Chapter 36
CHAPTER 36
W hen he left Daisy’s shop, he knew that a plan was brewing. He also knew that the women were roping in a few more people and by the time he’d finished work and gone for a run that evening, they had everything set in place. Even then, Oakley was worried that it might not work. His biggest concern was that despite the effort and emotions behind the gesture, Clementine could still want nothing to do with him.
If the group chat that was created was anything to go by—annoyingly aptly titled On His Knees —the plan was pretty simple. Ginny and Daisy would be super supportive friends and show up at the Spring Food Fling to keep Clementine distracted. In that time, he could pick up flowers and do whatever else needed to be done and get to the shop where Mack would be waiting for him. Then once he was hidden safely in the kitchen, all the pieces would fall into place. All Oakley knew was what time he needed to be at the shop, everything else was honestly in the hands of other people.
It was only a little stressful.
He went for an unusually long run that morning, because his nerves were on edge and he needed to shake it off somehow. When he got home, he made filter coffee using a recipe that Ginny sourced from her mother. It took him three tries to get the right color and consistency. Not to mention the flavor. He’d drunk it enough times with Clementine to know what it was supposed to taste like. Then he took Gracie out for a walk and when they got back, showered and drove to Allenwood for a meeting.
After his downward spiral, Mia insisted that he attend a meeting. While it was easy to lie to his sponsor given that she was on the other side of the country, he knew that she was only suggesting it out of concern. He’d been going to meetings regularly enough that people knew his name, so it wasn’t about being in a new place either. Oakley still hadn’t shared his full story with the group and he knew that that day was one for big changes.
“I’m Oakley. I’m an addict,” he said after much humming and hawing. “I’ve been sober eight years and a hundred and three days.”
The group greeted him and clapped, which made him feel like a kid. He told them his life story, interjecting it with as much humor as possible. Because there was no way he could talk about his family and history without a few laughs. He ended his ramble with mentions of Clementine and working his ass off to win her back. At the end of the session, every single person wished him good luck as he walked out.
When he got home, he stripped down to his boxers and collapsed into bed. The run, the emotions of the day and talking about himself was enough to exhaust him. Besides, he had a lot of time before he needed to meet Mack at the shop and a nap would do him a whole lot of good. Two hours and another shower later, Oakley made one last batch of filter coffee and poured them into takeaway cups. He got ready and did the same for Gracie, making sure that she was presentable. His first stop was Daisy’s Patch, where he was handed a thick bouquet of carnations in every color imaginable. Then he stopped at the tattoo studio to grab his notebook, because if everything went the way he hoped, then he wanted to show Clementine the tattoos he’d drawn for her. She could decide never to get them, but he wanted her to see them.
He drove around for a while, Gracie snoozing in the passenger seat, and finally pulled up at the new bakery space. He could see Mack inside talking to another guy as workers moved around them. Rolling the windows down just enough for his dog, he left the flowers and coffee in his Jeep as he went inside to greet the men.
“You’re early.”
“I’ve been anxious about this for days, so cut me some slack.”
Mack snorted and pointed at the other man. “Oakley, this is James. He’s the contractor getting this place together. James, this is the reason we’re not working for the rest of the day.”
“Hey!” Oakley protested, but shook James’ hand. “Good to meet you.”
“You too. I’ll leave you to it. We’ll clear out in the next thirty or so.”
Mack shook his hand as well. “Thanks, James. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
The contractor left and Oakley took in all the work that had been done. The walls were painted cream, the windows had the dark green trim and lights had been fitted. There was a shape where the main counter and display case would come, but no work had been done to that area. The two alcoves still looked the same, which told him that it was going to take a while before the big stuff would be completed. But he could see Clementine’s vision coming to life right before his eyes.
“How’s your mural looking?” he asked Mack, who hadn’t moved from his position, arms crossed over his chest.
“You gonna be okay?”
“With your mural?”
“Don’t be a smartass. With the plan.”
He shrugged, hands shoved into his pockets as he twisted side to side. “It’ll be good to see her, to talk. I’m nervous as fuck, but this is important.”
“Are you doing this for her or for you?”
“For both of us. I never want Clementine to think that she’s not enough. She’s more than enough. I don’t think any of us are actually worthy of her, but I love her and will work to get there.”
Mack watched him a moment and then nodded. “Not bad.”
“What the fuck, was that a test?”
“Just making sure you’re on the right track.”
Waving him off, Oakley walked to check on the mural. Just as he imagined, it was stunning. The first version he saw had been incredible, but now that it was mostly finished it looked even better. The base matched the rest of the bakery and abstract versions of baked goods were littered across the space. You wouldn’t know what you were looking at unless you’d heard Mack talk about it. A lot of the food overlapped with others, but the lines were clean throughout. There were splotches of color here and there, to brighten up an otherwise two-toned wall. The words Pretty Baked were threaded through in a much lighter color in the most gorgeous handwritten script he’d ever seen.
“What do you think?”
“You should design tattoos for me.”
“No.”
Oakley chuckled. “It’s fabulous, Mack. You captured the essence of the place and her all in one piece.”
“I haven’t let her see it yet, just waiting until I finish every last bit.”
“She’s going to love it, don’t sweat it.”
Mack started to speak when the beeping of their phones interrupted them. He pulled it out and turned the screen so he would see the texts.
Ginny
She was planning to visit Oakley later this evening.
We’re so on the ball!
You two better have your shit together.
