by Robyn Neeley
“Video chat, right. Sounds good. You take care, Josh. It was good to see you.” She turned and bolted out of his room, closing the door behind her.
Crushed and humiliated, Caitlin rushed down the stairs. At the bottom, she glanced up, her heart heavy from the apparent answer she had to her earlier question.
Josh didn’t feel the same way about her.
8
Caitlin scooped up a heap of whipped cream with her fork and coated her golden pancake, the last in the stack. It had been nearly two weeks since Josh had left, why was she still sulking?
And why didn’t drenching her pancakes in syrup and whipped cream make her feel any better? It did when she was eight.
True to his word, Josh had called her when he arrived home to say he’d gotten there safely and thanked her for inviting him to spend time with the kids. He’d said twice that it had meant a lot to him and that he hoped to return soon. That conversation had given her a tiny sliver of hope that there would be more phone time between them—and maybe news of when he’d visit again, but she hadn’t heard from him since.
Penny, on the other hand, had gotten a call from Josh while Caitlin was working at the theater earlier this week, and her nanny set up an impromptu FaceTime session with the triplets in the nursery. Caitlin was happy that it had happened, but more than a little sad that she missed out on seeing Josh’s handsome face, hearing his deep voice.
She’d been trying hard to push any thoughts of Josh out of her mind and concentrate on the theater. There was so much to do and her list filled a blue notebook that she now carried around with her everywhere she went. With each day, she was realizing just how much work it would take to accomplish all of the renovations she wanted to.
It didn’t help that the rumor mill was running full speed after the news had gotten out that she’d purchased the theater. Word on the street was she made an impulsive buy, and she wouldn’t have a clue how to run it, let alone turn a profit.
She heard the whispering and caught the sideways glances every time she walked into the grocery store, Star Lite, nail salon . . . really, anywhere.
“Hey, you.” Bridget slid into the other side of the Star Lite booth, pushing up her pale blue sunglasses that matched her yoga top. “Okay, why is my beautiful cousin stuffing her face with pancakes? I thought we were running today.”
Caitlin took a drink of her apple juice. She highly doubted her cousin would object to skipping the run. Most days she complained before, during, and after. “What’s the point in getting in shape? When, ultimately, you’re going to throw yourself at the father of your kids, make a complete ass of yourself, and then he takes the next flight out of town to get as far away from you as he can.” She angled her knife and cut into the last half of her pancake. “Hypothetically speaking, of course.”
“Of course.” Bridget eyed the nearly finished plate. “I don’t think it happened exactly like that.”
“You weren’t there,” Caitlin said in between bites. “I practically threw myself at him, and . . .” She blinked.
“And . . . What happened?”
“Nothing. Absolutely nothing. He let me kiss him for a brief second then moved away.” She sighed and set down her utensils, not wanting to relive the mortifying moment Josh had rejected her. “I asked if it was because of Adam, and he said yes.”
Bridget leaned forward. “About that. You two aren’t still pretending, are you?”
Caitlin turned her head, staring out the window. It wasn’t like she and Adam were broadcasting it in the Buttermilk Advocate, but they were, no doubt, fueling the gossip every time they took the kids to the park or enjoyed the lake on Adam’s boat. It didn’t help that his name had appeared in her batter.
“Caitlin.”
Her head snapped back. “What?”
“You two need to stop pretending you’re a couple. Goodness, it’s all my co-workers at the library are talking about. I’m sick of dodging their questions.”
“What are they asking?” Caitlin took another sip.
“Oh, I don’t know . . . Is your cousin going to marry your brother-in-law?”
That was never going to happen. Emma’s prediction was wrong. Good friends, yes. Soul mates, never. “I know it’s wrong, and I’m sorry for putting you in the middle, but it’s driving Rachel insane.”
“Well, you need to put that poor girl out of her misery.”
