Chapter 23
Rowan
Tonight was the night I was going to tell Hattie how I felt about her. The red heart charm was in a small box in my pocket, and I was considering how I could get her alone.
The brewery was filling with people, and I was greeting everyone as they came inside.
The door opened, and Hattie and Jovie walked in.
I took a step toward them when Boone stopped me. "You have to see this."
"What is it?" I asked, annoyed that he'd interrupted me.
He lifted his screen higher so I could see it. It was The Telluride Times online. "I was hoping there was an article on the opening, but I saw this instead."
The headline read: "Local Brewery Owner Fakes Engagement to Create Buzz about His Grand Opening." The byline was Jane Larson.
"Fuck." I ran my hand through my hair. "How did Jane find out?"
Boone slowly lowered his phone. "So it's true? You're not engaged to Hattie?"
My jaw tightened as I considered the ramifications of this announcement on opening day. It wasn't good. "Not exactly."
"Either you are or you aren't." Boone's voice was rough.
Hattie approached with Jovie, looking from Boone to me. "Did you see my text?"
"I've been busy." I gestured at the room around us that was already full.
My brain was spinning with the fallout. The grand opening was going to be overshadowed by this side story that shouldn't have anything to do with the brewery.
Beck had warned me about negative publicity. It appeared that I'd made a huge error.
"That reporter talked to my mom." That's all she got out before I placed a hand on her lower back and guided her to my office in the back.
I left Jovie and Boone behind, not wanting to talk in front of them.
I closed and locked the door behind us. Then I tried to steady my breath as I turned to face her. "What happened?"
"Jane talked to my mom. I have no idea why. She took advantage of a vulnerable lonely woman and got her to admit that we were never dating for real."
We always knew this was a possibility. I didn’t have a problem at first with her telling her mother but I had no idea she’d share that information with a reporter. "Why did you tell her?"
"She was so happy for me. I hadn't seen her that interested in something in my life in a long time." Hatte's voice was softer now. "I didn't want her to be upset when she found out we broke up."
The fact that her mother was focused on her was a big deal. But I couldn't seem to process that right now. "She was the only one who knew about us, and she talked to a reporter."
Hattie flinched at my harsh tone. "I talked to Jovie and Meg about it too. But I'm so sorry, Rowan. The last thing I'd ever want to do was hurt you or the brewery."
"It's too late now, isn't it? Everyone's going to be talking about our relationship being a sham and not about how good my beers are." I ran my hand through my hair. "Beck warned me about something like this. How it can make or break a business."
"I'm so sorry, Rowan. If I could go back in time and not tell my mom, I would." Hattie was wringing her hands. She was upset.
I should be consoling her. But all I could think about was how my brewery opening was a disaster. That no one was going to be here tomorrow. Or any other day. This was it. Everything we put into this endeavor was a waste. "You can't go back in time. What's done is done."
Tears welled in Hattie's eyes. "I'm sorry, Rowan. For what it's worth, I—"
I didn't want to hear what she had to say. "You should go. That way Jane can't get any more of the story. I'll tell her that we broke up. That it was real, but we weren't meant to be together. Something like that. It doesn't really matter anyway. The damage is done."
There was something about the last sentence that had Hattie backing away, and her gaze darting to the door. "I don't want to cause you any more trouble."
"For some reason, it seems to follow you." I shouldn't have said that. Her father's addiction had nothing to do with her. But I couldn't stop the hurtful words from flying out of my mouth. I was in pain, so everyone else needed to be too.
My world was splintering. All the money and effort we'd put into this place was for nothing. One piece of gossip could take out years of careful plans.
Hattie opened the door and walked out. Why did it feel like she'd taken my heart with her?
For a second, I thought about calling her back. But what would I say? I had to deal with the repercussions, and I needed her far away when I did.
The door opened, and for a second, I thought it was Hattie returning to tell me that I was making a mistake because she was in love with me. That it didn't matter what the reporter said. But it was Beck.
He shut the door behind him and locked it. "Is it true?"
"That Hattie and I were never engaged?" I asked dryly.
Beck crossed his arms over his chest. Tonight he was wearing a suit. I hadn't seen him in one in a long time. He'd become more of a flannel-toting guy since he'd decided to move here. "Yeah, that."
I sighed heavily. "Jane wanted to host a contest where single ladies vied to win a bath with me. I didn't want to deal with that, so I said I was engaged."
"You were living with her," Beck hissed.
"When her apartment was declared uninhabitable, I offered her a place to stay. It's what any good fiancé would do."
"And the rest of it? Dinner at the family's. Kissing in your truck. I've heard the rumors. I've seen you together. It sure as hell didn't look fake."
I sighed. "It's complicated. At some point, it became something more. But neither of us told the other how we felt. I planned to talk to her tonight. Then Boone showed me that article."
"It's all anyone is talking about."
"What do you want me to do? Do you want me to leave?"
He shook his head. "This is your night."
"The story is bigger than the brewery. There's no way I can spin it in a way that it won't affect the business.”
He raised a brow. "Are you sure about that?"
"What do you mean?" My entire world was falling apart, and he wanted me to do something. I was happy to help, but I wasn't sure that there was a fix for this.
"You said there was something between you and Hattie. Maybe you can tell them it was real," Beck said.
"I just told her to leave." I'd broken whatever we had.
