“Are you trying to get all deep and metaphorical, ‘cause this seems like a comparison between donuts and Katie Holloway.”
Roger’s eyes twinkled, and he shifted in his seat, adjusting the sling that kept his arm immobilized. “Or maybe a father merely wanted to share some delicious donuts with his son before he leaves for who knows how long.”
“Well, in that case...” Will took an enormous bite and moaned with satisfaction. “These are the best donuts I think I’ve ever had, and that’s saying something. I think I’ve had donuts from twenty bakeries in Des Moines.”
Roger took a bite, licking the crumbs from his lips and looking equally satisfied. “Don’t tell your mother I got these. She might know about the Oreos, but I can’t let her know about the donuts. She’s afraid of cholesterol like it’s the black plague.”
Will took another bite. “I would never.”
The two ate in silence, Will finishing his first and reaching for a second without guilt. Clearing his throat, Will’s dad said, “Since you brought up Katie...”
His eyes rolling back in his head like a moody teenager, Will sat back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “How’d I know this was a trap?”
“Son, you’re mistaking my intentions. I don’t mean to be trapping you into anything.”
“Then why does it feel like you’re baiting me with donuts so you can catch me in order to lecture me about how I’ve totally screwed up with Katie.” Will raked a hand through his damp hair and grumbled to himself, “That I’ve totally messed up how I’m running my life.”
Putting the lid on the donuts, Roger pushed them aside and rested his good arm on the table. “Yes, I got the donuts to convince you to sit down for a minute with your old man, but I promise, I had no plan to lecture you. I think it’s my duty as your father to make sure you’re happy with your life, and if you’re not, see if there’s anything I can do to help you achieve the same level of happiness I’ve been blessed to have.”
Will’s lips twitched at his choice of words, though the thought of Katie and their inside joke clouded any potential smile with guilt and sadness. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do. On the one hand, I’ve got this incredible opportunity to advance my career. I mean, there are plenty of other coworkers that have been at this longer than me, and the company is specifically seeking me out for the promotion. On the other hand, I think I’ve met the woman of my dreams.”
“Problem is, she doesn’t live where your promotion is.”
“Exactly,” Will said, blowing out a breath. “It’s a choice I didn’t want to have to make, and I’m afraid because I didn’t come clean with Katie right when I found out that I’ve lost her for good. Now I don’t have a choice because it’s been made for me.”
Roger studied his mug of coffee and nodded as he patiently listened to his son talk. When Will finished, he asked, “Do you see yourself settling down? Or is Katie a passing infatuation?”
“She’s...I don’t know how to describe it. With her, I feel whole. Complete. I’ve never felt that with anyone else before.”
“That’s the way I feel about your mother.”
Will looked straight into his dad’s eyes, with one eyebrow raised. “Are you saying you believe in love at first sight? Because I always took you to be a practical man.”
A chuckle rumbled from deep within Roger’s chest, and Will felt his face grow warm, like he’d said something wrong. “I am a very practical man, but I’ll be the first to tell you that love is anything but logical.”
“So, what am I supposed to do? Turn down a perfectly good job advancement and come back and live in your spare bedroom?”
“No,” Roger said, slurping up some of his over-sugared coffee. “Your mom is wanting to turn the spare bedroom into a work office, so we won’t have space for you.”
“Gee, thanks,” Will said sarcastically as his dad’s blue eyes twinkled.
“Taking a step back in life isn’t the answer.”
“So, what am I supposed to do?” Will huffed. “You’re being rather cryptic. You’re supposed to be giving me solid advice that helps me.”
“I don’t want to sway your decision. You’re a man and have lived without us hounding you long enough, but I’ll tell you this—work and all of the satisfaction and excitement that might come with it will ebb and flow, but your mother has been a constant throughout my life. I’m not sure I could have done it without her, and if I did, I can tell you I wouldn’t have had as nearly as satisfying a life as I’ve had so far.”
Will’s throat tightened, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to talk. Tracing some of the marks in the wood, Will stared at the worn farmhouse table he’d grown up with. “Katie is special, isn’t she?”
“And be prepared to say goodbye to that every time you have to leave town.”
“That’s just it, Dad. Maybe I don’t want to keep saying goodbye.”
“So what are you saying?”
Will picked at a small crack between the boards as he hesitated, trying to put his doubts into words. Finally, he admitted, “I don’t know. I think I have to figure it out.”
Roger stood and walked around the table, clapping his good hand on Will’s shoulder and giving him a firm squeeze. “Whatever you decide, your mother and I will be behind you all the way. We want you to be happy, however that comes.”
Averting his eyes from meeting his father’s, Will glanced at his watch, then stood and grabbed his briefcase. “I’d better get going. I doubt showing up late for my interview would make a very good impression with the higher ups.”
Will let himself out through the back mudroom door while his father tiptoed across the kitchen to hide the rest of the donuts in the overhead cabinet. Roger put his finger to his lips, and Will laughed, wondering how long it would take his mom to find the bounty. Shaking his head, Will walked to the car, listening to the sound of his shoes crunching on the gravel against the still quiet of the morning.
