CHAPTER 16
Olivia
JULY
“ I ’m gonna head over to your house tomorrow.
I bought a steamer online that will give the walls a really good wash.
” I look up at my dad over our weekly pancakes at the Sage and Salt.
It’s a running joke that he has an online shopping addiction.
Little gadgets show up at my parents’ house every day—things for the yard, tools, T-shirts.
More often than not, he’ll start a conversation with “Look what I got online …”
“Red Rock cleaned already.” I narrow my eyes at him. I’m on to him.
He shrugs. His skin is tanned from being outside so much, and he’s in summer mode in his blue golf shirt, shorts, and flipflops.
“Can’t hurt to make sure it’s perfect before they start rebuilding. How long did they say before it’s done?”
“Another few months at least.” Pushing that thought from my head and trying to forget I can’t be in my own home, I stuff a bite of strawberry and whipped cream into my mouth.
Every time I get down about being displaced, I try instead to picture how I’ll redecorate.
I have an entire Pinterest page saved and catalogued with rustic and modern country designs from the last six weeks, and that helps lift my spirits.
“So what does Mom want you to do for her at the house?”
He grins and shakes his head. “Clean and reorganize the kitchen. Cut the hedge.”
“It’s the Fourth of July weekend. She won’t give you a break?” I smile as I place my fork down and take a sip of orange juice. The moment it hits my lips, a sour feeling twinges in my jaw and I gag. I cover my mouth, my eyes wide as my dad looks up at me.
“Y’okay?”
I nod, my hand still clamped over my mouth.
“I think maybe the OJ is bad.” I crumple my face and push it away.
My dad reaches over to try it. “Tastes fine to me.”
“Must just be me then. My stomach has been off this week. I ate something that didn’t agree with me a few days ago.”
“That happened to me last winter. Took me a whole week to get back to normal. I’m sure it will pass,” he says offhandedly. “Don’t be drinking too much at the Ashbys’ tomorrow night though.”
“You know me.” I grin as I pop the last strawberry into my mouth. At least that still tastes good.
“I know the Not Angels.” He smirks as he shoves his last bite of pancake into his mouth.
“Except two out of three of us are married.” I smile softly. “Plus, one has a stepdaughter and the other is very pregnant. It will be a mild night at best.”
“Well, if you get through work and feel like popping in, I’ll be at your place for a few hours with some Johnny playing and some pizza, cleaning up.”
“Thanks, Dad.” I smile back at him. “You know you can’t hide from her to-do list forever, right?”
My dad chuckles as he leans back in his chair. “Maybe for another few days, at least.”
He winks, but the truth is I love having my dad’s help and I’m grateful every day that the universe gave me him.
GINGER
How gorgeous are we?
A photo comes in of all of us at the wedding outside the chapel.
CECE
Gah!! You got the photos back?
GINGER
Yes! We can look at them tomorrow at the barbeque!
I zoom in on the scene of all of us standing in a row; the white chapel creates a stunning backdrop and the sun is shining.
Asher stands beside me, wearing the closest thing his face can offer to a smile, his inked hand just visible around my waist. It’s been well over a month since the wedding, and I still find myself constantly thinking about him—the way he looked at me, the way it felt when he stuffed that handkerchief into my mouth and took my breath away, how hard I came all over him …
“Thank you so much! Enjoy the sun,” Lucy says to the woman we both just spent thirty minutes helping pick out a new bathing suit. It’s the thing I love most about my shop, the joy of making women feel beautiful in my clothes. I wave to her too. “Bye, Lori! Happy Fourth!”
“Holy, what a morning,” Lucy says from beside me, pulling out her trademark snack, chocolate-covered almonds, and popping a handful into her mouth.
We’ve been swamped the last few weeks, though I’m used to spending twelve hours a day here during the summer season.
I’m sure that’s part of the reason I haven’t had time to search for a decent relationship too.
I’m always working. Even when I’m at home, I’m contemplating social media posts, new inventory, staffing schedules, and how to keep everyone as organized as possible.
Aside from the fact it’s good for business, being busy has also helped draw attention away from the slow-moving renovation of my home.
With the Heritage Committee involved, Shane says the restoration could take us into fall.
Which means spending so much time in the shop has been a blessing.
Tomorrow is the Fourth of July, meaning Laurel Creek and the surrounding areas will be packed full of tourists.
