Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
I smiled as I set down my phone on Bram’s kitchen table, satisfied.
I’d just finished speaking with a small independent publishing company in Charlotte.
The job listing for a Social Media Marketer had seemed to appear out of nowhere a couple of days before, and I’d jumped at the chance to apply the second I saw the start date was three months out.
The callback came quickly after I turned in my resume.
The phone interview went well, and the publisher set up a virtual interview in a week.
Hope was blooming in my chest as a plan came together in my mind.
I would fake marry Bram, have this surgery, heal as needed, and let Bram collect his trust fund.
Then I would go back to Charlotte, back to Kallie, and our shared acquaintances and haunts.
I needed to return to familiarity as soon as possible.
Being in Mill Creek was a thing of the past, and it was best left there .
Living with Bram the last few days had been uneventful. We’d had some casual conversation about our lives when our paths crossed, which hadn’t been often. He seemed to stay gone until late at night, and I couldn’t figure out whether or not it was on purpose.
There’d been no more heated moments, not after the night of the journal, and no more attempts to kiss me.
Not even a slight brush in passing. There was no talking about Whit or our past. No more talk of the marriage we’d agreed to.
We left so much unspoken, and I hated it.
The one time I’d tried to mention the marriage, he’d changed the subject.
It didn’t help that every day a text came through from Kallie that read: Have you texted the hot doctor yet?
Even without Kallie’s reminders, I hadn’t forgotten about the card with Hunter’s cell phone number on it and the open invitation I had to contact him. The temptation was strong. Bram was pulling away and distancing himself from me; that much was obvious. So what did I have to lose?
Before I could stop myself, I grabbed the card from my purse and my phone from the table.
Me: Hey, Hunter. It’s Julianna East.
Nerves ate at my stomach as I pressed “send”.
Lakey looked up at me from the dining room carpet, her knowing eyes watching me.
I couldn’t decide whether I was imagining how sad she looked or if she knew how much I regretted what I just did.
Before I could unsend the message, the phone buzzed in my hand.
Hunter: Hey there! Glad you decided to get a hold of me. How are you?
Something warm settled into my chest.
Me: Fine. How are you?
Hunter: I’m good. Want to get dinner tonight? 7 pm? So sorry to be forward, it’s a busy day. Not much time.
My mouth dropped open. He wanted to take me to dinner in five hours?
It was the night of Mill Creek Aid’s community supper, and I had told Bram I wanted to go with him. I wanted to meet the key players of the new center that would be built and see the charity organization in action. Could I reschedule with Bram to see Hunter instead?
Maybe I wouldn’t have to cancel at all. The dinner started at six. I could have Hunter pick me up at the supper, and then we could go out. I sent a text to Bram:
Me: Do you mind calling me when you get a minute?
Not even a minute later, a phone call came through from him, and I answered.
“Hey, what’s up, sweets? Feeling okay?” I found myself smiling at the sound of Bram’s voice.
“Yes, I’m fine. I had a question. Would you be upset if I left the MCA dinner a little early tonight?” I tried to stem the nervous energy that was creeping into my voice.
“You need my permission?” he replied, puzzlement in his tone. “Got a hot date?”
“Actually…I do have a date, maybe. With that physician’s assistant, Hunter.”
I was met with silence.
“Bram?”
“Okay.” Bram’s voice was deeper, but…off .
“I can explain to him about the fake marriage later on, if I need to, right?” I asked hurriedly.
“Since he and I are not together, it’s not pertinent for him to know right now.
This is just a date. ” I was stumbling over my words, disappointed I hadn’t thought this through more thoroughly, already regretting my impulsivity.
“It’s fine.” He cleared his throat. “Will he pick you up at the senior citizens’ building?”
“I’m sure, but it’s not set in stone yet. I wanted to check with you first before I made further plans.”
“Again, you don’t need my permission. Set your date. I’ll pick you up in a bit.”
I picked at my cuticles. “No, that’s okay, don’t backtrack from the other side of town,” I insisted. “I’ll drive the Jeep out, and then Hunter can bring me back to it so I can drive myself back to your house tonight.” I bit my tongue as the word home nearly slipped from my lips.
“No, you’re not driving anywhere,” he replied steadfastly. “I’m coming to get you now, and he can drive you home later.”
“Again, I’m not made of glass.”