As he unlocked his car, a pair of blinding headlights came into view. Squinting against them, he could make out his sister’s car barreling up the drive. She skidded to a stop next to him and got out of her car, glaring at him.
“You never were a morning person, but I see it’s gotten worse with age.”
Charlotte sneered and stuck her tongue out. “I’m here to help mom catch up on some of the business reports before I go into the salon.”
“That’s what’s making you so sour?” Will asked, resting his arm on the top of his sedan. He smiled to himself, glad that he had his car between him and his sister.
“No, it’s you I’m ticked at.”
“What a surprise. What’d I do this time?”
“You broke my best friend’s heart!” Charlotte cried. Without warning, she bent over and pulled off her boot, then chucked it squarely at her brother. Will ducked as the shoe whizzed past, narrowly missing his face and flopping onto the lawn.
“Hey, watch it! You about gave me a black eye!”
“What? You’re worried you won’t look pretty enough for your promotion?”
Will sighed through his teeth and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re seriously going to give me grief for going back to try and further my career? Because if I remember right, you never complain about the lavish gifts I bestow upon you for Christmas.”
“You’re not that good of a gift giver.”
“I spent four hundred bucks on that set of haircutting shears for you!”
“You can have all that stuff back.” Charlotte paced the length of her car several times before throwing her hands up in the air and growling. “If you honestly are ready to give up a chance with Katie because of your lame job, you don’t deserve her.”
Will could feel the heat creeping up his neck, despite the temperature hovering near freezing. About to defend his decision, he bit his tongue and asked instead, “How is she?”
Charlotte stopped and planted her hands on her hips. “She was a sobbing mess when
I swung by her house last night. The stupidest part of it all is that she’s wondering if she’s to blame for you being dumb.”
“She’s not,” Will said softly.
“I know she’s not,” Charlotte huffed. “As long as I’ve known Katie, she’s been determined to be buried in the same place she was born. You’re the only one who’s ever had enough sway to make her question her resolve. That’s saying something. But you know what? Katie’s strong. She’ll get over you.”
Will mirrored his sister’s stance but dropped his eyes and toed at the gravel. “I have to go.”
“Of course you do. Go on, then,” Charlotte said, pointing her finger toward the horizon. “Nothing keeping you here.”
Grabbing the door handle, Will hesitated opening it. “Tell Katie to watch out for Rex.”
“She can take care of herself. Katie’s a special woman.”
“I know,” Will agreed. “That’s the problem.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Calm down, Katie.”
Ever since she’d woken up, Katie’s entire body seemed to be trembling. It wasn’t from the fact that the morning had welcomed her with frost on her windshield and a stiff breeze that cut right to her bones. It was the time constraint of producing the meal she promised she would. She found herself at five in the morning in the café’s kitchen, desperately trying to put together the Thanksgiving meal she’d organized for Blessings town residents who could use a place to have a hearty meal and a warm, family-like environment if they couldn’t be with their own. After a long shift waitressing on Wednesday with minimal staff due to the number of people gone or otherwise occupied for the holiday, Katie had gone home already beat and gotten started on the meal preparations. She’d made decent headway the night before, but still had so much to do that her checklist barely looked like it’d been touched.
Measuring out the salt for the turkey rub, she tried to still her quivering hand. As the grains of salt started pouring into the measuring spoon, the lid popped off, dumping the entire contents of the container into the bowl before she could catch it.
“No!” Katie cried, trying to avert the crisis and instead, dumping salt all over the kitchen floor. Tears blurred her vision. Over salting the turkey rub wasn’t the first of her troubles—she’d already burned an apple pie and had dropped an entire bowl of dough meant for dinner rolls—and any optimism she had was strained to the breaking point. She was sure it wasn’t going to be her last incident either.
Ever since she’d argued with Will after the Harvest Festival Ball, a thick gray cloud of resentment and disappointment had been hovering over her. She’d spent more than a few hours crying over him, bitterly wondering why she’d bothered falling head over heels for him in the first place, especially since she had known it was all so temporary. Maybe it was because she’d secretly been hoping that she’d had enough pull that she’d eke out a fairytale ending. Will would fall completely for her, move back, they’d live happily ever after. Simple.
If only...
Katie dumped the ruined mixture of seasonings into the trash and started over again, trying to calm herself with deep breaths and blinking back the tears that seemed so insistent on tumbling down her cheeks. With Will’s abandonment, her spirit felt broken. The words she’d told him kept coming back to haunt her—yes, it had been horrendous when her mother had died leaving her without family of her own, but to be willfully abandoned by someone she’d let herself grow attached to hurt in a way she wasn’t prepared for. Now, in the café kitchen, she’d never felt more alone. She had asked a few people for help but had stopped after being turned down, feeling guilty about asking others to leave their family gatherings to help her.
Grabbing a new salt container from her shelf of supplies, she cracked it open and started over again with salt first. Holding the salt over the measuring spoon, a loud knock on the kitchen’s back door startled her. She muttered to herself, trying to calm her pounding heart, looking at the brand new mess she’d made all over the kitchen. She straightened herself and used the hem of her apron to pat dry the residual tears from her cheeks before checking to see who could possibly be at the café door Thanksgiving morning.
