2. Laurel
Laurel
SOMEWHERE IN THE back of my mind I’d known this day would come.
I’d dreamed about it, had practice conversations where I’d try to guess what would be said so I’d have something witty and brilliant to come up with.
But never could I have imagined this scenario.
The one where I was working that bastard Harry’s wake, and in walked the long-lost Chamberlin son, perfect as ever—Noah.
It’d been years since I’d last seen him, but there was no mistaking who I was looking at, as the boy who had once stolen—and then broken—my heart walked across the threshold of the tasting room and scanned the people standing inside of it.
Oh, he looked different enough. His thick chestnut hair was a little longer on top now than he used to keep it.
He was sporting thick stubble along a jaw line that had definitely changed from boyish to masculine, and the immaculate black suit he’d chosen to wear was so well tailored to his body that it outlined his broad shoulders and waist to breathtaking perfection.
Yes, he looked different. But not so much that my body didn’t recognize him the second my eyes did, because suddenly, it was really hot in here.
“Did I miss something?” Willa, my good friend and owner of the local B&B, said, as she popped the last bite of her cheese and spinach quiche in her mouth. “Why is everyone suddenly— Oh…”
Yes. Oh.
“Is that who I think it is?”
Willa knew exactly who it was, even if she was one of the only people standing in the room who didn’t actually know him in person.
Noah had been long gone by the time Wilhelmina Sinclair arrived in Chamberlin.
But she’d heard the stories, since gossip was part and parcel of a town this size.
Add in the fact that Noah came from the wealthiest family, which also happened to be the namesake of said town, and, well, rumors were bound to fly.
One of those rumors had been his appearance today. I hadn’t wanted to believe it. The idea of Noah being back after all this time caused an unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach, and I still hadn’t decided the root cause of it. Betrayal, hurt, anxiety…?
I looked around for one of the waitstaff with the champagne flutes, but of course there was no one in sight. It was probably for the best anyway. I shouldn’t be drinking, since I was the one running this thing.
“Laurel?”
Oh, right, Willa had just asked me something.
“Sorry.” I somehow managed to tear my eyes away from the man still standing in the doorway. “What did you say?”
“I asked if that was Noah. But judging by the ghostly hue of your complexion, that’s a yes.”
I quickly grabbed her arm and tugged her toward the open door, deciding that maybe some cool air would do me good.
“Laurel? Laurel,” she said, as we came to a stop off to one side of the deck. But I wasn’t listening. I was too busy trying to process everything I’d just seen.
Noah was here. Here . Back in Chamberlin. Back in my immediate orbit, and shit—suddenly I couldn’t breathe.
“Okay, why don’t you take a seat? You don’t look so good.”
I didn’t doubt it. I’d gone from hot to cold in the blink of an eye, and my knees felt as though they were going to give out any second. Willa guided me to one of the bench seats that bordered the back deck, and once I was down, I feared I’d never get back up again.
“Heeey.” She sat down beside me and rubbed a soothing palm over my back. “It’s okay. Take a deep breath in and then let it out.”
I did as she said, but all I could think about was how long I’d waited for this day and how much I’d dreaded it. Damn these conflicting emotions—they were doing nothing to help settle my nerves.
“So, okay, that’s Noah. Holy shit, Laurel. You didn’t say he looked like that .”
Because he hadn’t looked like that. When I’d last seen him, he looked like the all-American boy. The golden child with a charming smile and eyes that looked right into your soul. He’d been sweet and kind and had broken hearts everywhere he went, and eventually he’d broken mine.
I took in another shaky breath and then let it out, trying to calm the nerves that had twisted my stomach into knots. “I told you he looked like Ryan. They used to always get asked if they were twins.”
“Ryan?” Willa laughed. “I hate to break it to you, but that man in there looks nothing like Ryan. That man owns a suit. I’m pretty sure Ryan wouldn’t even know where to buy a suit.”
That was true. I didn’t think I’d ever seen Ryan in anything other than a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt. And as for Noah? I guess I was still thinking of the boy who’d lived in shorts, shirts, and baseball caps. Not the man who’d just arrived back in town looking as put together as GQ model.
“Okay, so they dress differently. But other than that, the similarities are pretty clear.”
Willa peered around my shoulder, her straight black hair falling around her face as she scrunched up her pert nose. “Hmm, I’m not seeing it. Maybe it was more obvious when they were younger, but now? No way. That man in there oozes sophistication. Ryan is homegrown through and through.”
I braved another glance over my shoulder and braced myself against the barrage of emotions I knew would slam into me again.
Noah had moved into the center of the room now, and while it was close to full, it wasn’t difficult to spot him. With everyone gathering on the periphery, he might as well have had a spotlight on him, and damn what a vision he made.
