The Idea of You

by Darcy Burke

  “I’m going, too,” Tori said, following them. Sean went along with her.

  “And I need to get back to Archer.” Kyle turned to Maggie. “Can I drop you back at home, or do you want to hang out here?”

  Maggie plucked her coat off the back of a chair. “I’ve got some work to do at home, so I’ll go with you.”

  “Hey, I thought you were dialing back on Archer work,” Sara said as Kyle put his coat on. “You’re kind of busy with the show and The Alex. I don’t know where you’re finding all the time.”

  “Tell me about it. Maggie’s going to dump me soon, I’m sure.”

  “Am not.”

  He grinned, then dropped a fast kiss on her mouth. “I’m trying to balance everything, but it’s tough. And with Hayden’s return up in the air, we have to talk about hiring a permanent replacement for COO.”

  Evan snapped to attention. He heard most things through a filter. He was aware—mostly—of what was said when he was in a group, but he didn’t necessarily always engage. Just following along could be hard enough. “I didn’t realize his return was iffy. What’s going on?”

  “Nothing. He just loves France,” Kyle said. “I think things might be getting serious with the girlfriend, but he doesn’t really say.”

  Sara folded her arms across her chest. “He never does. Not since Bex.”

  “True dat.” Kyle snatched Maggie’s hand. “Let’s go, babe. See you guys.”

  Maggie waved as they left. “Bye!”

  “Who’s Bex?” Alaina asked.

  “Hayden’s ex,” Sara answered. “They dated in college, and we were all shocked when they broke up. We pegged him as the first to get married, but I guess it wasn’t mean to be.”

  “What happened?”

  Sara lifted a shoulder. “No one’s really certain. Hayden was pretty close-mouthed about it. She moved back to Central Oregon practically overnight. The whole thing was super awkward, especially because Tori and I were friends with her. We still are, though we’re not as close as we used to be.”

  Alaina winced. “Yikes, sounds awkward.”

  Evan’s phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out to see a text from Chloe.

  Can you come over here? I need another artist to help me explain the vision.

  She’d called him an artist. His chest swelled. He never realized how badly he’d wanted to be recognized as that until this moment. He turned to Alaina.

  “I need to run over to the hotel to give my opinion. Do you want to come or stay here?”

  “I’ll stay. I don’t want to put my boots in the mud more than necessary.”

  He couldn’t help smiling. “Fair enough. See you in a minute.” He thought about kissing her the way Kyle had done with Maggie but chickened out in front of his sister.

  As he made his way from the restaurant, he told himself next time he’d do it and he wouldn’t care who was watching.

  ALAINA HAD SEEN his gaze flash to her mouth. He’d thought about kissing her, and she wished he had. Really, in front of Sara? She mentally shook herself. Stop acting like a teenage goober.

  “It’s great you guys are dating,” Sara said, uncrossing her arms.

  Alaina didn’t bother suppressing her wry smile. “You know about that, too?”

  Sara chuckled. “There are no secrets in the Archer family. Actually, that’s not true—I think we’ve all proven we’re pretty good at hiding stuff when we want to. But once something becomes known, everybody hears about it.”

  “I see. Group text messages?”

  “Totally.” Sara laughed. “You don’t have siblings, do you?”

  “Nope. I always wanted one. A younger brother or sister—I didn’t care which.” She’d imagined caring for them, mothering them in the way she’d never been. She certainly hadn’t expected her mother to do any of that. Which was why it was just as well that Lisa Pierce Bickford hadn’t brought any other children into the world.

  “I’m sure there are plenty of benefits to being an only child.”

  The only one that came readily to mind was the ability to leave home and never look back. If she’d had siblings, she couldn’t have done that. At least not without taking them with her. She wouldn’t say any of that to Sara, though. Instead, she said, “Privacy, I guess?”

  “Definitely. Although, we were lucky to have our own rooms and bathrooms.”

  During her self-guided tour of the house, Alaina hadn’t realized they all had their own bathrooms. The tiny bathroom in her childhood trailer had been a constant battle of mildew and faulty plumbing. “Tell me your mom has help cleaning that house.”

