Chapter 13 - Connor
THIRTEEN
CONNOR
This woman doesn’t know the depths I’ll go for her. Because if she wants me to become a baker and a florist in the next seven days, I’ll make it happen. Hell, I’ve already got a florist booked for her.
I’ve been playing hockey since I was a kid and the one thing hockey taught me is how much I like to win. And I’ll do whatever it takes to win Scarlett back.
They pull apart from their sister hug and Sienna’s demeanor towards me is a lot colder. I’m not upset at losing whatever ground I’d gained in the past hour. Even though they frustrate me to no end, I still love my brothers and if this town turns against them, they’ll have to deal with me.
We exit the store and continue walking around the market.
It’s been the same since I was a kid. My parents used to bring us here every year for the tree lighting and my grandfather continued the tradition.
I feel a lot of guilt over leaving him, and at the same time, I know that I needed to leave because back then, this town wasn’t the place for me.
“Do you like living here, Connor?” Kate asks. I turn to Scarlett’s mother and find her looking at me.
“When I’m here, I miss the anonymity of New York. When I was there, I missed the quiet mornings of Silverpine,” I say.
“But do you like living here?” She asks again.
She has the same tenacity in her eyes that I see in Scarlett’s.
I remember Scarlett mentioned her mother used to be an investigative journalist. On the other hand, her father, Patrick, has remained quiet, just watching and listening and I can see where Scarlett gets that quality.
Holding herself apart even when she’s part of the crowd.
“I’m not sure. Being here comes with a lot of responsibility and reminds me that I left for a reason. But Cedar Creek has been in my family for generations and it’s now my responsibility.”
I feel Scarlett’s eyes on me from where she is walking with her sisters. It’s a lot of information I’d already shared with her, about never wanting to come back because I wanted to play hockey.
“You have brothers,” Kate points out. “Can’t one of them take care of Cedar Creek?”
“They can’t even take care of themselves,” I say, bitterness seeping into my voice.
“I’m sure it’s not easy being the only responsible one,” Kate says.
Responsibility isn’t supposed to be easy. My grandfather used to say that to me every time I called. Marion still says that to me, but if I leave tomorrow, she wouldn’t mind. She’d probably tell me I should have left a long time ago.
“Should we take photos with the Christmas tree?” Sadie asks. “Since our trip to the Rockefeller can’t happen because someone had to get married at Christmas.”
“I’m not coming to your wedding,” Sienna quips back.
“I’m going to get married in the town hall,” Sadie shoots back.
Scarlett laughs. “You’re probably going to have a bigger wedding than Sienna’s. Everyone you’ve ever met will be invited.”
“I like meeting people!” Sadie protests.
We stop in town square, in front of the tree and I take a step back as the Monroe sisters have their photo session.
It’s interesting to see Scarlett with her family, something I never got to see.
She’s different with people, more closed off.
But seeing her with them makes me realize she was never closed off with me.
She allowed me to see parts of herself others don’t get to see.
I got to see her fears and insecurities.
I got to stay up with her at night because she had insomnia and couldn’t sleep.
There were nights we’d stay awake and play cards or board games.
Nights where we’d watch endless movies, and she’d sit beside me crocheting.
Nights where she’d wake me up with her hands and mouth and I’d push into her warm body and there were no words spoken, our bodies doing all the talking.
Christ, how I miss her. If she comes back to me, I’ll never let her go. I’ll insist on dying first so I never have to be without her.
“Connie!”
I wince at the sound of the ridiculous nickname, turning to look at Jane.
Her blonde hair is pulled into a high ponytail, and her cheeks are flushed pink from the cold.
We’ve been friendly with each other since I came back but I’ve always kept my distance because I’m not interested in rekindling any relationship.
When I left at eighteen, everyone believed I was leaving Jane behind and would come back for one day.
“Jane.” I nod at her, turning back to look at Scarlett. Her eyes are on us as Patrick takes Sienna and Sadie’s photo and Kate helps a family with theirs.
“I didn’t expect to see you here,” Jane says. “You haven’t been to the market since you came back, not even to see the tree lighting.”
“I’ve been busy,” I say.
“I’m sure it’s not easy being back here without your grandfather. I’m so happy you’re here.” Jane smiles up at me warmly and my stomach clenches with unease, especially when she lifts a hand and squeezes my bicep in comfort.
“I came here for Scarlett,” I say, my eyes swinging back to her.
Jane follows my gaze, and her smile drops when she sees Scarlett walking up to us.
“You came here for a woman who probably doesn’t even care about you?” Jane inquires.
“No, I came here for the woman I love,” I say.
Jane flinches, shock flickering across her face.
I don’t want to be rude and I’m not going to compare the two women.
But Jane needs to understand that I’m never going to want her or anyone else the way I want Scarlett.
This is just the Christmas market. I will go to the ends of the Earth if Scarlett asks me to.
“We’re waiting for you to take pictures,” Scarlett says, walking up to us. She slips her hand into the crook of my elbow as she steps up next to me. I look down at her hand on my arm and raise an eyebrow in question.
She’s not jealous, but she doesn’t give up the chance to stake her claim.
“I was just catching up with Jane,” I say.
Scarlett looks at her, blue eyes hardening with anger. She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. “We’ve never met, but you cancelled the order for my sister’s wedding cake,” she says.