“She’s a fucking treat,” Mack mumbled and thumbed back a reply as Oakley stared at the wall. The fact that Clementine was planning to come see him that evening told him that he had a second chance with her. He knew that she was going to apologize and take responsibility for all of it, but they were both at fault. They fucked up by not saying anything before.
“All right, I’m heading out. Let me know once James and his crew leave. I’ll give you twenty minutes from then to get your shit together.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t fuck it up.”
“Your confidence in me and the situation is much appreciated.”
Mack patted him on the shoulder. “Good luck.”
It took a little longer than they expected, but once James left, Oakley texted Mack. Then he parked his Jeep further down the road, gathered Gracie and everything else and went back into the shop. He hadn’t been given a key, but had been shown a way to lock it from the inside. He was grateful that the door to her office had been put in because that allowed him to keep Gracie in there until he and Clementine had a chance to talk. He turned off the lights and stepped into the kitchen as he heard a vehicle pull up outside.
The first time he saw her, she was outside and frowning at the dark shop while fumbling with the keys. She walked out of sight and he could only hear her stepping inside, followed by loud muttering.
“James? Anybody?”
Hearing her voice made him smile. He’d missed it. Hell, even when they saw each other every single day, he missed her. It had been the worst few days while they were apart. She swore, almost under her breath, and he fought back a chuckle. Footsteps moved around the main shop space and he stood in the kitchen doorway for a glimpse of her. It was worth it.
The second time he saw her, the frown was still in place as she walked up and down. He was so captivated at seeing her again, he almost missed the moment she reached for the lights. As they came on, he stepped out and she went still.
“Melor.” A soft gasp fell from her and he took a step forward, eyes dropping to her chest. “Nice shirt.”
“We match,” she whispered, eyes wide and teary.
Her blue and white combination matched his perfectly, just like they fit together. “You look incredible.”
“I look like shit.”
“Never.” He held the coffee and flowers out and smiled. “For you.”
She reached for a cup and sniffed it. Then her eyebrows lifted as she realized what he’d done. “You made filter coffee.”
“Took me only a million tries, but I think I got it right.”
She took a sip and when her eyes slipped shut on a soft moan, he knew he’d figured it out. “This is incredible.”
“As are you,” he admitted softly and she blinked up at him. Sighing, he set the other coffee and flowers down, so he would have his hands free. “I’m sorry.”
“No.”
“What?”
Clementine shook her head and set her coffee on the floor as well. “ I should be apologizing.”
“No.”
“Stop it.”
“Chef, please.”
“Rude,” she whispered, but he didn’t miss the way she trembled at the term.
“Look, we both messed up and I accept your apology, but you were not wrong for reacting the way you did. Yes, you only heard a portion of my conversation, but know that the only thing I’ve been sure of in my life over the last ten years is you. I’d been talking to Lucas, my client, about you for weeks. You met him, remember?” When she nodded, he took a small step forward and continued. “What he said, that it’s just sex, is not even close to the truth. It’s never been just anything with you. It’s been everything .”
“It has been everything,” she agreed, mouth turned down slightly.
“I hate that hearing two words made you feel like what we had was nothing. It doesn’t even matter what you missed hearing me saying because I’m going to repeat that to you every day for as long as you’ll have me. I loved and hated every minute of our deal. I loved that I could be with you, kissing and touching and fucking you. But I hated that I couldn’t love you the way I wanted to. The way you deserve to be loved. And baby, I am fucking obsessively in love with you.”
A giggle burst out of her and he smiled.
“God, I missed that sound. I missed you .”
“I missed you too, Oak,” she admitted softly, eyes twinkling as she stared up at him.
His fingers itched to touch her, to brush against her soft cheeks and into her thick hair, to trace down her neck and around her waist to pull her lush body against his. But he needed to get all these words out first.
“You, Clementine Jane Kinney, are the center of my universe. You’re the only person I have ever loved. Every day, every minute, every fucking second spent with you was special to me. Every day apart was pretty much torture. You infused my life with so much joy and I never want that feeling to go away.”
Her breath hitched, but he didn’t let her get any words out, because he kept speaking.
“I want it all with you, Clem. The good, the bad, the ugly, the mess and everything in between. I want you for the long haul. I want us to make cakes together, figure out donut flavors and find new ways to make each other scream.” When her lips parted, he took his shot and cupped her face, thumb brushing over her bottom lip as she leaned into his touch. “I love you, Clementine. I have never loved anyone like this before. Every scowl and growl, every roll of your eyes and hidden smirk; I have savored them all. I love your grumpiness and that you only smile when you want to. I love how you take care of the people in your life without expecting anything in return. I love that you would lay down your life for those you love, because that’s just who you are.
“I was running away from my past, looking for something meaningful and somewhere to belong, and I found you. The first time I saw you, you were frosting cupcakes in a yellow coat with icing in your hair, arms and face. In that moment, I knew…fuck, I knew, that this was where I was meant to be. In your town, in your proximity and hopefully, in your life.”
Tears hit his hand and he smiled, realizing that he was crying as well. Clementine sniffled and rolled her eyes, which made this moment even better.
“Not even my dark parts and complicated bits scared you. You stayed close and held on, you fed me, cared for me and in your own way, loved me. I know neither of us planned for this, but having you in my life might just be the best plot twist.”
“I don’t know how I feel about being called a plot twist ,” she whispered and turned her head to kiss his palm.
He saw the moment she noticed the tattoos, because she went still. She twisted his forearm to face her and he smiled as Clementine traced the ink, fingers quivering.
“What…what are these?”
“My Clementine tattoos.”