Chapter 16 Hailey
HAILEY
Hailey was up at the crack of dawn the next day to run to the train station and pick up Caspian.
Waiting on the platform as the train pulled in, she cinched her coat more tightly around herself and felt thankful that she wasn’t walking around the city every day anymore. She had a lot of less than fond memories of the wet New York cold soaking into her bones every time she left her apartment.
“Hailey, my love,” Caspian cried, spotting her the second he got off the train.
He looked the same as always, his blond hair slicked back, blue eyes twinkling over his red scarf. She went to him and smiled when he pulled her into a warm hug.
“This place is really something,” he said, looking around.
Hailey always thought Trinity Falls was beautiful, but seeing it from Caspian’s point-of-view made the snow-frosted shops seem even more charming, and gave her a new appreciation for the slow pace of the people window-shopping and stopping to chat on the freshly shoveled sidewalks.
“It’s my hometown,” she told him proudly. “And it’s every bit as nice as it looks. I’m so excited to get started. I thought we would go meet Mallory at the bakery first and have you taste some things. What do you think?”
“Sounds amazing,” he told her. “I was up too early for breakfast, so I’m positively famished.”
“You’ll definitely be glad you’re visiting her on an empty stomach,” Hailey assured him. “And we’ll have the bakery to ourselves. She’s opening early just for us.”
“I don’t need the celebrity treatment, Hailey,” Caspian said, his handsome face suddenly worried.
“She doesn’t know who my potential client is,” Hailey told him, winking.
“Oh, that’s fun,” he said with a smile. “Though I don’t know, do people out here even watch soap operas?”
“More of them than you would think,” she told him as they walked down the platform and crossed Park Avenue.
“Well, they probably just want to cheer for their hometown girl,” Caspian said with a smile.
“You might be a little bit right about that,” she said with a smile.
They were just passing by Scandinavian Sundries when she spotted Reggie Webb standing outside.
“Oh, good heavens,” he said. “Is this who I think it is?”
“Are you a fan of Ridley Hospital, sir?” Caspian asked politely.
“I was until they killed off my favorite character,” Reggie said with a frown.
“Agreed,” Caspian replied, wrapping a friendly arm around Hailey’s shoulders. “I was hoping they’d give us a romance plot line, BeeBee deserves it.”
“Sure does,” Reggie said, his eyebrows slanting up as he broke into a smile.
“We’ve got to head to the bakery,” Hailey told Reggie.
“They’re not open yet,” he pointed out, turning back to Caspian.
“Mal is doing a special tasting for us,” Hailey said. “Isn’t that nice of her?”
“Sure is,” Reggie said, still looking at Caspian.
“Would you like an autograph, sir?” Caspian asked him.
“Oh, there’s no need for all that,” Reggie said, but Hailey could tell he didn’t mean it.
“Hang on,” Caspian said, pulling a headshot and a pen out of his messenger bag. “What’s your name, sir?”
“Reginald Webb, Jr.,” Reggie told him.
Caspian scrawled out a quick message.
“It was an honor to meet you, sir,” he said as he handed it over. “You have a beautiful town here.”
“Thank you,” Reggie said gruffly, looking almost speechless for the first time Hailey could remember.
They passed a few more people as they headed for the bakery. No one else stopped them, but Hailey couldn’t help noticing a few knowing smiles or hearing the whispers as soon as they passed.
“It’s a real ego boost living here, huh?” Caspian said.
Hailey laughed and knocked on the door to the bakery. A moment later, Mal came to open it for them.
“Hey, guys. Come on in,” she said warmly, then stopped in her tracks when she saw who Hailey had brought. “No way.”
“I’m Caspian,” he said needlessly.
“Yeah, of course,” Mal said, shaking her head with a big smile on her face. “You could have warned me, Hailey.”
“I didn’t want you getting nervous,” Hailey teased. “I want him to taste your best work.”
“If it tastes anything like how it smells in here, you’re hired,” Caspian told her.
“Have a seat,” Mal said, smiling back and looking a little more relaxed. “Coffee, tea, juice, water?”
“Coffee, please,” Caspian said. “Lots of milk and sugar.”
