27. Heath
CHAPTER 27
heath
“ W ow, when you screw things up, you take it to the max,” Wyatt said to me over the phone. “But I gotta say, my niece is aces. She gets it from me, you know? ‘Cause you and your ex are dumbasses.”
“Thanks, asshole.”
I’d told Wyatt about everything—Sable’s past, how I’d fucked up, how Alexa and her father had attacked Sable—and how I was still on tenuous ground with my daughter because of my behavior. I was not one of those parents who thought I was infallible. I wasn’t. I apologized when I made a mistake—but usually, they were because I snapped at Juno or didn’t listen to her when she talked, something mild. This was a big deal, and I felt ashamed of her witnessing how I treated Sable.
Wyatt laughed. “What does she look like?”
I sent him a picture of Sable, one I’d taken when she was sitting at the kitchen island, looking through a cookbook. She looked so beautiful, excitement in her eyes as she read, finding something interesting to cook for us.
“Fuck, she’s…stunning,” Wyatt murmured. “I can see why Alexa is so jealous.”
“It’s that , plus their history.”
“So, what are you going to do?” Wyatt asked.
“Find a way to win her back.”
“Is that why you’re helping her business?”
“No. I’m doing that because it was my lack of trust in her that led to her getting hurt. I’m obligated to fix this.”
“And?”
I chuckled. “And I love her, so I feel it’s also my responsibility to take care of her.”
“You sure about how you feel?”
“Absolutely,” I admitted without hesitation.
It was Wyatt’s idea to enlist the help of the people who cared about Sable. There weren’t many at first, but since she’d taken over the Wildflower, I’d seen how Ben, Casey, Elijah, Mackenna, and even Natasha had rallied around her. They were Team Sable, and I was grateful she had them—something she hadn’t had before.
She’d probably thought she had me, too, and I’d let her down. Hurting Sable hurt me in ways I hadn’t expected. I never wanted to cause her pain, but I had a sinking feeling I’d done worse than anyone else who had ever hurled insults her way. She’d trusted me, and I broke that trust.
The thought of it made my chest tighten. What if she never forgave me? What if she couldn’t move past this? The idea that we might never get the chance to truly know each other, to become what I knew we could be for each other, left me panicked and hollow.
“Oh, look, the prodigal dumbass returns.” Casey arched an eyebrow when she saw me approach the table where she sat with Ben and Hillary at Poppycock’s, which was known to serve the best breakfast in Aspen since 1971.
“Now, Casey, I invited the man, and we’ll be nice to him,” Ben admonished gently.
Casey glared at me.
“What she said,” Hillary clipped.
I sighed. “May I?” I pointed to the empty chair. Ben nodded gracefully, but Hillary and Casey didn’t.
Our server came then, and everyone peered at their menus.
“Since he’s paying,” Casey mused, “I’ll have the Ultimate Indulgence.”
A Poppycock’s special, the Ultimate Indulgence, was macadamia nut oatmeal pancakes with strawberries and maple syrup, and house-made pistachio sausage patties. It was all your two thousand calories of the day in one meal.
Hillary chuckled. “Eggs Benedict for me, Grace.”
“Sure thing, Hillary.” Grace, our server, then turned to Ben and me.
“A strawberry smoothie for me.” Ben set the menu aside.
“Coffee, black, Grace. Thank you.”
Grace smiled widely. “No breakfast, Heath?”
“I already ate breakfast with Juno,” I told her.
Juno came here a lot and was addicted to their French toast, which they made very well. In fact, everything at Poppycock’s was terrific, but then, when you’ve been in business for over fifty years, you must be doing something right.
“Well, what do you want to talk about?” Hillary demanded, crossing her arms.
I felt like I was back in high school, standing in front of the cool kids, trying to convince them to let me sit at their lunch table. “I need your help,” I admitted.
Casey laughed—a sharp, disbelieving sound. “Oh, this should be good.”
“Casey,” Ben tried again, and when Casey rolled her eyes, he added, “Now, you know, and I know that Sable isn’t happy. If Heath here can get his head out of his ass, I think he can make her happy, which will mean she won’t want to sell the Wildflower to me and leave Aspen.”
Both Hillary and Casey looked worried at that. I was, as well. When I talked to Ben, he confided in me that Sable had spoken to him about selling the tavern back to him, even at a loss, and leaving town. I’d move anywhere with Sable, but I couldn’t until Juno started college—which meant that I had to convince her that staying was worth it. Staying with me by her side was even better.
