Chapter 16 Rowe
Rowe
Pane’s wearing my dad’s old boots. They fit him like a glove. Well, at least that’s what he says. But personally, from the way his voice sounded pinched when he told me, I’m pretty sure they’re too small.
Too big on me and too tight on him. Those boots only fit one man, and he’s gone.
But there’s no time to dwell on the past, because Pane’s standing in the lumberyard of Mystic Meadows Hardware, geared up and ready to saw.
Again.
My heart’s thundering. The entire town’s back, holding their collective breath in anticipation. Even Coleman Barrier’s watching the spectacle from start to finish.
I cross my fingers, praying that Pane knocks this out of the park.
He takes up position, grabs the chain saw’s pull start, and yanks it hard. My heart leaps into my throat.
Please let it fire up on the first try.
It does.
The chain saw rumbles to life. Clarice Sinclair elbows me in the arm. “He’s off to a good start.”
Don’t ask me how these people organize so quickly. But however they spread messages—group chat, carrier pigeon—whatever it is, it works.
Cristina is the one person who isn’t here, though. She had errands to run. But she made me promise to keep her posted on Pane’s progress.
Speaking of which, he moves to cut the first log. The hairs on the back of my neck prickle to attention. It takes a minute to realize my physical response isn’t from nerves. It feels like someone’s watching me. I snap my head to the right and stiffen.
Luke’s here, and he’s got Sally Ray beside him. He sees me see him, and his gaze zooms away, back to Pane.
“What’re they doing here?” Clarice sneers.
“Whole town showed up. I’m sure they heard about him through the grapevine,” I grumble.
But it does tick me off that Luke’s hovering about like a mosquito, just waiting to stick his little needle mouth into my farm and suck it dry.
“There he goes,” Clarice says.
Ron, who’s on my other side, edges closer to me.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“Trying to make sure Sally Ray don’t see me. If she knows I left the feedstore for this, she’ll have my ass.”
“It’s not like anyone’s gonna be buying feed right now anyway,” Clarice tells him. “Not when we got entertainment like this in front of us—strapping young man about to cut some logs.” She pumps her brows. “If you know what I mean.”
That may have been the grossest sexual innuendo I’ve ever heard. “I don’t know what you mean, Clarice—oh, here he goes.”
Pane’s chain saw slices through the first log like it’s a hot knife sliding through butter. A dinner knife, to be exact.
He does the same with the second log. But the third one is tilted, and I hope he remembers what I told him about pinching.
But Pane must be feeling invincible, because he begins to saw straight down.
The bar’s going to get pinched, I just know it. Please, please, I don’t want Pane to snap another chain saw, and I don’t want to witness Coleman Barrier flipping out again.
There will be no third chance if that happens.
He lowers the blade, and for a moment it stops moving. But then, behind Pane, another log lifts slightly, raising the cedar he’s cutting through and releasing the stress on the chain saw.
Holy cow. The magic in the land just saved Pane Maddox’s butt. Wait . . . the magic in the land isn’t here. It doesn’t exist here anymore.
What is going on? How did that happen?
Before there’s time to question what I just saw (perhaps it was my mind playing tricks on me?) the chain saw cuts all the way through the log, and I exhale, relieved.
I glance over at Luke, who’s scowling. If nothing else good happens today, just seeing him annoyed that I’m winning, that I may have a shot at keeping the farm, is enough to boost my spirits.
Twenty minutes in, and half the logs are cut.
Forty minutes in, and Pane kills the saw, every log now a cedar post.
I’m biting my lower lip, I’m so nervous. Surely Coleman Barrier has to see how awesome this is, that Pane is deserving.
“Wonder what Coleman’s gonna make him do now?” Clarice says. “Swing from a tree?”
“Don’t joke,” Ron tells her, his tone serious. “I’ve seen him put new employees through a rigorous physical workout that included monkey bars.”
“He’s going to give him what we need,” I murmur. “He will.”
“Long as that Rowe Wadley bad luck doesn’t set in,” I hear someone in the crowd say.
Pane yanks the helmet off his head, and his eyes instantly latch on to mine. I smile and give him a double thumbs-up.
I must be losing my mind to congratulate such a pain in my butt.
He begins stalking forward, his gaze zeroed in on me, and it feels like the world’s shrinking, like Pane Maddox is the only person who exists. He’s even shut out thoughts of all my cute little piggycorns. Really, when they lick your feet it’s the best. Feeling. Ever.
Pane’s smiling now, really smiling, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a man look so handsome. His eyes sparkle with joy. His lips are spread wide, revealing those perfect teeth.
He’s almost to the fence when Coleman steps out. “Finished, huh?” he says, all burly and manly, like he doesn’t take crap from nobody. “Let me have a look.”
“Yes, sir,” Pane says as Coleman sweeps past him and inspects his work, one painstaking log at a time.