And it looks like the weather is going to be perfect—great for local business, terrible for townsfolk trying to get a seat on a patio or just navigate through town.
CECE
Liv, can you bring a cheesecake from Spicer’s tomorrow?
CECE
I was gonna make one but with this heat my feet are the size of balloons.
I’m just about to type back that I’ll bake cupcakes but another unexpected wave of nausea creeps up my throat so fast I gag, covering my mouth with my hand.
“Are you okay?” Lucy asks.
I swallow, trying to stabilize myself.
“Yeah. I’ve just been feeling off lately. I’m a couple weeks late for my shot.” She knows I have a gynecologist appointment this afternoon. “I think maybe my hormones are just outta whack because of it. I’m gonna ask Dr. Allen today,” I tell her, taking a shaky breath.
I retuck my white tank blouse into my sage linen shorts with paper bag waist. They’re stylish but also comfortable against my tender stomach as I reach under the cabinet of the cash desk and grab two Sour Patch Kids from their package.
I pop them in my mouth, quickly sucking the sour sugar off them as if my life depends on it.
The birth control shot I’ve been on for two years has always made me slightly queasy and it typically makes my periods a little wonky.
“Almond?” Lucy offers her bag to me and that nausea almost brims up again. I suck harder on the sweets until it subsides.
“No, thanks. I’m gonna grab something to eat on my way to the clinic anyway.” I grab my purse and a couple more Sour Patch Kids for the road. “You good if I head out now?”
“Yup. Rachel will be in at noon. I think I can manage to hold down the fort for an hour.”
“Thanks, Luce. Have an amazing Fourth!” We’re closed tomorrow for the holiday, so I look around my space. The shop is looking better than ever, even if my home isn’t. “I’ll be here by seven on Saturday.”
Lucy nods, knowing as well as I do that it will probably be the busiest day of the year.
“I’ll bring the coffee and pastries,” she says with a smile, but the thought of coffee brings the sick feeling back. I add another candy to my mouth, shaking my head as I make my way to the door.
“If the shot isn’t working for you, we can talk about the pill. It might be easier on your stomach.”
An hour later, I’m wearing a white dressing gown and sitting on the bed in my gynecologist’s office. The room is intimate, the walls a calming sage green.
“It’s only been bad the last two weeks. I googled it and read that it could be from my hormones starting to balance again,” I tell Dr. Allen. “I know I’m late for the next round, but I think I wanna give my body a break for a few months. Though I will definitely consider the pill.”
“It can be your system rebalancing. When was your last period?”
I pause for a beat as I pull out my phone to study my period app. “It’s been weird the last few months, but my last full period was May third.”
“When you say full—how many days?”
“Two, maybe three? It’s usually light.”
Dr. Allen’s brows knot as she writes in my chart. “And since?”
“I had a little spotting that started on May twenty-ninth, but that only lasted about a day. Though I did have cramps for a few days either side.”
“Okay. Our nurse practitioner is checking the urine sample you gave us when you came in. We can make sure you don’t have any sort of UTI that would cause cramps, and then you can decide if you want to give your body a break. It’s not a bad idea if you aren’t sexually active.”
I laugh. “Nope, not active … at all.”
The words haven’t even left my lips before a flash of my back hitting the bathroom wall and the feel of Asher’s lips crashing down on mine fills my mind.
“Okay, Liv.” Dr. Allen smiles at me. “Just sit tight as I check on your sample. I’ll be right back.”
She isn’t gone more than thirty seconds before my phone on the small table beside me lights up and I see a text from Asher.
A
I was talking to Shane today. Seems they’re going to have the electricians in next week. Have you been back? How’s it looking?
ME
He mentioned about that the other day. It looks good. Empty but good.
ME
Thanks for the update and thanks for your help.
I wince as I hit send on that last message.
I am grateful that Asher is still trying to help me with the house, but it’s hard to pretend a spark doesn’t shoot through me when I see his name on my screen.
Which means that, no matter how hard I try, I feel like anything I say comes across as awkward and painfully formal.
I facepalm and breathe out a sigh as the doctor comes back into the room.
“Well, interesting turn of events.” Dr. Allen sets down my chart as I look up at her quizzically. “You must be a little active, Olivia. You’re pregnant.”