Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
T heo tossed the beanbag up in the air a few times, pretending to seriously size up his target, a pyramid of red Solo cups. Gretchen stood next to him, chowing down on pink cotton candy, cheering him on.
The annual Fall Harvest Festival was in full swing and, while Theo always enjoyed the event, he was having even more fun this year.
Because he’d spent the entire day with Gretchen.
He’d invited her to join him for all the festivities earlier in the week, offering to be her guide to ensure she didn’t miss anything fun, and he was thrilled when she readily accepted.
He’d anticipated having to convince her, just as he had with the daily driving lessons…and the welcome cookout…and his weekly Thursday happy hour at the brewery with him and Nora…and Grayson’s birthday party at the winery…and the bowling excursion with his family.
Theo had come to learn that her initial rejections of his invitations had nothing to do with disinterest and everything to do with not wanting to be an imposition. Because once they got where they were going, Gretchen was all-in, excited to be included.
She had officially finished her third week as the farm’s event coordinator, and in that short time, she’d won over every single member of his large family.
She’d also proven herself to be a hard worker with a willingness to learn.
She soaked in new information like a sponge, and he’d been granted a few tiny peeks of what he decided was a personality that had the potential to be as vivacious as his own.
Sadly, those glimpses of the witty, fun-loving woman were too brief, often followed by a strange, sudden silence he didn’t understand. It was almost as if Gretchen feared some sort of repercussion for having fun. Like she’d be punished for making a joke or laughing too loud.
She was definitely an enigma, one with many layers. Not that he minded, because he happened to love onions, and he was more than ready to peel back every single one of hers.
This morning, he and his entire family made the trip to Main Street to watch Gracemont’s Fall Harvest Day parade. Edith, Manny, and Gretchen had joined them, plopping their camp chairs down along the curb, everyone laughing and chatting as they waited for the festivities to begin.
While it was no Macy’s Thanksgiving Day event complete with giant balloons and celebrities, the parade was still entertaining, as the local middle and high school bands marched down the street, playing somewhat recognizable music.
In addition to the bands, there were four floats—the same four floats that traversed the parade route every year.
The only difference was which business took their turn to sponsor them, the signage, and who got to ride on them.
It had been Stormy Weather Farm’s turn two years earlier. He, Remi, and Maverick had represented the family, waving merrily to the crowds, while Levi drove the truck pulling them, blasting “Beer for My Horses” and “Hole in the Bottle.”
All the town dignitaries were also part of the line-up, as members of the town council—his dad included—rolled by on the back of pickup trucks, waving and smiling.
Theo had rolled his eyes when Mayor Scottie Grover went past, perched on the back of some expensive convertible his parents had either rented or bought for the damn event, looking like every inch the smarmy politician he was.
He’d even tacked Reelect Grover signs to the sides, using the parade as an opportunity to campaign.
Theo had shouldered Sam, telling him next year, he’d be the one riding by. Sam had joked, saying if he won, he wanted to ride the route on the farm’s tractor.
“You gonna pitch that thing or what?” Jerry Peterson pulled Theo from his thoughts.
Jerry was Gracemont’s Mr. Fix-it, running a repair shop on Main Street.
However, today, he was manning the beanbag toss game.
All the proceeds from the fair games were being donated to the Gracemont Fire Station, which was in bad need of a new tanker, so Jerry, a volunteer firefighter, was sporting red suspenders and his helmet to help promote the cause.
Theo winked at Gretchen, pointing to the stuffed animal prizes. “Start figuring out which one you want.”
Gretchen’s barely there smile emerged, but she quickly covered it with her hand, something she still did quite a lot.
Tossing the beanbag, Theo knocked over the entire structure, Gretchen jumping up and down and cheering.
Following the parade, the entire gang had made their way to the fairgrounds, where they split up to play games, ride the rides, and eat themselves into sugar and grease comas. Theo had dragged Gretchen away from Mila and Nora, intent on stealing her for himself all afternoon.
So far—in addition to the cotton candy—he and Gretchen had split a funnel cake, a corn dog, a huge cup of French fries smothered in salt and vinegar, a gyro, and a deep-fried Oreo.
They’d thought that by splitting everything, they would get to sample more of the food and—hopefully—not suffer stomachaches afterward.
