Chapter Twenty-Eight
Tessa stewed into the night, waffling between calling Millie, Nina, or Jenny to see if they had more information for her, and leaving things at Hello, Marketing alone.
She thought of everything she wished she’d said to Peyton, like “I know how you got this job.” Or “I hear your degree isn’t in marketing.
” Or “You and Tim should both be fired!”
Instead, she pushed the vengeful thoughts aside.
Peyton had proven himself to be unreliable and a fraud before.
Why should she assume his phone call was anything more than an idle threat, spurred by his own insecurities?
Better not to respond, she decided. Don’t give Peyton any fodder for his baseless attack.
Thankfully, a distraction presented itself in the morning by way of the group chat. Tessa finished dressing after her shower and scrolled to catch up on a deluge of missed texts.
Hallie: Meet me at Bryce’s place I have a surprise
She’d bookended the message with small black bat emojis.
Kate: What’s the surprise
Hallie: Come over
Kate: I just finished Pilates and I have a bunch of shots to film while the light is good
Tessa puzzled as she gathered her hair into a bun and put on a pair of shoes. It wasn’t like Hallie to ask for anything, even a visit. And she never insisted. Also, what did the little bat emojis mean?
Hallie sent a row of emojis without mouths.
Tessa: What’s going on?
Hallie: Come. Over.
Tessa: Okay. Send a pin?
Hallie: Excellent. Kate?
Kate: Fine. Tessa? Pick me up? I can be ready by the time you get here
Bryce lived just outside of town in a suburb known for upscale shopping and dining, golf courses, and mansions in gated neighborhoods.
The Haymaker estate sprawled at the end of a tree-lined street and at the center of a cul-de-sac. The driveway wound away from the road a football field’s length before circling a fountain positioned another thirty yards from the home’s grand front doors.
Kate turned wide eyes on Tessa. “Bryce lives here alone? Who is this man’s daddy? The Godfather?”
The enormous stone-and-wood manor had traditional craftsman details but enough stone to remind onlookers of the cost.
“I think my elementary school was roughly this size,” Tessa said. No wonder Hallie, someone who’d worried she might spend her life in a trailer park, had trouble walking away. This kind of wealth came with more than comforts; it came with security. Even if her fiancé was “fine” and “vanilla.”
One corner of Tessa’s mouth lifted in a nervous half smile. “I’m rethinking the advice I gave Hallie. A whole lot of women could be happy here, even if their husband is a bore.”
“She’d never run into him in a place this size,” Kate said. “I can see a pool and a pool house back there. If there’s a library with a secret door or ladder, I’m telling her to work things out with this guy.”
Tessa snorted and parked near the fountain. They got out and approached the front door. “Do we just ring the bell?”
“Hey! You made it!” Hallie called, hurrying around the side of the house and speed walking in their direction. “Yay! Thank you for coming!”
Kate frowned, and Tessa mouthed, “Yay?” Hallie never said yay or anything nearly as enthusiastic.
Hallie hugged them, then walked away. “Come on. I can’t wait to show you.”
“Show us what?” Tessa asked, jogging to keep up.
Kate rushed along behind them. “How are you so fast? Oh, wow. Is that a stable? Did you buy a pony?”
“No,” Hallie said. “Horses aren’t allowed in this subdivision. That’s just the garage.”
They moved through the waning sunlight into shadows cast by the enormous home and the two-story garage Kate had mistaken for a stable.
Several feet away, a large rusted yellow box truck glowed like an eyesore under landscape lighting. The tires were bald. The rims rusted and mismatched. The bumper didn’t appear to be the original, and it hung askew. Faded letters across the dirty white hood spelled Wok this Way.
Tessa barely had time to process the words before Hallie opened her arms and spun to face her. “Ta-da!”
Kate bumped into Tessa as the trio rocked to a halt. “What are we looking at?” Kate asked, eyes skimming the palatial home. “Guest entrance?” she guessed. “A separate suite?”
