15. Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Fifteen
H is plan was working.
Jackson had split his time between packing up the house and visiting his mother. He was still trying to sway her to give London a try. She was still saying it wasn’t her home, and she was too old to make that big of a change in her life.
During all of this, his phone continued to ring. It was his office wanting to know if he could look over this? Or could he approve that? The work questions came at a rapid pace.
And so, this evening as he got ready for Carrie’s visit, he turned off his phone. He didn’t want them to be disturbed. He might have gotten a little carried away with his plans. All of the cleaning this past week had him walking down memory lane, which was his excuse for this evening’s entertainment.
He was already in the backyard when Carrie traipsed across the snow-covered lawn. It was dark out, and there was a light snowfall. He was sitting next to the lit firepit when she approached him.
“What are you doing out here?” she asked.
“I needed to get out of the house for a while.”
“I can understand that. Emptying a house of all of its memories can take a toll on a person.”
“Yes, it can. It can also remind you of fun memories from the past.”
She took a seat next to him as the flames in the pit danced against the dark backdrop. The pop and crackle of the logs broke up the silence of the evening.
“Did you get another valentine?” he asked.
She nodded. “I did.”
“And are you any closer to finding out who they’re from?”
She shook her head. For a moment quietness settled over them. As she stared into the fire, she asked, “Do you remember how many nights we spent sitting around this pit, roasting marshmallows?”
“And making s’mores.” He had a thought. “I wonder if my mother has the makings for s’mores.”
“Are you serious?”
“Of course, but first, I have something else in mind.”
“And what would that be?”
He got to his feet and held his hand out to her. “Come with me and find out.”
She hesitated and arched a brow. “Jackson, what are you up to?”
“I’m not telling. Just come with me.”
She sat there, staring up at him for a moment before she placed her hand in his. His fingers wrapped around hers, and he gave her a gentle tug upright.
Once she was standing, he didn’t let go of her hand. He merely adjusted his hold on her. She didn’t seem to mind.
He regretfully had to release her hand when they reached the house. He opened the back door and let her pass in front of him.
When he flicked on the lights, she saw snow clothes laid out on the kitchen table. “What is all of this?”
“This is called taking a trip down memory lane.” He turned to her. “Would you like to take the trip with me?”
She smiled at him. “How could I resist?” But then her smile faltered. “But what about all of the work around the house?”
“There will be time for that later.” He turned to pick up the clothes he’d picked out for her. “I hope they fit. I had to guess, and it wasn’t easy.”
Her smile returned. She held up the clothes. “They might be a little big, but better too big than too small.”
“Well, put them on. As I recall, I have a title to defend.” He reached for the black snow pants.
“What title?” She slipped off her coat and her boots.
“Sled-racing champ.”
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t remember that. Are you sure you aren’t making this stuff up?”
“Never. Don’t you remember how we would race down the hill. You always wanted to beat me, but you never did.”
“I did too!” She frowned at him. “Plenty of times.”
“I guess we each have slightly different memories.” But this evening he planned to make new ones with her.
He needed this time with her. Tonight, he was letting go of his worries and stress. Tonight, he was just going to focus on Carrie and making new happy memories before the house was sold.
She couldn’t stop smiling.
Then again, maybe the smile was frozen in place.
Carrie didn’t know how long they’d been sledding on the big hill at the back of Jackson’s property. He’d turned on the house’s spotlights. The light reflected off the snow and lit up the area.
After everything that had been going on with opening her chocolate shop, this was a welcome distraction. And she couldn’t think of anyone she’d rather share this moment with.
They’d raced down the hill enough times for them to tie for the fastest down the hill. She hadn’t had this much fun since... Well, since Jackson still lived in Bayberry. He had a way of making even the simple things in life, like sledding, memorable.
She didn’t want this evening to end. She knew with each passing day that his departure was growing closer. The thought saddened her.
At the bottom of the hill, she stood and picked up her innertube. “I won.”
“I don’t know about that. I think it was more like a tie.”
She shook her head. “Not even close. I won by the length of an innertube. And by my calculation, we’re tied.”
He looked as though he were going to argue with her, but then he said, “I guess you’re right.”
