Chapter Thirteen
“You said what?” Maggie gasped through the other end of the phone. “I was sure I’d hyped you up enough to give you the boost you needed.”
“I know. I don’t know what happened,” I admitted.
“I had every intention of shooting my shot with that man, and for a few minutes I was truly riding such a high from all the possibilities I’d created in my head.
Then, per usual, when things felt good, it crashed and burned.
After that, I couldn’t quite shake the intrusive thoughts, and then, you know me…
everything spiraled from there.” The disappointment still blanketed me.
“But Maggie, you should’ve seen his face. ”
Even now, days later, the mental image of a shell-shocked Stetson was enough to cause a ruckus inside of me.
“Ha. I can only imagine. I bet that man could count on one hand how many times he’s been turned down. Honestly, it kind of makes me proud. A little shocked because I really thought something was gonna happen, but very proud nonetheless,” she said, her voice giving away the smile she was wearing.
“I was also shocked, especially because I was planning on just embracing the whole casual thing. At least for one night.”
“Wait, really?” She carried a heavy load of optimism in her tone.
“Really,” I confessed. I’d started the trek up Main Street to work, parking farther away than normal. I made sure to lower my voice now that I was outside. “I think I knew that was my only shot with him, and I wanted to prove I could.”
“Prove you could what?” she asked, before answering her own question. “My god, Scarlett, what did I say about not having to prove anything to anyone.”
“Not to anyone else. To myself.” The other end of the phone was silent for the first time.
“I wanted to feel good, and he’d made that happen in ways that Zane never did.
If he could do that through a few simple conversations, I have to imagine the sex would feel even better.
And to just say that I did it wouldn’t hurt either. ”
“Haha, well, I can’t blame you there. But if that was the plan the whole time then why didn’t you just go through with it? Some good sex might’ve been good for you.” She laughed.
“Hilarious,” I said. “It was my plan until I saw him and Delilah, and then all my carefree energy slipped right through the cracks and my thirty-year-old conscience was reinstated. I quickly realized I couldn’t play the bullshit games and pretend like I loved random hookups.
” I tucked my free arm inside my coat, trying to preserve my body temperature.
“I mean, shit, I haven’t had a random hookup in years, and I’m not sure he would’ve been the best place to start.
And come on, you know that’s not me, it never has been. ”
“Oh, I know. Remember in college when you had your first one-night stand?” Her laugh echoed through the speaker. “And then you proceeded to basically go celibate after that because you hated the way it made you feel in the morning?”
“Okay, rude. It’s not that funny. And you know I have my reasons for why I am the way I am,” I said, defending myself. “I’m sorry I wasn’t born to be slutty. Sometimes, like on Saturday night, I desperately wished I were. Honestly, I envy you, Magnolia Nelson.”
“Hey now. Go easy on me.” She chuckled.
“You know I love you, but I’m walking into work. I’ll call you later.”
“Love you, bye.”
I did sometimes wish I could be more “go with the flow” when it came to men, but with my track record, I’d always looked for the steady ones. The ones who weren’t afraid to commit. The ones who were completely opposite of Stetson Walker.
“I know. It was so obvious how into me he was. I should’ve just gone home with him, but I told him I don’t kiss on the first date…” Delilah’s voice was the first one I heard as I walked into the Tribune. “I can’t wait to see him again.”
I only caught part of her conversation, but it was all I needed.
Her two clones were standing across from her, arms crossed, mouths wide open, and eyes glued to her.
I cleared my throat. “Good morning, ladies. Has anyone seen Donna yet?”
“Scarlett, hi. I didn’t see much of you at the party on Saturday.” Her voice was filled to the brim with counterfeit kindness. “I was pretty preoccupied all night though, so I didn’t really have time to mingle.” She grinned.
“Seems like Delilah has caught the eye of our resident country star.” Alexis, one of the girls, beamed from beside her.
“Lucky her,” I said, doing my best to hide the sarcasm that seeped through my words. “Donna. Has anyone seen her?”
I wanted so badly to tell them the things Stetson said to me that night, but then I remembered I don’t have anything to prove to anyone.
Not to mention, I had no idea what he did after I left.
Stetson may have denied wanting to hook up with someone like Delilah at first, but that was before I turned him down.
“Right here,” she said, her genuine kindness a breath of much needed fresh air.
“Actually, you’re just the person I was looking for.
” She pretended to gather everyone with her hands—Delilah and her two friends, Alexis and Abby, and then Moriah, who had been sitting so quietly at her desk I hadn’t even noticed her.
“First off, let’s congratulate Scarlett on her incredible article.
I’m pretty sure it’s one this town will be talking about for a while.
In fact, I think it might even be a wall-hanger! ”
“A wall-hanger?” I asked.
“You know. The articles that are so good, they deserve to be put in a frame and hung up on the wall so they can be admired for years. Like this,” she said, reaching her hand behind my desk and pulling out a large, chunky wooden frame with my article plastered right in the center.
The smile on her face was so big I thought it might jump right off.
“Donna! You did not have to do that. This is incredible. I can’t wait to hang it up in my apartment.” A rush of gratitude overpowered my emotions, compelling me to wrap her into a hug and whisper, “Thank you. I don’t think you know how much this means to me.”
She pulled away, both of her hands resting on my shoulders. “Thank you, darlin’. You wrote something that deserves to be celebrated. Just didn’t want you to forget that.”
“Congratulations, Scarlett!” Moriah’s sweet but extremely soft voice popped in beside us.
“Thanks, Moriah.”
“What are we working on this week? Anything new?” Delilah’s voice barged in.
I didn’t think I’d ever seen a single article with Delilah’s name under it, so I wasn’t sure why my to-do list was any of her concern.
