Chapter 1 #2
Noah huffs out a chuckle and rolls his eyes as he takes the creamer from me.
He pours some into his mug and the one for Finn before popping it back into the fridge.
“Come on, let’s go see,” he says, slinging his tattooed arm over my shoulder as he pulls me toward the front of the house.
He releases me just inside the foyer to grab his jacket and shrug it on.
We both pull on our dirty boots, grab our coffees, and head out onto the front porch.
The cold early-November air swirls around us, kicking up fallen leaves as we walk down the steps and across the yard toward the barn.
Just as the soles of our boots hit the gravel, the doors to the barn slide open and Finn’s dog comes darting directly to us.
He stops at Noah first, his tail wagging so hard, his whole body moves with it. Then he comes to me. I crouch down, using one arm to push against his massive, wiggling body to keep him down while I pet him with my free hand. “Calm down, Otto,” I laugh as he laps at the side of my face.
“Look what the cat dragged in.”
My gaze lifts, meeting Finn’s as he walks toward Noah and me. “Hey, Finn.” A hopeful smile crosses my lips as I rise to standing as my oldest brother stops in front of me.
His chocolate eyes search my face before he drags me in for a hug. “What are you doing here?”
“My lease was up and I finished my internship.”
He releases me and lifts an eyebrow in question. “What about vet school? I thought the plan was to start that?”
My heart rate quickens, and my palms grow clammy despite the cool fall air around us. A soft laugh slips from my lips, and I wave my hand dismissively. “I’m taking some time off. You know, the programs are so hard and time consuming. I think I just need some time to decompress.”
His eyebrows tug together. “What about U Penn? You still haven’t heard anything?”
Otto jumps up against my legs, pushing me off balance. I stumble to the left and knock into my brother. Noah chuckles, lightly pushing me away. “Oh, sorry!” I say, staggering past him as I center myself. “Damn dog.”
“I swear he doesn’t know his size,” Finn says, shaking his head as he takes one of the mugs from Noah. “He has an appointment tomorrow to get neutered. I’m hoping that might calm him down a bit.”
Laughter bubbles in my throat as Otto gets the zoomies and starts running circles around the three of us. “One can only hope.”
“So, are you home for a while then?”
Shifting from foot to foot, I chew on the inside of my cheek and nod my head. “Yeah,” I say softly, not bothering to dive into why I’m here and not at U Penn. Now doesn’t feel like the time to explain how I did everything right and had all the perfect grades and still didn’t get accepted.
Finn lifts an eyebrow. “You are planning on going back to school then, right?”
“Right.”
He purses his lips, gives his head half a shake, and looks at Noah. “Do you think you can take Otto tomorrow? I have that meeting with the realtor, remember?”
My brow immediately furrows. “A realtor for what?”
“The store,” Finn says matter-of-factly as he scratches his jaw. “We just closed it last week and are going to sell it.”
The store. That’s why it looked the way it did when I drove through town.
My eyes widen, my stomach churning. “What do you mean you closed it? You guys never mentioned anything about it to me.”
Noah kicks at a stone by his feet, his eyes trained on the ground as he shoves his empty hand in the front pocket of his jeans. The rush of fluid as my heart pounds fills my ears, engulfing the silence as I wait for an answer from one of them.
Finn blows out a deep sigh, his shoulders sagging. His lips purse as he pushes a frustrated hand through his hair. “You weren’t here, Willow. Between handling the sugar-making on the farm and the large amounts of shipments we’ve been fulfilling, neither of us have the time to manage the store.”
I look between both of my brothers, my heart about to pound out of my chest. “Why can’t you hire someone?”
Noah frowns, his eyebrows cinching closer. “That’s not where we make our money, so it doesn’t seem like the smart choice to invest more in a storefront that only serves the town.”
My breath lodges like a lump in my throat. “But it was Gram’s store,” I choke out, my nostrils flaring as emotion wells inside my chest. “It was her dream.”
Our family farm has been passed down from one generation to the next.
What started out as a two man show with our great-grandfather and his brother, has now turned into a booming business with a team of sugar-makers.
Growing maples, tapping the trees, and producing maple syrup and candies that are now shipping to stores all across the country.
Finn corkscrews his lips, chewing on the inside of his cheek as he slowly shakes his head. “I know, kid. It was her dream that built this entire empire. It’s part of the history of Alder’s Maple Farm, but I don’t think it’s part of the future anymore.”
“Give me the store.”
Finn’s head tilts to the side as Otto finally comes to a stop and flops down on the ground by his feet. “What?”
“I can run the store.”
“Willow,” he says, shaking his head. He steps closer to Noah and me.
The muscle in my jaw tightens as my spine stiffens. I shake my head, looking at Noah and then back to Finn. “I know I wasn’t here, but I am now and I refuse to give up on it like the two of you.”
“That’s not fair, Will,” Noah says, his voice quiet as his lips tug downward into a frown. “Neither of us wanted to close it, but we’re spread so goddamn thin here.”
“What if I can do it? What if I can make it profitable again?” I press, standing my ground. “We can rebrand and refresh the whole place. There’s so much we could do with it.”
“I don’t know,” Finn says, doubt filling his gaze as he glances at Noah for backup. Noah looks back at him and runs his tongue over his top teeth. Silence wraps itself around us for a moment. My heart beats into my throat as I watch them share a nonverbal exchange.
Noah looks at me. “How much time do you think you’d need?”
My breath catches. “I don’t know. A few weeks? Maybe a month?”
“The Harvest Festival is in a month.” He glances at Finn again, then back at me. “Do you think you could have it done and ready to open by then?”
“Yes,” I say in a rush, my voice breathless. My heart thumps harder against my ribcage. Holy cow, I’m actually going to do this. “That could be plenty of time.”
Finn nods his head. “Plan on that being when it will re-open.”
“Show us that the store is worth giving it another chance,” Noah adds.
I extend my arm, holding out my hand to Noah. “Deal,” I say, dipping my chin as he grabs my hand and gives it a swift shake. He releases and Finn does the same.
“We have some extra funds that you can use to pay for everything you might need,” Noah explains, dipping his chin as he glances at Finn. The three of us all get a share of the family business, although the two of them know more about the finances than I do.
Finn nods at Noah and looks back at me. “Alright, kid,” he smiles, reaching into his pocket for his keys. He shifts them on the ring and holds one up as he hands it to me. “The store is all yours. Let’s see what you can do.”
My stomach does a somersault as I let his words sink in. Emotion catches in my throat and my heart pounds a little harder as I look down at the keys in my hand. They’re really giving me the chance to do something here.
After the rejection letter from the veterinary medicine program, this is a new goal I didn’t realize I needed. It’s almost like a redo—like I can prove that I’m not a failure after all.
My eyes drift across the yard, over toward the entrance to the orchard that’s lined with rows of maple trees. Contentment washes over me, drowning out that inkling of self-doubt that’s been festering inside since I received that rejection letter months ago.
Vet school was the plan, but maybe there’s a reason it didn’t work out right now. If I would have gone to Philly, I wouldn’t be here with a second chance for Gram’s maple store. I think this is exactly where I’m supposed to be right now.
Back in Sugar Hill Hollow.
Home.