16. Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Sixteen
Will
The meeting at town hall goes better than expected. With the town currently without a mayor and the town council running things while they sort through the legal mess left behind by the former mayor, we don’t have any issues with our business proposal.
The curved-ceiling building looks the same, its architecture still reminiscent of Art Deco, but the atmosphere feels different. Better. Less stressful.
The council members smile at us and genuinely listen to our proposal for the cafe, reviewing our request and giving us the proper forms to fill out.
The process is basically seamless. Even after we complete the paperwork and bring in all of our required documents, we still have to wait for everything to be processed.
We do get some good news, though. We’re allowed to operate temporarily as partners.
If we successfully complete the trial period, which has replaced the former process of the mayor picking and choosing which businesses received approval, we’ll be able to prove what we bring to the table instead of having it handed to us.
After the meeting, we head back to the cafe. The town hall building is only a couple of blocks away, so we decide to walk. It’s a sunny day, with humid air blowing around us as we walk side by side.
Lizzie tilts her head back, smiling as she soaks in the summer sunshine. I stifle a chuckle as I watch her.
She looks so free. Her curly hair is pulled back into a high, neat ponytail. Her blazer is draped over her arm, and her short-sleeved blouse is tucked into a pair of fitted dress pants.
Her kitten heels click softly against the sidewalk as she walks beside me, and I realize I don’t get to see her dressed up very often.
She dresses up for church, of course, but most days we’re both in our work clothes, wearing all black with aprons tied around our waists. She looks beautiful then too.
But seeing her like this...seeing her happy, smiling up at the sky, lost in her own little world, enjoying the sunshine and the good news we’d gotten about the cafe and becoming partners. It makes me notice her beauty even more.
Then she looks over at me. We stop at a crosswalk, waiting for the light to change, and I realize I’ve been staring at her. Thinking about her.
Which is exactly what I shouldn’t be doing. I try to play it off by slipping one hand into the pocket of my dress pants while adjusting the cardigan draped over my arm.
I look ahead, pretending to check whether the light has changed. My phone buzzes in my pocket. I tense instantly.
I don’t even want to reach for it because I already know who it could be. My sister telling me she misses me and that I need to talk to our parents. My mom telling me I need to forgive my dad and come back home. Or my dad telling me he’s cutting me off and wants nothing to do with me.
It’s always something with my family.
The crazy part is that being away from them, standing here with Lizzie in the sunshine, and walking back to the cafe make everything back home feel like it happened in another life.
And I like this new life. One where I feel free and happy here in Selah Falls.
One where Lizzie is right next to me.
Wait. What am I thinking?
My heart starts to beat a little faster, and now I’m looking down at the ground as we walk because these thoughts are coming a little more often than I’d like to admit.
And I can’t think about Lizzie like that. I can’t have real feelings for her. I’m not sure how to go about all of this.
“What?” Lizzie asks because apparently I took another sneak peek at her without realizing it. “Do I have a stain on my shirt or something?”
“No. You look perfect,” I say, then instantly regret it.
But I can tell by the look on her face that she thinks I’m just poking fun at her. I smile because that’s what we do. It’s easier to slip back into our usual bickering than let myself think dangerous thoughts.
Thoughts like, maybe I should tell her she’s beautiful without joking or taking it back. But I can’t do that.
So instead I say, “You already knew that. You were just waiting for me to tell you. No, scratch that. You weren’t waiting for me to tell you because you don’t listen to anything I say anyway.”
“All of those things are correct, and no lies were told.” Lizzie laughs. “So tell me, how does it feel to actually be business partners now? I know technically we’re doing a trial period, but I think we’re going to be okay. I mean, how could they not see that this is a good fit?”
A good fit. Those words echo in my mind. It’s funny because when I first came to town, becoming somebody’s business partner was never something I was looking for.
I’d left a family business behind. And a proposed arranged marriage. I wasn’t looking for any kind of partnership besides one that benefited me. Then I met Lizzie. And all of that changed.
“I feel...” I trail off, lost in my thoughts again.
Why am I thinking so much? I usually know what to say. I always do. But somehow I’m starting to get tongue-tied because all of my thoughts keep leading back to her.
“I feel... like our plan is going to work.”
We pass by a group of townspeople. Mixed into the crowd are Nic’s mom and dad along with a few other familiar, friendly faces. They stop to greet us. Nic’s parents excitedly hug Lizzie and chat with us for a minute before continuing their walk with what looks like their senior walking group.
As they head farther down the sidewalk, I realize the way Nic’s parents kept glancing between Lizzie and me. And how close we were standing. Close enough that my hand almost brushed hers.
They didn’t say anything about it. But I’m pretty sure Nic’s mom gave Lizzie a look. As we cross another street, getting closer to the town square where all the shops and the cafe are, I glance over at her.
“So... what was that look?”
“Oh, you mean Mrs. Caraway?” she asks. “She definitely thinks she’s a matchmaker.
Do you remember how that whole thing went down in the fall with Nic and Jay?
Well, I know you know most of the details, but she definitely had a hand in it.
If I let her, she’d probably try to push us together too.
But I think seeing us together like this outside of work may have gotten her thinking. ”
“Which is good, right?” I ask. “I mean, technically we’re still working, so does this really count as a couple outing? Shouldn’t we plan an official date or something?”
“Yes, we should,” Lizzie says, nodding. “But it’s also the little things.
See how close we’re walking? I’m doing that on purpose because people in this town notice things.
If they see us walking this close together and they already know we work together, some people are probably already wondering if we’re dating.
Then they’ll just assume we’re more than friends and coworkers.
I do think we need to amp it up a bit, but like you said, an official date would really help.
And announcing it to our friends would definitely help too. ”
“You really think seeing us walk this close together is going to make people think we’re actually a couple?” I ask.
