Jude
If another Autumn Creek resident showed up with a baked good or a casserole I was going to collapse. Not just from emotional overwhelm but also from lack of freezer space. I’d almost filled up Colt and Kasey’s kitchens as well. But at least I had plenty to drop off at Wells’ place today.
“You guys want a cookie for the road?” I asked as we drove away from the farm. This batch had turned up at Sweater Weather with a note saying For the Bramleys without a name on it, but they tasted suspiciously like Brie Callahan’s baking.
That poor girl, as much as I hated her family with every fiber of my being, she’d always been nothing but nice. She was the one truly stuck with them.
Harlow took a cookie, chewing it anxiously, while Colt ignored the offer from the back seat, keeping his eyes trained on the road passing by.
I couldn’t blame them for being quiet when Wells had only just been released from hospital, but I was happy to try to lighten the mood.
I let one hand fall from the wheel and land on Harlow’s thigh, rubbing circles over the denim of her jeans.
“You look worried,” I murmured, just to her.
“I am a bit.” She let out a heavy breath. “Are you sure he even wants to see me?”
“Of course, he does. Wells wants to know you’re all right as well.”
Colt took a break from stewing and spoke up. “He doesn’t blame you. If anyone’s getting an earful, it’s me.”
I sighed, but Colt was probably right.
We pulled up to Wells’ house just off Main Street and found Kasey’s truck already sitting outside.
And, yeah, after pulling Colt and me into as tight of a hug as he could manage without getting up from the couch, Wells did give my brother a lecture about barns and fire safety.
I listened too, it was really as much my fault as it was Colt’s, we both should have known better about the electricity in that old barn.
But seeing him have a go at my brother brought a smile back to my face as I leaned against the built-in shelves framing his living room. His spirit was still there.
He may be moving slowly, with his burns wrapped in gauze and his back injured, but my best friend was alive, and that was the most important thing.
Wells rolled his eyes. “Did I teach you nothing, dude?”
Colt’s jaw was tight but his eyes had softened. “I’ve certainly learned now.”
“And you.” Wells turned to me. “You went in there?”
I couldn’t help but grin at the scowl across his face. I’d thought there might have been a chance that I would never see him again. But here he was, arguing with me. “You can berate me properly when you feel better.”
He sighed and looked at Harlow. “What about you?” Probably without realizing she leaned into me, avoiding his intense gaze.
“Whoa,” I cut him off, wrapping my arm around her. “Leave her out of it.”
He shook his head and chuckled. “I was going to ask how you were feeling, Harlow. But I see Jude’s trying to stake a claim here.”
Colt let out a grumbling laugh and tacked on, “We all already know he’s obsessed with you. Don’t go pissing on her leg next, Jude.”
Wrapped beneath my arm, I felt the tension melt away from Harlow’s body. She was blushing with a smile across her face. I couldn’t even find it in myself to be mad that the guys were chirping me.
“I’m better, but it’s nothing compared to what happened to you,” she replied. “I really hope you feel better soon, Wells. And thanks for going in there after me.”
“It’s not my first time jumping into a burning building.” Wells laughed. “But it was yours.”
“I thought you’d be better at it then,” I quipped under my breath.
He grinned, but his amusement made him wince.
He slowly leaned back and let out a rough cough.
Kasey, who had been standing anxiously in the corner, recoiled and turned to the kitchen.
She’d been quieter than usual since we arrived.
And she looked frustrated as she shoved a glass of water toward him.
As soon as he caught his breath, he muttered “thanks” to Kase and turned back to me.
“Is there a reason you’re holding her hostage like that? ”
Harlow hesitated, but I stood up taller under the watch of the three people I was closest to. I loved showing off this intelligent, gorgeous woman by my side. It felt so natural to pull her in tight, but I lifted my arm, for her sake.
We hadn’t spoken about labels or telling other people, so—
She grabbed my hand, tugging it back down. A lopsided grin spread uncontrollably across my face as I stared at her. Just her.
I must have looked lovesick. Fuck it, maybe I was.
“We’re together,” she said confidently as she pressed firmly into my side. “And I’m going to be moving in with Jude.”
“Knew it!” Kasey sang out as she elbowed Colt.
“Don’t you already live there?” Wells asked.
My brother nodded. “Better to get out of the studio. That’ll make it easier for the renovations.”
I scoffed, letting my head hang for a second as I laughed. Of course, Colt finds out I’m in a relationship and he’s more worried about the practicalities of the building maintenance.
“I don’t know, man,” Wells added with a wolfish smile. “You’re hanging onto her pretty tightly. Just personal experience, but I don’t normally need to grab onto a woman for them to stand next to me.” He kicked out his feet, albeit stiffly. “When I’m with a girl, they’re usually begging to—”
“Dude, come on,” I cut him off.
“Congratulations, man. But Harlow, blink twice if he’s actually kidnapping you. We’ll get you out of there.”
Kasey gave Wells a light shove before looking back at us. “I’m so happy for you guys.”
Colt rolled his eyes at our cousin. “Don’t hit the injured guy. Do you want to put him back in the hospital?” He turned the conversation back to our patient. “Did you get home all right, man?”