“Delilah, Alexis, and Abby, I’m going to have you keep working on the calendar for the next few months. Make sure you find anything and everything that’s happening in our little town. The farther out we can be, the better prepared we will be to cover all the events.”
“Sounds great. Events are my thing. We’ll probably head out shortly and make sure we hit all the local spots to see what’s going on.” Delilah’s tone was more telling than asking.
“That sounds great,” Donna confirmed. “Moriah, are you still working on the piece about—”
“The corporation that’s trying to build a massive hotel at the south end of town? Yes, I am, and I’m doing my best to make them look as horrible as possible, which is proving to be much easier than I thought.”
“Great. We love to hear it,” Donna said, smiling as Moriah turned back toward her desk. “I guess that just leaves you, my newest star.”
“You flatter me.” I grinned, my cheeks running red. “You just tell me what’s next and I’ll get started.”
“Funny you should say that.” Donna’s eyes grew wide and her soft smile a little worrisome. “There is another pretty big assignment that landed in my lap, and I’d really love for you to be the one to take it on. It’s a big ask, and you can always say no, but—”
“Yes. Whatever it is. Yes. I told you. I’m here to make your life easier, and I’m happy to help however you’ll let me,” I responded.
“Holy shit.” Alexis beamed, staring at the screen of her phone. “Do you see this?”
“What?” Delilah asked, ripping it right out of her hands. “Oh my god.”
“You’re literally famous,” Abby chimed in.
Delilah licked her lips before she started reading from the phone.
“‘Stetson Walker might have lost himself in Nashville, but it looks like he’s found himself in Quincey Falls… with a new love interest? Young, blonde, and sparkly, exactly how the country heartthrob likes ’em. ’” The arrogance oozed out of her.
I turned back to face Donna before I said something I’d regret, and she’d clearly already learned how to tune out Delilah because she was completely unbothered by all of it.
“Speaking of Stetson Walker…” Her eyes glued to the group of girls crowded around the phone before popping over to mine.
His name left her lips and struck me right through my chest like a bolt of lightning.
I gulped. “What about him?”
“We got permission to do a story on him while he’s in Quincey Falls writing his next album.
It sounds like he’s turned one of George’s old barns into a recording studio and he’s staying at the newly renovated bed and breakfast up the road from Rolling Meadows.
Appears he’s serious about sticking around for a while, and I really think there’s a story to tell here.
” She paused, lingering on her thoughts.
“Why Quincey Falls? Why turn away from the spotlight? Why now? There has to be more to the story, and I want you to figure out what that is.”
I knew where she was going with this, and I was racking my brain for an excuse as to why this wasn’t the job for me.
“Me?” I questioned. “Are you sure?”
“Are you kidding? You’re the only person I want to write this.
I know that not only will you write the best story”—she leaned over her desk, leaving only a few inches between us—“but you’re the only one I can trust to be professional about it.
The same can’t be said for everyone on this team.
And that stays between you and me,” she said, raising an eyebrow in my direction before allowing more space to come between us.
“Of course.”
“So, that means you’ll do it?”
Fuck. Scarlett, what have you done. How could I say no now?
I’d just spouted out how happy I was to help in any capacity; I couldn’t turn around and say no.
And what excuse would I even give her? Sorry, I can’t.
I actually told Stetson to go fuck whoever he wanted to because I wasn’t interested in him, despite the fact that I am very interested.
“I’ll do it.”
“I knew I could count on you.”
“When do you want me to start?” I asked.
Her eyes peered up from behind her large, framed glasses. “Today. He’s expecting you this morning actually.”
“Great.” I gritted my teeth. “I’ll get my stuff packed up and head that way.”
“Perfect. I really can’t wait to see what you come up with. I’m just so interested in how this story will play out.”
“Yeah…” I paused. “Me too.”
The lump in my throat still hadn’t subsided as I climbed into my Jeep.
“Why are you so freaked out?” I asked out loud, throwing my bag into the passenger seat.
I put my hands on my forehead and massaged my temples, trying to calm my nervous system because quite frankly I was spiraling, both from anxiety and something else that whirled at the base of my stomach.
The warmth radiating from my black leather seats wrapped my body in a much-needed embrace.
“This isn’t that big of a deal. You’re going to write an article on someone. Your job is to find the story to the best of your ability, and then write about it. That’s it,” I said, doing my best to convince myself but finding doubt lingering everywhere.
I knew it wasn’t going to be that simple, but I had to do my job because Donna was counting on me. And she was right, I could be professional about it, which was exactly what I planned to do. “Let’s go get another damn wall-hanger article,” I said, trying to hype myself up with a half-assed laugh.
If I didn’t laugh, I might combust.
The drive to Rolling Meadows calmed me like always.
Winter had settled over our little town and the low-hanging trees that lined the winding road were bare but still brought a sense of peace with them.
Everything may have been in hibernation, but it felt cozy everywhere you looked.
The low hum of the radio quieted some of my intruding thoughts, leaving me space to think.
Donna insisted there was more to Stetson’s story, and while I didn’t necessarily disagree with her, I wasn’t sure the best way to go about retrieving that information, especially from someone like him.
He was cocky, and after Saturday night, who knew how he was going to respond to me showing up asking questions.
I remembered back to the first night we met.
The conversation in the darkness, under the stars, that felt different from the rest. For those few moments, he’d been vulnerable, honest, and seemingly unafraid of what I might think.
But then again, his words were disguised behind the safety he felt from the cover of darkness.
If I was going to figure out the real reason he was hell-bent on being here in Quincey Falls, away from the spotlight, then I needed to find that Stetson again. The one from the night we first met.