While it seemed like a solid hypothesis at the beginning, Theo was starting to suspect they weren’t going to like the end results of the experiment.
“What toy do you want, Theo?” Jerry asked.
Theo tilted his head toward her. “Ask Gretchen. I promised the prize to her.”
“Are you sure?” she asked. “I can have it?”
Theo laughed. “You’re going to have to take it. I can’t squeeze another stuffed animal on my bed.”
Gretchen covered her mouth, a breathy laugh escaping, then she surveyed the stuffed animal collection. Her eyes widened when they landed on a black-and-white cat. “Can I have that one?”
“’Course you can.” Jerry unclipped the floppy stuffed cat and handed it to her.
She graced Theo with one of her unguarded but too-brief smiles, and he felt the urge to kiss her.
It wasn’t an urge he should have, since he was her boss for God’s sake, not to mention they’d only known each other a few weeks.
Pair that with Gretchen’s skittish nature, and Theo knew kissing her would be the wrong thing to do.
However, knowing and doing were two different things, and he didn’t fool himself into believing he’d be able to hold off for much longer.
Every day he spent with her was both a gift and a torment.
Theo had never felt like this about another woman, and the more he thought about it, the more he realized the first inkling of attraction had hit him during the interview.
And it had nothing to do with her looks—even though she was fucking gorgeous.
No, it was those things he’d attributed as his reasons for hiring her.
Her determination and her vulnerability.
He wasn’t sure how he knew, but Theo was one hundred percent certain she was meant to be his.
Pushing away the instinct to kiss her, he took the bag of cotton candy from her, grinning as she gave the little cat a squeeze.
“What are you going to name it?” He’d meant his question as a joke, so he was blown away when she replied instantly.
“Boots.”
The little black cat had white paws and a white nose, so he supposed it fit. But there was something about her quick response that tweaked his curiosity. Another layer, perhaps?
“You had that name at the ready,” he pointed out.
Gretchen nodded. “I had a stuffed cat that looked like this when I was younger. My dad gave it to me right before he split.”
Theo’s heart broke every time she dropped another glimpse into her past. So far, nothing she’d shared had been good. Even this memory of her dad giving her a gift was tainted by the man’s departure.
“I loved Boots,” Gretchen said, still staring at the cat. “I slept with her every night, told her all my silly secrets that seemed so deep and serious at the time.”
Theo smiled.
“When Shaw and I went into foster care, Boots was one of the few personal things I took with me, besides my clothes.”
Her expression was heavier now, the happiness replaced by sadness.
“Do you still have Boots?”
She shook her head.
“What happened to her?” Theo asked, even though he wasn’t sure he wanted to know.
“I was a thirteen-year-old girl clinging to a stuffed cat. Obviously, the other kids saw that as a way to make fun of me. There were several girls in the residential home, and we all shared a large, dorm-like room with three sets of bunkbeds. One of the girls, Marci, was older and pissed off at the world. For some reason, she decided to make me the target of her bullying. One day, after school, I walked into our room and found Boots in a dozen different pieces. She’d torn the cat apart…
shredded her, really. She didn’t even deny that she’d done it, just told me I was,” Gretchen finger-quoted the next part, “‘too fucking old for toys.’”
“She was wrong,” Theo replied hotly, half tempted to track down this Marci bitch. “You’re never too old.” He reached over and stroked the cat’s head. “I think Boots is the perfect name.”
Gretchen nodded, though her smile was much dimmer now. “I agree.”
“Do you want anything else to eat? There are at least a half dozen stands we haven’t hit.
” He was trying to return them to the fun they’d been having before, even though his stomach hoped she said no.
He spun around as he asked the question, his arms spread wide, gesturing at the booths surrounding them.
He must have moved too quickly and spooked her, because Gretchen flinched as if she was expecting a hit.
His jaw clenched.
Gretchen tried to cover her reaction, shaking her head quickly and groaning. “God, no. That cotton candy was a mistake.”
“Yeah. It was.” As if to prove it, Theo tossed what was left in the garbage. “Do you want to do anything else, or should we call it a day on the fair?”
“I think I’d like to relax some before tonight’s Harvest Dance. It’s already been a full day and if I don’t sit down for a little while, I’ll never make it,” she said.