“Then I suggest we go one more time.”
His brows rose. “Aren’t you tired?”
She might be, but she was having too much fun to stop now. “Come on. Surely, you’re not too old to trudge up the hill one more time. Or are you just afraid that you’ll lose your title, and I’ll be the sled-racing champ?”
“Is that a challenge?” he asked.
“Most definitely.” Then, without waiting for him to respond, she turned and started up the hill once more.
She was about halfway up when she started to regret issuing the challenge. The snow was deep and hard to walk in. Her legs protested the unfamiliar strenuous exercise. She definitely needed to start going to the gym. But she wasn’t stopping now.
Finally, she made it to the top. When she turned, she found Jackson had followed her after all. She smiled.
They positioned the tubes at the top of the runs they’d created in the snow. They both sat down.
She looked over at him. “Are you ready to do this?”
“You mean am I ready to beat you? Yes, I am.”
“We’ll see. Three. Two...”
On the count of one, they both pushed off. And then gravity took over, and she was gliding down the hill. Each bump that bounced her around made her smile all the more. She leaned back, hoping to lower wind resistance and pick up some speed.
When she glanced over at Jackson, he was right there with her. This was going to be close. She leaned back farther. It was working. She was pulling ahead.
At the bottom, she jumped to her feet. “I win!”
“Hey, I thought it was a tie.”
“Nope. I was a half a length ahead.” She grinned at him.
“And what did you win?” He picked up his inner tube and then hers.
As they walked toward the house, she said, “Bragging rights.”
“Seems like you should win something more than that.” He paused as though considering what the prize should be. “I know. You get to have the first s’more.”
Her face lit up. “You know, I haven’t had those since… Since we had them together.”
They went inside, cleaned up, and gathered their supplies. Jackson turned off the flood lights. Once outside, he added some more wood to the fire pit.
“We forgot to grab something to use to roast the marshmallows.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve got it covered.” Jackson stepped in front of her and presented her with two three-foot-long twigs.
She gaped at him. “It’s just like when we were kids.”
He smiled and nodded. “We had a lot of fun.”
“Yes, we did.” She reached for the bag of large marshmallows. She placed one on the end of the twig and held it out to him. “Where’s the other one?”
He produced the other twig, and she attached the marshmallow. He sat down in the chair next to hers. They both leaned forward and held the marshmallows over the fire.
The fire popped and crackled as their marshmallows browned. He liked his a warm-brown whereas she liked hers more on the darker side.
When the marshmallows were done, they reached for the tray of graham crackers and chocolate that were situated on a little table between their chairs. Carrie smooshed the marshmallow between the graham cracker and a piece of chocolate, and then she pulled the marshmallow from the twig.
When she took a bite, the chocolate had melted, and it tasted amazing. “Mmm...”
He smiled at her. “You like that, huh?”
“I love that.” She took another bite. “It tastes sweet, like the memories from the past.”
When he reached out to her, her heart pitter-pattered. Was he going to draw her close so he could kiss her again? And if he did, what would she do?
The next thing she knew, he placed his thumb against the side of her mouth.
“You’ve got a little chocolate on your face.” With a warm smile on his handsome face, he wiped it away.
All the while, her heart was beating erratically. When he pulled away, there was a sense of disappointment. She admonished herself. This was for the best. It meant their friendship would go on. But she was starting to wonder if that would be enough for her.
“Time for another one.” He held out the twigs for her to place marshmallows on the ends.
As they roasted the marshmallows, she had an idea. “I should offer these at the shop.”
“I don’t know how you’re going to do that,” he said.
It shouldn’t be that hard to do. At least, she didn’t think so. She already made homemade graham crackers.
She turned her marshmallow over just above the flames. “Why don’t you think it’ll work?”
“Because I don’t think there’s any room in the place for a fire pit. And I think it might go against the fire codes.”
She rolled her eyes before shaking her head. “Oh, you.” But the more she thought about it, the more she liked the idea.
She wanted to make a menu of specialty items that she could offer seasonally. This would be a good one for the winter months. She was also playing around with an idea that included gingerbread.
One of the many things she loved about opening the shop was that she got to be creative. She didn’t intend to offer the exact same chocolates day in and day out. Of course, there would always be the favorites, but she would play around with the other items.