The crowd remains quiet. All of us watch in anticipation as the hardware store owner’s gaze brushes up and down the logs in search of any nitpicky thing he can use to prove that Pane doesn’t deserve praise.
Even from this distance, it’s obvious the hotel magnate has done a fantastic job, one to be proud of.
When Coleman’s finished inspecting, he makes his way back to where Pane’s been standing quietly. He’s taken off his gear and piled it up beside him. Now he’s just in his jeans, a tight shirt, and my dad’s boots.
“Well? What do you think?” he asks.
Coleman slides a hand down his face in thought. “You did a pretty good job.”
“I cut on every mark.”
“Sure did. It almost makes up for the bar you broke.”
“Well, sometimes you must destroy in order to create. What I’m trying to do here in Mystic Meadows is new. Like I told you before, the project I’m working on will attract investors to the area.”
“How can you be sure?” Coleman taps his fingers on his belt impatiently. “That farm out there’s a mess. People pass by the Wadleys’ and head right on to Sally Ray’s because it’s nicer.”
Everyone in the crowd looks at me. My cheeks burn from shame. It’s one thing to know my farm’s a mess. It’s another to hear it from a local.
“Don’t you listen to him,” Clarice whispers. “He’s just a mean old coot whose wife only screws him when she wants something.”
I bite back a laugh. The thing is, Clarice is probably right. She knows a lot about a lot in this town. I give her shoulder a friendly squeeze in thanks.
I feel eyes on me and look over to see Luke staring and scowling. Oh, does this not play into his plans to steal my life? How unfortunate for him.
Pane nods to Coleman. “My vision is to change the public’s perception of not only the Wadley Farm but also this town. To do that, I’ll need supplies, and a lot of them.”
Coleman shifts his weight. “And you’re lean on cash,” he says, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “So how am I supposed to get paid? You don’t have money. As far as I’m concerned, maybe I’ll pay you for half a day’s work and that’s it.”
The entire crowd gasps. Except for Sally and Luke, that is. From their direction, the sound of snickering wafts through the air. They think they’ve won.
And from the satisfied smirk on Coleman’s face, it appears they have.
Even though I believed in the billionaire, what he needs seems as flimsy as paper in the face of reality.
How can he ask Coleman for supplies when he literally has nothing to offer other than his name—one he’s trying to keep a secret?
Even if Coleman knows who he is, people around here don’t care about the clout of a name. It’s what’s inside you that matters.
Pane slowly nods, and when he speaks, we all watch with bated breath, leaning in to catch every word.
“Mystic Meadows is less than two hours from Atlanta. My vision for the Wadley Farm will have everyone in the city clambering to come here, to fill every bed-and-breakfast in the area. They won’t be staying for the day.
They’ll be coming for the weekend. To house all of those people, hotels will need to go up.
Contractors will need lumber. Mystic Meadows Hardware will supply that. ”
There’s a definite shift in Coleman. He’s listening with interest, but his body’s still stiff with disbelief. He shakes his head. “And what can possibilities do? What does all that conjecture and fantasy have to do with me?”
Pane smiles confidently. “When I’m finished, my phone will be ringing off the hook. I have friends in this business.”
He places both hands on his hips. “Why don’t you get them to help you?”
I cringe. Coleman has Pane. What will he say?
But the billionaire doesn’t miss a beat.
“What I’m doing here needs to stay quiet until it’s ready.
But I have a lot of connections, wealthy men and women whose expertise is in development will be calling, wanting a point man.
That point man will be you.” He shrugs. “If you want the job, that is. But if you don’t think it’ll be worth it, then I’ll keep looking until I find a hardware store owner who is willing to take a small risk up front in order to reap benefits that will last . . . years.”
My jaw is on the ground from watching Pane suavely outmaneuver the arrogant Coleman Barrier. It’s funny—Coleman walked up thinking he held all the cards, but Pane has quickly shown that he possesses the power in this dynamic, and even Coleman seems to feel it.
The owner of Mystic Meadows Hardware sees the carrot Pane’s dangling in front of him, and he seems to want to take the bait, but his pride stops him.
He sinks back on his hip and shakes his head once more. “I need more than that.”
“What do you mean, you need more than that?” Hilary shouts. She runs up and grabs Coleman by the sleeve. “The man just said that you’ll be rich and famous! What more do you want?”
“Dammit, woman, I’m trying to negotiate here.”
Hilary points to Pane. “He’s done all the negotiatin’. What else you expecting?”
Yeah? What else is he expecting?
But Pane, who hasn’t even broken a sweat through this whole thing, leans in to Hilary and whispers something only she and Coleman can hear.
“Really?” she says to Pane, excitement filling her voice.
He nods. “Really.”
Half a beat later, she throws her arms up and yells loud enough for all downtown to hear, “You’ve got a deal!”