Marry Me on Main Street

by LuAnn McLane

  Aubrey laughed. “Oh, I know.” She bit her bottom lip and waited for Betsy to answer. “So? Come on, Mom … give it a shot, anyway. I mean, what is there to lose?”

  John popped into her mind. “I … I don’t know.” Betsy took a drink of her tea to stall, and then stirred the straw around. Grady owned his own lawn care service and plowed snow in the winter. Betsy had watched him play softball in the men’s league last summer and she remembered thinking he was still attractive. So why didn’t the thought of going out on a date with a handsome, single man, who just happened to be her daughter’s friend’s dad, thrill her to no end? Grady was the kind of guy whom she would fit in with and feel comfortable around, unlike some highfalutin’ Harvard-educated lawyer.

  Maybe if she went out with Grady, she would get John Clark out of her system. Betsy nodded slowly, wondering if kissing Grady would feel just as exciting as kissing John Clark … maybe even more so.

  “Yes!” Aubrey said and did a fist pump.

  Oh no, Aubrey had taken her nod to be a yes. “I …”

  “I can’t wait to tell Macy! Ahhh! This is so cool. I mean, what if you guys really hit it off? Wouldn’t that be super awesome?”

  “Aubrey, don’t start planning the wedding.”

  “Oh, I’m not,” Aubrey said, but it was clear she could barely contain her excitement. She was literally bouncing around in her chair. “Is it okay if I text Macy right now?”

  When Betsy nodded Aubrey jumped up and gave her a huge hug.

  “I mean, no pressure or anything,” Aubrey said, but then did a little twirl that reminded Betsy of when Aubrey was a little girl. She twirled when she got excited and watching her do so now brought a huge lump to her throat. “But Grady’s a really cool dude. Okay, I’m going up to my room to call Macy. This is too big for a text.”

  “Okay, take your time.” Betsy forced a smile. But as soon as Aubrey was out of the room, she cradled her head in her hands. She knew she shouldn’t feel guilty about going out on a date with Grady Morgan. She wasn’t under any obligation to John Clark. In fact, this could be a good thing, she thought and raised her head.

  So then, why did she feel so rotten?

  17

  Over the Moon

  Susan put the finishing touches on a display of handmade Christmas stockings and then glanced around the shop for Betsy. The feisty redhead had been acting rather odd all morning long. As a matter of fact, Betsy had been behaving strangely ever since she’d come back from the deli with the wrong order, so her mood must have something to do with John. When Susan tried to get some answers out of her she avoided questions and tried to pretend everything was okay, but Susan knew her friend way better than that.

  Susan’s stomach rumbled, letting her know it was time for lunch, but rather than get her order wrong again, she decided to take matters into her own hands and go to Ham Good Deli on her own. She went in search of Betsy to get her order and finally spotted her red head above a shelf in the Sock It to Me area of the shop. “There you are. What are you doing hiding back here?”

  “I was arranging the sock snowmen that a customer had strewn all over the place. We could use a few more. Do you need me up front?”

  “No, I just rang a few people up earlier. The Christmas cookie mason jars are flying off the shelf and so are the handmade scarves. I just finished up the display of stockings and I asked my mother to make a few more rugs in red and green when she gets the chance. I just don’t have the extra time,” Susan said, thinking that any extra time she had would hopefully be spent with Danny.

  “The ornaments from Whisper’s Edge are doing well too. I hid the funny ones at the back of the tree but they’re selling too,” Susan said with a laugh.

  “Good! I’ll call Savannah and get the ball rolling for the residents to make more.”

  “Oh, Savannah’s one of my favorite people,” Susan said. “I heard that the house Tristan built for her is flat-out amazing. When they were in here a couple of weeks ago I could just tell they adore each other.” Susan remembered feeling a bit envious while Savannah and Tristan strolled hand in hand through the shop, heads bent together, laughing and clearly so into each other.

  “Savannah and Tristan sure were a Cinderella story,” Betsy agreed.

