Forgiving You: A Bluebell Valley Novel

by

  “Good morning,” Constance said as Austin sat down at the kitchen table. “Did you sleep well?”

  “Surprisingly, I did,” he admitted, wondering how he could have slept through the noise the TV crew was making. It was unmistakable now.

  “Here, honey, I hope you’re hungry,” his mother said as she put a plate in front of him. “I made extras for all these people.” She leaned down to be closer to his ear. “I didn’t know there were going to be this many.”

  “Me neither,” Austin replied with a smile.

  He looked at the woman in front of him. Even if he had cut ties with Bluebell Valley when he had left for MIT, his mother had never stopped calling, never stopped caring. She had supported him all the way, and he felt bad for wanting her out of his life. He realized, as he was eating his breakfast, that she would never stop loving him and that he should stop pushing her away. If he wanted to make things better with Sam, he had to start by making his relationship better with his mother. She deserved to be the most important woman in his life.

  “Thanks, Mom,” he said as he noticed that she had made scrambled eggs for him―his favorite when he was a kid. He smiled and started eating.

  “Where’s Dad?” Austin asked. Benjamin Cole had always been a shy man and Austin wasn’t surprised to not see him in the house. He preferred to be outside, in his orchard.

  “He’s checking the water pump. Apparently, it’s been acting up in the last few days and he has to fix it.”

  Austin nodded, wondering if his father would be able to fix it. He had always been a good carpenter, but never a good mechanic. Austin might have to give him a hand later today.

  Constance placed a cup of coffee next to his plate as she sat down, holding her own cup. He was happy to see her sit, which was a rare thing around here. His mother was always busy with one task or another. Austin was surprised that with this many people in her house, she was able to be so calm.

  “I’m glad you’re here,” she said, grabbing his empty hand on the table. He was glad about it too, even though he knew it was going to be a hard weekend for him. He only had two days here and so many relationships to repair.

  “Me too,” Austin replied. “I just started realizing how much I missed this place.” He saw the smile on his mother’s face and couldn’t help but smile too.

  “You’re always welcome here. It’s your home, too. Don’t forget that.”

  Austin squeezed his mother’s hand, knowing that she meant it. He had missed her a lot, too. She had always been so gentle, so devoted. He needed people like her around.

  In New York, all his friends were in it for themselves. Nobody cared about other people’s feelings, unless they wanted something from them. It felt good to know that his mother only wanted him to be happy with no ulterior motives.

  “I… I love you, Mom. Don’t forget that,” he whispered with a smile. Even though he had said it casually, it had taken a lot of courage from him to admit it.

  When he saw the tears in Constance's eyes, it made things even harder on him. The only thing he knew how to do in these situations was hold the person in his arms. So that’s what he did, wrapping his mother’s fragile body in his strong embrace.

  For the first time in years, he realized he was happy. Even if this was only a small glimpse of happiness, it made him feel good. He wanted more.

  His mother started moving in his arms and he released her. Constance wiped the tears from her cheeks and pulled on her shirt to make wrinkles disappear. Austin looked at her, confused, and then followed her gaze. Behind him, hidden in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room, was a camera. Spying on them.

  “What is―” Austin began, bristling as he wondered how much of their exchange they had caught on tape. He hadn’t opened his heart to his mother for the sake of his TV appearance. He didn’t care about that.

  “Mom, I’m sorry. They shouldn’t be here,” Austin said, feeling sincerely sorry for her. The TV crew was invading her house and now her privacy. This was too much for him.

  “Don’t worry about it,” she replied, her smile back on her face. She had been caught off guard, but now she was going to put her best face on for the show.

  “Mr. Cole?” a voice called from behind him. When he turned around, he recognized the face of Stacy, the TV show director. She was the mind behind Billionaire’s Secrets, the woman he had to listen to. The camera had disappeared and it was only her now.

  “Please, call me Austin,” he said, leaving his mother to her oven as he followed Stacy to the living room.

