8. Lost In Thought
CHAPTER 8
Lost In Thought
H eath hadn’t had such a fun Saturday since he’d been a teen playing sports in high school. Which his parents had always said was a waste of time. He should have been working. As if he hadn’t had a job as well. And Addy.
It had been a busy time, but also his favorite time of his life.
This was even better because he had Addy and Nina. The three of them had walked the streets of Phail and met dozens of people. Everyone had known his girls, and they’d all sent speculative glances his way.
Addy introduced him as their friend, and it warmed him at the same time as it made him crave more. More than friends with both of them. He wanted to shout to the world that this amazing girl was his daughter. And he wanted back in Addy’s life as far more than a friend.
The more time they spent together, the more he wanted.
Exploring the town showed him signs of new growth. Troy had always wanted more for his town, and it looked like he and Piper were making it happen. Over lunch, he’d heard more about Piper’s vision for helping Phail grow.
Leaning into their weird name was working. Phail Phoods. No Fail Diner. Phail Way Park. Phail Fire Hall with I-Phail Tower painted on the water tower.
The tour had given him a few ideas. He’d always loved working with entrepreneurs who thought outside the box. And Phail was pretty far outside the box.
Even if Addy and Nina weren’t part of the mix, he figured he might have fallen for the town. Gramps and Grams would have loved it, too. It had a similar feel to those places they’d taken him on their walks. Friendly, hard-working people who always had time for each other.
For the first time in a while, Heath was feeling excited about his life. And he still hadn’t found out what secret project his buddies were working on.
“Do you guys know what Troy and the others are working on? I haven’t even asked them yet and I’m hoping I don’t hate the idea of what they’re trying to rope me into.”
Nina and Addy shared a look, telling him they knew exactly what was going on. “Okay, ladies. Spill.”
Addy batted her eyelashes. “I don’t know if we should. It’s not our project to share.”
Nina laughed. “But I know how to find out.” She looked at her mom. “I know we already ate out once today, but maybe today is a good day to visit the Saloon.”
He watched as they silently communicated with smiles and raised eyebrows. In unison, they nodded. Nina grabbed one of his hands, and Addy took the other.
Feeling like the luckiest man in the world, he let them tug him down the sidewalk until they stopped in front of the Saloon. Sean had told him a bit about Branna’s history and how she’d run an Irish pub down in Miami. There’d been some trouble, and now she was running the Saloon here in Phail.
His girls shared another grin and then pulled him inside. Like most of the ones in town, this building had to be at least a century old. When they stepped inside, it was like stepping back into that century.
A huge bar stretched across the back of the room. Glass shelves in front of a huge mirror held all kinds of bottles. Tables and chairs were scattered around the front room and two doors led behind the bar. A staircase ran up the right-hand wall to a balcony overlooking the room. Several doors led to rooms off the balcony. “It’s like a movie set.”
Branna looked up from behind the bar and grinned. “That’s what I like to hear. Nice to see you all again.”
There were a few occupied tables, but lots of room for more people. They took a table near the bar. Branna pointed to a chalkboard menu propped on the bar. “We’re saving the environment one menu at a time. It’s just me today, so the choices are limited to things I like to cook. I’ll give you a minute.”
Heath looked around with interest. “Does this have anything to do with the secret project?”
Nina giggled, but neither answered him. He knew Sean helped at the Saloon occasionally, but he also knew it was Branna’s gig. This couldn’t be the project.
He drummed his fingers on the table and studied Nina. She was the easier target. Attempting to pry a secret from Addy was like trying to put a basketball in a golf hole. “Give me a hint.”
She grinned at her mom. “We did.”
He rolled his eyes. “Give me another one. I know the project isn’t the Saloon. Sean told me this is Branna’s.”
Nina nodded.
“But it has something to do with the Saloon.”
Another nod. He decided to think out loud and watch their reactions to tell him if he was close. “Okay. The saloon looks like a movie set. Maybe they’re creating a movie studio here in Phail that will rival Hollywood.”
Nina’s giggle was priceless.
“They’re working on a time machine. It’ll take us all back in time to when the saloon was at its peak. We’ll all ride horses everywhere and wear holsters for our guns in case the highway robbers try to take our boots.”
A large hand slapped him on the shoulder. “Not even close, Slick. Give it some thought.” Marcus dropped into the chair beside him.
He narrowed his eyes at Nina. “Another hint?”
She rolled her lips together and shook her head, eyes dancing with fun. Addy’s smile was pure joy.
He looked around the room, looking for something his army mates would be interested in.
“I don’t imagine you’re thinking of franchising The Saloon.”
They all shook their heads.
Heath studied his former army leader. “Sean’s a contractor and carpenter, but it won’t be about building. Troy’s a business owner. You’re a cop. Levi’s a farmer.”