“What are you so excited about?” Jackson’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
“I was thinking about the shop. I just can’t believe I have my own business. It’s everything I could have wished for.”
“I’m happy for you.” The way he said it gave her the impression there was something he wasn’t saying.
“But you love your job too.” When he didn’t immediately respond, she added, “Right?”
He shrugged. “It has its positives and negatives.”
Okay. That was not the response she had been anticipating. Maybe there was more to the shadows under his eyes and the way his clothes seemed a bit too big on him.
“What’s going on with your work?” she asked.
He shrugged and said, “Nothing.”
She immediately didn’t believe him. “I’ve known you far too long to believe you. Are things not going well? Is the business in trouble?”
“Business is great. It’s growing every day.”
“But...”
He sighed. “The problem with hanging out with your childhood friend is that they know you too well.”
“Exactly. So, spill.”
He was quiet for a moment, as though he were searching for the right words. “The company has done some restructuring since I took the position in the London office. They decided to streamline things, and that meant closing some of the satellite offices.”
“And they gave you all of that work?”
He nodded. “And they did it without increasing our staff. People are not happy.”
“I’m guessing that includes you.”
“I’ve been dealing with it. I finally got the higher-ups to hire a few more staff because it was cheaper than paying overtime.”
“But you’re still working overtime, aren’t you?”
“That’s not the problem.” He stared into the fire.
“What is the problem?”
“When I finally told them that I’m taking some time off, all I got was flack. I haven’t taken much vacation time in the last two years. As you know, I haven’t been home much during that time. And I can’t help but wonder if that’s when things started to spiral for my mother.”
Carrie didn’t know enough about the details with his mother to be able to soothe his worries. But now she knew why he hadn’t been home much and why his messages to her always seemed to be rushed. It hadn’t been about their friendship or another woman in his life, but rather about the overwhelming amount of work that he was dealing with.
“What will you do?” She was worried about him. He couldn’t keep pushing himself that hard. It was already making a difference in his appearance. Not that he wasn’t handsome, because he was definitely good-looking, but he looked weary.
“I don’t know. I love the work...”
“But you don’t love the circumstances.” She finished his thought for him.
“Exactly.”
“Quit,” she said.
“It’s not that easy.”
“I know. I just want you to realize that it is a real possibility for you. You’ll land on your feet.”
He turned his head. “I wish I had your positive attitude.”
“Okay. You can borrow it until you get your own.”
At last, he smiled again. “Thanks. Maybe I just need you around more.”
“Maybe we can work on that.” The words were out her mouth before she realized how they might sound. But now that they were out there, she wasn’t going to take them back, because she didn’t want to.
He held out his outstretched hand to her. This was a gesture they’d done many times in the past when they were teenagers having a serious conversation about their parents not understanding them or their latest romantic debacle. But now, as she placed her hand in his, it felt different. Did it feel different to him too?
When his fingers closed around her hand, their fingers interlaced. Her heart pitter-pattered again. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. It was meant to reassure her that everything was going to be all right, but was it?
She felt as though the ground beneath her feet was shifting, and she was struggling to keep her balance. Soon she would fall for him and then what would happen? Would Jackson catch her?
She wasn’t sure how long they sat there in front of the dying fire. Her mind was racing with thoughts—with denials.
And then his thumb stroked the back of her hand. Goosebumps marched up her arm. She told herself the reaction was due to the cold, and it had absolutely nothing to do with Jackson’s touch.
What was happening to her? She’d never had this problem before. What was she going to do about it?
With another squeeze, he released her hand. He stood. “I should put some wood on the fire.”
“And I’ll take these things inside.” She picked up the tray that held the makings for the s’mores and headed for the house.
She was anxious to put some distance between them. Maybe then she could think clearly. Because right now, all she could think about was the way his hand felt right when it was clasped around hers.
She inwardly groaned. This was Jackson’s fault. He’d kissed her the other day, and it had altered everything. And yet, he hadn’t done anything inappropriate this evening. The things she was feeling were all on her. The truth was that she didn’t know how to go back to just being friends with him. So, where did that leave them?