  “We’re ready for you, Austin,” she said, pointing to the couch that had been angled so he could get daylight on his face. It was strange for him to sit there and be able to look outside, as it had always been facing the other way.

  Stacy flashed him a disapproving look. What had he done wrong?

  “I’m sorry, Mr. Cole… er, Austin, but you’re going to have to get dressed better than that.”

  Austin had completely forgotten he was still in his sweatpants and t-shirt. That wasn’t exactly the look they wanted for him, even if it was the most comfortable clothes he had worn in a long time.

  “Right,” he said, standing up again and going back up to his room. Stacy was going to have to wait a bit longer, because he also decided to jump in the shower. If he had to be Mr. Cole, the businessman, he had to do it properly.

  Once he was out of the shower, Austin put on his suit but decided to forego the tie. After all, he was on his parents’ orchard. His unbuttoned shirt felt a lot better. When he went back down, Stacy was smiling at him. He took that as a sign of approval. He sat back down on the couch and a makeup artist came forward with tons of powders.

  “While she does that, let me talk you through this,” Stacy said as Austin closed his eyes, letting the woman’s hands take over. “We have a few questions for you about your past here, in Bluebell Valley. Try to be as honest as you can with us. If you have stories to share, please do. The more content we have, the easier it is to choose the best one.”

  Austin nodded before he realized that wasn’t something he was supposed to do.

  “After we’re done, we’ll interview your parents together. William said he was going to give us a list of your high school friends, but he hasn’t done it. Is there anybody that would be willing to be interviewed, that we should talk to?”

  The only person Austin could think of was Sam, but after yesterday, there was no chance she wanted to be interviewed.

  “None that I can think of,” he finally answered. Sam would have been the best person to describe who he used to be as a teenager, but that wasn’t going to happen. He had to do that himself.

  “Well, if anything comes to mind, let us know,” Stacy replied.

  The hands on his face disappeared and Austin risked opening an eye. The makeup lady was back behind the camera and he realized he was alone on his side of the living room. The crew was ready to start filming.

  “Let’s start, then,” Stacy said as bright lights were turned on. Austin was blinded for a few seconds before his sight came back. Stacy was going to be the one conducting the interview, so she sat down in the chair in front of him. Austin spotted William in the back of the room. His friend made a thumb’s up and Austin took a deep breath. This was a lot more overwhelming than he’d thought.

  “Thank you, Austin Cole, for agreeing to do this with us today,” Stacy said, starting the interview.

  “It’s a pleasure,” Austin replied, showing off his brightest smile, the one that had charmed all of New York City. It felt fake, but he didn’t know what else to do.

  “We are in your hometown, Bluebell Valley. Can you tell me more about this town and what it means to you?”

  “Bluebell Valley is where I was born and raised. My parents own the orchard where we are right now. I’ve spent most of my time here, and it’s the place I call home. I have an older sister. Her name is Nina. She’s seven years older than me and lives in Vancouver. We were neve
r that close, though, because of the age gap. She always preferred playing with her friends over being annoyed by her little brother.” Austin smiled at the audience and the camera as he heard a small laugh coming from the crew. “But it didn’t matter that much at the time, since I spent most of my time with my best friend.”

  “Who is that?” Stacy asked.

  “Sam?” Austin replied, not looking at the camera anymore, but at the car that was driving down the road to their farm. It wasn’t the car model that had given her away, but her blonde hair behind the wheel.

  Not paying attention to Stacy, who was trying to keep him on the couch, he stood up and left the living room. He had to know what she was doing here. Once he was on the porch, Sam’s car finally came to a stop.

  He couldn’t believe she was here. Not after what she had told him.

  He couldn’t hide his happiness.

  Chapter Eight

  Sam

  As she stopped her car, Sam caught a glimpse of Austin. Even though he looked more than handsome in his fancy suit, Sam couldn’t imagine him wearing one every day. It wasn’t like him.

