Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
WILLOW
Rolling my weight back into my hips, I sit a bit deeper in my saddle and squeeze my legs around the barrel of my horse’s body, easing him into a canter as we pass the tree line along the fence.
He drops his head, his neck elongated as he tucks his nose slightly, his gait a rocking motion as we move as one.
I relax in my seat, my arms moving easily, my grip light on the reins as I let him move freely.
I’ve had Ace since I was twelve, and the bond I have with him is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced with a horse before. The horse I grew up riding had to be put down after a freak accident where she broke her front leg on a patch of ice. It was so unexpected and left me heartbroken at the time.
Since more than 50% of a horse’s weight is carried by their front end, a broken leg—and at the severity that hers was—is a fatal injury. Saving her would have left her with constant pain, the inability to move freely, and no quality of life.
It wasn’t a decision I was able to make since I was such a young child.
My big heart and ignorance due to inexperience would have made it nearly impossible for me to make a call like that.
I don’t think any parent would put that on their child.
I pleaded with my father to try and save her, but after the veterinarian sat me down and explained everything in a way I could understand, I went and said my goodbyes, tears streaming down my face.
Noah walked me away from the barn and down to the house, but I didn’t want to be away from everyone.
I saw Jace standing inside Finn’s bedroom window, watching the entire scene unfold.
I took off down toward the river, unable to hold back any tears.
It was Jace who came after me. It was Jace who held me until my sobs subsided.
And it was Jace who kissed me last night.
It was always Jace.
I haven’t stopped thinking about the way his lips felt on mine since he dropped me off last night. He kissed me first, then I kissed him. He didn’t push for anything more than that and the moment was honestly as perfect as I could have imagined it would be.
I climbed off his lap after kissing him, and we just laid side by side on the blanket, counting the stars for a little while longer. Then he drove me back to my house. A part of me expected a goodnight kiss when he dropped me off, but he didn’t. Of course he wouldn't.
What the hell would he have said if Noah had seen?
Slowing Ace down to a trot and then to a walk, we finish up the rest of our trail ride around the property.
It was unrealistic to expect Jace to kiss me again.
Even though we’re adults now, I don’t think it would go over any easier with Noah.
Jace is one of his best friends. He trusts him with his life, and with mine.
Although, I doubt he trusts him with my heart.
And if I’m being honest, I’m not so sure I should either.
It was just a kiss, get out of your damn head, Willow.
But, if he wanted my brother’s approval, he would get it.
Halting Ace outside of the barn, I swing my right leg over his back and slide down the side of his body until my feet hit the ground. He lets his head drop, huffing a breath out through his nostrils as I scratch the side of his neck.
“You’re out riding early this morning.”
Stepping out past Ace’s head, I find Noah walking out of the barn.
It’s just the two of us on the farm right now.
Finn left yesterday evening to go meet with some new buyers who are interested in our syrup and he won’t be back until early next week.
“Yeah, I figured I’d go out on a trail ride to clear my head a bit. ”
Noah cocks his head, worry furrowing his brow. “Everything okay?”
Shit.
“Yeah,” I say, nodding my head as I suck in a deep breath. “Just a lot going on, you know?”
“I get it,” he says softly, corkscrewing his lips as he dips his chin. “If you want to talk about anything, you know I’m always here to listen.”
“I know,” I force a smile, knowing damn well I can’t talk to him about the thoughts currently swirling around inside my mind. I don’t know how he would react to me telling him I kissed his best friend last night. “What do you have going on later today?”
Noah lifts his shoulder in a shrug. “Just normal stuff around here. I need to go out to the fields to check the trees. What about you?”
“I’m supposed to go meet with Sofia later today to talk about maybe collaborating on something for the shop. Did you want to come with me?”
“Absolutely. Do I get to see the store then too?”
Pursing my lips, I roll my eyes. “I told you, not until it’s fully finished.”
“Come on,” he whines, drawing out the last word with exaggeration. “Just let me get a little peek at what you and Jace have done with the place.”
“Not yet,” I say with a soft laugh, ignoring the way my stomach flips when he mentions Jace’s name. “It will be done soon and I promise, you will be the first to know when it’s all ready.”
That pleases my brother and his lips spread across his teeth in a bright smile. “Okay. I can’t wait to see it.”
“I hope it ends up working out,” I admit as I head into the barn and Ace follows without me having to lead him.
Noah walks to the barn with us, but he stops by the door.
I pause and turn back around to face him.
“It was Grammy’s dream to have a store and you guys gave up on it.
I can’t fail at this. I have to make it something worth keeping open. ”
A frown pulls down Noah’s lips. “It’s not that we gave up on it. Neither of us had the time anymore. It needed someone to breathe life back into it and I know you’re going to do it, Will. Don’t even worry about what will happen when you leave for vet school. We’ll figure that out then, okay?”
My stomach drops as the words roll off his tongue. Right, vet school. Where I’m supposed to be going next fall. The place I should be sending applications. The future I don’t think I want anymore.
Swallowing back every true thought and feeling, I give my brother a nod. “Okay.”
“I gotta head out. What time should I meet you to go to town later to meet with Sofia?”
