30. Ember
EMBER
I’ve never been good at hiding my feelings, but for some reason, I’m more mad than upset.
The past couple of weeks, I’d put all my faith in Devon.
We worked together as a team with one goal in mind.
It wasn’t just the manor, or the business, in the back of my head, I was always thinking about us, too.
The way he held me. Loved me. Every touch was a promise of the future, and then he gets one injury and decides to blow it all up.
Fury doesn’t even begin to encompass everything I’m feeling right now.
I stare at the screen on my laptop. The last time I had to write a proposal to Nichols, Devon read it over, tweaking things here and there. This time, it’s all me.
Why am I even doing this? I have no idea.
Just trying to save face before I go. Just pushing back the timeline on what I want to do because neither one of the choices sound appetizing if I’m being honest. Go back to Greenville so my parents can think they were right.
Or stay here and watch Devon live a life separately from me, knowing how good we could have had it together.
The options are terrible.
At least if I do this, I can get Nichols to change his spots for the next buyer. Use it as a selling feature so things will go smoothly for them.
Yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing because I’m definitely not holding on to hope that anything will still work out for me.
A knock on the door sounds, and I set my laptop on the couch to go answer. Peeking through the curtain, I spot an elderly man on the other side. The door handle is cold when I turn it, forcing the heavy door open. “Hi, can I help you?”
“Miss O’Malley?”
“That’s me.”
“Hi, I’m Grant Cordoroy. My grandkids were one of the first ones to come to your haunted house last night.”
“Oh,” I smile and move out of the way. “Do you want to come in?”
He moves inside, and I put my laptop on a table so that we can both sit.
“I don’t want to intrude, but my daughter told me that Pierce Nichols shut down your haunted house.
My grandkids absolutely loved it. They kept going on and on about all the little rooms, and I just thought it was a shame that happened.
I want to know if there’s anything I can do to help. ”
Gosh, this town. I’m going to miss it. The people are some of the sweetest, sincerest people I’ve ever met. “Well, Sir, I’m writing him a proposal right now, hopefully to get him to change his mind.”
I leave out the part that it’ll be for the next owner of this amazing house. I don’t think I could get the words out right now anyway. Part of me will never, ever want to leave this place, this community.
“Would you mind telling me exactly what happened?”
I take a deep breath and then unleash it all on the older gentleman.
He listens intently, and when I get it all out, I’m almost relieved.
He just listened and didn’t respond. He didn’t interrupt with how stupid Nichols is or words of encouragement to fight it.
Just going through everything again, but with a level-headed tone, it makes me feel like I could do something about it.
When I’m finished, the gentleman shakes his head.
“It’s the blessings and curses of living in a small town.
I want to help, Miss O’Malley. I don’t know if I can do anything, but to me, it doesn’t seem right that someone can tell you what to do with your own property.
I know we have to have laws and such, but for my part, I think this is overreaching.
In my former years, I was a lawyer. I’m not saying you need one, but I’d like to offer you my services if you ever do.
It’d be pro bono. Give an old guy like me something to do. ”
“That’s so sweet of you.”
“I’ll talk to a few people around town and see if we can’t come up with something.”
“Aww, well, you don’t have to do that. I’m just glad to know people are looking out for me.”
My voice catches. Just yesterday, Devon acted like he would burn the world down for me, and today, he discarded me so easily.
“You seem like a wonderful girl. When you get up and running again, I’m going to bring my grandkids back. I can’t wait to see the smiles on their faces when they go through the haunted house.”
“They were very lucky they got to go through it the first time,” I tell him. “Only a dozen or so kids made it.”
He shakes his head again. “Bureaucracy.”
I have to agree with him. I’m still lamenting that when he stands abruptly. “It was lovely to meet you, Miss O’Malley. You have yourself a good day.”
I get to my feet quickly, moving for the door before he can get there, and I open it for him. “Thanks for stopping by.”
He tips his head and grabs for a cap that doesn’t actually sit there.
When the door is shut, I watch him mosey down the stairs.
He takes his time on the sidewalk, checking out the yard and stopping to admire a butterfly that has landed on one of the branches.
When he gets to the gate, it sticks a little, and in order for it to break free, he has to push on it, and he stumbles a little.
