6. Ashford
SIX
Ashford
“Daddy, is it time to wake up yet?”
Inside, I wanted to shout no and hide my head under my pillow. But I was a grown man and a father. So instead, I pretended to be asleep.
Maisie stood beside my bed. I could feel her staring at me. “Daddeeeee.” She poked my forehead. “It’s light outside. I want to go down and see if Emma and Stella are here yet. Can I?”
Groaning, I sat up and rubbed my face. “No, you may not. Emma won’t be here for a couple hours at least. It’s too early.”
“But I’m dressed already. And I made breakfast.”
I blinked, eyes adjusting to the familiar sight of my daughter. She’d put on the fancy dress Grace had bought her last Christmas, and she’d styled her unbrushed hair with a unicorn headband, complete with plastic horn. I hoped the kitchen wasn’t too awful of a mess right now.
“Breakfast, huh? Enough for me?”
“Of course. I made lots.”
Oh, boy. “But I’m too hungry to wait.” I lunged forward to grab her. “And you’re so sweet.”
“I’m not!” Maisie shrieked and laughed as I carried her out of my room, pretending to chew on her midsection. Now , I was awake.
A little while later, we were eating soggy cereal at the kitchen table. Maisie had only left a small puddle of milk on the counter. A few flakes on the floor. Could’ve been worse. She hadn’t quite filled the cereal bowls to the brim, but it was close.
It had only been a week since Emma had arrived in Silver Ridge, and my kid was already obsessed with the new music teacher. Every day, it was Emma this and Emma that .
In fact, it seemed like the whole town had caught the same bug.
Yesterday had been Emma’s first parent-and-tot class. The room had hit capacity, which meant babies and toddlers were crawling everywhere when I’d spied on her through the one-way window.
Because I had no shame. Or, apparently, better things to do.
The people of Silver Ridge just loved Emma Jennings. Meanwhile, I’d been working my ass off for years to build my customer base. When I’d complained about the situation, Grace had told me to try smiling more . Then she’d cackled maniacally.
Real funny.
It wasn’t that I disliked Emma Jennings on a personal level. I didn’t have an “issue” with her like she’d claimed. Couldn’t a guy just be a curmudgeon in peace?
Maisie perked up. “I think I heard something. Is it Emma?”
“Not yet, monkey. Be patient.”
“But time is moving too slow.”
“Really? To me, it’s always moving too fast.”
She huffed, the perfect picture of a mini teenager. “Can I have music lessons with Emma?”
“That’s too expensive for us right now.”
“But Ollie is going to learn piano. He’ll get to see Emma more than me.”
“Somehow, I doubt that.”
I wasn’t completely unaware of Emma’s charms. Like her lustrous dark hair and her seemingly flawless skin. The way her mouth quirked when she was being sarcastic. And she had curves in the exact places most likely to draw my eye.
She was just everywhere . My daughter’s favorite new subject of conversation. An invisible presence in my workspace with her instruments and rhythm toys and flowers-mixed-with-vanilla scent.
I could smell her in my own damn apartment now. I couldn’t get her out of my mind.
Maybe Maisie had the right idea. Time slowed around Emma. It felt like a loooong time until the end of summer.
When it was finally a reasonable hour, we heard keys in the lock downstairs. Maisie popped up from her seat. “Can I?”
“Rinse your dishes first.” I watched her dash around, standing on her tiptoes by the sink, then added, “And put on shoes!”
She rushed down the stairs to meet Emma in the lobby.
I followed at a slower pace, sipping a second cup of coffee and double-checking my phone calendar for today’s schedule. The sounds of Maisie fussing over the dog rose up the stairs. Another battle I’d lost. Emma seemed to think this was a pet-friendly zone, and I guessed Dixie had confirmed it. Nobody cared what I thought about it.
“Morning, Ashford.” Emma stood at the mouth of the hallway I’d just entered, looking casual in faded shorts and an over-sized button-down, her hair tied up in a knot.
A warm feeling simmered low in my belly as a wave of floral vanilla hit me.
“Hmmm,” I responded, taking another sip of coffee.
“Friendly as usual, I see.” She brushed past me on her way to the storage closet, while I headed for my office. When I reached the door, I found a note waiting there for me.
Don’t move my keyboard again. It was fine where it was.
-Emma
The hell? I grabbed the note from the door, crumpling it in my fingers. She couldn’t have just said it to me in person?
Okay, I had left her a note last night asking her to do a better job picking up the baby toys. I’d found a tiny noisemaker under a training mat. Or rather, Ollie had found it yesterday afternoon. It had caused a distraction in my five-to-ten-year-old class.
I glanced over my shoulder at the direction she’d gone. I assumed she was in the kitchenette. Brewing some of the weird, froo-froo tea that now occupied half the shelf in there.
I didn’t have time to deal with her right now. Or preferably, ever.