  “No doubt,” Susan said with a nod. She knew that Savannah had been raised in foster care and was homeless when she came to Cricket Creek. She landed a job at the local retirement community and residents treated her like family. Tristan was going to plow down Whisper’s Edge and put in a fancy marina and hotel until he fell for Savannah and couldn’t go through with it. She pointed at Betsy. “Tristan was a high-powered city lawyer. See where I’m going with this?”

  “Yeah, but …” Betsy said, frowning.

  “There’s no such word as yeah-but and yet you say it all the time.”

  Betsy laughed. “I suppose I do.”

  “Would you mind giving Aubrey a call to give her the list of ingredients for the mulled cider?” Susan asked. “And we need our luminaria bags, sand, and tea lights too. I’ll be glad to pay Aubrey for her time.”

  “You don’t need to do that. She loves to shop.”

  “I insist. I really can’t spare you this afternoon and I want to get everything ready for the Christmas Walk this Sunday.”

  “Okay,” Betsy said, but seemed preoccupied.

  Susan stood there for a moment, nibbling on the inside of her cheek. “Betsy, is there something wrong? Everything okay with Aubrey?”

  “Oh Aubrey is fine and dandy. She should be stopping over here later in the afternoon. She had a mountain of dirty clothes to wash and I let her sleep in this morning.” Betsy smiled softly. “Seeing her in her bed all snuggled up was just so wonderful.”

  “So then why are you acting so strange?”

  “Um, maybe because I am strange?”

  Susan felt the urge to tap her foot. “I’m not trying to pry but … okay I am trying to pry. Something’s bothering you. Care to tell me before I go crazy with worry?”

  “Well …” Betsy rolled her eyes. “I’ve got myself in a bit of a pickle.”

  “Okay, hold that thought. I’m going to put a sign on the front door saying we’ll be back in thirty minutes. I can tell this needs my full attention. I’ll meet you in the break room.”

  Susan hurried over and arranged the hands on the sign’s miniature clock and then headed for the break room. “On second thought, let’s go upstairs. I have some spinach salad mix we can share if you like.”

  “Oh good. I really don’t want to go over to the deli today.”

  “I had a pretty good idea you were going to say that.” Susan motioned for the back stairs. “Come on up.”

  Betsy nodded and a few minutes later Susan had the salad tossed and sweet tea poured into tall glasses. She sat down at the breakfast bar across from Betsy.

  After taking a long drink of her tea, Betsy sighed. She toyed with her salad for a minute and finally took a half-hearted bite.

  “Are you going to keep me in suspense?”

  “I’m not trying to be a drama queen, sweet pea.” Betsy shook her head. “But listen to this. Aubrey and her friend Macy Morgan want me to go out on a date with Macy’s dad.”

  “Oh, Grady Morgan?”

  Betsy nodded. “Do you know him?”

  “My dad drives one of Grady’s snowplows if he needs help during big snowstorms. I’ve met him. Nice guy. Divorced, right?”

  Betsy nodded. “Yeah, I knew Grady in high school and I see him in passing from time to time. Susan, a guy like Grady would be right up my alley. I guess … do I really have an alley?”

  Susan chuckled. Betsy tended to crack jokes when she had something serious on her mind. “Ah, but you’re still mooning over John.”

  “I’m not mooning. I don’t moon.” Betsy grinned. “Well, that’s not entirely true, but that’s another story.”

  “Mmmm …” Susan chewed a bite of her salad. “Could it be that you’re daydreaming about
the whole chocolate mousse experience?”

  Betsy turned as red as the grape tomato in her salad.

  “Just as I thought,” Susan said with a firm nod.

  “Mercy, it was slap your mama good.”

  “The mousse or the kiss?”

  “Both. I’ll never look at chocolate mousse the same way.” Betsy leaned closer and whispered. “He said he’s making me some crème brûlée this weekend. Gets me all hot and bothered just thinking about it.”

  “The dessert or John?”

  “Both,” she said again, fanning her face. “Susan, what am I going to do? I mean, I inadvertently agreed to a date with Grady.”

  “Why?”

  “Well, Aubrey was so excited at the prospect.”

  “Did you tell her about John?”

