Chapter 6
WEDNESDAY
TAYLOR’S PARENTS SET up a lunch appointment at the country club with him, so he had a few hours before he had to head over.
The meeting yesterday with Dan amounted to the same history and insights Mrs. James gave him.
They both wanted to preserve the roller rink.
They both also had memories tied up in the building, especially romantic ones.
So did Taylor. What a history they’d have if only the walls could talk.
Since the Gathering Place, or the GP, as the locals called it, was on the way, he’d check on Chelsey.
She filled up his thoughts and senses every hour now and he’d only been home a day.
The ridiculous OSHA list was a little shorter now and would hopefully be finished in the next few hours, proving himself trustworthy and dependable.
That wasn’t all it would take to clear the hurt in Chelsey’s eyes. The hurt he caused leaving her without any explanation or goodbye.
The traffic on the way to the GP was busy, thanks to all the activities happening downtown.
Today the Family Fest was in full swing.
Booths of home-baked food and handcrafted wares were set up around the old roller rink and manned by young entrepreneurs.
The city held this special day for the entrepreneurial kids of the valley to try and sell their homemade products without a rental fee for the space they occupied.
Taylor slowed to a crawl and craned his neck to see as much as possible.
He stopped in the middle of the street when he caught sight of Chelsey under a popup tent.
A banner read: Snag a Handsome Guy and Pic-a-nic basket!
A parking stall opened a few spaces down and Taylor slid into it.
His heart thumped in anticipation of talking to Chelsey.
He slowly perused the rows of soaps, bread, friendship bracelets, dream catchers and more, but nothing tempted him as much as being with Chelsey.
Her table held an oversized iconic picnic basket with a red bandana tied on the handle and picnic-type food peeking out.
He tried to sneak around the booth where she wouldn’t see him, but it didn’t work. She put a hand on her hip. “Hey, Compton! What are you doing here?”
Taylor smiled as he walked closer. She looked good in jeans and a t-shirt with a bear and a picnic basket.
It was good to see a genuine smile on her lips.
Was it too much to wish it was for him? “I wanted to relieve part of my childhood, so here I am.” Taylor pushed a hand through his hair.
Thank goodness the rain from last night helped cool things off a little bit or he’d be sweating by now. “Funnel cakes were calling my name.”
She leaned on the other side of the table. “Or was it the part of your childhood where you went on the spinning ride and threw up on the mayor’s shoes?”
“He was just my dad at the time and I was only ten. Gimme a break.”
She slid a muffin toward him. “Do I dare offer you one? It’s Annies newest creation.”
He crossed his heart. “I promise I won’t ride a spinning ride.”
She studied him as he took a bite. He took his time chewing, enjoying her eyes on him. Then his eyes widened. “Whoa. This is like summer nostalgia having a party in my mouth. Annie has a talent for baking.”
“Right? Everything she bakes is amazing.” Chelsey popped a piece in her mouth and hummed. “This is the easiest way to entice people to come over and sign up to win this basket. It’s been great advertising for the auction and fundraisers so far and people have been very generous.”
“Juniper Valley was always good at rallying around those in need.”
“Did you know there’s a construction class for high school seniors? They get to build a house from the ground up. It’s amazing.”
Yes, Taylor did know about that class since he’d anonymously spearheaded it.
He hired a foreman and paid for the first year of supplies.
There was a waiting list now a mile long and it made him happier than he imagined it would.
Some of the first-year students were now managing their own successful construction companies.
“Last year our fundraiser bought the house and turned it into a preschool for children with low-income mothers who are attending college.” She quickly brushed her hair out of her eyes, but not before Taylor saw the tear on her lashes.
He loved the idea of what he started somehow coming full circle with Chelsey Hooper, and she didn’t even know it.
“I came to update you on the OSHA list.” He counted on his fingers. “I bought batteries for the smoke alarms. Rich is going to move one of the faucets to the third sink for hot rinse water. A cleaning crew will be there in an hour to clean the kitchen of all invisible dirt.”
Chelsey stared at him. “You’ve saved me so much time. How can I ever thank you?”
“How about one of those funnel cakes I can smell?”
“Deal.” She stuck out her hand and he shook it. He stopped short when he raised her hand to kiss it. To cover his error, he glanced at his phone.
