CHAPTER EIGHT
Rebecca—
I rise to the most delicious scent permeating through the cabin. It smells of cinnamon and bacon and everything fall.
After dressing in a pair of light-wash jeans and a soft pink off the shoulder knit sweater, I pull my hair into a messy bun and trail after that delectable aroma.
JJ stands at the stove scooping what appears to be caramelized apples onto a dish. He turns at my footsteps.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning. This smells like heaven.”
His mouth quirks in that sexy smirk he makes. “I made my special French toast and bacon. Why don’t you go sit on the porch, and I’ll bring you some?”
“Thank you.” I move to sit in one of the two rocking chairs on the front porch. The brisk breeze mixes the smell of our pine trees with the mouthwatering aromas wafting out of the cabin.
JJ carries out a plate and cup of coffee and sets them on the little wooden table in between the two chairs. The French toast is piled high with apples poured on top and what looks like caramel drizzle and whipped cream. Two thick slices of bacon are arranged along the edges.
“This looks delicious. Are you like, a secret chef on the side?”
“Ha ha, no. This is literally the only thing I make well, other than grilling.”
I slice into the French toast and take a bite, moaning around it.
The rich taste of caramel, apples, and cinnamon combined with the cool weather outside makes it feel like the holiday season.
“Oh my God. This is the best French toast I’ve ever had.
What did you do to this? The French toast tastes like it’s been caramelized, too. ”
He locks his lips. “I’m not giving away my secrets.”
“Well, whatever you did, it’s amazing.” I point my fork at the remaining French toast on my plate. “Like seriously, you could sell this.”
We sit enjoying the meal when a large tractor-trailer rumbles across the gravel drive, kicking up a trail of dust.
“What in the world?” I set my coffee aside.
“Must be lost,” JJ says and goes to talk to the driver.
I rise and move closer to the steps; their voices carry across the distance.
“Hey, can I help you?”
“I’ve got your truckload of pumpkins. Where do you want ‘em?” A burly man sitting at the truck’s wheel replies.
“I don’t want them at all. You must have the wrong address. We didn’t order these.”
The man pulls a stapled sheet from the seat next to him. “This is Holly Jolly Farms, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then, it’s the right place.”
Oh, crap. My eyes widen, and JJ flicks a glance at me. It’s clear he’s feeling just as stunned.
“Look, buddy, we don’t need any pumpkins,” JJ responds, shaking his head to emphasize the fact.
“They’re already paid for, so if you want me to haul them back, then you’ll have to pay the unloading fee.”
JJ pinches the bridge of his nose like he’s getting a headache from the whole thing. “Fine. Unload them over there.” He gestures to an open grassy area.
“Son, I don’t do the unloading. You do.”
“What? Come on.”
“Talk to the Teamsters. It’s in our contract. No unloading of trucks. That’s on you. This is a drop and hook delivery. I drop the trailer, and you unload it. I haul it off in twenty-four hours.”
“Are you telling me we’ve got twenty-four hours to unload… How many?”
He picks up the manifest and scans it. “Well, it’s a standard load of medium to large pumpkins. Thirty pallets. Seven hundred pounds each, for a total of twenty-one thousand pounds.”
“Twenty thousand pounds of pumpkins?” JJ barks, and my heart starts to pound.
Oh, my God. What are we going to do with all these pumpkins, and how the heck are we going to get them unloaded?
“Twenty-one thousand,” the driver corrects JJ, climbing from his truck.
JJ rakes a hand through his hair. “You’re not making this any better.”
The man walks to the back, unlocks and swings the big doors open with a clank, then pulls out a ramp.
“I don’t have a forklift.”
“I suggest you get one.” He moves to the hitch and begins unhooking the trailer completely unbothered by JJ’s attitude.
“From where?”
“Tractor rental place, I guess,” he calls over his shoulder.
I move down the steps as the man finishes uncoupling the trailer and climbs into the cab of the truck. “I’ll be back tomorrow, same time.”
“Wonderful.” JJ watches the man’s big Peterbilt cab rumble down the road.
I approach. “Guess those workers would have come in mighty handy about now.” It’s probably the wrong thing to say, and JJ glares at me, then runs a hand over his face. “Sorry. We’ll figure it out. Don’t get frustrated.”
“Don’t get frustrated?” He swings his arms wide. “Twenty-one thousand pounds of pumpkins just showed up out of the blue.”
“Your grandfather must have ordered them in the spring before…” I don’t finish the sentence. I don’t have to.
JJ looks at the sky. “Well, thanks for that, Gramps.”
“It’ll be okay,” I say, trying to calm him.
“How is this going to be okay? What the hell are we going to do with them all?”
“Sell them, I guess.”
“Well, you better put on that thinking cap of yours and figure out a way to get a thousand people up here to buy them all.” He stalks off.
“Where are you going?” I call after him.
“I’m gonna see if my club can help. A few of them have been in the Nashville area this week.”
I hope he pulls through. We’ll be out here until that trucker drives returns if we’re left to do it on our own.
