Chapter One #3
He cares. I know he does, of course. But a tiny piece of me, that middle school girl inside of me, wishes it could be more. He cares because he loves me. Not as a stepsister. Not as a roommate. As more.
“Of course you do. We’re family.” I smile hoping my voice doesn’t come out watery, but he doesn’t return it. “That’s what family does.”
His throat bobs as he nods once, those eyes roaming over my features a little longer than normal. “Yeah,” he murmurs, drumming his hands against the counter and pushing off it to put space between us. “That’s what they do.”
*
Fairbanks, Connecticut is a quaint little city that makes Pittsburgh pale in comparison.
With the area’s new NHL team, the Fairbanks Fireflies, it’s strengthened the local economy and boosted family-owned businesses.
There’s even talk of a billion-dollar grant being awarded for expansion projects that would bring in more dining and shopping options for the fifteen-thousand people who live here.
While I haven’t been a resident of Fairbanks for long, I’ve grown fond of the beautiful historic downtown and the stunning scenery surrounding the residential areas.
Unlike the city I called home for over ten years, this one has next to no litter or graffiti, and the street corners lack the homeless community I’d been used to stepping around whenever I’d leave our old complex.
The people here are kinder, and less rushed to go about their days. They’re more willing to have a conversation with you as you pass by their shops, rather than treat you like another customer bringing in revenue.
When Jesse told me he’d been offered a position on the Fireflies, I had no idea he was even considering leaving the Penguins.
He loved that team and everything he’d accomplished with them as their captain.
It wasn’t until he’d explained the details of the new contract that I saw the finality of his decision.
It was short term with the option to sign on by a season-by-season basis.
He’d made his mind up hoping I would understand, and I did.
I could see the exhaustion on his face, and realized I’d seen it for the past two seasons without truly acknowledging it.
While I’d been busy trying to keep Belle’s Place afloat, Jesse had been the face of the Penguins and taking his team to the finals while helping me on the side.
He’d had very little rest in between the two, and it was taking its toll.
He’d been weighing the pros and cons of retiring and thought moving to a new team may be a good way to go out.
When I told him weeks after he’d officially signed on with the Fireflies that I was selling Belle’s Place, there’d been…tension. He wasn’t happy about me giving up my dream restaurant, no matter the reasoning.
“We’ll figure it out,” he promises. “You don’t have to give anything up for me.”
The truth is, I wasn’t doing it for him.
Not entirely, anyway. Sure, he’d played a part.
But the end game was always for me and the future I wanted for myself.
I wanted to be successful at something, the same way he was at hockey.
Running a business that people raved about was equal to him winning a Stanley Cup.
Unfortunately, that sort of thing isn’t guaranteed to last. I accepted that Belle’s Place was at its end the same time he made career moves. We’ve always been in sync whether we mean to be or not.
We never broached the reason he seemed so upset by my choice to sell before we packed up our lives and left Pennsylvania for Connecticut.
He had training camp to go to, a house to purchase, and I had movers to hire for not only my restaurant but also the new place.
Eventually, he got over whatever bothered him as we settled into our new lives here.
My eyes go to the local realtor business card that I tucked in my purse before leaving for a short drive to clear my head.
Except, my aimless adventure leads me parked in front of the same storefront with a sign in the window that I’ve driven by almost every day this week like it’ll magically disappear.
And when I see the kind older woman whose card I’ve been staring at for the past hour begin peeling the sign off, my heart drops. I’m out of my car before I realize what I’m doing, tapping on the locked door to gain her attention.
“Hi, dear,” she greets, her smile a little confused. “Is everything all right?”
I point toward the sign in her hands with urgency in my tone. “Did somebody sign the lease for this building?”
Her smile softens. “It isn’t signed quite yet, but it will be by the end of the week. We have a meeting on Saturday.”
Heart plummeting to the bottom of my stomach, I say the first thing that comes to mind without allowing myself to process it first. “I’ll give you more than them.”
The older woman, Rae I believe, blinks at me in surprise. “I’m not sure, dear. Things seem pretty cemented with the other party. I don’t like going back on my word.”
“But you don’t have a signature yet,” I point out, hopeful. “I’m good for the money. I just needed time to think.”
Except, I didn’t really think. But my gut is telling me that I shouldn’t let this go. I would regret it.
Rae thinks about it, rubbing her lips. “Tell you what,” she bargains. “I would love to sit down and chat with you and get to know you a little better. Get a feel of what you want to do with this place. Do you have time now?”
I don’t, but I’ll make time. “Yes.”
She holds up her finger and grabs her purse and phone before locking the door behind us. “I know the perfect spot. Follow me.”