Caitlin snapped her fingers. “I know what we’ll do. I’ll stage a breakup this month and then Adam will get back together with the woman he’s crazy about. That’ll work, and trust me, Adam will end up happily in love.” She put her hand to her chest. “And they’ll both be thanking me. Why, Rachel will probably ask me to be a bridesmaid.”
That got a sarcastic laugh out of Bridget. “I’d love to see that happen.”
“Hi, ladies.” Marilyn Jenkins came up to the table just as Betty dropped off Caitlin’s check. Marilyn ran a formal dress boutique on Main Street. Bridget’s wedding gown and Caitlin’s maid of honor dress had both come from the boutique, not to mention their prom dresses back in the day.
“Hi, Mrs. Jenkins,” Bridget said, while Caitlin opened her wallet and pulled out her credit card, handing it to Betty.
“Caitlin, I’ve been meaning to stop by the theater.”
“What can I do for you?”
“Some of the town’s business owners are meeting at the Elks Lodge this afternoon to discuss summer tourism.”
“Isn’t it too late?” Caitlin asked. It was late September after all, and fall officially started in two days.
Marilyn chuckled and adjusted her wire-rimmed glasses. “I’m sorry, I meant next year’s tourism plans. It’s never too early to get a jump start, and we’ve been doing a lot of brainstorming and think we’ve come up with something really unique to bring lots of tourists to Buttermilk Falls. It’s more of a long-term strategy that we’ll kick off next summer and go straight through the fall, possibly into the winter. We’d love to have you join us if you’re free.”
“Really?” Caitlin smiled up at the dress shop owner. Maybe people were coming around to the notion of her owning the theater. This might be her big opportunity to prove she belonged among the business owners in this town and could contribute to important money-making decisions like tourism. “I mean, I’d love to. Thank you for the invitation.”
“Wonderful. We’ve been batting around some ideas given the recent news of you and Adam.” With a wink, she patted Caitlin on the shoulder. “One in particular that I think you’ll like.”
Caitlin’s cocked her head. What did that mean?
Marilyn turned to Bridget. “Bridget, you should come, too. We’d really like for the library to be involved with our plans this year.”
“I’ll be there.” Bridget smiled up at her.
“Great, see you two then.” Marilyn took off for the exit.
“Love being an afterthought,” Bridget mumbled.
“At least we were invited. This is just the opportunity I need to be taken seriously as a business owner. God must have heard my prayers.” Caitlin finished her juice, reaching for her purse. “What do you think they have up their sleeves that would involve Adam and me?”
“I guess we’ll find out soon.” Bridget stood. “Let’s stop by my house first so I can change out of these running clothes.”
“Great. Then I want to swing by the theater and pick up the renovation sketches that Adam and his dad did for me. Maybe they’ll let me say a few words about my remodeling plans. I could pass around the sketches.”
“Good idea,” Bridget said, leading the way out. “Although, I’m sure Rachel will be there representing her floral shop. Don’t rub the fact that Adam is helping you in her face.”
“I hired his dad’s company. It’s a business transaction, but I promise I will be the consummate professional.” Caitlin smoothed her hair, grateful she’d decided to put on a purple sweater and black skirt for today’s excursion. She’d rather not show up to the meet
ing in her usual black yoga pants and wrinkled shirt.
Outside, she glanced down the street in the direction of the Elks Lodge. While it was nice to be included, she had a sneaking suspicion she wasn’t going to like any ideas that involved her and Adam one bit.
* * *
Josh removed his white goggles and rested them on his head. Holding the tiny glass vial up to his face, he took a hopeful whiff, immediately scrunching his nose.
Dammit. He was sure he’d nailed it this time. Since returning from Buttermilk Falls, he’d been working in the perfume lab nonstop but hadn’t made any inroads. This latest fragrance sucked as did the twenty-two others that came before it.
Sure, what he’d inhaled probably could work. No doubt with Kiss and Makeup’s enormous advertising and marketing dollars behind it, the fragrance would be a smashing success. However, he wasn’t willing to settle this time. The scent he wanted to create was within his grasp, he just needed to work harder.