Beck lowered his arms. "Rowan, how do you feel about Hattie? Is she just a hookup, or—"
"Don't talk about her like that," I said, feeling like I was strung tight and would explode at any moment. I'd just sent the woman I loved away, and it was tearing me up inside. "I was planning on telling her how I felt tonight. I had a gift for her and everything."
"You were going to tell her that you loved her?" His voice was slow and cautious.
I blew out a breath. "It doesn't matter."
Beck gave me a look. "Why wouldn't it matter?"
"Because everyone knows that our engagement was fake. We'd planned to break up after the grand opening anyway. Hattie played her part, and now it’s over. It was a waste of time."
Beck rested his hand on my shoulder. "But how do you feel about her?"
I thought about how it felt to have her at my side on Christmas Day, the night we shared at the bath, and the nights we fell into bed together. "I love her."
"Why didn't you tell her that?"
"Because everyone thinks it's fake. That it was just a story we made up."
"But that's not the truth, is it?"
I let my head fall back and sighed. "What do you want me to do?"
"Exactly what you were going to do before the story was printed. Tell Hattie how you feel." Beck's voice was forceful.
"It's too late. She already left." I felt defeated.
"Let me see if Clara can find her." Beck ducked out the door, and I sat heavily in my chair. Tonight was supposed to be a happy night. The night my dreams came true, when the brewery officially opened and the night I finally told Hattie how I felt.
I pulled up the article and read it. I needed to know what Jane was saying about us. Thankfully, it was only the part about the engagement being fake. The rest of it was how Hattie was staying with me while her apartment was under construction. How I'd been seen at her truck, serving customers.
My phone buzzed.
Beck: You think she went back to your place?
Rowan: It's possible.
She was still living there, and it was close.
Beck: While everyone is looking for her, you should come out here and do damage control. Tell them that things aren't what they seem.
Rowan: What if she doesn't want anything to do with me?
Beck: That doesn't change how you feel.
I was not sure I wanted everyone to know how I felt if the woman didn't return the feelings. Wouldn't that make everything worse?
I was still the owner of the brewery. I had to trust that everything would work out. That I'd get my chance to tell Hattie how I felt.
The only problem was, I was fairly sure I made everything worse when we talked. I said some terrible things. I blamed her for this when I was the one who set everything into motion. She should be able to tell her mother the truth. Why would I blame her for that?
I was a jerk. What if she didn't forgive me?
I went to the adjoining bathroom and washed my face with cold water. I had to pull myself together. I needed to talk to everyone and pretend my world wasn't falling apart. That one little story hadn't thrown me off my axis.
I dried off my face and looked at myself in the mirror.
I wasn't the same person I was when this whole thing started.
I'd proven that I could open a business and do everything that came with that.
I made the hard decisions, I renovated this old building, I hired and trained employees, and I fell in love.
I didn't want to go back to the man I was a year ago. That guy was scared to tell everyone what he wanted. This Rowan was honest about what he wanted, and he didn't let anyone get in his way.
Not Malcolm's opinions or the reporter's story. Nothing would stop me telling Hattie how I felt. I just hoped she hadn't run too far.
I wouldn't let her run anymore. Because I'd always be here to catch her. I just hoped that she wanted me to.
These last few weeks weren't just physical. She was falling at the same time I was. She felt the same way. She loved me too.
She'd been hurt a lot in her life, and I wanted to be her support system. Not someone who made her life more difficult.
I wanted to be there when she was hurting.
I opened the door and walked down the hall. I barely made it through the first group of people before someone called my name. Everyone wanted to talk to the owner.
I made my way slowly through the crowd with people congratulating me and asking questions.
I also heard whispers about our engagement not being real.
Thankfully no one mentioned it to my face.
In the back of my mind, I kept wondering if they were able to find Hattie and bring her back.
It was hard to focus when she was all I could think about.
When I'd seen that story, I thought that the only thing that mattered was the business. But it was Hattie that was the most important person in my life. I wanted to love my job and enjoy it. But not if I didn't have her.
I couldn't even imagine going home without her there. How empty the cabin would be now. My heart sank that the thought.
I made my way slowly through the crowd. At some point, a server handed me a pint of my brew, and I sipped it, wishing that it was hot chocolate. I could use the sweetness right now. I wanted Hattie by my side.
This entire thing was meaningless without her. She was my constant cheerleader. The one who believed in me. Who loved me. Or at least, I hoped she was.
Beck approached. "It's time to give your speech."
We'd talked about me thanking everyone for coming, so I nodded. He guided me to the stage we'd built for bands we hoped would play here. I stood at the lectern with Beck at my side. I tapped the microphone, and everyone got the hint, turning to face me.
A sense of calm settled over me.
"I want to thank everyone for coming here tonight.
Opening a brewery has been a dream of mine for a long time.
I spent years perfecting my recipes in a workshop which is just a short walk from here.
When we were talking about opening a place, this was the best option.
It was the biggest building on the property.
It was close to my house, and it already had a dedicated lane and view of the mountains.
But it was more than that. This is the building that my siblings and I played house in when we were little.
You can see the pictures framed on the wall.
" I gestured at the wall, and everyone's head turned.
"It's the place where Beck brought Clara when we were scoping out possible locations, and he fell in love with her. "
A collective sigh went through the crowd.
This wasn't the speech we'd rehearsed. But at this point, I was speaking from my heart.