  It’s who he is now, she thought. But even if her brain was trying to keep her as far away from Austin as possible, the rest of her body badly wanted to see him. She couldn’t stay away from that man.

  Looking over at the passenger seat, she stared at the box she had brought to the orchard. She had found it last night before going to bed. She was looking for a shirt to sleep in when something had caught her eye on the top shelf of her closet. That box had been there for years already, and after so long, she’d stopped noticing it. But last night, it had magically appeared.

  After Austin had left for college, she had realized there were a lot of things he had left at her place. She’d put all of them in a box, hoping she could give it to him when he came back to Bluebell Valley. But she never had that chance. Last night, it had seemed like the right excuse to see Austin again.

  This morning, she wasn’t so sure about it anymore. She had jumped in her car as fast as she could, making sure she wasn’t going to second-guess herself. She knew she wanted to do it, but if she stopped to think about it, she was going to stay home.

  So Sam had put the box in the car and had started driving. She hadn’t allowed herself to stop on the road, as her brain started shouting things at her like, Turn around. You’re just making a big mistake. You’re going to get your heart broken again.

  Now that her car was parked in front of the Cole’s Orchard, her thoughts were louder than ever. Why was she really here? Why couldn’t she just have stayed home instead of stirring up the past?

  She laid her eyes on Austin and her brain quieted for a second. She looked at the man through her windshield, knowing she had a legitimate reason to be here. She couldn’t let him go back to New York without understanding what had happened to him. Even if she had a lame excuse to be on the orchard, it was for a greater purpose.

  Sam noticed the smile on Austin’s lips and it made her relax. He wasn’t mad at her for the way she had reacted yesterday. That was a good thing.

  By coming here, she was putting her heart on the line and she was happy to see that Austin wasn’t hiding behind a wall. He was there too, ready to talk.

  Maybe they could really make things better, after all these years.

  When she opened her door, Sam noticed Austin coming down the stairs in her direction. Before he said anything, she grabbed the box on the other seat and got out of the car.

  “It’s nice to see you,” Austin said as he approached. “What do you have here?”

  “Just… stuff you left at my parents’ place before you left for college. I’ve had it for years and I wanted to give it back to you,” Sam said. She had rehearsed that sentence so many times in the car. She realized, now that she said it, that she hadn’t thought about what was going to happen after. She handed the box to him, but he didn’t take it.

  “You don’t want it?” Sam was confused. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but she had never thought Austin wasn’t going to take the box full of old memories.

  “You can keep it. They probably mean more to you than they do to me,” he said, barely looking down at the objects. His gaze was stuck on Sam and she could feel it. She was about to grab an old CD when a bunch of people came out of the house, cameras in hands.

  “Hi! You’re Sam, aren’t you? I have to be honest, I expected to see a man,” a woman all dressed in black said as she got closer, holding her hand out.

  “I’m Sam… And yes, I’m a girl,” she replied, confused. Who was this woman?

  “It’s nice to meet you. I’m Stacy. We’re shooting an episode about Mr. Cole’s life and it would be really nice to have you in it. If I understood correctly, you two were best friends during your childhood?”

  “Yes, but―” She hadn’t even finished her sentence when Stacy had grabbed her by the arm and led her inside the house.

  Sam looked at Austin, hoping he could stop whatever was happening, but he was only smiling, looking at her being dragged away.

  Since Austin wasn’t too worried, Sam decided to relax. Okay, they were doing an interview about her old friend. It couldn’t be that bad. She wasn’t really prepared to be interviewed, though. Her hair was messy and she barely had any makeup on.

  “Sit here,” Stacy said as she positioned Sam. Someone had grabbed her box out of her hand and put it down somewhere. Now that she was empty-handed, Sam could only do what Stacy asked her to. “Alicia is our makeup artist. She’s going to work on you a bit, and then we can ask you a few questions.”