Standing on her tiptoes, she peered through the peephole and was about knocked off her feet at who she saw.
“Will?” she gasped.
Taking a step back, she put her cold fingertips on her flushed cheeks and shook her head to rattle her brain to make sure it was working.
“In the flesh,” came his muffled voice through the door.
Katie stood, facing the solid metal door while a hurricane of emotions whirled inside her. Mustering up her courage, she spoke firmly. “What are you doing here?”
Will paused, then answered, “I’m here for you.”
A laugh tainted with acrimony came out, and she shook her head. “I’m busy.”
“I’m sure. I can smell something divine you’ve got in the oven.”
Katie looked over her shoulder to where she had the last batch of Taste of Home pies in the oven, while eight pumpkin pies cooled on the counter. “Then you’ll understand that I can’t step away from what I’m doing right now. I’m already behind schedule.”
Another pause made Katie’s heart stop in suspense. She wanted to sneak a peek at him through the peephole again but feared her stubborn desire to hold a grudge would dissolve.
“Katie,” Will said, jumpstarting her heart again. The tenderness in his voice was touching. “I’m sorry.”
“Did you miss out on the promotion? Come back here for me, your second choice?”
She knew she was being unfair and immature, but she finally understood what it meant that love and war were battlefields where anything went.
“Can you open the door so we can talk? I promise I’ll leave if that’s what you really want, but first, I want to look you in the face so I can properly apologize.”
Her feet felt rooted in place while she considered her course of action. Deciding she could be the bigger person and let him apologize so he could have some peace of conscience before she sent him away to protect her fragile heart, she unlocked the door and swung it open. Seeing him in full, and catching a whiff of his musky cologne, with a hopeful smile on his face, wanting to reach out and run her hand along his sharp jawline to test the closeness of his shave, Katie had to grab onto the doorknob for support as her knees became as useless as limp noodles.
Judging by the way Will’s eyes widened, he was having a similar reaction, though she doubted she looked as put together as he did. His interview was days ago but he looked as sharp as if he’d come straight from it.
“Yes?” Katie said, folding her arms as a barrier and proudly tilting her chin up.
Will sucked in a breath as he appraised her. “You look amazing.”
Katie scoffed. “Don’t get off topic.”
“Yes, you’re right. Sorry. But you still look lovely.”
“Well,” she said, absentmindedly touching her hair to make sure she hadn’t pulled it out in her stress to prepare the meal, “thank you.”
Katie was relieved that she’d gotten herself ready for the special day, otherwise, she would have been baking to the last minute, makeup-less and with her hair pushed into a sloppy knot at the top of her head as she greeted her guests. At least this way, with her mother’s pearls laying against a simple cotton dress, and her hair styled into a French twist with the same touch of makeup that she wore every week to church, she could hold her head high and accept Will’s compliment without questioning if he was patronizing her or not.
“I mean it. Then again, you always look wonderful.”
Katie could feel her heart rending in two, seeing how pathetically penitent Will looked as he stood before her, but she steeled her heart against opening up to him and being vulnerable. She could try and be happy for Will without letting herself be hurt again. Reigning in any remaining anger, she took a calming breath and rummaged in the fridge for the celery.
“So?
Did you get the promotion?”
She swallowed and forced herself to look directly at Will. Quietly, he said, “Yeah.”
“Good for you,” Katie said, starting to chop the celery like it was responsible for her floundering love life. “Did you come back to gloat?”
Will winced at her words, and she muttered an apology. She toned it down with her knife so she wouldn’t lose a finger.
“Actually,” Will said as he brushed a bit of flour into a pile at the edge of the counter, “I turned it down.”
The knife clattered onto the counter and Katie shook her head, unsure if she’d heard correctly. “Come again?”
A generous smile graced Will’s entire face, making Katie swallow as she wondered what the meaning was behind it. “What? I thought...you can’t. It’s a step up. It’s what you wanted.”
“It’s what I thought I wanted.”
All Katie could hear was the hammer of her heartbeat drowning out the rest of the world. “What are you saying?”
“Katie,” Will said, taking two long strides and closing the gap between them but hesitating to touch her, “I’m sorry for putting you through all this mess. I thought getting away from Blessings and finding myself in a big city, climbing the corporate ladder, and being surrounded by the fast-paced life would be what would make me happy. As hopelessly corny as it sounds, the second I laid eyes on you when I came back to Blessings, I knew right here was where I was supposed to be.”
He took Katie’s hand and drew her into his arms, and she let herself be embraced. As he wrapped her in his strong arms, the barricade she’d put around her heart tumbled, and she sighed happily into his chest. She’d sworn she’d never let herself be tricked by Will Ryan again, but something about being so close to him felt so right.
“I can’t believe you turned down a promotion to come back here.” Will smirked, and the twinkle in his eye was unmistakably mischievous. “What?”
“I turned it down initially, but they were so insistent on hiring me that we came to a compromise.”
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