Chapter 3 #3
Later, when his phone dinged, Jake fished it from the pocket of his athletic shorts, consulted it, and frowned.
He sent a brief text before turning his attention back to Emily.
He seemed to shake off his frustration as he tapped her notepad.
“So, about the barn. I definitely need to fix the doors and replace the hardware so they don’t fall on someone. ”
She touched his forearm. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat. “We should start a list for Lowe’s.” He fetched a notepad and pen from a nearby drawer and
wrote Lowe’s at the top before listing supplies. His movements were stiff and jerky, and frustration came off him in waves.
“Jake.”
He ignored her and continued writing.
“Jake!” she exclaimed, and he finally met her gaze with a frown. She rested her hand on his bulky bicep. “You can’t lie to
me. We’ve been friends for nearly twenty-five years, and I can tell when you’re upset. You know that, right?”
He sagged in the chair.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“It’s Claire.” He scrubbed his hand over his mouth. “We had an argument before she left, and she’s been bugging me to talk
to her about it. Things have been . . . strained.”
This was news. Jake and Claire had had their share of arguments—some of them pretty intense—but they always worked it out.
“I thought things were going great between you two. What happened?”
“You know she works for a big medical supply company,” he began, and she nodded. “Well, the company was bought out, and the
main offices are in Nashville. She’s able to work from home, but she has to check in with her manager and team in Nashville
periodically, which is where she is now. Her dream is to be CFO. Even though she had a good offer with a company over in Asheville,
which is a short commute, she’s still trekking out to Nashville and waiting for that promotion.”
Emily nodded. “Okay . . .”
“Well, she wants to move out there permanently.” He paused, and his lips turned down. “And she wants me to go with her.”
“Oh.” Emily worked to keep her expression blank, but the thought of Jake moving to Nashville felt like a stab to her chest.
Not only would he be more than seven hours away from Charlotte, but a move to Nashville with Claire would lead to a commitment—a
real commitment—marriage, a family, a future. And then for sure Emily would lose him forever.
She couldn’t stomach the idea of not having Jake in her life. What would she do without him?
But she needed to focus on Jake’s needs, not her own.
“What do you want?” she asked, working to keep her voice calm.
“What do you think I want?” He threw his hands up. “The orchard is my life. It’s been in my family for a hundred years. How can I leave, especially
with my dad’s health being so fragile? My family is depending on me to bring the orchard out of its slump. It’s our livelihood,
our history, our legacy.”
Whew! “Doesn’t she understand that?”
“She thinks I should hire someone to run the orchard.” He set his jaw. “She keeps telling me that I don’t support her, but
it’s not that. Of course I want her to do well and fulfill her dream of becoming a CFO. But I’d like her to do that here.”
He pointed to the floor. “Like I said, she had one good offer when a competitor tried to poach her. It had great benefits
and a salary bump, along with the room to grow her career. Maybe not the direct line she might have in the Nashville company,
but still. I’d never ask her to give up her dreams for me. But what about what I want?” He pointed to his chest. “Doesn’t
it matter that I want to stay here?”
He leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling. “I feel so torn.” He sighed. “That’s why I told her we needed a break for a while.”
Emily’s stomach dropped. Had she heard him right? They broke up? And he didn’t tell her?
Whoa.
“You b-broke up?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, and he looked stricken. “It was my idea. And it totally crushed her.” He rubbed his forehead. “I feel like
the biggest jerk on the planet.”
“You told her it was over?” Emily’s leg began to bounce under the table.
“Yup. I said we needed space and that maybe we should see other people. Maybe she’ll find someone who will give her what she
wants, because apparently I can’t.”
Emily worked to wrap her brain around this bombshell.
Jake and Claire broke up. They were over.
And he asked Emily to come home to Splendid Lake.
Her heart gave a bump.
But Jake had kept that news—big news—from her.
“When did this happen?” she asked.
He studied his hands as if the answer were written on his palms. “Two weeks ago.”
Hold on!
Two weeks ago. And he’d kept this from her!
“So why didn’t you tell me?” Her question vibrated.
He grimaced. “I guess I’ve been trying to come to terms with the fact that it’s finally over between Claire and me after more
than a decade.”
Emily nodded. “If it’s over, then why is she texting you?”
“She still wants to talk about it.”
“If you want me to leave so you can call her . . .”
“No, no, no.” He pointed to her notebook. “Let’s put a plan together and then talk to my dad about it. Even though he’s stepped
back, he wants me to keep him informed of all my ideas.”
“Okay.” Emily tried to focus on their harvest market idea, but her mind was spinning while she tried to comprehend that Jake
was single.
Single!
And maybe that meant she finally, after all these years, had a chance with him.