  Stacy took a step back as Alicia took her place. Sam let her put a thick layer of foundation on her face. When she had hopped in her car this morning, she had never imagined she would stumble upon a TV crew. But then, Austin had told her he was filming about his life and that was the only reason he was here.

  “There you go,” Alicia said as she touched up Sam’s lips. The woman reached behind her and found a mirror that she handed to Sam.

  Sam gasped. “Whoa!” The woman in the mirror wasn’t her. It was such a different version of Sam that she couldn’t recognize herself. “Isn’t it… a bit much?” she quietly asked, hoping that maybe Alicia would remove some. The only thing she liked about herself right now was how great her eyes looked. They were shining like they never had before.

  “You look amazing,” someone said next to her. When she turned her head, she realized the voice was coming from Austin. Her cheeks lit up. She felt like she didn’t deserve a compliment from a man as handsome as him. He probably knew dozens of models in New York City that she couldn’t even compare to.

  Sam’s eyes stayed for a few seconds on Austin, wondering what was going on in his head. He had a secretive smile on his lips. He was so different than the boy she had grown up with.

  “Let’s get started,” Stacy said.

  Sam snapped out of her trance and blushed when she realized how intense her moment with Austin had been. She didn’t understand him, but he seemed to see right through her.

  Someone turned a light on and Sam was blinded by it. It took her a few seconds to get used to it.

  “Are you ready?” Stacy asked as she sat in front of her.

  “I guess,” Sam replied, not knowing if she would ever be ready for this. What kind of questions were they going to ask? They didn’t even have any time to prepare.

  “Tell us a bit about you.”

  That’s an easy one, Sam thought. Start from the beginning. “I’m Samantha Decker, but everybody calls me Sam. I’m from Bluebell Valley, like Austin. My parents have… well, my mother still has a bakery in town. It used to be her mother’s, but my dad took over it. He passed away a few years ago, so now I take care of it with my mom.”

  Sam searched for Austin. She wasn’t even sure he knew about her father passing away. Maybe his mother had told him? He didn’t seem surprised when he heard it, though.

  “Mr. Cole told us that you two were friend
s. When did you friendship start?”

  “Oh, it was a long time ago,” Sam said, trying to hide her smile as she thought back to that day. “We were still children. I don’t think we had started school yet. Our mothers liked to talk a lot, so we kept ourselves busy by playing together.”

  “And what kind of child was Mr. Cole?”

  Sam looked up at Austin, who was standing behind the camera. All those memories were coming back to her and she started regretting how they had left each other. They had been great friends, but now there was a wall between them, that she didn’t really know how to deal with.

  “He was shy. Even when we started school, he would only hang out with me. I don’t think he had many other friends. But that was fine with me. Through the years, I tried to introduce him to as many people as I knew. Once he was introduced, he always lost a bit of shyness and would loosen up. He rarely approached someone, though.”

  “That’s very interesting! So considering his position as CEO of Cole Technologies now, what do you think changed?”

  “College changed him,” Sam admitted. When her eyes came across Austin’s face, he was looking at the floor. He was avoiding her.

  “You say that as if it was a bad thing,” Stacy observed.

  Sam didn’t know if she wanted to get into the details of her complicated relationship with Austin. But maybe this was her chance to set the record straight. Even if this was in front of a camera, she had the opportunity to tell him how she truly felt.

  “We used to be so close. When he was still living here, we spent most of our time together. We were inseparable. I knew Austin had to leave for college eventually, but we had plans to meet after I was done high school. But that never happened, because he changed. We grew apart and I stayed here.”

  “What changed in him, exactly?”

  Sam’s eyes were on Stacy, as she didn’t want to look at Austin right now, even though his eyes were probably on her.

  “That’s something you’re going to have to ask him, because I don’t know. He just stopped answering my calls and replying to my e-mails. I just know he stopped caring about me and I stopped caring about him.”