  “No.”

  “How come?”

  “Well, what was I supposed to tell her? That I blew the man a kiss while I was tipsy on spiked eggnog? That I followed him into his kitchen, let him kiss me senseless, and then closed my eyes while he fed me chocolate mousse?”

  “You closed your eyes? I think you gave me the abbreviated version the first time around.”

  Betsy shrugged. “Yeah. He said it was to get a better taste of the dessert.”

  Susan chuckled. “Wow, that man’s got some serious game.”

  “Tell me about it. My bones turned to liquid,” Betsy whispered.

  “Why are you whispering?”

  “I don’t know.” She raised her hands upward. “What’s gotten into me?

  “So what do I do about this Grady thing?”

  “Do you want to go out with him?”

  Betsy appeared perplexed at the question. “Well, it would be someone to compare to how I feel when I’m with John. I mean, let’s face it, I’m as rusty as an old tin can when it comes to men.”

  “You still know how you feel.”

  “That’s just it. I don’t know how I feel.”

  “I think you do, Betsy.”

  “I know full well that Grady is someone I would have more in common with. He’s more of a down-home guy. And Grady wasn’t married to a much younger woman.”

  “But your heart doesn’t care where the man went to college,” Susan said. “And he’s divorced from his much younger wife.”

  “Yeah but …” Betsy squeezed a snowman so hard that the button eyes nearly popped off. “I don’t know! Susan, what should I do? The sensible thing would be to give Grady a fair shot. It’s not like I’m dating John or anything.”

  “But you somehow feel guilty, right?”

  “Isn’t that downright silly?”

  “You think that if he got wind of you going out with Grady it would hurt his feelings?”

  “Maybe. I guess seeing John with another woman would be a tough pill for me to swallow.”

  “Well Betsy, you know that John is completely taken with you.”

  “Do you really think so?”

  “Yes. But you also have every right in the world to go out with Grady. I just get the feeling that you don’t really want to.”

  “Well I mean, I guess I don’t really know. I don’t want to disappoint Aubrey. And again, I think I’m curious to see how I feel around another man. I was nearly thirty when Bobby left me high and dry. He was a smooth talker. Sure had me fooled. Left me without so much as a slowdown or a look in the rearview mirror. But I need to get past what he did to me.”

  “Then I guess you’ve answered your own question.”

  Betsy nodded but didn’t look at all happy about her decision. “How did my simple life suddenly become this complicated?”

  “Because your life is changing,” Susan said gently. “Aubrey is a grown woman.”

  “How did that even happen?” Betsy smiled but her eyes misted over. “Why couldn’t she just stay my little girl?”

  “Oh, she’ll always be your little girl. And she will always need you,” Susan said, knowing that her own mother had struggled when she left the farm. “But think of all of the joys left to come. Watching her blossom into a young woman will bring you such sweet satisfaction.”

  “Oh, I know, but it’s bittersweet in a way. I miss having her small hand safely tucked in mine. I think the hardest thing as a mother is not being able to fix everything with a Band-Aid and lollipop like when she was little,” Betsy said with a wistful smile. “But of course I’ll be the proudest mother at her college graduation.”

  “I’m sure you will be.”

  “I dream of someday attending her wedding and holding a grandchild in my arms.” Betsy looked down at her salad. “Even though I never want to see her get hurt,” she added in a tone that was nearly a whisper.

  “It’s a risk worth taking, though,” Susan said, thinking of Danny. “Don’t you think?” Although Susan felt more and more confident with him, she too was frightened of getting hurt. “I mean, otherwise we’re predestined to miss out.”

  Betsy toyed with her salad and then finally looked up. “Yes, I know you’re right.”

  Susan smiled. “I keep reminding myself of our toast not to be scaredy-cats. Because I grew up sheltered, I need to make up for lost time. I just need the courage to keep moving forward.” She paused and then said, “And so do you, Betsy.”

  “I realize that my life is going through some changes, both emotional and physical. I’m sure as shootin’ not getting younger.” Betsy took a drink of her tea. “While I’m perfectly fine with living the rest of my life single, I think I owe it to myself to leave the door open for … love. Obviously, Bobby never loved me.”

