night under the umbrella where they’d shared their innermost feelings. And then the slip in the mud when the attraction between them had been magnetic. She’d wanted so badly for him to kiss her, but he’d walked away.
They were almost at the drive-in before either of them spoke again. “What’s really wrong?” Crew asked.
They walked a couple more paces in silence, Lucy unable to get past that failed kiss. That had been why she’d embedded that song for him in her next day’s show, hoping he would hear it and think about her. The speaker had been tuned to WHHR at the right time, but had he heard? It seemed he either hadn’t, or since he thought she was attached to his brother, he hadn’t recognized the significance of the song. Either way, she
was just now realizing there really was no chance, no way at all, that she and Zach could be together.
“He didn’t want me, Crew.” Her voice wobbled. She was so vulnerable, she feared she might crack.
“How do you know? It sounds to me like there have been a whole lot of faulty assumptions going around. Don’t add another.”
They made it to the ticket booth at the Starlight, and she turned to face him. “You’re right.” She lifted one shoulder and dropped it, offering a half smile. She really didn’t want to talk about it anymore.
After unlocking the gate and pulling it wide for the vehicles that would be coming within a couple of hours, she walked into the park, taking stock of where things had been placed since she’d last been out. There was the huge parking lot, the concession stand with tables for volunteer sign-ups and instructions, the playground, and—
Bright blobs sat in pairs in front of the far screen. She quickly made her way over—Crew lagging only a few steps behind her—to find four sets of beautifully crafted Adirondack lounge chairs, perfect for looking up at the screen at this distance. While most moviegoers would stay in their cars or use their own lawn chairs, a few customers would be thrilled for an option like this.
“Where did these come from?” she asked Crew. “Who had the time or would even have thought of it?”
He opened his mouth and then shut it again, eyes wide. “I have no idea.”
She retrieved her phone to pull up the security videos and slipped into a chair to watch. Crew grabbed the next closest chair and dragged it so he could share her screen.
It didn’t take long to find the first of the videos starring David Daley and Zachary Hughes ferrying heavy chairs one by one across the vast parking lot. When all the chairs had been dropped off, Dave drove away. The time stamp indicated that it was a few more hours before Zach’s leaving tripped the motion detection again. This time, he carried empty spray paint cans, his fingers darkened with the color, obvious even in the twilight.
While You Were Speaking: Spring Flings and Engagement Rings Page 16