  Sara smiled. “Yes, she uses a service now, but we had a live-in housekeeper when we were younger.”

  Of course they did. The lonely, uncared-for child who still dwelled somewhere inside Alaina wanted to feel bitterness and jealousy for the way the Archers had grown up, but she couldn’t. Not when they were such nice, grounded people. They didn’t seem to take anything for granted.

  Finally warm enough, Alaina unzipped her coat. “You guys were so lucky. I grew up with next to nothing. The way I live now is completely removed from my childhood experiences. I guess that’s why I feel so compelled to help kids who are struggling. In fact, I have a foundation for children in need.”

  “That sounds amazing. What does it do?”

  “It supports programs in rural areas, mostly. Medical, food, education.” After spending time with Evan and researching autism, she’d begun to think about early intervention for kids with special and developmental needs. She knew firsthand how hard it was for kids in the middle of nowhere to get services.

  “Is there any way we can help? Archer supports a handful of organizations. We donate most of the profit from Oktoberfest to charities.”

  “I didn’t know that. How cool.” Nope, they didn’t take anything for granted at all. It was official—Alaina was totally in love with this family.

  “We do a big toy drive at Christmas, too. Maybe we could divert some of that to your organization.”

  Alaina couldn’t keep from grinning. “That would be fantastic.”

  “Hey, since you haven’t seen the Ridgeview yet, do you want me to show you?”

  Alaina glanced at her boots and considered the walk to the event space down a muddy lane.

  Sara laughed. “There’s gravel, so we’ll stay pretty clean.”

  “Yikes, you caught me being a total diva. Sorry, I love these boots. I’m a bit of a shoe whore.”

  “I get it. I’m a total jewelry whore. If I had to dredge this necklace or these bracelets through the dirt, I’d pass.” Sara grabbed her coat from a chair and slipped it on. “Let’s head down.”

  Alaina zipped her coat and followed Sara from the restaurant. The morning was still cold, gray, and damp. They walked quickly across the parking lot to where the gravel lane started toward the Ridgeview.

  “It must be a bummer to not be open yet,” Alaina said.

  Sara nodded. “Yeah. I can’t even start booking events, and it looks like the whole summer season will pass before I can. Which sucks, since this is my job.”

  “Ouch, but, uh, you don’t need to work, do you?” Alaina winced. She hadn’t meant it to sound like that. “I just meant that you aren’t going to starve without the work, right?”

  “No, I won’t starve, especially since my fiancé is working. But yeah, I have money. We’re trust-fund kids, or didn’t you know that?”

  She hadn’t known that, but it made sense. “Evan didn’t mention that.” He didn’t mention a lot of things, not unless prodded, and then he could very well ramble. She actually liked it when he rambled. “When are you and Dylan getting married?”

  “July—in my parents’ backyard. So I’m plenty busy with that, plus I took over Oktoberfest, for this year at least.”

  “Yeah, sounds like you are plenty busy.”

  The building came into view—a charming craftsmanlike cottage with a stone path and patio and what looked like a fan
tastic garden, even in winter. In fact, crocuses were already breaking the surface along the path, and if it were sunny, Alaina thought the purple blooms would be open toward the sky.

  Sara went to the front door and pulled out a key to unlock it. She pushed inside and held it open for Alaina to follow.

  “This is so pretty!” Alaina moved into the large room with glass doors that looked out to a patio. Past that was a grassy area and then a breathtaking view of the valley—or she assumed it would be when it wasn’t cloaked in low clouds. Now it looked gothic and mysterious, which appealed to Alaina’s dramatic nature. She moved toward the doors. “Gorgeous view.”

  “These completely open up so that you have an indoor-outdoor space. We had Derek and Chloe’s wedding here last summer. It was beautiful.”

  “I bet.”

  “Come on, I’ll show you the kitchen.” Sara passed a bar area across from the front door and led her to the kitchen. It was large and commercial with lots of stainless steel.

  “Very impressive. You could host quite a shindig here.” Alaina ran her hand over one of the prep areas. “I can’t remember—is this being included in the TV show?”