  “Or maybe, like you said, he just wasn’t cut out to be a family man,” Susan said. “He wasn’t from Cricket Creek or you might have known him better. I know that him leaving you had to be just horrible but I think it beats living with an unhappy man.”

  “Absolutely.” Betsy sighed. “So once and for all, what should I do about my situation?”

  Susan licked the poppy seed salad dressing off of her fork. “I think that if you have dinner with Grady it will help you sort out your feelings for John. But that’s just my opinion. You do what you think is best.”

  Betsy nodded. “I really appreciate you hearing me out, Susan.”

  “If you do go out with Grady and there aren’t any sparks, then you should take a harder look at giving John a fighting chance. Keep in mind that John is back in Cricket Creek by choice, and he seems pretty darned content owning a deli rather than being a big-time attorney. And he sure seems to have his sights set on you.”

  “I have to wonder if I’m just a challenge for him, though.”

  Susan chuckled. “Oh you’re a challenge all right. But I truly believe you can leave the just part out.”

  Betsy nodded but didn’t seem one hundred percent convinced. “I guess there’s only one way to find out. All right, enough about me. How are things with cutie pie Danny Mayfield, anyway?”

  “I’m going to help him cut down a Christmas tree this weekend.” Susan couldn’t keep the excitement from her voice.

  “Oh wow. That’s adorably romantic.”

  Susan felt the warmth of a blush. “That’s why I want to get everything ready for the Christmas Walk on Sunday. I wanted to have Saturday afternoon free, if that’s okay with you?”

  “I’ll get Aubrey to run the necessary errands for you and she can start working tomorrow. That way you can leave early to cut down the Christmas tree with Danny. We’ll make sure we’re all stocked up and ready for the Christmas Walk Sunday evening.”

  “Good! Aubrey will be a great deal of help and a lot of fun to have around.”

  “She will. But you need to get back out there and get more inventory,” Betsy said.

  “Oh, I know. But estate sales are scarce this time of year and yard sales are nonexistent. I just don’t have as many resources during the winter months.”

  “I understand. I’ve been getting a lot of customers looking for furniture, though.”

  “I’ve been wondering what to do abou
t that little problem.” Susan thought of the rocking chair, wishing she had an entire room full of similar furniture. “I’ll get to work on more inventory as soon as the holidays are over and we get back to the basics.”

  Betsy nodded. “Then we’ll need to get ready for the spring and summer tourists.”

  “When Aubrey goes back to school I’ll have to consider hiring another clerk to help us out,” Susan said. “Business has been so brisk over the past year that one of my recent considerations is leasing the building next door at some point since it’s vacant. It sure would be fun to showcase more handmade and repurposed furniture. We just don’t have the space here for a lot of really big pieces, or the necessary storage, but the shop next door has the empty loft that could hold lots of bigger items. I know we touched on this a little bit but what’s your take on the idea?”

  “I think it’s a great idea,” Betsy said. “Looking to the future and wanting to expand will keep you excited about your shop.”

  “I would love to have a variety of furniture but focus on rocking chairs. I think they would sell like that,” Susan said, snapping her fingers. “I’ll have to sit down and take a serious look at my finances to see if it would even be possible for me to expand so quickly. I sure don’t want to overextend myself now that my head is above water.”

  “You could look for an investor. I know if I had the money I’d go into a partnership with you.”

  “Good idea. I’ll start doing some research on it when I get a minute here and there,” she said, and then turned her attention back to her salad. Thinking about expansion was exciting but a touch of cold fear also slid down her spine, making her shiver.

  “You okay, sugar?”

  Susan looked up. “I was initially afraid to leave the sanctuary of the farm but I’m abundantly glad that I made the leap to being on my own.”

  “You should be so proud of yourself, Susan.”

  “I am. I just don’t want to move too fast.” A partner would be the way to go with the least amount of risk … but who could she ask? Susan chewed a bite of salad, thinking she’d best get through the holidays before leaping into more debt.