Inside, though, I’m thinking about how walking close wasn’t an accident. It’s something Lizzie intentionally did. Not because she wanted to but because it made us look like the fake couple we are pretending to be.
For some reason, that makes me feel a little salty. Which is not something I can dwell on right now. Or ever.
“You know what?” Lizzie says. “I actually don’t think making some big announcement to our friends is necessary because once Nic’s mom and dad saw us together, they’re definitely going to ask Nic about it.
Then Nic is going to ask me about it, and she’s going to ask Jay about it.
Then our whole friend group will be talking.
And not just the friend group, but her parents, their friends, and basically everybody else.
Because in this town, everybody talks, everybody knows your name or knows of you, and everybody knows your business. Allegedly.”
Lizzie’s phone buzzes as we reach the cafe. I pull the door open for her and let her step inside first. She pulls her phone from her pocket and looks down at the screen. She stops in the doorway so suddenly that I almost walk into her.
“Whoa,” I say. “Are you all right?”
“Look,” she says, pushing her phone into my face.
I see a text in her group chat with Nic and Jane.
Nic: Oh, what is this I hear about you and Will??? My mom texted me.
“I can’t believe Nic’s mom told her that fast,” I say, scratching my head in disbelief.
“What did I tell you about this town?” Lizzie replies, looking back at me. “We should plan to tell the crew at the wedding fitting. They’re really the ones we need to convince that this relationship is real first.”
As she walks into the cafe and waves at Wolfsheim, who’s been working at the front counter while we were at our meeting this morning, I can’t help but think that our friends aren’t the only ones we have to convince.
Because I’m trying to convince myself too. That none of this is real. That we have a plan. And that I have to stick to it.
Wolfsheim takes one look at me, grinning as he flashes that gold tooth of his.
“Do I even have to ask, Will?”
“I don’t even know where to start,” I say with a sigh.
***
Later that day, I finally get the courage to check my phone. I’ve got a few text messages I haven’t responded to. One from Mom. One from my sister. None from Dad.
Then there’s another one. One I hadn’t thought about. It’s from my ex-fiancée, Caroline Bingley.
Caroline: Miss me?
I begrudgingly reply, getting sucked into a conversation I do not want to have.
Me: Don’t start.
Caroline: You act like I’m the enemy here.
Me: It’s not about you, Caroline. Don’t do this now.
Caroline: What am I doing, Will? I’m reaching out because you ghosted me.
Me: I didn’t ghost you. I left because of the drama.
Caroline: So you and I are still a thing?
Me: We were never a thing.
Caroline: We could have been. If you had stayed.
Me: Why? You don’t want me. You don’t love me. It was a business deal for our families and their businesses. You know that.
Caroline: What I know is that you didn’t even give us a chance, Will.
Me: I’m sorry, Caroline. I didn’t mean to hurt you.
Caroline: Yeah, well, you moving to that little town and shacking up with some barista isn’t exactly an upgrade, you know.
Me: What?
Caroline: Don’t act clueless now. My brother saw you. He lives there too. Don’t you remember Charlie? Us Bingleys aren’t just in Chicago. And you got caught red-handed.
Me: I’m not getting caught because I’m not doing anything wrong here.
Caroline: Yeah, well, if you think dating that girl will make your family happy, you’ve got another thing coming.
Charlie married that girl’s sister, and you know what happened?
He was left out of our father’s will. He gets nothing, and I get everything when father dies.
Sucks for Charlie. If you follow in his footsteps, you’ll end up just like him.
I stop replying to her texts. She wants me to be angry. Well, she succeeded. I am angry now.
I can’t believe this. Her brother lives here, and he’s married to one of Lizzie’s sisters? Which sister?
I don’t even know. I don’t know her family that well. I met her sisters and her parents before, but I haven’t spent as much time with them. I spend more time with her and our friends. That has to change.
I head back to Lizzie’s office from the kitchen, taking my apron off as I go. Her office door is propped open, and she’s typing on a laptop with a stack of invoices next to it on her desk.
“Hey. What’s up, Darcy?” she asks when she glances over at me through her blue-light glasses.
“You know how we’re making an announcement to our friends later?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“We need to do a family announcement too.”
She stops typing and looks over at me.
“Well, yes. We should. Though, I thought we should talk to our friends first. But my family may find out soon if I don’t hurry up and tell them myself.”
“Let’s start with your family. I think it will help our story, especially since my ex-fiancée is related to your brother-in-law.”
“What?” she asks, dumbfounded as she leans back in her chair. “I didn’t know that. Are you sure she’s related to Charlie Bingley?”
“That’s his name. I know you have mentioned him, but I haven’t seen him around town yet. But she says she’s his sister, and that he told her you and I were shacking up here in this small town.”
“No,” she says, gawking at me. “Charlie and my sister travel a lot for work. You wouldn’t see them around much. But this is so messy. And so unlike Charlie.”
“Something tells me there’s a lot we don't know about the Bingleys.”
I think about it for a moment. How could I have let that slip by me? Bingley. I knew that name. That family.
I avoided them in the past because my parents were so determined to push Caroline and me together. Charlie and I went to middle school together, but we never really hung out. I knew of them, but I never really knew them.
“Well,” Lizzie says, picking up her phone from the desk and firing off a text, “I guess we’re about to find out.
I’m hosting dinner at my place after the wedding fitting tonight.
I can invite Janet and Charlie too. And Mama wants me to bring my new boyfriend over for family dinner this week, which she insists on having Monday instead of Sunday, despite the fact that the wedding is happening this weekend.
But I guess I should be grateful. She stopped sending me dating apps.
She also sent me a very long text message saying she thanked God that I have a man, but she was disappointed that she didn’t get to pick him out for me. ”