  “I think Sean has filmed over here, so yeah.”

  “You may be inundated with Hollywood types. This is a great venue, and it’s far enough out of LA to be a destination but close enough to jet here and back in the same day.”

  Sara laughed. “Thanks for the heads up!”

  Alaina envisioned all sorts of events taking place here, everything from a raucous cocktail party to an intimate dinner. “What’s upstairs?”

  “A bedroom suite designed specifically for wedding nights. It’s pretty incredible. Dylan went all out on the fixtures. Our bathroom at home is pretty sweet, but this one has the epic view to go along with it.”

  A bedroom suite? Suddenly Alaina had an altogether different event in mind. One involving Evan. She’d actually been toying with an idea and wondered if Sara could help her. “Speaking of special events, I wanted to plan something for Evan, something . . . unique. I’m hoping you can provide some assistance.”

  Sara leaned her hip against the counter and crossed her arms. “Oh yeah? Like what?”

  “Just an experience I think he missed out on and I’d like to re-create for him.”

  Sara’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. “Sounds great—tell me how I can help, and I’ll make it happen.”

  Alaina grinned. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  AFTER DISCUSSING THE mural, Sean and Tori took off while Dylan went to deal with some questions from his crew. That left Evan with Chloe. He’d made some notes in his phone but wished he’d brought a sketchbook so he could draft some ideas. Instead, he told Chloe what he was thinking.

  “I love the concept of bringing in the outdoors and capitalizing on the arch. We should talk to Maggie about incorporating arches and maybe foxes into the garden spaces.”

  “Good point.” Evan entered that into his phone as well. He could hardly wait to get home and start working on logo ideas and branding. And he also wanted to come up with an entirely new font. He was just bursting with energy and excitement. “Should we set a follow-up meeting, maybe next Monday or Tuesday?”

  “Sure. I’m pretty open. I’m working my last shift at the pub tonight. I’m going to be too busy getting everything ready up here.”

  “I’d say so. I’ll miss seeing you at The Arch and Vine though.”

  “I’ll miss working there.”

  “But you’re part of the family now, so you’re stuck with it.” He tried to wink at her and hoped it didn’t look cheesy. He wasn’t sure he’d ever mastered the art of the wink.

  Evan’s phone vibrated in his hand. He moved over to his messaging app and saw a text from Alaina.

  I’m at the Ridgeview with Sara if you want to meet me down here.

  Evan glanced over at Chloe. “Anything else you can think of before I take off?”

  “Nope. I’ll let you know if I think of anything.” She smiled at him. “I’m really looking forward to working with you on this.”

  “Me, too.” He left, taking long strides in his eagerness to reach Alaina. He was anxious to get home so he could start work.

  He walked toward the Ridgeview to meet her and in just a minute ran into her and Sara coming back.

  “How’d it go?” Sara asked.

  He turned and walked alongside Alaina as they made their way to the parking lot. “Great. I’m overflowing with ideas. Can’t wait to start working.”

  “That’s awesome.” Sara leaned around Alaina and flashed him a smile as they reached the parking lot.

  He glanced at Alaina. “Ready?”

  She nodded.

  “See you guys!” Sara waved and took off for the office trailer, where Sean and Tori had gone earlier.

  “So you’re excited about this project?” Alaina asked.

  “Yeah, more than I’ve been about anything in a long time. Maybe ever.”

  “I can tell. At least, it seems that way.” She smiled and shook her head. “Sometimes I have a hard time remembering I just met you a week ago.”

  Was that all it had been? “Yeah, seems much longer.”

  Just then a van pulled into the parking lot. Not just any van but a news van from Portland.

  “Oh my God, what is that?” Alaina asked, her voice low and wobbly. “Get me out of here.”

  His car was across the lot over by the restaurant. He grabbed her hand and strode in that direction just as the van parked in the middle of the lot.

  Evan focused on getting her to the car. From his peripheral vision, he saw someone step out of the driver’s side of the van. “Just keep moving,” he said.

  “Hey there!” the person called out. “Are you Sean and Tori Hennessy?”