“I will treat you like porcelain if I want to.” I heard a smile behind his words, and I was sad at how relieved it made me. “Be ready about four. I’ll be there.”
“Okay.”
I hung up the phone and texted Hunter.
Me: It’s a date! Can you pick me up at the Mill Creek senior citizen building at 7?
Hunter: Hmm. Strange meeting spot, but I’ ll be there :)
Later, Bram pulled into the farmhouse driveway as I was talking to Kallie.
“Do I still need to come up and help after the surgery, or is your husband caring for you?” I’d explained to her a couple of days ago why I was marrying Bram, but she hadn’t quit with the sarcasm.
“Be nice,” I scolded. “Of course, you’re coming. I’ll go back to Grams’ house, and we can stay there in peace.”
“What will Bram think about that?”
I knew from context clues that Bram was assuming I would stay with him after the surgery.
He’d even said I could have a bedroom downstairs.
All afternoon, I’d mulled over how to tell him that Kallie was still coming to look after me.
I didn’t want him to watch me struggle in the aftermath.
There were some things an attractive man was not meant to see, and potentially soiling herself or having to be sponge-bathed were two of them.
“I don’t know, but he’s going to have to accept it,” I snapped in reply to my best friend. “I gotta go. I’ll text you later.”
Bram walked in through the back door, boots hard against the utility room floor. Lakey ran to meet him, and I stood from the couch, heart pounding as he neared. He rounded the corner, wearing a ball cap and his forest-green ranger uniform. It fit every inch of him to perfection.
Damn, he is so hot.
“I’m ready,” I sheepishly said.
“You look so beautiful.” He looked me up and down with a subdued, genuine smile.
“Thank you, it’s an old sundress I had,” I said, smoothing down the crisp blue fabric. I reached down and grabbed my jean jacket from the sofa.
He walked up to me then, stopping an arm’s length away.
“It’s not about the dress. It’s about you.” His hand brushed my slightly curled hair off my shoulder, and goose bumps erupted on my arms.
“Oh. Thanks.”
I couldn’t stop staring into Bram’s eyes. They were so warm and intense with emotion.
“It’ll be a good night, sweets.”
“I think so.”
His smile fell, and although I had no way of knowing for sure, I sensed a negative wave of energy coming from him. He recovered quickly, and his eyes softened. “Okay, let’s go do some behind-the-scenes good.”
We pulled into the worn, paved parking lot of the Senior Citizens’ Community Building, which was already full of vehicles. Old, young, well-dressed, and work-worn people milled about outside the door. Kids of all ages played around the basketball hoop behind the building.
“This is a big production,” I remarked.
Bram smiled wryly.
“It’s a great achievement. Mountain people are proud and don’t take kindly to handouts.
When I started volunteering with MCA, several people told me behind closed doors that so-and-so’s family didn’t have any food and that the kids were going hungry.
That’s why we created a community dinner.
Everyone comes, people of all kinds. Those who need to pick up necessities and get a hot meal are more likely to do so because the scrutiny is low and there is diversity.
There are still holdouts, but one family stocked and fed is better than none, you know? ”
I couldn’t keep the grin off my face. “What a great idea. Do you feed lots of kids?”
“Oh yeah,” he replied, turning into an empty parking spot in the back. “We have about 250 people total every Friday night, and lots of them are kids. ”
“That’s amazing,” I said on a breath, taken aback. “Who cooks?”
“Volunteers. Generally, it’s older ladies who used to work in the school cafeteria,” he said, putting the truck in park.
“They spend all day cooking. We also give out canned and dry goods, toiletries, and bottled water every Friday. Some of these people I’ve found only have the spring or well water at their homes, and sometimes it doesn’t run clear, so drinking water is a hot commodity. ”
I was speechless. I looked at the man beside me and studied him quietly for a moment.
His ball cap framed his angular jaw and the slight stubble on his face.
The long-sleeved black tee hugged his muscular arms and broad shoulders just right.
His hands, worn by hard work and time, gripped the steering wheel.
He looked like a regular guy, although ruggedly handsome.
No one would suspect he had come from money.
No one would think he had a heart that beat to help others.
I wished Kallie could have seen Bram through my eyes and not through his mistakes. Despite all that may have happened between us in the past, this was who I knew Bram was. This was who I’d fallen in love with so many years ago.
“All this has to take a lot of money,” I said.
Bram shrugged, and I noticed he didn’t comment as he opened his truck door.