Hallie frowned. “I’m talking about this.” She motioned to the truck.
Slowly, Kate turned to take in the vehicle. “What in the name of Frankenstein’s monster is that?”
Hallie swung the door wide and climbed inside. She let down a wide rectangular panel on the truck’s side to reveal a counter and service window. Then she raised a posterboard with the words Vampire Dinosaur Café Truck. “I’m working on the name.”
Kate stole a look at Tessa.
Hallie’s smile faded slightly as she waited for their response.
Tessa inhaled sharply, clapped once and rocked onto her toes. She hoped the feigned excitement would generate some authentic enthusiasm, or at least fool Hallie. “Is this what you’ve been up to? Buying a food truck?”
Hallie nodded. “Is it stupid?”
“No,” Kate said.
“No,” Tessa agreed. “It’s amazing! It’s perfect.”
“You love food trucks,” Kate said. “Now you own one!”
Hallie nodded some more. “It’s not a café.
I couldn’t get a business loan. I tried.
Do you know how hard it is to secure money from a bank these days?
” She dropped her hands to the countertop before her.
“I called Lucinda, because she’s always saying she wants to sell her truck.
Turns out, I couldn’t afford it by a long shot, but she knew a guy who had this, and it just needs a little work, which I can afford.
So I took it to a mechanic and had it thoroughly checked out.
The guy works exclusively on food trucks.
He knows his stuff. I made an offer to the seller, after I knew how much it would cost to get it ready, and he accepted this morning! ”
Kate and Tessa waited, apparently equally unsure what to say next.
“I know it’s not a logical thing to do,” Hallie said. “Spending all of my savings on this. Especially since I don’t have a job to replenish that account, and I still have a mortgage and utilities to pay until my house sells.”
Kate glanced at Tessa, then squeezed her hand.
Tessa felt the earth tilt. “You used all of your money?”
Hallie cringed. “It was a good price for a food truck, and my account isn’t actually empty at this moment. But it will be after today. That’s just more reason to make sure this works out, right?”
Tessa forced a tight smile.
“Look.” Hallie climbed down. “I realized at the bridal boutique that the minute I say, ‘I do,’ my life won’t be my own anymore.
I’ll have to run everything I do past Bryce and probably his mother.
Nothing will be just mine. Not like now.
And this family wants me at home raising kids, not out in the world running a business.
But if I’m already doing that, it will be harder for them to make me quit.
” She eased back a bit, refreshing her smile.
“Besides, pushing limits is my sweet spot. Being broke is my heritage. Making hasty decisions is in my DNA. Having nothing left to lose is really very freeing.”
Kate stepped forward and hugged her. Tessa joined them.
“What does Bryce think of the truck?” Kate asked, as they broke apart.
“I haven’t told him.”
Tessa frowned. “He doesn’t know you spent all your money on this?”
Hallie wrinkled her nose. “I just bought it. I planned to invite him over and break the news gently at my place, but the truck won’t fit in my driveway, and there’s an ordinance in the neighborhood prohibiting vehicles over six thousand pounds from parking on the street.
Anyway, I plan on asking Bryce for forgiveness instead of permission. ”
Kate moved toward the vehicle. “Okay, well, this will be interesting. Can we get a tour before he comes home?”
Hallie lit up. “Yes!”
She led them onboard and pointed to everything in sight, naming it, explaining it, then describing her vision for the improvement and overall final look.
“Complete purple-on-black color scheme with the truck’s name in white to stand out.
I want to keep the menu short and simple, and I’d like to stock dark romance books as well.
I can ask friends to donate them or buy them cheap at library book sales.
Maybe even name some of the menu items after my favorite books or characters.
I don’t think there’s much room for dinosaurs anymore, but I might incorporate them as Easter eggs for the OGs who know. ”
The energy in the truck changed as Hallie spoke. The vibes of fear and failure melted away as her contagious enthusiasm filled every crack and crevice of doubt. Hallie had risked it all to be the heroine of her story, and it was beautiful.