“Five is fine,” I answer as Ace presses his nose against my back. “We agreed on five thirty after she closes down the store for the evening.”
“I’ll be there,” my brother says, nodding at me before he disappears from the barn.
I turn back around to Ace and start to strip the tack from his body.
Someday I’m going to have to be honest with my brother’s about my future.
I’m going to have to tell them about my failures and how that has changed the entire trajectory of what I want to do now.
But today is not that day.
“Shit, Will,” my brother’s voice says through the phone speaker. “I’m still out in the field. There seems to be some infected trees and I’m trying to get to the bottom of it before Finn gets back.”
Shifting my weight on my feet, I pull open the car door and let myself in. “It’s okay, Noah.”
“I’m so sorry. Time got away from me and I thought I would have had this wrapped up earlier.”
“I promise it’s okay,” I assure him as I start the engine and buckle my seatbelt. “I gotta go, but I’ll let you know how it goes later.”
He mumbles something under his breath that I don’t catch. Then he adds, “Okay. I’m sure it will go great.”
“Thanks,” I say before telling him goodbye and ending the call. With a sigh, I drop my phone down onto the center console and pull my car out of the driveway, heading down the street and into town. I didn’t need my brother to come with me, but it would have been nice to have a little backup.
I don’t know Sofia well, but she has recently taken over managing the coffee shop the past year. Noah graduated from high school with her, so I thought having him here would have made it a little less nerve wracking.
I pull up in front, lucking out with a spot right in front of the door. Reaching over into the passenger’s seat, I grab my purse and sling it over my shoulder, mustering as much courage as I possibly can before climbing out of the car.
As I push open the front door, the bell above chimes and a wave of the rich coffee aroma wraps itself around me. Shrugging off my coat, I shake off the remaining chill from outside and glance over at the counter.
The building is empty and I noticed the CLOSED sign outside before I came in. Sofia rounds the counter, wiping it down with a rag as her curled pony tail swishes from side to side. She looks up, a smile stretching across her lips when she sees me.
“Willow, hi!” She rubs the counter once more. “I’m almost done with this, but if you want to grab a seat at one of the tables, I’ll meet you there in two seconds. I just need to lock the front door so no one tries to sneak in.”
A soft laugh bubbles in my throat and my body relaxes a bit with how casual she is.
I’ve never had any business meetings before and this is just the first of quite a few with some of the businesses in town.
The last thing I want to do is be on edge because of them, so I’m quite happy with the way Sofia greeted me.
I grab a seat at the closest table and fold my hands in my lap as I glance to the entrance. Sofia quickly walks over and locks the door before stopping at the counter on her way over. She sets down two mugs with steam rolling from the top.
“We’re trying a new coffee bean and I thought it might pair nicely with your liquid gold.”
I can’t stop the smile that stretches across my lips as she sits down in front of me. Pulling my purse onto my lap, I dig inside and pull out three different bottles of the syrup she’s talking about. “I brought a few different ones for us to try.”
“Brilliant.” She stands abruptly. “We're going to need more mugs for this.” She retreats to the coffee bar and returns with a few different espresso mugs. Sofia lines them up, two in front of her and two in front of me.
“So,” she starts as she pours some of the coffee into each. “You mentioned doing a collaboration for the Harvest Festival. Tell me more.”
“We currently have three different syrups and I think we could do a fun collaboration for a drink. It could be featured just during the festival, pushing business to both of our shops. They get the beans from you and the syrup from me to make the same combination offered during the festivities.”
Sofia tilts her head to the side. “That’s a great idea. If it does well, we can keep selling it past the Harvest Festival too, if that’s something you’d be interested in.”
“Oh, absolutely. I’m not sure if you do flavored beans or how that would even work, but maybe if this were successful, we could work together to offer a maple flavored bean.”
She slowly nods. “That’s not a bad idea either. I think it would be beneficial first to see how the drink does.”
“I agree,” I say, dipping my chin. “Should we try some samples and then we can talk more in depth?”
A smile stretches across her lips. “Let’s get into it.”
We spend the next hour mixing spoonfuls of syrup into our drinks before we move behind the counter. Sofia comes up with a recipe for a latte with our original syrup and as we both lift it to our lips and take a sip, our expressions match one another as my eyes widen.
“Oh wow,” Sofia says on an exhale. “It’s like…” she pauses, searching for the words as she takes another sip. “It’s like a warm fall evening mixed with pancakes on a crisp morning.”
“It has just the right amount of sweetness.”
Sofia lifts it to her lips once more, her eyes closing for a moment as she savors the flavor. “You have a deal, Willow. I want to play around with the drink a little bit more, but I think this is going to be a bestseller during the festival.” She pauses, lifting her mug. “To Harvest Fest.”
I clink mine against hers, maple still lingering on my tongue. “And good coffee pairing well with maple syrup.”
Sofia and I sit back down at the table and discuss the details of our partnership before we part ways.
I slip back through the entrance, feeling a lightness in my chest. Things are finally coming together, just as I wished they would.
I don’t know what exactly the future holds for the store, but I’m feeling so hopeful.
For the first time since coming home, failure doesn’t feel imminent.