23. Emmy
TWENTY-THREE
Emmy
“Thanks for meeting me early. I need to talk about something, and I don’t know who else to talk to. If I called my brother with this, he’d laugh in my face but also judge me too much.” I sigh, sitting across from Gigi at the café in town, Brewed Bites.
“Go for it, I’m all ears.” Gigi sips the pumpkin latte I bought her, and I try to figure out where to start.
“I’m sleeping with my boss, well, sort of.”
“Okay, how are you sort of sleeping with her?” Gigi raises an eyebrow.
“So, when we first met, it was supposed to be a one-night stand. Then I applied to be a nanny, and it turned out it was for her son. We talked about it and decided we could be professional, and I took the job. But now, with me moving in and all the time we’re spending together, the lines have gotten blurred.
And I’ve accidentally started falling for her,” I explain.
Gigi’s blue eyes widen as I finish, and she takes a deep breath before speaking. “So, is it just me or does that sound like the plot of one of Margo Pepper’s books?”
“Gigi! This isn’t the time; I need real-life advice,” I groan.
“I’m just saying! This played out very similarly. I’m just trying to think about what the main characters did. I think they focused on putting the kid first and ignoring any chemistry between them,” Gigi says.
“And that worked?” I ask suspiciously.
“No, it’s a romance novel. If that worked, the book would have sucked.” She laughs.
“Then how is that helpful to me?” I ask, grumbling.
“I didn’t say it was. It was just what happened in that book.” Gigi shrugs, sipping her latte.
I frown at her, and she laughs. “Look, I can’t tell you what to do. But if you’re hooking up, of course, the lines are going to be blurred. You need to think about what you want before you see what she wants,” Gigi says.
“You’re right. I’ve been so worried about what she wants, but I haven’t really taken a second to think about what I want or need,” I admit.
“Ugh,” Gigi scoffs, rolling her eyes and almost crushing her latte cup.
“Uh, are you good?” I glance in the direction she’s glaring.
By the door of the café is a tall redhead with dark braids similar to Wendy’s, dressed in a chef’s jacket.
She doesn’t pay Gigi any attention, but the way Gigi is looking at her, I am afraid to ask what her issue is.
The woman orders her coffee, makes a face at the counter before paying, and then leaves with a black iced coffee.
Gigi finally turns back to me, and I raise an eyebrow.
“What?” Gigi asks.
“What?” I mock, “Girl, you just glared at that woman so hard I thought her hair was going to start on fire.”
“Sorry, it’s stupid.” She shakes her head.
“Excuse me, I just gave you my life story. What’s going on?” I ask.
“She’s the new chef at the restaurant next to the bookstore. But she’s a huge Halloween hater, and I’ve been trying to change her mind, but we clearly don’t see eye to eye,” Gigi says. She somehow gave me an explanation that only left me with more questions.
“Why do you care if she hates Halloween?” I ask, curiously.
“It’s just, who hates Halloween? Like, it’s such a fun holiday. Go hate on Easter or St. Patrick’s Day, or fucking Flag Day. Like, who cares about those? But Halloween? Ugh,” Gigi groans.
Before I can ask a follow-up question, Gigi’s phone buzzes, and I realize it’s an alarm to set up for book club.
So, I follow her back to the bookstore and help her put out the chairs.
The bookstore is closed for the day, so we’re allowed to push back the tables in the middle of the store to leave more room for chairs.
Apparently, the group is pretty small, with only six of them showing up regularly.
“Guess who’s here!?” Bells walks in the door with a bottle of wine in one hand and a bottle of vodka in the other.
“There’s no pressure to drink, especially if you’re driving. We also have edibles from Get Baked and normal pastries too,” Gigi says quickly.
“Well, I’m going to sit out this time because I’m driving, but next time maybe we need to carpool, Bells. I didn’t realize you came to this book club.” I smile, walking across the store.
“Oh, my goodness! Emmy! I didn’t know you were joining us. Please give me your number. Next time, Tilly and I will swing by Hattie’s and pick you up,” Bells says, holding out her hand for my phone.
I grab it from my back pocket, surprised by her boldness. I’ve only run into her once or twice in the orchard, and she was usually busy with her clipboard. It was nice seeing another side of her. She hands me back my phone and starts pouring wine into a cup and hands it to Gigi.
“Did you have a chance to read the book?” Gigi asks me.
“Yes, I was finishing this morning, but I managed it,” I say proudly.
“I think it’s her best one yet,” Bells says.
“Save it for book club,” Gigi scolds her.
“Half of us are here anyway.” Bells laughs.
Two other people join us later, a woman whose name I didn’t catch and a non-binary reader who goes by Ash.
The overall vibe of the group is very relaxed and fun, except for Ash and the other woman.
There is a little bit of unspoken animosity between them, but at least not enough to take away from the group.
“Okay, so this was her best book by far, right?” Bells says.
“Oh, for sure.”