JJ paces back and forth, talking on his phone, then strides over to me. “Thankfully, they were already headed this way with my idea for the Instagram spot. So, we should have some help in the next hour or two. In the meantime, we should see if we can rent a forklift.”
He seems calmer now that help is on the way. “That’s wonderful. I’m sure everything will be fine, then.”
“Fine? Yeah, sure.”
Ten minutes later, we’re pulling out of the drive.
I notice the black lab eating the food JJ put out for him next to the side of the house and shake my head. JJ may not admit he wants the dog, but his actions are clear; that dog already belongs to him. He just has to admit it to himself.
We have to drive to the outskirts of the town to get to a big-box store.
“How can I help you, sir?” a man behind the counter asks as we approach.
“We need to rent a forklift.”
“All right, we’ve got several types. Which kind do you need?”
JJ looks at me as if I can help, but all I do is shrug.
Thankfully, the man takes pity on us. “We’ve got ones for warehouses, a side loader, a rough terrain one—”
“That one.” JJ interrupts. “It’s for outdoors, right? That’s what we need.”
“Yeah, usually used on farms. And you are forklift certified, right?” The man eyes him suspiciously.
“No, do I need to be certified?”
“Yeah.”
“Dammit. I’ve got some friends coming to help. If one of them is certified, can I rent it?”
“Yeah, he’ll just need to come sign the paperwork.”
“Okay.” He slides his phone out again and makes a call, putting it on speaker.
“Hey man. We’re almost to town,” a gruff voice answers.
“Great, Hammer. Are any of you guys forklift certified?”
“I don’t fuckin’ know. I’m not. I’d have to ask the others, but they’re all riding, except for Griz. He and I are driving the flatbed. Let me put you on speaker.”
“Hey, JJ. How’s being a farmer going for you?” another voice rumbles.
JJ rolls his eyes. “Griz, do you know if any of the other boys are forklift certified?”
“I don’t know about them, but I am.”
“Oh, thank God. I need you to drive to me so you can sign for this forklift I’m trying to rent.”
“Why the hell are you forklift certified?” the man named Hammer asks on the other end of the phone.
“I got bored one day and honestly, I can’t believe you guys aren’t. You never know when you might need one.”
“Yeah, like when a truckload of pumpkins gets randomly delivered,” JJ drawls.
“Exactly,” Griz chirps.
“Send me your location, and we’ll be there in a few,” Hammer says.
Not long passes before two leather-clad men come trooping into the store. Customers seem to scurry out of their way as they move toward us, and honestly, I can’t blame them. One looks like a bear towering high with thick, blond hair, and the other is built like a brick house.
“Rebecca, this is Hammer and Griz. Guys, this is Rebecca.”
Their names couldn’t be more fitting.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” Griz shakes my hand.
“Hi, nice to meet you both.”
“Hi, darlin’.” Hammer lifts his hand in a wave.
These men are not what I expected. They have the same dangerous vibe as JJ, but the manners take me aback. I didn’t think bikers could be so polite and chivalrous. I may need to adjust my opinion.
After finally getting the forklift rented and loaded on a trailer—that we also had to rent—we return to the cabin, where I’m introduced to two more leather clad men, Ghost and Boot.
JJ sits in the forklift and maneuvers the first pallet of pumpkins onto the lift and backs up slowly to cross over to the grassy area we chose to unload them.
He’s halfway across the gravel road when he hits a large pothole, and the whole machine tips sideways, the load crashing to the ground.
Some pumpkins burst immediately on impact, while the rest roll and smash in all directions.
Griz and Boot double over in laughter.
“You all right?” Ghost calls as he and Hammer and I run to JJ.
“Yeah.” He climbs out through the side. “Shit. The pumpkins are ruined.”
“There’s one still whole. It’s rollin’ down the hill.” Griz chases after it, but then stops at the crest of the knoll. “Wait, never mind, that bounce really did it in.” He returns to us. “Better leave this to the one of us who’s forklift certified.”
Griz and Ghost continue unloading the rest of the pumpkins, while JJ calls me over to the flatbed truck. There’s a vehicle on the flatbed, covered with a giant blue tarp.
“What’s this?” I ask, moving closer to the men.
“It’s the idea I had for the Instagram spot.”
I eye it.
Hammer climbs up, and he and JJ pull off the tarp, revealing an old red pickup truck—the kind in Christmas decorations.
“Oh, it’s perfect,” I practically squeal, bouncing on my toes, a huge smile wrapping my face.
Boot scratches his beard. “Yeah, used to be my grandpa’s.
It’s just been sitting in my backyard for years.
JJ asked if he could buy it off me. Honestly, between you and me…
” He leans close to me and whispers, “I’d have given it to him for free just to get it off my property. It’s been one hell of an eyesore.”
“Your secret’s safe with me.” I smile.
He returns it with a wink. “I knew I liked you.”
“It just needs a good wash, and then we can put a tree in the truck bed and paint a logo on the door. It’s exactly what we needed.”
JJ turns to me. “As good as the sleigh at Angel Ridge?”
“Even better.”
That gets a huge grin from him.