His gaze darted over to the small bottles of essential oil stacked on shelves against the wall. He really thought mixing the exotic vanilla oil with the new strawberry one he had shipped in from London would have gotten him closer to capturing Caitlin’s scent. No dice.
It wasn’t even close, so he’d try again until the perfume was perfect. Just like the woman who’d always been his inspiration. No matter how long it took, he was determined to get it right.
Taking the bottle over to the sink, he turned it upside down and dumped it out. He’d start over tomorrow. Tonight, he’d pick up some takeout, head home, and spend the evening looking at all the new pictures of Caitlin and the kids that filled his Facebook timeline. It was a familiar pattern that he’d been doing for the last two weeks and the second best thing to being there in person.
He hadn’t been able to get Caitlin or their last encounter out of his mind. It would have been wrong to do what he wanted, which was to take her in his arms and kiss her silly. But she was with Adam and he wouldn’t do that to his buddy.
Although, the argument could be made that his friend did exactly that to him.
Maybe Josh had never actually admitted he’d had feelings for Caitlin to Adam, or anyone for that matter, but he’d like to think that his best friend would have some inclination how he felt about her.
He should have never asked Adam to keep an eye on Caitlin. From what he could tell, she was doing just fine.
He’d been so impressed that she’d bought the old theater. He had no doubt she’d accomplish everything she set out to do. And that list was long. While they were at the park, she’d proudly showed off her notebook filled with to-dos. The town’s people didn’t know it, but when that theater opened, they were in for something special.
He only wished he could be there for next month’s grand opening. He grabbed a clean vial tube off the shelf. If he succeeded with his perfume, maybe he could fly home for it.
A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. Josh headed over and punched in the six-digit code to unlock the secure lab. With competitors highly curious about the new perfume division of Kiss and Makeup, the lab had become like Fort Knox. No one was walking through the door without him letting them in.
His eyebrow raised at the sight of his assistant. She rarely came down here, preferring to use the intercom. “Hey, Beverly, I was just finishing up. Do you need me upstairs?”
“No.” She handed him his iPad. “This guy won’t stop calling even though I said you would be in the lab all day and not available to talk. Says he’s a friend of yours from back home. I told him I would bring down your iPad to see if you were available to Skype.”
Josh looked down to see Adam’s frazzled face staring back at him. Alarmed, he asked if the kids were okay.
“Hey, Josh. The kids are fine, but this mess is driving me crazy.”
“What mess? Things all right between you and Caitlin?” Josh looked over at his assistant whose wide grin was a dead giveaway that she was amused by the conversation. She knew very well Caitlin was the mother of his kids. Beverly had always been intrigued by his small town tales, including how Emma had fallen in love with her enemy who threatened to expose Batter Up night and how Abby had gotten tangled up with Brandon. “I think I’m good, Bev. Thank you.”
She gave him the mother of all smirks and exited the lab. No doubt she’d hound him for the gossip later.
“So, talk to me, Adam. Why were you harassing my assistant?”
“Because it’s urgent. I really need to talk to you about Emma’s batter.”
“I’m sure the news freaked you out.” It freaked Josh out, too. Still did. “Don’t put a lot of stock in what happened. For all we know, the spell could have been wrong. It wasn’t even Emma’s regular spoon.” He was grasping—he knew that—Emma had a perfect track record with the pink spoon. Magical logic would assume she’d have similar success with the damn enchanted blue one. God, he hated that spoon.
“I don’t know man . . . This just can’t happen.” If Adam’s head shook back and forth any faster, Josh was sure he’d give himself whiplash. “I’m not ready to get married let alone be a father to triplets.” He paused, tripping over his words. “Er . . . um . . . I mean you’re their father.”
Walking over to the counter, Josh pulled up a stool and propped his iPad on the table. “First, pal, you need to take a deep breath. Who said anything about marriage and you becoming their stepdad? You didn’t propose to Caitlin, did you?” If the answer was yes, Adam would be one lucky son-of-a-bitch that Josh couldn’t lunge into the iPad and ring his ever-freakin’ neck.