“You’ve got it,” Mal told him. “And Hailey, I know how you like yours.”
She scooted off to the back, leaving Caspian and Hailey alone at the table.
“So, is this going to be for your birthday?” she asked him. “Or your girlfriend’s?”
“My fiancée’s,” he said proudly. “I asked her a few days ago. I just couldn’t wait for Christmas. And it’s not really a birthday party, it’s an engagement party.”
“Oh, Caspian, that’s wonderful,” she told him, squeezing his hand across the table. “Tell me you have pictures.”
“Of course I have pictures,” he laughed, pulling out his phone. “She made me promise not to post on my socials until Christmas, but I can show you.”
Caspian had been madly in love with Regina, his hair and makeup artist, ever since Hailey started on the show.
And she was clearly into him, but she had sworn she would never date an actor.
For a while, she wouldn’t give him the time of day, which probably only made him pursue her more ardently.
Everyone in the cast had been rooting for them.
It was like their own real-life soap opera.
When Regina finally said yes to a single date, Caspian had been over the moon.
Hailey was so glad that it had worked out for them. They were a happy couple, sure to be even happier now that they were tying the knot. And the engagement photos were adorable.
“Okay,” Mal said, coming back with a tray of coffee and fixings. “I brought some syrups as well, in case you feel like a little hazelnut or chocolate.”
“Perfect,” Caspian said, pouring a waterfall of chocolate syrup into his already sweetened coffee. Hailey figured he must live at the gym since he was so fond of his sweets and junk food. Mal had definitely found the way to his heart.
“I’ll be right back,” Mal told them.
“Oh, I can’t wait to see what she brings out,” Caspian said, adding a little more chocolate to his coffee.
When Mal appeared with a massive board of cheeses, meats, breads, and pastries Caspian’s jaw dropped.
“I hope we don’t have any place else to be,” he told Hailey.
“Actually, I thought you might like to meet my contact for flowers,” she told him. “But we’re not on a timeline.”
“I heard there’s a storm on the way,” Mal ventured.
“A storm?” Hailey asked.
“That’s a bother. I can’t get snowed in here,” Caspian said. “I have to shoot in the morning.”
“Weatherman on the radio said starting around two,” Mal told him.
“That’s plenty of time to eat, visit with Sage, and still come out and see the farm,” Hailey told him. “We’ll have you out again on the noon train.”
“Isn’t she the best?” Caspian said to Mal, gesturing toward Hailey.
“She is the best,” Mal said thoughtfully.
Later that morning, as Hailey drove Caspian back through the snowy fields of Trinity Falls countryside to the village to catch his train, the light flurries that had been falling all day began to pick up.
“Oh, look at that,” Caspian said, gazing out the window.
“I guess you’re leaving just in time,” Hailey told him. “Did you get all your questions answered today?”
“And then some,” Caspian assured her.
“Excellent,” she said, making the turn onto Ambler.
Hopefully, he had liked everything. But if what he wanted was more elegant, or different in some way, then it was better that she knew. Hailey wanted to exceed expectations.
At last, they pulled up in town and walked over to the train platform together.
“Thank you so much for everything, Hailey,” Caspian said, taking her by the hands. “I’m ready to commit, to the venue, the food, the flowers, and whatever else you think we’ll want.”
“Thank you so much, Caspian,” Hailey said, flying into his arms as she fought back tears of gratitude. “I appreciate it so much.”
“Oh, me too,” he told her. “And I wouldn’t book it if I didn’t think Regina would love it. I can’t mess things up with her now.”
Hailey laughed through her tears and pulled back to smile at him.
“I’ll run every detail past you,” she promised him. “We’ll make it perfect.”
“I’ve seen what you have to offer, Hailey,” he said. “And I trust you. Just go with your instincts. I can’t wait for the big day.”
The train was pulling up, so there was no time for her to tell him again how much she appreciated his confidence in her.
But she was pretty sure he knew.
As she waved goodbye, she promised herself she would make Caspian and Regina’s engagement party the most beautiful event imaginable.
Everything was really coming together for her.
Everything in her professional life, at least…