I quickly turned away in fear he’d look in my direction, and tried to regain control of my erratic heart.
This wasn’t how I was supposed to feel. Where were all of my carefully rehearsed lines and conversation openers?
I wished someone would tell me, because they’d suddenly all vanished from my mind.
“Uh, do you want me to go and get you some water?” Willa got to her feet. “Or maybe something a little stronger?”
“No.” I reached for her hand. “Don’t leave.”
“Okay, I won’t. I just thought some liquid courage might help with the situation.”
“Courage?” I sat up a little straighter. “What do I need courage for?”
Willa looked around the empty part of the deck where we were huddled then shrugged. “No reason.”
So I was hiding. Or trying the best I could to vanish in plain sight.
But what other option did I have? This was the last place I wanted my reunion with Noah to happen.
Largely because we were surrounded by everyone who lived in Chamberlin, and after my disastrous teens, I’d spent my entire adult life making sure I gave them no reason to include me in the local morning gossip.
“I’m fine. It’s just a shock to see him after all this time, that’s all.”
“Sweetie.” Willa took both my hands and squeezed. “You don’t have to explain yourself to me.”
“I know, but—”
“There’s no but. If you want to talk, we can talk. If you want to leave, I’ll make up some kind of emergency and we can leave. I’m here for whatever, and if you want to get fall-on-your-ass drunk, we can do that too.”
That made me laugh. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d gotten fall-on-my-ass drunk. But if ever there was a time for it, that time would be now.
“Well, if it isn’t two of the prettiest girls in town.”
Speaking of fall-on-your-ass drunk, I turned to see Justin Chamberlin draping his leather-clad arms over the deck railing.
Of all the brothers, Justin was best known for his…conquests around town. His day-old scruff and the strong scent of whiskey that wafted off him pretty much confirmed that he’d stopped off at his local haunt after the funeral.
I had to admit, I envied him for that. The likelihood he’d remember much of this tomorrow was minimal.
“What are you two doin’ out here? The party’s in there.”
I grimaced at the obvious sarcasm. The pain of losing a parent—even one you weren’t particularly fond of—was something I knew about firsthand.
I’d lost my mother right out of high school, and it had been brutal.
It had taken a long time for me to come to grips with her no longer being in my life, and to this day I still found myself wondering what she would do whenever things got too tough.
I tried to rack my brain for some sort of excuse as to why we were out here. But when nothing came, Justin’s attention caught on the commotion inside, and he rolled his eyes.
“Ah, okay, he’s here and we’re hiding .”
“I’m not hiding.”
“Do you care if I do?” He ran a hand through his messy, chin-length hair, and then took another look over my shoulder before shaking his head. “Of course he has to look all I’ve got it together and shit. Would it really have been so much to ask that he was a little less than perfect?”
I had to admit, I’d been thinking the exact same thing.
Justin patted the pocket of his jacket in search of his ever-present cigarettes. “Is Ryan here yet?”
Willa shook her head. “Haven’t seen him since earlier. He said he had to come back and check on something with the vines.”
“Great. At least tell me Bree stayed.”
I nodded. “She did. The last time I saw her, she was trying to talk one of my guys into a bottle of scotch.”
Justin chuckled. “Sounds like her.”
“It does. But if you could kindly ask her to do it when I’m not in charge, that would be amazing. The last thing I need is your mother thinking I’m handing out alcohol to your underage sister.”
“Pretty sure she’d get a pass today.”
I was pretty sure Brianna Chamberlin would get a pass every day, being the youngest in the family and the only girl. But that didn’t mean I’d be responsible for liquoring her up.
“Either way, you might want to go and track her down before she gets into any trouble.”
Justin gave a mock salute and then pushed off the railing, and as he made his way up the stairs and across the deck, Willa leaned into me.
“You do realize you just sent Justin to keep his sister out of trouble, right?”
I nodded, but my attention had once again focused on the man who had taken the spotlight off the man who’d been buried today.
“Laurel?”
“Huh?”
“You want to head back inside?”
Yes. “No. I think I’m just going to sit out here a little longer. You don’t mind, do you?”
Willa took my hand and squeezed again. “Not in the least. Take all the time you need. Or, you know, until Emily comes looking for you wondering why her daughter is dancing drunk on one of the tables.”
I whipped my head around, horrified at the thought.
“Not ready for jokes just yet? Okay. We’ll just sit here until you feel like heading back inside.”
That sounded better. Much better. Maybe by that time, Noah would’ve slipped out and left town without us even having to speak to one another—after all, it wouldn’t be the first time.