“Technical errors happen,” Jane says, her smile just as brittle.
“I can’t imagine how much business you must lose with technical errors,” Scarlett says.
“That happened at our shop once. We’d received an order for ten chocolate pies and lo and behold, the system deleted the order even though the confirmation had been sent.
Luckily, the customer called the day before to follow up on when they should pick up the order and we were able to get it out on time.
Customer service is very important when you’re running a business. ”
If she’d cut Jane, it would have bled less. My girl can be savage when she needs to be.
“We’re very busy during the holiday season and I don’t believe in overworking my employees,” Jane says, her tone sharp as cut glass.
Scarlett laughs lightly, her fingers digging into my arm. She’s so beautiful I can’t look away from her. I should step in and stop this fight, but Jane brought this on herself. There was no need to involve feelings with her business and I’d never been able to stop Scarlett.
“I agree. Which is why we try to make a lot of the orders ourselves at our shop. If it’s our mistake, it shouldn’t be our employee’s responsibility to solve it. Everyone has different priorities and SOPs for running their business.” Scarlett sighs. “Anyway, I’ll stop by tomorrow.”
“For what?” Jane blinks in confusion.
“To get my deposit back, of course. Since there’s not going to be an order, there doesn’t need to be a deposit. I’m sure you wouldn’t want your business reported for fraudulent activity.”
Tugging on my arm, Scarlett pulls me away.
“We’ll see you tomorrow,” I tell Jane.
She watches us in shock as Scarlett tugs me away to stand in front of the tree with her, Sadie taking our photo.
“I wasn’t sure I’d be invited to take photos,” I say.
Feeling her gaze on me, I turn to look down at Scarlett. The bright lights of the Christmas tree are reflected in her clear eyes as she watches me. I’m surprised to see the hint of possessiveness in them, the way her hand tightens on my arm, and she pulls me closer.
“Only I get to call you Connie,” she says.
The smile that steals across my face would be visible from the moon. She doesn’t want me, but she can’t stop her jealousy. That has to be a good thing, right? If another man called her cute nicknames, I don’t know what I’d do. Probably be arrested for assault.
“Don’t worry, baby girl. I didn’t rig my washroom with the best surround sound speakers so I can listen to her erotic audios as I rub one out in the shower every day.”
Scarlett gasps loudly, choking on air. “Connor! You didn’t!” She’s horrified.
I laugh, even though it’s not a laughing matter. “I don’t think you realize how obsessed I am with you, Scarlett.”
A blush steals across her pale cheeks and Scarlett ducks her head. If we weren’t surrounded by people and her family, I’d tilt her head back and kiss her again.
“Alright, photo session is over,” Sadie announces. “Where are we going?”
“Let’s find something to eat, I’m starving,” Sienna says.
“Me, too.”
Scarlett releases my arm and goes to her sisters. Stopping halfway, she throws a look over her shoulder. “Coming?”
“We’d both be, if you weren’t so stubborn,” I say quietly.
Amused blue eyes turn up to me. “You’ve grown awfully bold.”
“Patience is a young man’s game. I’m practically geriatric.”
“You’re thirty-eight,” she points out.
“Which means I’ve only got a handful of years left before my mid-life crisis.”
Her family leads the way as we trail behind.
There are a lot of tourists in the Christmas market, but I still feel the town’s eyes following us as we walk past. I can picture Jane texting her mother about Scarlett’s audacity and from there the news will spread down the grapevine.
The librarians are always the first to know everything because they are the source of information.
“What does a mid-life crisis look like for you?” Scarlett asks.
“I can tell you what people imagine my mid-life crisis will be like, and by people, I mean my brothers,” I say.
“I’d love to hear it.”
“I’m going to buy a Corvette and I’m going to take full advantage of being Connor Hayes. As in, I’m going to invite women for a tour of Cedar Creek Ranch, spend the night with them, rinse and repeat.”
Scarlett makes a face. “I can’t picture it. The Corvette or the women. You’d probably keep bees.”
I look at her from the corner of my eyes and Scarlett laughs.
“Oh my gosh! You keep bees, that’s so adorable.”
“If you need a full hazmat suit to deal with them, it’s not adorable.”
Scarlett tries to quell her laughter, shaking her head. “Oh, no, it’s very manly.”
“I know it’s not a gendered activity and I don’t need to feel manly. It’s also not adorable.”
We walk in silence for a few minutes. Sadie calls back that we’re going to Salvatore’s for dinner.
Salvatore’s would probably have a line out the front door because it gets busy quickly and I tell them to use the back door.
I know the owner and the Hayes family are always welcome, no matter how busy the restaurant gets.
“You really do have connections with everyone,” Scarlett says.
“My family founded Silverpine,” I explain. “Whenever anyone was struggling with anything, my grandfather was the first one to help them, sometimes to his own detriment. They see me as a part of them, something I can’t ever get rid of. Feels like a horror movie sometimes.”
“I’m really sorry about your grandfather,” Scarlett says quietly.
I look at her. “Someday, when you’re ready, I’ll tell you why I left.”
Scarlett’s expression betrays nothing of what she’s feeling. All she says is, “Maybe someday.”
It’s not a promise or a commitment, but it’s still more than we’ve had so far. Her face makes it clear that I can’t ask for more right now.