I took a deep breath, running a hand through my hair. “I need your help to fix what I broke with Sable,” I tried again.
There was a beat of silence, and then Hillary set her water glass down with a deliberate clink. “You’re saying you want to win her back?”
I nodded, feeling like an idiot. “Yeah. ”
Casey snorted again. “You mean after you humiliated her in front of the whole damn town? Good luck with that.”
“I know I screwed up.” I looked around at all of them. “I know I don’t deserve her forgiveness, and maybe I won’t get it. But I love her and…I think she loves me.”
That shut them up. Even Casey stopped smirking, her eyes narrowing as she studied me.
I knew Sable loved me—I’d felt it. And wasn’t that why I’d run? Why I’d found excuses to keep things casual, to maintain some distance? When the opportunity came to make things real, I’d shut it down, thrown up roadblocks, anything to avoid facing that truth. Now, all of that was coming back to bite me in the ass.
“You love her?” Hillary asked skeptically.
“Yes,” I said firmly. “I do.”
Ben leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. “I believe you.”
“You do?” I asked, surprised.
“Man, you look like crap.”
“True,” Casey chimed.
“Yeah, between you and Sable, we could keep the dark circle concealer people in business,” Hillary added.
The server came with our drinks.
Casey drank some of her orange juice and then looked at me sternly, but she couldn’t hold it because a mischievous grin crept back onto her face. “We have some questions. Consider it a loyalty test.”
Now, Ben rolled his eyes and muttered, “Young people. ”
Hillary nodded. “Yeah. If we’re going to help you, we need to make sure you’re not going to screw Sable over again.”
It was cute and even sweet that they were protecting my Sable. “Ask away.”
Casey started. “First question. What’s Sable’s favorite drink?”
“Red wine, Malbec from Mendoza in Argentina, specifically, Vistandes Winery,” I replied without hesitation.
Casey frowned in surprise and then looked at Hillary, who shrugged. “I just know she likes Malbec.”
“I say that’s double the points for Heath.” Ben raised his smoothy glass.
“Why are you on his side?” Casey asked suspiciously.
“I don’t want to run the Wildflower. I want Sable to keep it and grow it like she plans to. I want to hang out with my grandkids,” Ben explained.
“Okay, fine.” Casey couldn’t hide that she was impressed I knew what Sable liked in such detail. “What’s her favorite item on the Wildflower menu?”
This was too easy, like candy from a baby. “Elijah’s bison chili with extra cornbread.”
“Hmm.” Hillary tapped her chin. “What does Sable do when she’s nervous?”
“She rubs the back of her neck.” A small, fond smile tugged at my lips. “And drinks a glass of wine. Then stays up half the night unless….” I fuck her into submission and sleep .
Hillary smirked. “Now, for the important question. Are you willing to grovel?”
“Absolutely,” I admitted without hesitation.
“Wrong answer.” Casey pointed a finger at me. “The correct answer is, ‘ I’m already groveling .’”
I laughed despite myself. “Fine. I’m already groveling.”
Their food arrived, and while the two women ate and I had two cups of coffee, they took my plea for help seriously. They used one of the oversized paper napkins as a whiteboard to brainstorm ideas. I knew that Sable would get a kick out of this—that they cared so much about her. God! I hoped I could get her back where she belonged, with me, in my life.
“All right,” Casey murmured, wiping some strawberry jam from the corner of her mouth. “Here’s what we’ve got so far. Flowers.”
“Public apology. You humiliated her in public.” Hillary read the next item on the list, “So you need to apologize in public. Like, in front of the whole damn town.”
“Done.” I even knew when and how. I’d been thinking about this harder and longer than Hillary and Casey.
“Fix the business so I don’t have to buy the damn thing,” Ben growled. “You’ve already started sending tourists her way, but it’s not enough. Bring the locals back.”
“On it.” And I was on it like they wouldn’t believe. I’d had a meeting with the top Royal social media guru in New York, who’d thrown me a lifeline and was happy to help raise the profile of my girlfriend’s business.
“We need a big romantic gesture like in the movies.” Casey’s eyes lit up. “Go big or go home. Buy a billboard.”
Ben and I laughed.
“No.” Hillary was mortified. “Sable will hate that.”
“What else?” Casey wondered and looked at the last item on the list.“Well, this one is self-explanatory; don’t screw it up.”
“Roger that.”