Luckily for me, he stays on his feet and starts down the sidewalk.
A breath of relief releases from my lungs. The hospitality of Harvest Falls has never ceased to amaze me.
I grab my laptop again, read through my proposal, and then print it. Suddenly, I wonder if Devon’s mom will be at the office when I go to drop this off at Code Enforcement. Hopefully, she’s still with Devon so I don’t have to field questions right now or listen to her stick up for her son.
Though, Mayor Lachey has never been that type of person. She calls it like she sees it.
I place the printed copies of the request in a folder.
Afterward, I make myself a small lunch and then grab my jacket.
The walk into town is peaceful. The longer I’m here, the more people know me.
Several neighbors on their porches wave and call out to me.
Almost all of them mention the haunted house and how they’re pulling for me to get it re-opened.
Devon was right. Things do circulate through a small town so fast. It’s about the only fast thing in this town because it’s about as laid back as it can be in other ways.
I trace back the steps I made that first day I was here in Harvest Falls.
This time, I get to enjoy the journey a little more.
I’m not in a hurry to see the house I bought, but I’m able to take in the scenery.
This place has settled into my soul. For whatever reason, Greenville never felt like home like this does.
But Greenville doesn’t have Devon Lachey in it so it has that going for it.
It strikes me then that I never cared enough about my ex to not want to run into him again. I saw him everywhere. When Mom told me he was getting engaged, I didn’t care.
Hearing about Devon will have the opposite effect on me, and that’s startling.
The town offices loom in front of me, sitting there as stately as the first time I saw them. This time, I can get around the halls better. I scoot past the mayor’s office, which is shut, and I turn the knob on the Office of Code Enforcement.
My stomach sinks when I walk in. Mayor Lachey peers up, as well as Nichols.
“Just the woman I was talking about,” Devon’s mom says.
I give her a smile, then peer at Nichols. I walk forward. “Here’s the proposal for the haunted house.”
“I don’t appreciate the calls I’ve received this morning, Miss O’Malley.”
“What calls?”
“Calls from Harvest Falls citizens.”
I peer over at the mayor for context because I simply have no idea what he’s talking about.
She just laughs. “You know this town. Or you should know. They see something they don’t like, they don’t mind bending your ear about it.
” She turns back toward Nichols. “No one liked that you came in and shut down a completely harmless haunted house for children in the middle of the festivities.”
“I was doing my job.”
“There’s a case to be made that says otherwise.”
Nichols sighs, and clearly, I have walked in on them discussing the manor.
“I never told anyone to call you,” I tell Nichols.
“I’ve written up the proposal as requested.
” The next words slip out unintentionally but fighting for the manor is so ingrained in me at this point that I can’t keep them back. “I would appreciate a swift response.”
Just yesterday, I thought the worst of my problems involved figuring out how to make this right with the people who purchased tickets, but now I’m on the brink of abandoning them all together. I’ll have to stay until I see this through no matter what Nichols decides.
“I will get to it as soon as I can.”
“Thank you.”
I turn to walk away, but the mayor calls my name.
I heave out a breath, knowing she wants to talk about Devon and hoping I have enough strength to keep my wits about me to do so.
When I stop, she tells Nichols, “We’re not through with our conversation, but I’ll leave you enough time to go through the proposal, and then I’ll be right back in here. ”
I smirk a little at that because if that isn’t Mayor Lachey, then I don’t know what is. She’s like a beautifully decorated cupcake filled with determination and spunk.
Mrs. Lachey comes up behind me and loops her arm through mine. She leads me into the hallway and then into her office where she lets me go and sits, taking off her jacket and hanging it on a rack in the corner.
“Devon is home. He has strict orders to not bear any weight on his leg, but he’s home.”
I don’t know why she’s telling me this. She must know what happened at the hospital earlier, either from Devon himself or she would’ve guessed when she saw me come running out of the place. “That’s good to hear.”
“I feel like it’s not my place to interfere in anything Devon and you have, but I just want to say that he’s not in the best place right now.”
I agree, but I really don’t want to hear excuses. My own mind can conjure them up, but that doesn’t mean it makes anything right. “I know.”