  Evan increased their speed and tightened his grip on Alaina’s hand. “Don’t stop. Just ignore them.”

  He pulled his keys from his pocket and remotely unlocked the doors. Screw opening Alaina’s this time. He had to get them out of there. He let go of her hand, and they circled to their respective sides.

  “Hey!” The person was coming toward them, and a second person had gotten out of the van.

  Evan could speed away, but he’d likely spray mud on the guy. “Put your head down.”

  Alaina took her phone from her coat pocket and bent her head over it. She pulled her dark blonde hair forward to cloak the side of her face.

  Satisfied that she was effectively hidden, Evan rolled down his window. “What do you need?”

  The guy wore a jacket bearing the news-station logo. “Hi, I’m Jack. I’m supposed to meet Sean and Tori. Are you them?”

  “Nope. Try the trailer.”

  “You must be one of the other Archers,” the man said, but Evan wasn’t in the mood for his chitchat or news gathering.

  “I’m late for a meeting. You might want to step back so I don’t spray you with mud.” Evan rolled up the window without waiting for a response and put the car in drive.

  He drove around their van and out of the lot. “I had no idea there was a news van coming.”

  “I can’t believe Sean didn’t say anything,” Alaina said. “I just reamed him via text.”

  Evan glanced over at her as he drove down the hill. “You reamed him? Why?”

  “Because he didn’t tell me a freaking news van was going to be up here! That’s critical intel for someone who’s hiding from the press.”

  “Of course, sorry.”

  Her phone pinged, and she looked down at the screen. “He apologized profusely. Apparently, the news guys got the day wrong. They were supposed to come for an interview with Sean and Kyle next Thursday, not today.” She slumped back against the seat. “Ugh, that was close. Sorry to freak out.”

  If she thought that classified as a freak-out, what would she think of one of his meltdowns? Hopefully, she’d never see one. Wait, did that mean he didn’t ever expect to have another one—which was absurd—or that he didn’
t expect her to be around long enough? That thought made his gut churn.

  “It’s fine. You were totally justified in your concern.”

  “Well thanks for rescuing me.” She turned to face him in her seat and rested her hand on his shoulder.

  He’d tossed his phone onto the console between the seats, and now it vibrated with a text. “Can you see if that’s from Chloe?” Maybe she’d thought of something else.

  Alaina lifted her hand from his shoulder and picked up the phone. “Who’s Michelle?”

  Shit. She hadn’t texted him in a few days, and he’d hoped she’d finally gotten the message—their thing was over. “No one,” he answered.

  “Whoa,” Alaina breathed. “This is quite a text.”

  “Never mind. Just put the phone back down.”

  “I can’t. This is just . . . Evan, she’s not no one. She says she’s in love with you.”

  His vision blurred for a moment, and he clenched his hands around the steering wheel. Focus, Evan. You’re like three minutes from home.

  He rubbed his palm over his forehead. “Can you please stop reading that?”

  “Too late. I’m done.” She set the phone back on the console. “She accuses you of abandoning her—and her son. What the hell is that about?”

  Her son? Evan had met him like four times. Okay, so the last time they’d gone for pizza at this place with a cool arcade and indoor rides. It had been a little too loud and chaotic for Evan, but the video games had been awesome. He and Jake had had a great time playing together.

  “I didn’t abandon her. She was a friend. We hung out. That was in Longview.” He shrugged. “I moved back to Ribbon Ridge. End of story.”

  He pulled through the gate and drove up the long driveway toward the house.

  “Yet she says she’s in love with you. How does she fall in love with you if you’re just friends who hang out?”

  His senses began to spin as his anxiety grew. “I don’t know. You’d have to ask her.” He shook his head. “No, please don’t. This is actually none of your business.” He opened the garage door with the remote and parked inside.

  He picked up his phone but didn’t really want to read Michelle’s text. How the hell was he supposed to respond to something like that? She’d actually thrown out the love word? He hadn’t ever been in love before, but he’d like to think he’d know what it would feel like, and he was completely certain he hadn’t experienced it with her.