“Do you have some where to be?”
“I’m meeting my parents for lunch.”
He wasn’t sure, but he thought he caught a wistful look cross her features. “They must be happy you’re home.”
“It was a good move on the mayor to hire me.”
Tinny music sounded from the Ferris wheel as it started another round.
There were so many memories surfacing the longer he stood here with Chelsey.
Strawberry Days was the big event that kicked off summer for him and his friends.
The fried food, carnival rides and specifically, the stolen kisses with Chelsey at the top of the Ferris wheel.
No. He wasn’t going to go there. Not to the ride or the memory.
He was only in town for a few weeks, then heading back to work and the multimillion dollar contract his company secured last week.
Yes, realistically he could work remotely if needed, but right now, he was feeling a little stifled in the valley as memories closed in on him.
Even if Chelsey and he didn’t connect, he wanted to leave on better terms with her. And he wanted her forgiveness. He realized he needed her absolution to move forward and close that chapter in his life.
“Can we—”
“Chelsey! Taylor!” Heather said brightly and with all her normal enthusiasm. She carried several bags from local vendors. “Don’t you just love the Family Fest?”
Wendy held a bright orange sphere that oddly resembled an orange wrapped in a black ribbon in her hand. “I just bought a handmade soap that smells like childhood drama.”
Chelsey blinked. “That’s....oddly specific.”
Wendy grinned. “I overheard a teen say that. Now, how’s the booth going?”
“I saved a couple of muffins for the two of you.” She pulled them out of the basket and set them out front. “But you’re not supposed to be here yet.”
Heather and Wendy glanced at each other with a mischievous grins. “To tell you the truth—” Wendy started to say, but Heather interrupted.
“We saw Taylor over here, so we thought we’d give you two some time…together.”
This needs to stop. He needed to put an end to the matchmaking right now. He opened his mouth to tell them he had another appointment, but the look of cautious hope stopped him. He couldn’t crush her again, even if it was something as small as a walk around the park.
“I have about an hour before my next appointment.” Taylor held out an elbow for Chelsey to take. “Where do you want to go first?”
“Let’s start with food.”
When she took his offered arm, it felt like home. Like the memories they’d built would always be there to bind them together. What would life have been like if he’d stayed in the valley, instead of traveling?
They started walking, slow and aimless, weaving through the crowds buying products and food. Taylor stopped and bought them a couple of frozen lemonades. They wandered past the playground teeming with families, around the city offices and found a quiet spot in the shade with an empty bench.
“Have you enjoyed your time here?”
“It’s been good.” And surprisingly hard.
Chelsey studied him for a moment. “Why come back now?”
Way to get right to the point.
“Work, technically,” he said. “The mayor’s project.” Then, after a beat, “But also…I think I needed to see if this place still felt like something. Or if it was just a story I told myself.”
“And?”
He glanced at her. “It still feels like something.”
Her eyebrows lifted.
“But that doesn’t mean I expect anything,” he added quickly. “From you. I know I don’t get to walk back in and pick up where we left off.”
“Good,” she said, though there wasn’t bite in it. “Because we’re not those people anymore.”
“No,” he agreed. “We’re not.”
After a weighted silence, Chelsey relaxed back against the bench. “Do you miss the valley?”
Taylor leaned back too. “Sometimes. The slower pace. Family and friends. The feeling that everyone knows your name, even if they also remember your awkward bowl-cut phase.”
“I might have a picture of that era at home.”
Taylor dropped his head in his hands. “Please burn it.”
“I think it’s also in the yearbook, so there’s that.”
A moment passed, stretched and easy. Then he asked, quieter, “What about you?”
“I’ve never had a bowl cut,” Chelsey said with a straight face.
He bumped her with his shoulder. “I mean, have you thought about traveling?”
Chelsey hesitated. “Sometimes. I mean, I always pictured myself in exotic cities—fast paced, tall buildings, great food where I occasionally get sick.”
Taylor laughed. “A modern classic.”
“But here,” she said, looking around, “there’s something about it. Like the very air knows your story.”
“That’s because this is a small town, and everyone really does know your story.
” He looked at her long enough that she started rubbing her neck, a clear sign she was nervous.
“But…if the air needs a narrator, I know enough juicy details…” Because he did know most of her history, almost as well as his own.