“Yeah.” He stretched out his arm behind his head. “I survived Kasey’s driving, that was the worst of it.”
Colt’s eyes bounced between the two of them. Mine followed. “What? I could have picked you up, why did Kasey—”
“I offered,” she cut in quickly. “I was picking up some spices for the coffee syrups this morning. It was nearby.”
“I just wanted to make sure I was back for the festival.” Another cocky smile crossed Wells’ face as he addressed Colt. “Plus, bud, you’re such a downer right now. There’s no way I’d want to be stuck in a car with you.”
I choked back a laugh while Colt grumbled and Kasey grabbed Harlow’s hand, pulling her into the kitchen for a chat.
We spent the rest of the afternoon like that, joking and talking as we checked on Wells and helped him out around the house.
And, of course, Harlow fit in perfectly to our little pack.
I waved as Colt walked back to his red farmhouse, then swung my arm over Harlow’s seat as we reversed and drove away.
She sighed next to me. “You know…the festival is in four days.”
“Yeah. All our hard work is about to pay off.”
“But my to-do list is nowhere near done.” Her head fell into her hands. “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to pull it all together in time.”
Our house slowly came into view. I pulled the truck over on the dirt drive and turned my attention fully to her.
“I can help, I’m your partner in this. You’re recovering, you don’t need to jump back into it all. I’ll take over the decoration of Main Street. I can brief the volunteers on Friday. The tractor rides are sorted, the vendors are finalized. It’s going to be okay, sweetheart.”
“I’m still worried that I’ll let everyone down. I have to find a new event space and clean up where the barn was. The Harvest Festival means so much to the town and to me, I don’t want it to fall flat.”
I nodded. I knew she’d be staying no matter what, and I knew deep down she’d be getting that job offer after all the work we’d done. But I understood the worry.
I leaned over and rubbed her shoulder. There was no way I was letting Harlow stress over this while she was recovering. I’d work every hour of every day until the festival before I’d let that happen.
She leaned into my touch. “No matter what, I don’t want to miss out on decorating Main Street. I’ve been looking forward to that.”
I pulled her in closer. “We’ll do it together. I’ll make sure of it.”
It was only as I looked over Harlow’s shoulder that I caught sight of three other cars parked in front of our house and another ceramic baking dish wrapped in foil, sitting on the front porch.
Harlow followed my gaze. “Did you have a tasting today?”
“No.” Slowly a smile started to form on my face.
I actually might not have to work every hour until the festival. Not when we live in Autumn Creek.
“Is that Payton’s car?”
“I think so, and Sana’s truck. That also might be Isabella’s tractor, too.”
“They’re all here?”
“They’re all here,” I replied.
Harlow’s molten chocolate eyes snapped to me. “Is this planned? Are you paying them to be here?”
I looked over at where Whitney and Sana were making their way toward us. “No. You can ask them yourself.”
A laugh shook my chest as she jumped out of the truck and ran over to them. I couldn’t hear what she was saying from where I was, but as I hopped out to follow her, I looked past them to the rubble that was once the barn.
Probably every woman who attended Kasey and Harlow’s meetings was standing in the field, with their sleeves rolled up, sorting out the mess. With soot covered hands and masks covering half of their faces, they ran over to Harlow and began piling around my girl, pulling her into a group hug.
I finally closed in on them.” What are you all doing here?” My eyes quickly found Harlow, wiping her tears in the middle of the group.
“They came to help,” she called out with a smile and shining eyes.
“Of course we did,” Payton replied. “That’s what we’re here for. You’re one of us and you’ve worked damn hard on this festival for all of Autumn Creek. It’s the least we could do.”
“It’s absolutely not the least.” Harlow shook her head. “This is amazing.” Then she turned back to me. “Look at all the progress! It’s almost done.”
“It looks great.” I finally felt safe to let my eyes examine the field. Yeah, there was burned earth and broken bits of wood but it didn’t feel so formidable to look at. Together, we could overcome that mess.
Now, it just reminded me of how this town showed up for each other.
Harlow slipped away from the group and wrapped her arms around me.
Her voice was barely above a whisper, just for me to hear, as the group kept chatting amongst themselves.
“I really thought I might have disappointed everyone, that they wouldn’t want me here if I messed up the festival. I wouldn’t have blamed them.”
I held her firmly against me. “They don’t like you just because of what you might be able to do. And I don’t either. We want you here because we care about you. Fuck, Harlow, I care about you a lot.”
“You’re so sappy, Bramley.” She pulled back, a blush crossing her cheeks. “But I’m glad. Because I’m staying right here.”
I smirked at her. “You’re stuck with me then.”
“No. You’re stuck with me.”
Whitney let out a wolf whistle, and her wife burst into a cackle as Harlow and I pulled apart.
Payton was standing there smiling too. “I don’t want to interrupt, but I was thinking, we have a marquee from our pumpkin patch.
You’re welcome to use it, if you want to set up the live music in a field instead. ”
An easy smile crossed my face. “Pay, you’re a gem. That would be great.” I looked out at the group. “Can I grab you guys a drink—water, tea, cider?”
A chorus of “Cider” resounded.
Harlow took my hand, taking us back toward our house.