Chapter 6 #2
I tuck an imaginary stray curl behind my ear, flustered at the thought of people already talking about me.
“I don’t know if I should be worried or flattered. I haven’t been the topic of gossip since middle school.” And to be honest, it wasn’t great for me.
Hannah, my middle school nemesis, started a rumor that me and my mom were witches.
I’m sure it doesn’t come as a shock with a name like Luna Starr, but my mom was obsessed with the moon, planets, and all things astrology.
I think the proper term for her style is eclectic, but back in the day, people just thought she was a freak.
Think Stevie Nicks meets Hocus Pocus and you’ve got her.
She had long, wavy brown hair that went down to her butt and she never left the house without being draped in silver and a crystal or five wrapped around her neck.
If my mom remembered back-to-school night, it only took one appearance for all the birthday invites to be magically rescinded.
Gabby was the only person who stuck up for me, and I never let her go.
I’d like to say that when I look back on it now at my big age, I’m grateful for the character building it gave me, but fuck that. It was awful and I still wish Hannah nothing but the absolute worst. So please forgive me, but being the center of gossip doesn’t exactly send a thrill down my spine.
“Yapping is the unofficial pastime of Celestial. People gossip about anything and everything around here. So normally I’d say don’t think anything of it at all.
But in this case…” She drops her voice and leans in closer despite no one being around us.
“I’d say be flattered since people are only talking about how the hot new girl—that’s you—has Tate, the town’s unflappable hottie, in a tizzy. ”
I’d love to bask in the compliment of a town calling me ‘hot’ for a little longer, but I can’t let this go on.
Damn my moral compass and hatred of misinformation.
“I’m so sorry, but ‘a tizzy’?” I try not to laugh at the absurdity of it all. “This would be fun if true, but the Whisper Network got it wrong this time.”
“So Tate didn’t sit next to you?” She looks like I kicked her puppy, and I waver on telling her the truth.
Is it really misinformation if it can’t sway elections?
How bad would it really be if people think the hot football coach is attracted to me?
“He did, but that was it. He just had the misfortune of finding the open seat next to me and being forced to listen as I rambled.” I cave like the truthful loser I am, but instead of having the sad puppy-dog eyes when I told her the real story, her fairylike features light with glee and her smile triples in size. “What? Why are you making that face?”
“Because,” she says, bouncing up and down behind the counter. “Tate sat next to you! The Whisper Network is still batting one thousand!”
“No,” I try to explain, not understanding where the disconnect is. “He literally just sat next to me. That’s it. I’m not even sure he smiled, and I barely got him to tell me his name.”
“Well, yeah. Grumpy, annoyed, and quiet are Tate’s manufacturer settings,” she says before hopping onto the counter and swinging her legs toward me.
“You’re new here, so you’re missing the bigger picture.
Tate always orders to-go, but he always stands at the end of the bar and waits for his order.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen him sit down. ”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. ‘Oh,’ ” she mocks with a teasing smile.
“Tate only talks to his football team and maybe the players’ parents if they’re lucky.
The fact that he said anything at all to you is huge, but it’s even bigger given that he had to know you’re the new owner of the Monroe farmhouse and he talked to you anyway.
He avoids anything that even comes close to Starlight Ridge Ranch. ”
“Wait.” My brain can’t process a universe where someone like Tate might possibly be interested in me, but I perk up instantaneously at the newest piece of gossip she’s brought to my attention. “Why would he avoid Starlight Ridge Ranch?”
Her head snaps back and her big eyes grow even wider. “You don’t know?”
“I haven’t signed up for the Whisper Network yet and I live outside of town.
You’re pretty much the first person I’ve talked to, and therefore, the first person to loop me in to the Celestial inner workings.
” I watched enough Hallmark movies before coming that I figured the small-town gossip trope had to have some truth behind it, but I wasn’t convinced enough to start digging around as soon as I landed.
“Does Tate have an issue with Silas or something?”
“You know Silas?” A giddy smile chases the shock straight off her face. “Tell me everything!”
“There’s not much to tell,” I say. “He came over yesterday with a little welcome gift and introduced himself.”
“He brought you a gift?” she breathes out, inferring much more from what I told her than intended. “Do you think Tate knows?”
“It was nothing big, some milk and produce from the ranch. He said his sister told him to do it. I think he was just being a good neighbor.” I keep the details light.
I have a feeling the town will know every word of this conversation the moment I leave the store…
maybe even before, and I’m not ready to feed the machine just yet.
“I have no idea if Tate knows. Why would he?”
“I don’t know. Let’s just say those two have a lot of…” She looks to the ceiling and searches for the right word. “History.”
They’re both still strangers to me, but it’s hard to believe either of them could have a problem with anyone, let alone each other.
Tate barely speaks and Silas was nothing but kind.
But I guess Matt did say Tate went to high school here, and they look around the same age.
Maybe they had some high school beef that turned into small-town lore?
If I’m still carrying my hatred of Hannah, who I haven’t seen since eighth grade continuation, it could be possible for them to hold a grudge in the same town.
I wait for Millie to expand on said “history,” but she sits quietly, returning my stare without saying another word.
“You know”—I narrow my eyes at the pixie sitting on the counter—“you’re very tight-lipped for someone who was so excited to spill the tea a few moments ago.”
“What can I say?” She shrugs. “I can’t give you all the good stuff now.”
Call me greedy, but I think she can.
It’s not like I have anyone else I can ask. I basically had to pry Tate’s name out of him, and the last thing I’m going to do is show up at my neighbor’s house asking him to elaborate on the vague gossip I’ve heard.
“Why not?”
“Because.” She hops off the counter. “Then we won’t have anything to talk about the next time you come to the store.”
I couldn’t bite back my smile if I tried—which I don’t.
“We wouldn’t want that.”
“Exactly.” She claps her hands together and skips across the store to grab a basket of her own. “Now let’s get you everything you need. You’re going to love the ‘new friend discount’ I offer.”
I follow her into the scrapbooking aisle and stock up on glitter paper and grab one of every washi tape she has in stock. “Discount is actually one of my favorite words.”
Funny enough, the other two are new and friend.
Who would’ve guessed?
“What a coincidence!” she throws over her shoulder as she rummages through the stickers and calligraphy pens. “That’s one of mine too.”
I’ve only been here for a couple of days, but these small-town perks are already stacking up, and for the first time in months—maybe even years—I’m excited to see what will happen next. I knew Celestial was the place for me, but not even in my wildest dreams did I think I’d get this lucky.
Now, if only I could get [lucky]…perhaps with the cowboy next door or the hot football coach in town.