Chapter 15 Liked Holding Her
LIKED HOLDING HER
“How much help do you need on Saturday?” Ford asked Clay on Thursday afternoon.
He’d taken a break for lunch and came out to the farm to talk to his brother at the mill. Machines were running, vats of hard cider ready for canning and shipping. It was not the farm he grew up on, but it was the one his family had now.
On Tuesday night, he’d left Reenie’s and returned to Clay’s filling him in on what he’d learned.
Yep, he was conflicted, as Reenie said.
First with his actions.
He was harsh with her. Or harsher than he’d been before. But he didn’t want to be played. He needed to stay open to all possibilities.
He knew genuine fear and he saw it on her face, chased with remorse over the actions she’d taken to help her escape.
The hardest one for him to handle was that she thought she let him down. That she was lying.
He had felt let down when he started the conversation. At the end, he was right back to where he was years ago, having empathy and a fierce sense of protection for his first love.
His brother was on the fence of what to believe and there wasn’t much he could do to convince him. It didn’t mean Clay wouldn’t watch out for Reenie.
“As much as I can get,” Clay said. “We’ve got our first event in two weeks.
I have no idea the outcome, but I limited it to a hundred and fifty guests at once inside.
Once we hit that number, I can’t let anyone else in or they have to wait.
Not sure if that is a good thing or not, but the last thing I need to worry about is breaking any codes. ”
Ford laughed. “Not with your two brothers you can’t.”
Ash was a code enforcer also. Not in this area, but he’d still report anything that needed to be.
And no one in the area needed to say Clay was getting away with something because his brother was the sheriff.
“Don’t remind me,” Clay said. “I’m not used to always playing by the rules.”
He knew that about Clay. It wasn’t something they talked about often, but his brother had been on a Special Forces team that dealt in extractions. He went in and got their targets or men at any cost.
“Those days are behind you.”
“They never are,” Clay said.
“What are you two gabbing about?” his father asked.
“Just talking about the first event in two weeks and how Clay is putting me to work on Saturday.”
“We are all hands on deck,” his father said. “This is big. More expansion that we need.”
“Are you sure it’s not too much for you and Mom?” Ford asked.
“To be honest,” his father said. “It’s less physical work than I’m used to.”
“Good,” Clay said. “That’s the point. Work smarter, not harder.”
His brother was turning their family legacy into much more than he’d ever thought it’d be.
“Speaking of work, what do you have us doing on Saturday?”
“You, me and Ash will finish the fence around the property. I want to make sure it’s set aside from the rest, so that when events are going on, no one that is here for the cafe or hay rides, pumpkin picking, or whatever else is going on, will sneak into a private event.”
“I didn’t think of that,” he said.
“It’s my job to think of it,” Clay said. His father cleared his throat. “Fine. Dad thought of it.”
He laughed. “Good job, Dad.”
“I’m good to have around for a few things. I know how the land works better than your brother, but I’m listening to him on the other things.”
It was good to see his brother and father getting along so well. There were times they butted heads when Clay was a teen.
“I can work this weekend,” Lexi said, moving over. “I heard you talking. Do you need an extra hand?”
“There is a signup sheet in the locker room,” Clay said. “Just put your name on it. I need all the help I can get.”
“Sweet,” Lexi said. “I love everything that is changing here. Rod and Pete were talking about it.” She waved them over. “Clay said we can sign up to work this weekend.”
“Nice,” Pete said. “Do we get an invite to the first event too?”
“Sure,” Clay said. “But it’s a first come first serve. If I hit the quota, people have to wait for others to come in or I’ll be shutting the doors. It’s more like an open house.”
“I’ll be there bright and early and even help set up. How about you, Ford?” Lexi asked, shoving at his arm just like she’d done since they were kids.
He nudged her back. “Clay told me I had to be here.”
Lexi then bumped her shoulder into Clay’s, which only got a grunt out of his brother and an eye roll.
“We’ve got company from a pretty girl,” his father said. “Bringing food.”
“Food makes everyone seem prettier,” Reenie said. “Your wife told me you’ve been saying that for years.”
“She’s got you there, Callum,” Rod said. “But in this case, the delivery woman is just as good looking as the box in her hands.”
