Chapter 16 Tate
tate
I let her avoid me for a week.
The longest damn week of my life. Mostly because I was still trying to get the last of the supplies in to set up the freaking village.
We finished out the weekend of Halloween, and the word of mouth had spread to surrounding areas, bringing new people in for the maze.
Now that I knew there was interest, I’d make sure next year was more organized.
It also gave me high hopes for the Winter Wonderland.
That was if I could get the sheds for the artists set up. I’d originally looked into doing little houses, but we didn’t actually need it to be that intense. In the end I just needed spaces that would allow the artists to display their wares safely and deck them out in their own style.
I had a handful of sheds already installed to show off the concept in videos to the artists I invited.
It had taken me months to tweak it until we found the perfect style, cement foundation, and size, but then I’d gotten it in my head to customize.
I was a jackass trying to do too much and now I was paying for it.
Molly ducked her head into the trailer. “Hey.”
I waved her in. “Please don’t tell me you have a problem.”
She grinned. “Actually, why don’t you come out here?”
I sighed and pushed out of my chair. The squeak was getting more intense. Pretty soon, it was going to fall apart when I sat down. That was a problem for another day. I followed her out of the trailer and down the steps and up the path. The sound of a forklift made my heart kick. “No way.”
“Yes.” She shook me. “The trucks got here a few hours ago.”
“And you didn’t come get me?” I’d been on the phone with the mayor for the last hour and could have used the escape.
“Because I wanted to be able to do this.” She ran around the back of me and pushed me forward. “Look! The first five sheds are placed, and Bill got the breaker box set up. We even have electricity.”
I ran a hand over the icy blue shed. I’d opted for a neutral blue palette for all of them.
Wintery and easily transformed into Christmas, but also easily transitioned to all year round if this crazy plan worked.
I opened the door and stepped inside. It was a simple room with French doors and a shiplap wall treatment.
The floor was a heavy duty vinyl that could withstand foot traffic, cold weather, and the inevitable salt and mud.
I’d spent an obscene amount of money to have a few upgrades. I didn’t want it to look like a cheap operation, but also I wanted it to be inviting enough to bring families as well as good paying customers.
It was a little tight for me, but this shed was one of the smaller ones. I made three sizes available to give me a good blueprint for a different array of artists.
I’d filled all twenty of the prototype sheds at a steep discount.
Instead of taking a portion of their sales, I went with either a two week or monthly rental fee. I wanted to give people as much of a chance at sales as I could and still make a profit. My pockets were deep, but it was amazing how expensive everything could be.
I’d sunk a staggering amount into repurposing the farm, grading the land for the sheds, and making a path for foot traffic.
In the far field, the lights were coming along.
After we’d broken down the Halloween maze, we started on the Haven Wonderland of Lights that would debut on the weekend following Thanksgiving.
It was a few weeks away, but it felt right on top of me at the same time.
I ducked my head to get out of the shed and smiled back at Molly who was jumping up and down. I ran over to her and swung her around in my arms.
She laughed and hugged me back.
She’d been with me from the start and was a huge reason why this whole thing was working. I set her down. “You’re getting a raise.”
“What?” She laughed and shoved me back. “You’re ridiculous. You already pay me too much.”
“I do not. This has been a bear.” I hooked an arm around her neck as we looked out over the three new ones that had been installed. “Freaking finally.”
She grinned up at me. “It’s really coming to life. We might just do this.”
“No, we are doing this.”
Her gaze flicked away from me and I followed her eyeline to where Valerie was standing with her arms folded tight to her chest. Her eyes were narrowed with anger. When she noticed me looking, her face smoothed out into a smile and she ran forward.
“Hell,” I muttered.
“She’s going to be trouble, Tate.”
“I know.” The volatile jealousy was barely hidden at this point, but I couldn’t fire her for an emotion. She was still one of the best on my team. While not great at the more physical aspects of the job, she did come up with good ideas on efficiency.
“This looks amazing.” Valerie came to stand a little too close to me. “I didn’t think they’d ever get here.”
“Think we all had the same nightmares about it.”
“Don’t you think we should have more of these little things?” She wiggled her fingers. “You could make so much more money if you packed them in here.”
“It’s not about that. It’s about the experience.”
Valerie rolled her eyes. “Says the man who is definitely not a businessman.”
“Not everything is about money.”
“Says the guy who has it.”
“And I didn’t for a long time. That’s why I want this to be about building community. The more people that come in to shop might just go into town while they’re here. It’s a win-win.”
Valerie bumped up that sweet smile. “Of course. You’re right. I’m going to take some video and put it up on our social pages.”
“That would be a good idea.” Annoyed that she tweaked my own worries about making this a financial success, I shoved my hands into my pockets.
“Don’t let her get in your head. This is your vision, Tate. If we want to add more retail spaces next year then we can. You’re right to make it special first, then you can iterate.”
Remembering Rachel’s advice from the orchard, I nodded. “You’re right. I’ll supervise, why don’t you take a break.”
Molly sighed. “All right. I could use some food.”
Throwing myself into the hard labor of installing the sheds let me shut off my brain for a little while.
It took most of the day to get them exactly where I wanted them.
The original blueprints looked good on paper, but in the actuality of the landscape of the pasture, I needed to shuffle a few of the different sizes around to make sure we had a good flow for foot traffic.
In the end, I was a sweaty mess caked in mud and gravel grit, but they were done.
I thanked the guys from the shed company, promising a testimonial and swapping some social media posts. Another thing I was learning about this venture—the quid pro quo went a long way.