“Are you crying?” Hallie asked Tessa, horrified.
“I’m moved!” Tessa wiped her eyes. “It’s a huge thing you did, and I’m proud. You deserve this. You went after your dreams. It’s incredible and brave. I love it,” she said. “And I love you guys so much.”
Kate wiped her eyes too. “I love you guys.”
Hallie pulled them into another group hug. “I might need to borrow some money.”
They cracked up and broke apart with joy and delight.
A shadow darkened the truck’s doorstep a moment before a deep voice echoed through the space. “What the hell is this thing?” Bryce asked.
Tessa sucked in a sharp breath, and Kate made a soft squeaking sound.
Hallie gave her fiancé a terrified smile. “It’s a food truck,” she said, shyly.
“Why’s it here?”
Based on the set of his jaw, he already knew the answer to his question.
Hallie wet her lips. “You’re home early. I didn’t expect to see you for hours.”
“I have a tee time and forgot my clubs. Who does this belong to? And why is it in my driveway?”
Hallie bristled. “It’s mine. I bought it this morning, and it’s in our driveway.” She put heavy emphasis on the word our.
His eyes widened briefly, then narrowed. “You’re joking.”
“Nope.”
“This isn’t a food truck. It’s a health-code violation.” He laughed at his joke, then looked to Tessa and Kate for support.
Neither woman smiled.
“You can’t be serious,” he said. “I finally got you to quit working at the café, and you do this?” He poked his head inside the truck and scoffed, then backed up to survey the vehicle’s exterior.
“This is a huge waste of your time and our money. Hallie,” he lowered his voice and stuffed his hands into his pockets.
“I’m not mad. I’m just trying to understand. ”
Hallie moved past her friends to stand before him on the truck steps. “It was my money, not ours. Can you just understand that I need you to support me on this?”
His expression hardened. “Is this supposed to be an act of defiance? Or are you just clinging to your old habits and reckless lifestyle? Because this—” He motioned around them. “This is not something a Haymaker does.”
Hallie’s narrow arms folded across her middle. “I’m not a Haymaker.”
“Not yet,” he said. “But Hallie, we’re getting married next weekend. The ink isn’t dry, but you are a Haymaker. And we’ve talked about this.”
Bryce made it sound as if she was his property or a head of cattle to be branded.
“No,” Hallie snapped. “You’ve talked about this. I said I was considering it, and you said not to. That wasn’t a conversation. That was you shutting me down.”
“And this is you going out and doing exactly what you wanted anyway,” he said. “So why bother asking me, if you aren’t going to listen—”
Hallie’s cheeks turned scarlet as she growled and stepped forward.
Bryce moved back, and she advanced on him, down the steps and onto the driveway.
“I didn’t ask,” she seethed, “because I am not a child. I tried to have a discussion with you about something very important to me. You don’t get to tell me what to do. I’m an adult!”
He scoffed, then laughed. “No adult I know would spend ten bucks on this thing.” His expression fell, then rearranged itself into horror. “How much was this?”
Hallie turned and marched back up the steps. “I’m leaving!”
She moved toward the driver’s seat, casting a brief look over her shoulder. “Follow me,” she said quietly to her friends.
Kate hurried toward the door. “Yep. Let’s go.”
Tessa raced along behind Kate, back to her parked car, while Bryce hollered to be heard over the roar of the truck’s engine.
He jogged along at the vehicle’s side when it began to roll, pounding a palm against the hood.
Tears streamed over Hallie’s cheeks as she blew past Tessa and Kate, the service window still gaping open.
Tessa shifted into drive and passed Bryce by the fountain.
“Do we wave?” Kate asked.
“No,” Tessa said, and she followed the Vampire Café Truck down the tree-lined driveway, now engulfed in a cloud of exhaust.