He broke off and looked back at the bar itself and then back at his girls. Marcus nodded. “Now you’re getting it.”
“A brewery? To make beer?”
Nina threw her arms up in the air and cheered. Addy clapped, and Marcus nodded.
He studied his friend. “You want to make beer?”
Marcus nodded. Sean showed up at the table with a tray of filled draft glasses. Then he sat in another chair and passed a glass to each of them. When he got to Nina, he ruffled her hair. “Sorry, Buzz Saw, you’re not getting a sample, but Branna sent you a milkshake instead.”
“Yay. Beer smells disgusting.”
Good. He hoped she felt that way for a few more years.
Sean lifted the glass. “This was our trial year. Levi grew a bunch of different hops, and we dried them. We only have a small setup at the moment, but this is from the first batch. It’s a Pilsner.”
Marcus grinned. “It’s called The Pilsner of Oz, which drives Levi nuts, but we like it.”
Heath laughed at the name. Levi had never liked his Oz call sign. Heath took a sip. “It’s good.”
Marcus rolled his eyes. “Don’t sound so surprised. Levi can grow anything.”
Probably true. He had another drink and nodded. Addy smiled as she sipped as well.
He turned to his friends. “So what is it you want from me?”
Sean grinned. “Thought you’d never ask. We now know we can make a decent product. We have a place to sell it here at the Saloon. What we don’t have is a business plan or even a business yet. And we also need to find a bigger building for the actual brewery. Then we need to build it and become brewmasters.”
Heath found himself grinning. Addy and Nina were both smiling, too. If he took this on, he could scale back the parts of his own business he didn’t enjoy. Working with start-up companies was fun. Creating their own start-up company sounded fun, too. It would give him a local job and a way to support the local economy. Starting his own business plan from scratch would be a blast.
Most of all, he’d be investing in the town his girls called home. He lifted his glass and held it up. “I don’t know much about the other stuff, but I’m all over that business plan and financial structuring.”
Nina tilted her head. “What’s financial structuring?”
Sean and Marcus groaned while Addy grinned. Sean stage whispered to Nina. “Now you’ve done it. This guy can talk about finances for hours. And hours.”
He smiled at his daughter and ignored the jab. “Financial structuring is like constructing a business from the money end. Figuring out who is going to invest what, how the bills are going to be paid, and how the money is going to get made.”
Her eyes lit up. “That sounds fun.”
His friends moaned, but Addy laughed and patted Nina’s hair. “It sure does.”
And he couldn’t wait to dive in.
A ddison’s cheeks hurt. She’d been smiling all day. Heath and Nina were bonding. They shared a sense of humor and had been making silly puns and jokes all day.
Nina had enjoyed the teasing about the secret project. Now that Heath was involved, Addison knew her daughter would want to learn all the things about breweries and financial structures. The girl was constantly curious and soaked up new information by the bucketful. Or maybe the keg-full was more appropriate.
Addison had always carried a nugget of hurt inside her. Hurt that Heath hadn’t wanted her. That she hadn’t been good enough.
She’d never known her own parents and had grown up in foster care. While it hadn’t been great, it hadn’t been bad either. She’d learned to be quiet to avoid angry outbursts. When emotions had run high in foster homes, she’d retreated to her room with her books and her journals.
Heath had been the first person who’d wanted her. They’d met at the coffee shop where she’d worked. He’d come back day after day until they’d developed a friendship. It had shocked her to the core when he’d asked her on a date. His private school was dozens of levels above her social or economic status. That hadn’t mattered to Heath.
They’d been together for almost two years before his eighteenth birthday when he’d stopped answering her calls and texts.
Not only had her heart shattered, but her confidence had disappeared right along with it. She’d worked at overcoming it, but finding out that Heath hadn’t dumped her without a word had that nugget of hurt melting away.
After leaving the Saloon, they walked back to the parking lot with Nina in the middle. The day had been much warmer than the previous one and the snow had nearly all melted away.
Once they were in the lot, Nina turned to Heath. “Can we do something together again tomorrow?”
His smile pushed away all the shadows gathering in the night. “I’d love that. What would you like to do?”
“I don’t know, but I’ll think about it. See you tomorrow.” There was that slight hesitation again before she jumped in the car.
Addison smiled at Heath and kept her voice low. “She’s not sure what she’s going to call you yet.”
His eyebrows shot up. “She can call me whatever she likes. Should I talk to her about it?”
Addison shrugged. “I’d leave it for a bit. See what she comes up with. She’s a pretty smart kiddo.”
Heath chuckled. “Pretty smart? If she was old enough, I’d hire her as a researcher. She asks brilliant questions. You’ve done an amazing job as a mom.”
Pleasure flushed through her system. “Thank you. She had good genes to start with, and she’s a really terrific kid.”
