Chapter 2
Chapter Two
Nellie
I was the kind of person that once I decided something, that was pretty much it. I was all in.
From the moment I asked Dr. Pinsent to send my referral to a high-risk obstetrician in Springwood, my resolve for my situation had only grown. I had a lot to figure out, but one thing was certain: I would be moving to Hartwood Creek.
It was a good thing, too, because when I got home from my appointment, Angry Angela was waiting for me in our shared living room. She practically flew at me the moment I opened the door.
“Why the hell is there a pregnancy test box in the bathroom trashcan?” she demanded, scowling at me with her arms crossed.
“Why are you looking in trashcans, Angela? That’s strange,” I shook my head, slipping out of my coat, and hanging it up on the coatrack by the door.
“Don’t dodge the question, Nellie. Are you pregnant?”
I sighed, feeling a headache coming on. “Yes, Angela. I’m knocked up. I’ve got a bun in the oven. My eggo is preggo.”
Angela’s jaw slackened. “Oh my god. You know I can’t stand kids! Why would you do this?!”
“It wasn’t exactly planned,” I frowned. “But I’m not sure why my life choices have any effect on you.”
“Because! Either you bring a screaming, crying baby into this apartment, or I need to find a new roommate! Both options are terrible for me.”
“I’m so sorry to have inconvenienced you with my life-altering news,” I deadpanned. “But if it’s any consolation, you’ll be needing to do option number two. Obviously, this apartment is too small for a baby, and frankly—the environment isn’t exactly nurturing.”
Angela’s scowl intensified, which I didn’t know was even possible. “Great, just great. Do you have any idea how hard it’s going to be to find a new roommate I can tolerate?”
“Angela, you barely tolerate me,” I reminded her, rolling my eyes. “Either way, this is happening, so we’re both going to have to deal with it. Me with growing a whole ass human, and you with finding a new roommate. I think you got the easier end of the deal.”
She let out an aggravated huff and stomped off to her bedroom, slamming the door.
“That went well,” I said to myself. Before I had time to reflect any more on Angela’s reaction, my phone started ringing. I tugged it out of my purse, seeing Sage’s name flashing on screen.
“How did it go?” she demanded.
“It’s confirmed; I’m about seven weeks pregnant.”
“Yay! I’m so happy for you, Nellie!” Sage exclaimed with far more excitement than I’d even managed to have for myself. It was a good thing that I could count on her to be excited enough for the both of us, at least for a while. I had a feeling I’d be living in a perpetual state of worry and fear.
“I had her send my high-risk obstetrician referral to Springwood…” I paused, letting the words sit with her. The high-pitched squeal that followed had me moving my phone away from my ear.
“You’re moving here?! You’re moving here! Nix, Nellie’s moving to Hartwood Creek!”
“I gathered that,” I could hear Nix say with a chuckle.
“When are you moving?” Sage demanded, her excitement reaching unparalleled heights.
“I just told Angela, actually. I still need to tell Sal to kick rocks, and then I can leave whenever, I guess,” I replied.
Angela was technically the only renter on the lease, although I paid half the rent and the utilities.
I could offer to pay the next month, but still leave.
She wouldn’t care what I did, so long as I didn’t leave her hanging.
As for work…well. I should give Sal my two weeks’ notice, because it was the right thing to do, but I was pretty fed up with him taking advantage of me.
I’d told him I was going to quit on numerous occasions, but he never took me seriously.
Probably because I kept showing up at work the next day, but I digress.
I could tell him something came up, a family emergency or something.
He’d be irritated, but he’d have to deal with it.
As far as I was concerned, Sal was no longer my issue.
My issue was the little clump of cells that would, with any stroke of luck, end up being a fully formed human in seven months’ time.
It was kind of sad, when I thought about it, how quickly I could leave it all behind. I guess I hadn’t put down roots here like I’d thought, at least not permanent ones.
In a way, that had been intentional. I was always hoping for something better to come along. A better job, a different place.
But I’d known for a while now that it wasn’t going to happen for me, at least not in Guelph. It was time to seek out something better.
I’d been thinking a lot about Hartwood Creek since my little visit in the fall. I had fallen for the historic small town just as hard as Sage predicted I would. Everything about it was so whimsical and quaint, and the people were friendly and interesting.