I got Maisie to her morning day-camp activity. They were meeting at the park, which was conveniently right down the street from the gym. I had two training appointments today. Clients I’d been working with for a while. It all went smoothly, and I was able to get in a workout of my own.
At least some things went like they were supposed to.
When I got back home, I heard Emma’s class underway. I had no idea where the dog was. Seemed like Emma had arranged another place for her pet during her class times, which was good, because I certainly didn’t want to take care of her animal. Not my responsibility. I had enough of those already.
I squinted at the floor of the lobby, looking for dog hair, but didn’t spot any.
Taking a sip from my water bottle, I stopped in front of the one-way mirror. Emma was in there with a guitar on her lap, singing and swaying. Several moms and a dad sat in front of her, holding their squirming children in their laps. She did have a nice voice. High and clear.
I’d never done any classes like that with Maisie when she’d been that age. Had Lori? I would guess not. There hadn’t been anything like this in Silver Ridge then. Unless Lori had driven to a nearby town, like Hartley.
It pained me when I thought about how much I didn’t know about my best friend, even though we’d been trying to make a life together.
I shook my head, shaking off thoughts of Lori as I always did whenever they rose in my mind.
Then I went to sit in my office and tapped at my computer, answering emails and paying bills. Exciting stuff. The guitar music and singing coming through the wall set my teeth on edge.
I knew I was being slightly unreasonable. It wasn’t Emma’s fault that O’Neal Martial Arts had been slower to grow than I would’ve liked. I had helped her move her things in. Listened to her ideas for how to rearrange all my stuff that had been here for years. I’d made room for her here.
But inside, I was constantly bracing myself against her presence. Probably because she had to be so stinking positive about everything. Who was that cheerful all the time?
Except for when she was dealing with me, of course. I brought out Emma’s sardonic side. A distinction I surely deserved.
Did I have to be so uptight with her? Maybe not. But I had the feeling that, if I didn’t draw some kind of line in the sand, she would end up taking over. And most of the town wouldn’t have a single problem with that.
I grabbed my pad of Post-it notes and jotted out another message.
Trash pickup is tomorrow. Don’t forget to empty the diaper pail and re-latch the bear lock on the trash cart. VERY IMPORTANT.
Ashford
Then I marched over to the kitchenette and stuck the note to her box of tea. There. If she preferred to communicate with me in writing, fine by me.
A nagging voice, which sounded distinctly like my sister Grace, told me I should be the better man and find a way to get along with her. Otherwise, it was going to be a long three months.
I told that voice where it could shove its advice. Right in the diaper pail.
Once upon a time, whenever I’d been home on leave in my Army days, my favorite spot to meet up with my friends had been Hearthstone Brewing Company.
They’d done renovations since then, updating the wood-paneled interior with modern light fixtures and sleek new chairs and tables. But thankfully, the low-key energy was still the same. The concrete floor was just a bit sticky from spilled beer beneath my boots.
It had been a long-ass day, and I needed to unwind.
I didn’t hang out here every night like I used to back in the day. I was a home-for-dinner kind of dad, unlike my own had been. But tonight, Maisie was at a Parents’ Night Out event at the community center. Free babysitting, mostly by teenagers from the local high school. Grace was there to help supervise. Whenever there was a community-building event around Silver Ridge, Grace inevitably had a hand in it. By day, she was an accountant for several local businesses.
As I wove between tables to reach the bar counter, I spotted my brother Callum working the taps. He was the brewery’s assistant manager. My buddies Judson Lawrence and Elias Camden were already here, perched on two barstools with a free one next to them. Perfect.
I sat down and nodded hello. “How’s it going with you two?”
“Can’t complain,” Judson said softly. His cowboy hat shadowed his features.
“I can,” Elias quipped. “Did you see the score on the Rockies game last night? Brutal.”
Callum made his way over. “What can I get you, big brother?”
“Amber ale. And some nachos.”
Callum nodded, grabbing a pint glass. “It’ll be awhile on the food. Kitchen is backed up.”
Damn summer season. “There should be a tourism tax,” I said. “Places are getting too crowded. Barely any room for us locals.” We had been inundated with tourists, especially in the last year since a small ski resort had opened on a nearby mountain. Now that it was summer, they were offering lift access to mountain bikers.
Elias laughed, clapping me on the shoulder. “Please don’t run for mayor or town council anytime soon, man. I’ve been appreciating the uptick in business. If only we could find a better way to get them here during the shoulder seasons.”
Callum handed me my beer. “I’ve been enjoying all the pretty new faces.”
I snorted. “I bet you have.”
My brother’s favorite pastime was finding tourists to hook up with. He was a volunteer firefighter in addition to working at the brewery, and the firehouse had a prominent spot on Main Street. He never had any trouble charming the out-of-towners.
Tonight, his olive-green T-shirt said ARMY across the front, and his cap read Silver Ridge FD. Because he liked everyone to know his business at all times.