“No, of course not.” Adam pulled off his baseball cap and raked his hand through his hair.
Josh could tell he was outside but not sure exactly where. “Then why don’t you tell me what’s got you acting like a wound up Abby?”
“Look, there’s something I’ve got to tell you, but you’ve got to promise me that you won’t repeat it to anyone, and especially not Caitlin.”
“Okay . . .” Josh started.
“No, I mean it. If she finds out that you learned this news from me, I’m a dead man. She’ll push me into moving traffic, or shove me off my boat, or spike my sweet tea.”
Josh rolled his eyes. Moving traffic in Buttermilk Falls was usually five miles per hour; Adam was a great swimmer, having won numerous first-place trophies on the swim team; and as far as Josh knew, Adam hated tea—sweet or iced. When did his best friend become a drama queen? “I promise I won’t say a word. So, what are you hiding?”
“It’s more like what we’re hiding?”
Josh raised a brow. “You and me?” Whatever that was, it would be news to him.
“No. Caitlin and me. I need to be careful because she’s meeting me outside the theater any second.” He looked behind him and then back at Josh, lowering his voice. “We’re hiding the truth. She and I aren’t a couple.”
That got Josh’s attention. “What? You broke up?”
“We didn’t break up because we were never going out. It’s all fake. It started as a way to make Rachel think that I’d moved on. Man, all I want is to get a second chance with her.”
“Wait. You’re still in love with Rachel? Why would you pretend to be with Caitlin?”
He shrugged. “Caitlin suggested it would make her jealous. We were only going to pretend that one night at the tavern. When you showed up out of nowhere, Caitlin kept up the charade. She wanted to ruffle your feathers.”
Josh folded his arms across his chest, cocking his head. “Why would she do that?”
“Dude, are you really that dense? She loves your sorry ass, but she’s too stubborn to admit it.”
As Adam continued to insist Caitlin was going to wring his neck if she found out that he’d spilled the beans, Josh continued to process what Adam had told him. Caitlin was single? He took a deep breath—and maybe in love with him? Could that be true? “So, what do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know. Pretend your middle name is Adam and take my pla
ce as her soul mate.”
Josh chuckled at how hideous that sounded. “I don’t think it works that way. Tell you what, let me think on it, and I’ll call you tomorrow. We’ll figure it all out.”
“Thanks, man.” He paused, adding, “I’m sorry I didn’t come clean when you were here. Caitlin’s friendship means a lot to me, but so does yours. We’re cool, right?”
“We’re cool,” Josh repeated. “We’ll talk tomorrow.”
“Later, bud.”
Josh slid his finger across the screen to end the Skype call and picked up the empty vial of perfume, turning it upside down. So Adam and Caitlin weren’t seeing each other? Why hadn’t she said anything the last time they were together? Hell, if he had known that she wasn’t dating his best friend, he would have never moved away from her kiss.
He ran his hand through his hair. And it would have escalated much further. He would have made love to her right then and there, showing her what she did to him, what she always did to him.
But what about the batter? Maybe they weren’t dating now, but was Adam Caitlin’s endgame partner?
Not if I can help it. Pushing off his stool, Josh headed to the phone by the security alarm. Screw the Batter Up spell, Caitlin was single and he needed to see her to find out if she really felt the same way he did, or if Adam had given him a line of bull.
He buzzed up Beverly, asking her to come back down to the lab, and within minutes, she’d returned. “Everything okay in Mayberry—I mean Buttermilk Falls?” she asked, with more humor in her voice than concern.
“Bev, I need your help boxing up some of this equipment, including all the beakers and testers.” He looked around. “I’ll take two boxes of pipette droppers and will need all the essential oils that I recently ordered packed up.”
“Sure, boss. Care to tell me what you’re doing?”
He grew more and more excited as his heart raced at a speed that could probably get him to his final destination quick than any 737 would at the rate it was going.