Ford whipped his head in Rod’s direction and shot him a glare. Rod threw his hands up and took a step back and snickered. “Don’t you have some work to do?” he asked one of Clay’s workers.
“Yep, getting right back to it. Come on, Pete and Lexi.”
“Back to work,” Lexi said, laughing, saluting Clay with her tongue to the side of her mouth. “While you guys get lunch. Talk about not fair.”
“You get a lunch break soon,” Clay said. “Don’t whine.”
Lexi’s smile dropped immediately.
“She’s got a thing for you,” Ford said to his brother.
“Lexi? No,” Clay said. “Not even close.”
“Dude, she’s always picking on you. Shoving at you. Cracking jokes like now. No one does that with their boss.”
“She does the same to you,” Clay said. “She’s like a sister to me. If that. I don’t know. She’s one of the guys.”
“I don’t think you see what is in front of your face.”
“Seriously, dude. I think you’re the one too lost at what is in front of you to see everything else around you right now. It’s never been a problem in the past.”
“And it won’t be now either.” He went to Reenie who walked into a small conference area. “Let me help you.”
“I’ve got it,” she said. “I didn’t know you’d be here today.”
Her head was down. She wasn’t making eye contact as she pulled out the plate of sandwiches and took the wrapping off it.
He grabbed the bowl of potato salad that his mother made and did the same.
There was a bag of chips with it and several cookies.
“My mother is feeding an army here and not her boys.”
“She just asked me to put together sandwiches and fill this platter. Sorry, that’s on me. I wasn’t sure what ‘fill the platter’ meant.”
“They will all get eaten.” The tray was stacked two high with sandwiches cut in half. Turkey and ham loaded with cheese, tomato and lettuce with mustard and mayo on the side.
“I thought it was for everyone working today and I’ve heard there are at least ten on shift at once, but then I noticed the bowl of potato salad wasn’t as much.”
“She was feeding her boys,” he said. He dropped his head next to hers. She still wasn’t looking at him. “Everything okay? How are you doing?”
He hadn’t seen her since he left on Tuesday night. They’d sat on her couch as he’d held her. It felt like twenty years ago all over again. The feeling of them being one when she was in his arms.
He hadn’t wanted to let her go.
She’d been so drained mentally and emotionally that her eyes shut and she’d drifted to sleep.
He didn’t wake her and let her nap.
When she woke forty minutes later in his arms, mortification washed over her, and she apologized profusely.
He’d laughed and told her he enjoyed holding her. That he would have done it all night and didn’t want to leave.
They both were silent after his admission. Her face was red, arousal in her eyes that she wasn’t voicing, but he saw it.
He called bullshit on his brother’s comment that he couldn’t see what was around him. He saw it all and always would.
“I’m fine. Busy today. I should get back.”
It was shy of noon. He’d have to head back soon but wanted to talk with his brother and father first. At least he got a chance to see Reenie. He’d have to thank his mother for sending her out with the food.
He reached for her hand and put it in his much larger one. “Try not to work too hard.”
“I don’t know any other way.”
She looked as if she was losing weight. Or maybe it was from being in his shirts when he saw her often after work. She was swimming in them, but he’d have it no other way.
She wore a Ridgeway Orchard T-shirt now. No jacket and it was cold out.
“You drove over, right?”
She looked into his eyes, her smile bright. “Yes. It’s too far to walk with this box.”
“And too cold,” he said.
“I was thinking of going to the outlets one day to get a few things. Not sure when, but putting it out there.”
“If you want to hold off until this weekend, I’ll go with you.”
“I can’t ask you to go shopping with me, Ford. That’s too much.”
“Maybe I need a few things.” Or just want to spend time with you.
“Really?”
“I could use a new pair of workout sneakers.” He’d been telling himself that for months.
“We can talk about it.”
“We will,” he said. “I’ll call you later tonight.”
“I’ll be waiting,” she said shyly and left.
“Watch yourself.”
He turned to see his father standing in the doorway. “I know what I’m doing.”
“Famous last words,” Clay said, moving in and going right for the food.
Ford didn’t have the energy to argue with anyone. They wouldn’t listen anyway.