I headed back toward my trailer and felt eyes on me. I looked around, finding Valerie using her stabilizer for her phone to make videos. She was filming me with an intensity that made my shoulders tighten. Then she waved. “That’s going to be awesome on our TikTok,” she shouted across the field.
I didn’t care if I looked like a muddy monster in video. Trying to shake off the unease around her lately, I made an exaggerated Hulk smash pose for the camera. Then I noticed something out of the corner of my eye.
The connected path between my property and Amber’s was shaded with the late day sun, but a flash of gold put me on alert. It was probably just Lucy coming over to investigate. Their Great Pyrenees had been known to wander around my property as well.
I glanced back at Valerie to make sure she wasn’t still filming me. She was looking down at her phone, probably reviewing the footage. I took the opportunity to walk over and check it out.
I ducked between the line posts and followed the path toward the Dalton farm. I heard footsteps and the sway of branches of the trees that canopied the path.
“Amber?”
The footfalls paused.
“Is that you?”
She peeled back one of the big evergreen boughs. “Hi.”
“Why are you sneaking around?”
She nibbled on her lower lip. “I was just curious.”
“And didn’t want to talk to me?”
“Of course not.” But I could see the truth of it on her face.
I wanted to go over and gather her in, to push away that disquiet vibrating off her. Unfortunately, I wasn’t fit to touch anyone, let alone her.
She was wearing an oversized hoodie that fell to her thighs over a pair of stretchy yoga pants that must be a prerequisite to be a female these days.
The short, ugly boots reminded me of high school.
Hell, the entire ensemble reminded me of those old days.
Her new shorter hair was pulled into pigtails, and she could have passed for a college coed.
My chest hurt just looking at her.
How could I miss someone so fast?
“Gonna fill me in why you’re pushing me away?”
Her gray eyes went huge. “I’m not.”
“Sure about that?”
“I have other things going on, Tate. You’re not the center of my world.”
I wished I was, but she was right. Too bad, I didn’t believe that particular excuse.
I had a feeling it had more to do with the videos of us all over TikTok.
I wasn’t one to scroll for anything other than sports videos or the occasional cat compilation with funny narration, but even my feed had been full of people talking about it.
Not just video of us, but people picking apart every little thing about us.
After I watched one, the internet gods continued to give them to me without my permission.
The rabbit hole I fell into was embarrassing, but I couldn’t stop watching them.
Mostly because I actually got to see Amber in her Ambrose setting.
The stage where she shined so brightly, but after knowing her most of my life, I could see a few of the cracks in her glittery armor.
When the smiles were forced, where the interviewers went too far, and how intrusive the paparazzi could be when she simply went out to dinner with friends.
She needed Haven even more than she needed me.
Didn’t make me want her any less though.
I backed up. “No, I’m well aware of that.”
She stiffened. “Where exactly did you think this was going?”
“I don’t know. Did there need to be a plan?”
“That’s what I do, Tate. I plan.”
“Are you planning your escape already? Where do you need to be right now? Back in Manhattan at some glittery party full of your friends? Back in the studio to write? Throwing your own holiday party for people?”
“No.” The word was barely more than a whisper.
“Then why are you pulling away?”
“Because we won’t work.”
“You don’t know that. You’re already expecting it to fail.”
Her eyes shimmered from the shadows of the trees. It was already growing late, the days were so short this time of year.
“It’s just better this way.”
“For who?” I moved into the darkness where she was hiding. “For you?”
“You should be with someone like Molly. She fits in your world.”
I frowned. “Molly? What the hell brought that on?”
“I saw you guys hugging. How excited she is to help you make this work. She’s the kind of woman you deserve.”
“I don’t want Molly.”
“Please. Don’t lie.”
I raked my fingers through my sweaty, dusty hair. “I get you might think a small-town guy like me doesn’t fit in your glamorous world, but don’t color me with that bullshit. Molly is my best friend and we’ve gone through a lot, but we’ve never been anything more than friends.”
“I see how she looks at you. Maybe you’re the delusional one.”
“She doesn’t make me feel like the sky is brighter when I’m around her. She doesn’t make me feel like I’m missing something when she’s gone. She doesn’t make me want to pin her down and watch her eyes go blind when I fuck her.”
Her mouth dropped open.
“She doesn’t make me want to curl her close to me and read a book while it’s snowing or raining outside.
She doesn’t make me want to share a meal with her just to be in the same room together.
She doesn’t make me lay awake, staring at my ceiling, aching for her.
” I closed the gap between us. “She doesn’t make me want to take the time and find every freckle or birthmark on her skin.
She doesn’t make me want to mark her with my beard, my teeth, or my lips. She doesn’t make me—”
She pressed a finger to my mouth. “Stop. You can’t say things like that.”
I nipped her finger until she pulled away. “Because it would be easier if I didn’t?” I braceleted her wrist, ignoring the dirt under my nails and mud flaking off my skin. “Aren’t you tired of easier? I know I am.”
“Nothing has ever been easy for me,” she whispered furiously. “I’ve fought for every inch I’ve gained in my career.”
“This isn’t about Ambrose. This is about the woman under the glitter. The one who curled next to me for the pure joy of connecting. The one who was brave enough to open up and let me in for a little while. Don’t you want to see what’s there for more than just a few nights?”
“Even if I know how it ends?”
“That’s just one story. I know for a fact you’re more creative than that.”
She shut her eyes when I put her hand on my chest. “Tate.”
“You came over here to check in on me because you want to be here. You want to be with me just as much as I want to be with you.”
Her fingernails dug into my thermal shirt.
“You’re worth the pain,” I whispered.
Her eyes flashed open.