Chapter 16
HAYES
The next day, Hayes went to Coffee Cakes after early morning practice. Willow spotted him as soon as he walked in.
“Good morning, Hayes,” Willow said.
“Good morning, Willow,” Hayes answered. “How are you this morning?”
“Great,” Willow smiled. “My best friend just asked me to be the maid of honor in her wedding.”
“Oh yeah, I need to talk to Sawyer about that,” Hayes said absently.
“Sawyer, ugh,” Willow muttered.
“What is it with you and Sawyer?” Hayes questioned. “He’s been a great addition to the town.”
“Nothing is with us. There is absolutely no us where Sawyer and I are concerned,” Willow said hastily.
“Oh-kay,” Hayes said.
“So, about this wedding?” Willow looked accusingly at Hayes.
Hayes threw his hands in the air. “That is all Tessa’s mom’s idea.
And Tessa felt really bad that she missed the original wedding, so we are having a small ceremony before the party.
” Hayes looked around and seeing the bakery was mostly empty, “And for all Mary Kate knows, she missed her daughter’s actual wedding, so we are trying to make her happy. ”
“All right, but I’m not sure I like how deep this is getting,” Willow said.
“I understand, and I know that you are just trying to be a good friend, Willow, but this is really between Tessa and me,” Hayes said firmly.
“You’re right. I’m sorry,” Willow looked sheepish. “I just love you guys, and I want to look out for you two.”
“I know, Willow. We love you, too. But you are going to have to trust that Tessa and I know what we are doing.”
Willow gave him a look that said she absolutely did not think he and Tessa knew what they were doing, but she didn’t say anything.
To be honest, Hayes wasn’t sure they knew what they were doing either, but he was going to spend as much time with Tessa as she wanted him to and help her any way he could.
TESSA
Tessa pulled her paddleboard out of the back of the resort truck and carried it down to her dock. She loved that her dock provided a nice respite from the busy life as a resort owner, and most people had forgotten about the dock’s location since it was so secluded.
Tessa was extremely glad for a little privacy today.
So much had changed in her life in the last couple of months.
Really, in the last couple of years, since she had lost her grandmother.
Obviously, she knew her grandmother wouldn’t be around forever, but she had been so robust and going strong well into her eighties, it was really surprising when she got sick.
Tessa sighed. She knew she was lucky to have had her grandmother in her life in adulthood, but she still selfishly wished for some more time with her.
Time for them to build more onto the resort together.
Tessa tried to shake off her melancholy.
Her grandmother would want her to be positive, but Tessa had to admit, at least to herself, that things were starting to get to her.
Regardless of what she and Hayes had agreed on, she still felt guilty getting him roped into this charade. Especially now that her mother was in full-on mother of the bride mode. Which she also felt guilty about because it wasn’t really her mother’s fault; Mary Kate thought everything was real.
Tessa guided her paddleboard through the still water.
It was still early, so there was a cool breeze rippling across the lake, and the birds were still flitting around looking for breakfast. Tessa floated on the board and just looked at the surroundings.
She really loved this place, and, apparently, would do anything for it.
This made her think of Hayes and his charming smile and all-around sweetness.
He had always been a charmer, but a nice charmer.
Tessa couldn’t think of a time she had heard anyone say something negative about him.
He wasn’t perfect, she knew, but he was pretty close.
She thought back to his last relationship.
He had been pretty serious about Carrie, but in the end, she had broken his heart and left town. Went back to Atlanta.
Stupid big cities, Tessa thought, thinking of Landry in New York. Of course, she probably dodged a bullet with that one, as did Hayes with Carrie.
People were just different, and Tessa was not the type who thrived in a city atmosphere. She loved the quiet and the space that living two hours away from Atlanta provided. But some people weren’t made for that life.
If I ever marry for real, she thought, it will have to be someone who thrives in a small town. Someone like Hayes.
Three Years Ago
Tessa sat in the bakery chatting with Willow as Willow was restocking the display case when the bell jingled at the front, and Hayes walked in.
“Hi, Hayes!” Willow called.
Hayes waved and went to the other end of the counter to place an order.
“What is wrong with him?” Tessa whispered. “I have never seen him not look at least a little happy.”
“Carrie left town,” Willow answered quietly.
Tessa gasped. “What? I thought their relationship was going so well. What happened?”
“I guess they started getting serious, and she decided she didn’t want to stay here forever, and Hayes did.”
“Oh, no. That’s so sad,” Tessa said. “I really hate that for him, but I know he is committed to his new job as the head baseball coach. He really wants to build up that program.”
“Yes, he has great goals for his career,” Willow said. “I guess that wasn’t enough for Carrie.”
Although Hayes and Carrie had dated for a while, they didn’t spend much time with their friend group. Tessa and Willow didn’t know Carrie all that well, and she had seemed a little stand-offish when they did try to hang out.
“I thought she might come around to enjoy small-town life, since she had been spending so much time up here,” Tessa said.
Carrie had some sort of remote job, so she was able to travel freely.
They had been seeing more and more of her lately, so they had assumed Hayes and Carrie were ready to take the next step in their relationship.
“Poor Hayes. He is so sweet,” Tessa continued.
The object of their conversation waved at them as he left the shop with his coffee and pastry.
“I’m going to see if I can catch up with him,” Tessa said. “And see if he needs to talk.”
“Okay, good luck,” Willow said.
Tessa left the bakery and hurried down the street toward Hayes’s retreating figure. She caught up with him at the corner. “Hey, Hayes.”
“Hey, Tessa, how are you?” Hayes asked politely.
“I’m good,” Tessa answered. “How are you?”
“I guess you heard about Carrie.”
“I, uh, yes,” Tessa admitted.
“It’s okay,” Hayes said. “It’s not a big secret.”
“I’m sorry Carrie left. Do you want to talk about anything?”
“Not really, but thank you,” Hayes said, stopping for a moment. “I really thought that Carrie and I had clicked. That she might be the one. That I had finally moved on.”
“Moved on? From what?” Tessa asked. She thought back to Hayes’s other girlfriends, but she was pretty sure Carrie had been Hayes’s most serious one.
“Nothing. It’s nothing.” Hayes said. “Thank you for checking on me. I do appreciate it.”
Hayes gave Tessa a small hug. Tessa leaned into his hug and lingered for a moment. “Let me know if you change your mind about talking. I am willing to listen.”
“Thanks, Tessa.”
Tessa snapped out of her reverie. Hayes had been heartbroken for a while after Carrie left, but he had recovered.
However, he hadn’t dated anyone very seriously since then.
And now he’s married, Tessa thought ruefully.
She thought about who Hayes might like to go out with after this was all over.
She thought of several pretty and kind women who lived in town and wanted to stay in town, but no one seemed like a good fit for Hayes to her.
In fact, the person she thought might be the best fit for Hayes was her. She paddled harder, trying to rid herself of that thought. Hayes is one of my best friends, who is doing me a huge favor. I will not complicate this relationship any further! Tess admonished herself.
The sun was rising further in the sky, so Tessa decided her alone time was over. She had had enough of her thoughts. Besides, she and her husband had to get ready to attend a luncheon for the town council to kick off the summer season and the lead-up to the Fourth of July celebrations.