Heath lifted his hand to brush some of her hair behind her ear. “She reminds me of you. You’re both amazing.”
Her skin tingled where he touched her and her body leaned in of its own accord. It had been doing that all day.
Heath’s eyes flared with heat, and his gaze tracked to her mouth and back up.
She didn’t stop her smile as she mimicked his movements. She’d loved his kisses as a girl. But they were both adults, and she’d bet the kiss would spin the top of her head right off.
Heath moved his thumb to brush over her lips. “We should probably wait to try that until we don’t have a pre-teen chaperone.”
“You’re probably right.”
But when he leaned down, she rose on her toes to meet him halfway. The kiss was soft, sweet, and far too brief.
Still, it left fireworks in its wake.
Heath huffed out a breath and took a step back. “You’re still fire, Addison. I’ll see you tomorrow. Get inside the car where it’s warmer.”
She pressed the remote start, but Wabi ignored her. Hopefully, she’d find the other set of keys soon. That fob was far more reliable. Despite the malfunction, she was grinning as she climbed in. Nina was playing on her phone and didn’t appear to have noticed the kiss.
Addison tried to ignore the sparks floating through her blood and act normally. She stuck in the key and cranked the engine. Nothing. She and Nina sighed in unison.
Addison patted the dashboard. “You can do it, Wabi . It’s not that cold out there today. Remember how strong you were yesterday in that bitter wind? Today is a piece of cake compared to that.”
Nina rolled her eyes with a smile but didn’t comment. She knew Wabi worked better with praise.
Addison turned the key. Still nothing.
A knock on her window had her jumping with a squeal. Nina was laughing when Addison realized it was Heath.
She opened the door while he smiled at them. “Fancy meeting you ladies here. Can I help?”
“You know anything about cars?”
He shook his head. “Not a single thing, but I’m good at calling for mechanical help when needed.”
Another reminder that Heath wasn’t one of those guys who pretended to be an expert on everything. He’d never had a problem with admitting he didn’t know things.
Nina leaned over to look up at him. “It’s really late to bother anyone. Would you mind driving us home, and we can deal with Wabi in the morning?”
Addison would have waited for an offer, but it thrilled her that Nina was comfortable enough with Heath to ask for his help. Another good sign.
He nodded. “Of course.” After she’d tried starting Wabi a few more times, she gave up. Heath offered his hand to her as she climbed from the car.
Nina bounced around Wabi, and soon, they were back in Heath’s vehicle heading home. The night made it feel intimate, like heading home after a family outing.
She wanted that for herself and for the three of them. Once again, she swallowed the emotion. It was too soon to be thinking of a future for her and Heath. Wasn’t it?
It felt completely natural to be imagining it.
Heath pulled right up to the house and moved around to open her door, frowning slightly when she beat him to it. When she pulled out her keys, he held out his hand. “May I? I know the door sticks sometimes.”
He grinned enough that she knew he wasn’t calling her weak, just wanting to help. He was a natural gentleman, and she wanted him to show that off for Nina, so she handed over the keys.
The door did stick, but he pushed it open and motioned with a flourish for them to enter. Grinning, Nina dropped a curtsy and then moved inside. A few seconds later, she groaned. “Heat’s out again, Mom. You’re not fully recovered yet. You get a blanket, and I’ll go flip the fuse.”
Addison sighed and called back. “It’ll take two seconds. I’ll get it.”
She motioned for the keys from Heath, but he simply gestured at her to lead the way. She did, feeling the heat of embarrassment on her cheeks. “I promise I’m not incompetent, and I promise that we generally have a warm and cozy house. Not everything breaks all the time.”
His chuckle followed her. “You’re probably the most competent person I know. You’ve provided an amazing home for Nina. You’re both pretty incredible. Breakdowns are not your fault.”
They reached the small utility room, and Heath opened it. She pulled out her phone and flipped on the flashlight app. Sure enough, the breakers for the heaters had flipped. She was going to have to dive into her savings account and find an electrician to help her. Maybe she could hire Graham Buchanan from Midnight Lake. He wasn’t currently working as an electrician, but he was qualified.
She flipped the breakers and closed the box. Heath moved into her space. “Need someone to help you warm up?”
She was laughing when their lips crashed together.
This kiss wasn’t soft or sweet. It lit up her blood and her heart. Heath’s big hands pulled her into his warmth, coasting up and down her back while his lips teased hers.
Every part of her reacted to his touch. When she opened her mouth, he dove in. Their tongues danced, and it felt like coming home. Really home.
Nina’s voice shattered the moment. “Everything’s working again.”
Heath’s chuckle rumbled through her. “I love our daughter, but her timing stinks. She’s right, though. Everything’s definitely working again. All systems go.”
Every part of Addison lit up at his words. She was so in love with him again. Still, and if something went wrong, her heart would crack for good.