Everyone except Gigi agrees. “I think it was good, top three for sure. But I wasn’t a fan of the enemies-to-lovers this time,” Gigi says.
“How come?” I ask. I honestly thought that was one of the best parts.
“I just didn’t think it was that realistic. Like, Eleanor would actually hate Charles; why would they hook up again?” Gigi says.
“Because they don’t actually hate each other,” Bells insists.
“But she’s the reason he didn’t get the loan on the barn! How could he not hate her for that? That’s all he’s been working for.” Gigi says, clearly frustrated.
“Because he realized that wasn’t all that mattered,” I say.
“Exactly, he thought all that mattered was the loan and the barn. But then his dad dies, and he realizes what his life is really missing,” Bells adds.
“I just don’t see it that way.” Gigi shakes her pink hair. “I could never forgive someone for screwing me over in such a big way.”
“Even though she ended up being the secret buyer of the farm and that’s why he couldn’t get the loan?” Ash asks.
“Yep. Even then. That would piss me off that I couldn’t get it on my own,” Gigi says stubbornly.
“What did you think about the spicy scenes?” Bells asks to change the topic.
“Okay, those were by far her best. I will definitely be re-reading those,” Gigi admits, and everyone laughs.
I walk into the house after book club, quietly shutting the door behind me.
I don’t know if Hattie is in bed; Ollie definitely should be, though.
I turn around and see Hattie sitting on the couch watching a movie.
We haven’t seen each other since hooking up two nights ago.
She had work, then plans with her friends, and then I was out signing paperwork for the estate and the book club.
This is the first chance we’ve even had to talk in person.
“Can we talk?” Hattie asks.
“Sure.” I nod; I knew this was coming. I had hoped to have a little more time to think about what I want, but I don’t want to push this off either.
“Mama?” Ollie pops out from the top of the stairs.
“Love Bug?” Hattie smiles at him.
“Can you come sleep in my bed? I had a nightmare,” Ollie asks.
“Sure, but I need a few minutes, okay?” Hattie says.
“No! I need you now!” He stomps his foot, and I look up in shock.
“He’s having a bad day; he’s been a bit grumpy,” Hattie whispers to me before turning back to Ollie, “I know you need me now, but I need a few grown-up minutes. Please wait in your room.”
“No! I’m not going anywhere.” He sits on the top step, crossing his arms and angrily staring at Hattie.
“We can talk later…” I whisper to Hattie. I’m not sure what to do in this situation; I’ve never seen Ollie so angry.
“Okay.” Hattie sighs, then turns to Ollie, “Go to your room, and we’re going to talk about this. You know better than…”
Hattie’s voice goes out of range as she ushers him into his room.
I decide to take care of things down here, tidying up while she talks to him.
It is a little bit to ease my anxiety about our talk, and a little bit because that is my job anyway.
I don’t know what has put Ollie in such a bad mood, but it’s obvious I should stay out of it.
I’ve had days when I just wanted my mom, so I get it.
Maybe he had a rough visit with his dad today?
It usually falls on my days, but this week it fell on Hattie’s.
I know she wasn’t thrilled about it, but I don’t entirely know why either.
It’s obvious she and Christopher have history, but that doesn’t usually overflow to Ollie.
I do the dishes as I think of what I want with Hattie.
I have no idea which direction she is leaning toward, but I have to remind myself that it doesn’t matter.
I think about how Hattie makes me feel. I feel safe and comfortable here with her, whether Ollie is there or not.
Every time she smiles, I feel butterflies in my stomach, and I light up the same way.
I find her incredibly gorgeous, and I’m obviously attracted to her.
I find her passion as a mother amazing. Her love and need for Ollie coming first never wavers, which is why I love spending time with them both.
The Fall Festival is one of my favorite days since moving to Sapphire Falls.
I can’t even deny it anymore; without realizing it, I moved to a brand new town with no plan.
What does this mean for the long term? I don’t want to lead Hattie on or hurt Ollie in any way.
I know Hattie is worried about Christopher leaving again because he’s not serious about being a dad.
I don’t want to do the same thing as a surrogate guardian for Ollie.
But at some point, I’m going back to school to get my master’s degree and teach.
It’s what I’ve always wanted to do and what I hoped I’d already be doing.
I don’t necessarily have to go to a physical school; I can always take online classes.
I think I want to give this a shot. Sure, it might be a little complicated as we find our footing, but what relationship is perfect? I don’t want a picture-perfect relationship. I want the messy moments—getting covered in literal mud with her or getting covered in her as she sits on my face.
As I finish the dishes, I realize it’s after midnight. I can’t hear anything upstairs without going up there. Yawning, I decide we should probably have this conversation tomorrow. She’ll be exhausted, and we both deserve to talk about this with fresh eyes in the morning.
I leave a note on the counter, hoping Hattie will see it.
I was too tired to stay up; let’s talk in the morning.
- E