It felt like where I was supposed to be. Not to mention, there was the psychic reading I’d had the night of the Witches’ Ball rattling around in my brain. Though the rest of the night was a blur, that memory was perfectly clear, and had been replaying more frequently within the past week.
You’ll find everything you’ve been looking for here. The medium’s words resurfaced yet again, making me feel all the more confident about my decision.
“Okay, great! I’m so excited, Nellie. This is going to be an amazing thing for you, I can feel it in my bones,” Sage said, jarring me from my thoughts.
“Having an inkling of your own, are you?” I chuckled. Sage used to make fun of what she affectionately referred to as my “inklings”. I got a sense for people and situations, and nine times out of ten, I was right about them.
Like my inkling about her former fiancé, Warren.
I’d had a feeling he wasn’t the one for her.
His aura had always seemed so…off, and so incompatible with hers.
Warren’s aura had been dark and negative, whereas Sage’s aura was light and warm.
But at the time, Sage hadn’t paid any attention to my inklings.
She just thought I didn’t like him, and I didn’t.
“I am,” Sage said, her tone serious. “Don’t you have one?”
I paused, considering her question. I hadn’t really let myself feel anything about the situation, other than worry and fear. But something was tugging me in that direction: to Hartwood Creek. I felt like maybe I really could find my happiness there, like the medium had said.
It wasn’t just about Noah; he was scarcely a factor in this decision. It was something about the very town itself. I’d felt a shift in my energy the moment I set foot across the town border, and that sense of home had pulled at me even then.
Since returning to Guelph, I’d felt a restlessness I’d never experienced before. A deep settled unhappiness. Something in me had shifted, realigned, moving toward a new purpose, a discovered dream. A whisper in the wind, calling me north to Hartwood Creek.
“Yeah, I do. I think this is going to be the best thing for me. Even if things don’t work out with, well, the baby situation.”
“Don’t say that; it’ll work out,” Sage assured me. “Ooh, I can’t wait to throw you a baby shower!”
I laughed, feeling lighter than I had in weeks. “Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves.”
“Too late, I’m already on Pinterest!”
Four days, and one carload. That’s all it took for me to tie up loose ends and pack up my entire life in Guelph.
Five days before Christmas I pulled up to the beautiful blue Victorian-style home in one of the older subdivisions in Hartwood Creek.
With the freshly fallen snow, it looked like a Trisha Romance painting.
The detached garage with its pitched roof and intricately designed woodwork looked as pretty as the main house, with Christmas lights and garland wrapped up the staircase leading to the apartment door.
Sage was waiting at the top of the small deck, waving at me with the biggest grin on her face, her blond hair blowing in the wind. Nix and his brother, Parker, were already trudging toward me.
Parker and Nix had the same Hutchinson brown hair and brown eyes, like melted dark chocolate. They were both muscular with broad shoulders, although Parker was a little taller.
“Hey, Nell,” Nix said when I stepped out of the car. “It’s good to see you,” he gave me a brief but solid hug.
“It’s good to see you too,” I smiled. “Thanks for letting me take over your lease, and thanks for letting me move into your apartment, Parker.”
“It’s our pleasure. Saves us having to deal with the headache of finding someone new, and it was only a matter of time until Nix officially moved in with Sage and Daphne,” Parker grinned.
“We’ll move these boxes for you. We’re under strict instructions to not let you lift a thing,” Nix said.
My cheeks heated with embarrassment, and I wondered just how much of my situation Parker knew. I’d asked for Sage’s discretion; I didn’t want to tell anyone else until I was past the danger zone.
“Thanks, but I managed to pack everything in on my own.”
“Well, here you have help. Get used to it,” Nix cocked a brow at me and titled his chin in the direction of the garage apartment. “Go on up and get settled.”
“Yes, Sir,” I saluted him, then reached back into the car for my carry-on and my purse.
I was exhausted from the long drive, but I’d had the foresight to pack everything I’d need quick access to.
A pair of comfortable pajamas and my toiletries, an outfit for tomorrow, my phone charger, and the book I was reading were all tucked neatly in the carry on.
Someone had shoveled and salted the stairs in preparation. Already, I was being shown more care and consideration than the near decade I’d spent in Guelph. My stupid emotions were getting the better of me, and I wiped away tears before reaching the deck.
Sage immediately wrapped her arms around me in a hug, squeezing me tight. “I’m so glad you’re here!” she squealed.