38. Hayden
Hayden
A fter taking the long way home, I park in my garage and throw my head back against the seat. I didn’t expect to admit as much as I did, it all tumbled out once I got started. Because really, there’s no other way to explain my actions.
I love her. I love her so fucking much it hurts. And I can’t watch the dreams of the woman I love stolen from her because of something so out of her control as problems with renovations.
Getting out of my Corvette, I head inside to change. Laps in a pool won’t help me right now, I need the steady power of ocean waves.
Beckett must already be with Stevie, because I’m greeted by silence as I move into the east wing of the house. The hall echoes with the sound of me closing the door from the garage, and I can’t help but wonder if I just thrust myself into this loneliness once again by pushing Poppy too far.
Stopping in the kitchen, I open the fridge and withdraw the iced lavender tea Poppy had mixed up the other day. Upstairs, there will be the sweatshirt of mine that she borrowed, still thrown over the armchair in my closet and still smelling of her.
I wonder if these will be the last pieces of her that get left behind.
Without bothering to pour a glass, I lift the pitcher of tea to my lips and drink the familiar flavor down. It tastes like kissing Poppy in the mornings, before she starts sampling all her baked goods.
I’m ready to abandon the empty pitcher and head for the stairs when the chime from the front gate sounds. Turning for the front of the house, I see a baby blue Bronco coming down my driveway.
Hope stirs within me, only to be closely chased by concern. That took no time at all. Would she agree to the contract this quickly?
No, she is a planner. She likes to read through things more than once. Highlight the smallest details and have a list of negotiations. It’s more likely that she is here to turn me down.
Heading out the front door, I cross the drive and take a seat on the edge of the fountain just as she parks behind my car. Every step felt too heavy, and my body is weighed down by anticipation as I sit and watch her.
She jumps out, contract in hand, and slams the door before stalking towards me. My God, she’s so wonderfully fierce. Stamping her feet down, she comes to a stop only a step away from my reach and huffs. “I can’t accept this.”
My stomach plummets to depths I didn’t know existed. I don’t move; I can’t move. “Why not?” I rasp.
“For starters, you’re not capable of being a silent partner. Not if we want to continue to be as passionate as you claim we are. Honestly, Hayden, this whole thing is a joke. It gives you no rights, obviously it’s still just a handout.”
“Poppy, I didn’t?—”
Her hand lifts to stop me mid-sentence. The motion is sharp, determined. When I fall silent, she continues. “So, if I am going to agree to this, I have my conditions.”
She crosses her arms and smiles at me. And that smile . It’s a brilliant light in the darkest storm of my heart.
I shoot up and quickly close the distance between us. “Let’s hear them, then,” I say, my voice thick.
“It’s a fifty-fifty split or nothing. If we’re going to be partners, then that means equal partners.”
Blinking back at her, I turn those words over in my mind. They aren’t at all what I expected. I couldn’t have heard her correctly.
“That’s your condition?” I start hesitantly. “You want to be equal partners? With me?”
She rolls her eyes as if it’s obvious. “That’s one condition, yes.”
I wrap my arms around her, grinning wildly when she keeps her own arms folded across her chest. “I’d love to be equal partners, to truly do this together,” I tell her.
“I’m not done,” she huffs, but the smile on her face remains. “We also will need to set aside time specifically to talk about the business. It can’t just blend into our relationship.”
“Boundaries, got it.” I nod. “Wait. Does that mean you are agreeing to being in a relationship too?”
She ignores my question and continues on. “And finally, we agree that if a fight isn’t getting us anywhere, we take a break from it. Although, honestly, if I haven’t scared you off yet, I feel pretty good that we can make this work.”
“You’re never scaring me off, but I still agree to that condition. Absolutely we can make this work.” I reach up and caress her face. “Anything else, Poppy Seed?”
“Yes, actually. One more thing.” She tilts her face up to me and lifts her arms to wrap them around my neck. “I love you too.”
I was wrong. There is a feeling better than Poppy Wheeler picking me, and it’s the feeling of hearing that she loves me. But maybe that was always the same thing. Because I know she wouldn’t have made that choice for just anyone.
“You really love me?” I repeat her question from earlier as my lips brush against hers.
She responds by clasping her palm on the back of my neck and tugging me into a deep, greedy kiss. I allow her to tilt me forward, planting a hand on the small of her back and dipping her back. Blinking up at me, she says, “My heart is yours, Hayden. I really love you.”
“Mm, I could get used to hearing that,” I hum before capturing her mouth once again. She opens to me eagerly, dropping the contract as her fingers tangle in my hair. The papers flutter around us, but we have some revisions to make anyway.
“Does this mean we have a deal?” I ask when we pull apart for a breath.
She releases one of her hands from my hair and straightens, holding it out between us as if to shake on things. She flashes a sinfully sweet smile up at me and says, “Welcome to the Seaside Bakehouse, partner.”