“And speaking of new faces,” Callum muttered, lifting his chin and gesturing to something behind us.
Somehow, I already guessed what I would see.
Piper sat with a few of her girlfriends at a table. And there was Emma. She had on the same casual clothes as this morning, but her hair was down and curled. Her profile was visible, a smile brightening her blue eyes.
I couldn’t see the blue from here, of course. But I knew they were blue. Just like I could smell her sweet floral scent from across this crowded brewery.
The woman was inescapable.
“The new music teacher.” My little brother’s voice was laced with innuendo. “Ashford’s been pissy about her the last week, but I really don’t see the problem.”
I bristled, swiveling back to frown at him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Judson sipped his porter. “I think Callum’s referring to her many pleasing physical attributes.”
Elias snorted into his rum and coke. “Watch out, Ashford. If your little brother doesn’t snag her, this cowboy wordsmith over here will.” He nudged his elbow at Judson.
“Nobody’s going to snag Emma.” I crossed my arms, elbows thunking on the bar top. “And if they did, it’s nothing to do with me.”
The three of them exchanged amused glances.
Why had I come here again?
Judson was in fact our resident poet, though he tried to deny it. You’d never know it looking at him. He was six-foot-six, a former defensive tackle on our high school team. They used to call him The Wall because nobody could go through him.
That talent had extended to a college football scholarship and a blink-and-you-missed-it stint in the NFL. These days he was a rancher, having taken over his family’s cattle business. Their property was out in the valley about a thirty-minute drive from town.
Elias was slightly smaller than Judson but a lot mouthier. He had shaggy dark-blond hair and a trimmed beard that didn’t quite hide his dimples when he smiled. Elias and I had both been on the high school wrestling team. Much cooler than football, in my opinion. Elias didn’t have the black belts I did, but he could almost rival me at grappling when we sparred.
He also owned Flamethrower Burgers & Brews right up the road. Most nights, you could find him behind the counter. Tonight was a rare time we were all out together. But Elias didn’t mind us coming to Hearthstone, even though technically they were his competition. No such thing as too much beer in Colorado.
Callum grabbed some empty glasses and stacked them in the dishwasher. “Uh huh. So you really have zero interest in the gorgeous woman sharing your space every day.”
“She’s way too young. I’ve got eleven years on her. She’s only twenty-three.”
“So? She’s running a small business, just like you. People like her classes a lot. I hear she’s great with Maisie, too. Pretty and sweet. What more do you want?”
“How do you know so damn much about her?” I grumbled.
“Because Callum is popular with the local moms,” Elias muttered, drink in front of his mouth. Judson snickered.
Callum flipped them off, his smile not breaking, then turned back to me. “Then I take it you’re one-hundred percent not going to make any moves on Ms. Jennings.”
“A hundred and ten percent. It’s not happening.”
“Good.” My brother glanced at his watch, the G-Shock I’d given him for his birthday five years ago. “My break is in ten minutes. I’m going to introduce myself to her, since I haven’t had that pleasure yet.”
A hot flash of anger pounded my temples. “You’re not screwing around with the woman who stole half my lease.”
“She didn’t steal anything. You missed your opportunity.” Callum pulled a dish towel from his jeans pocket. “Just like you’re about to do now.” He walked to the other end of the bar to serve another customer, leaving me fuming.
Judson and Elias were quiet. But I could still hear all the shit they weren’t saying.
“Why is tonight all about judging me ?” I asked. “Can’t somebody else serve as the whipping boy?”
Elias finished his drink and pushed the glass away. “We all know Judson likes to keep his love life to himself. As for me, I’m still the pathetic guy who’s trying to get over his divorce. If I start spilling my guts about my problems, it’ll just depress the hell out of the rest of you. I don’t want to be responsible for that.”
Judson clapped him on the shoulder sympathetically.
Elias’s wife Holly had left Silver Ridge a couple of years ago to move to Denver. It had come as a shock to everyone, including Elias, because they’d been the golden couple of our high school. Nobody expected them to break up. Just went to show, didn’t it? No happy endings.
“Piper didn’t name us the Lonely Harts for nothing,” Elias said.
My back muscles tensed. “Well, she can rescind my membership. I’m not lonely.”
My friends’ silence said they didn’t buy it.
My nachos finally arrived. As my friends and I ate, Callum left his dish towel with the other bartender and went to take his break. My gaze followed him across the room from the corner of my eye.
He said something to the occupants of Piper and Emma’s table. Female laughter drifted over.
“You’re really not gonna go over there?” Elias asked.
“Nope.” I gulped the rest of my amber ale, lifting a finger for another. “I’m enjoying my night off.”
But I glanced over again. And I saw Emma look up at Callum. She smiled at him, head tilting. My brother leaned down to say something in her ear.
Before I’d even realized I was moving, I was out of my seat. I swiped my fresh pint of ale from the bar. Then I was striding across the room, with Judson and Elias’s low laughter trailing after me.