Chapter 7
Natasha
I'd managed to avoid Ford for most of the week, opting instead to communicate with him via email. Thankfully, he wasn't coming in and out of the front door during the day, so he was easy to dodge.
I was more than a little surprised that he'd agreed to come to the toy drive kickoff, more so when he'd requested I help him shop for toys.
I thought he'd get busy and end up sending in a monetary donation. To my surprise, he texted me the next day and asked if we could go shopping on Sunday.
On the weekends, Aspen worked the front counter, so I didn't have an excuse to say no.
Ford said he'd pick me up in his truck since he had more room to store toys. I was uneasy about spending time with him outside the inn. We shouldn’t see each other outside of work.
It was invading the personal territory I wanted to avoid. I greeted Aspen, then waited for Ford by a bench at the back entrance of the inn. When he pulled up, I opened the door and climbed inside the cab, which was warm. The radio played holiday tunes.
"You could have waited for me inside."
"It's a nice day." It was sunny despite the chill in the air.
He pulled away from the curb. "Did you bring the list?"
"We can focus on the younger kids if you want to buy toys. The older ones want electronics, headphones, that kind of thing."
He flexed his hand on the steering wheel. "Sounds good to me."
Being in the cab of the truck reminded me of when we dated in high school. He'd drive me to and from school, to football games, and the movie theater on Friday nights. Back then, he took up less space.
He glanced over at me. "I thought we could hit the toy store and then grab lunch before we head home."
"I just have to be home in the afternoon. We have a town-hall meeting tonight to discuss the parade," I said, easily grabbing onto an excuse not to spend the rest of the day with him. We were getting into dangerous territory as it was, being together this morning.
He glanced over at me and asked, "Are you planning one?"
"It's one of the new events we'd like to try, but we want to make sure the shop and restaurant owners are okay with the idea. It will shut down Candy Cane Lane for a bit, which makes it difficult for holiday shoppers to move around. I don't know how they'll react."
"When you bought the town, were the shops and restaurants already open?"
"For the most part. The lingerie store is new, and we've had a request to open a bookstore."
He shifted slightly in his seat, glancing over at me. "How does that work? You decide who to give leases to?"
"We kept the existing leases and approved the addition of the lingerie shop, but one of the owners isn't happy about that decision. Bill thinks the stores should be family friendly. But we cater to couples and families."
His brow furrowed. "Why a lingerie shop then?"
"When Angela pitched the idea to us, it made sense.
She has themed products that match the holidays, candy canes on panties and gingerbread lotion.
And we offer a princess package at the inn where you can spend the day at the spa, get your hair and makeup done, and even be fitted for a gown to attend the holiday ball, complete with lingerie. "
Ford waggled his brows. "Do you have any of this lingerie?"
I shook my head. "I haven't even been inside her store since Angela opened it. I've been too busy with the inn. Eve tries to keep an eye on the stores and restaurants."
"Are you going to let the bookstore open?" Ford signaled a lane change, his focus on the road.
"It complements the coffee shop. Belle will need to have holiday inventory and window displays."
His lips twitched. "You wouldn't want a store that didn't fit the theme."
"It is Christmas Town," I agreed as he pulled into the lot for the large toy store.
Ford put the truck in Park. "Should we have shopped at the toy store in Christmas Town?"
"If you want to get a lot of items, this will be better. The toy store in town sells specialty items. Think less plastic and more wooden ones. For this, we'll want to get the kids what they want, and it's not fancy."
Ford grinned over at me, his excitement evident. "Are you ready to play Santa for the morning?"
His enthusiasm was contagious. "Yeah."
Inside, we both grabbed carts and headed for the cars, trains, tracks, action figures, and various play sets.
When our carts were full, Ford paid for the items and unloaded them into the truck.
Then we returned to the store to get dress-up items, dolls, playhouses, and more play sets.
By the time we were done, I was exhausted.
He leaned against the truck. "Are you hungry?"
"Starved." I didn't have the strength to fight him on lunch. If I was being responsible, I would have insisted that we deliver the toys and go our separate ways.
He opened the passenger-side door for me. "Let's unload the toys at town hall and eat at Merry's Diner."
"That sounds good to me."
I helped him unload everything at town hall. Then we headed to the diner. The bakery was next door, and it smelled amazing. Reina, who owned the bakery, delivered baked goods to the inn every morning for breakfast and dinner rolls and desserts for dinner.
Ford opened the door for the diner, and we slid into a red booth, decked out with garland and twinkling lights.
Ford raised a brow. "This is quaint."
"It's been here from the beginning."
An older woman with a red-and-green apron approached us. "Natasha."
"Hi, Merry. How's business?" I asked her.
She handed us the menus. "It's a little slower than normal this time of year. I hope it picks up with the season."
"I'm sure it will," I assured her. "Will you be at the town meeting tonight?"
Merry sighed. "I suppose."
She didn't enjoy getting involved with the town events, but I wanted her to feel included. "Hopefully, we'll see you there."
Merry nodded. "Meg will be here in a second to get your drink orders."
Ford leaned in slightly. "Have you had any pushback to your buying the place?"
"The owners who've been around longer aren't as receptive to our suggestions. They are dug in to how things were before. I suspect the previous owners didn't require much of them, and they could do their own thing."
"You have to gain their trust and respect," Ford said as if he was speaking from experience.
I wondered if that was what he was doing at his brothers' business. "You're probably right."
"I don't know how you'd handle all of it without help."
I nodded. "Yeah, Eve's been great. She loves hosting the events, and she's very social, so dealing with the shops usually isn't a big deal."
We focused on our menus. I ordered the peppermint French toast, and he ordered the large meal with pancakes, eggs, and sausage.
After we placed our order, he said, "Buying toys works up an appetite."
I folded my hands on the table. "Thank you for contributing."
His eyes narrowed on me. "I was happy to help, and it was fun."
He had been like a kid in the toy store, reminiscing over certain toys from his childhood and commenting on whether he would have liked the newer ones. In the doll aisle, he'd mentioned that Aspen hadn't been that interested in dolls and princesses.
Ford cleared his throat. "How's Aspen doing at the inn?"
"Is this her big brother talking?" I asked, amused at his question.
"I haven't been around in a long time. Aspen grew up while I was gone. I just want to know that she's okay. I promise it's not some big brother protector stuff."
"I mean, there's nothing wrong with that.
I think I would have liked to have a big brother to protect me.
" I played with the straw in my soda. "Aspen is very driven and independent.
She started out working as a personal assistant for Wilde Ski Resort, and I expect she's still doing that on the side. "
He raised a brow. "She works two jobs?"
"Yeah, you don't know?"
"She's very private. Since I've been home, I've noticed that my brothers are a little overbearing when it comes to her. I think she's keeping things hidden from them."
"I can see wanting to do that if your brothers were in your business," I mused.
"I told her I wouldn't report back to my brothers about what she was doing—"
I leaned my elbows on the table. "Are you saying your brothers keep close tabs on her dating life?"
"I told Cooper I wouldn't have anything to do with it. Her life is her own. But I can't help but worry if she's doing okay."
"As far as I can tell, she's fine. She's a hard worker, kind, and doesn't bring her personal life into work. So I definitely can't comment on that, not that I'd want to." I respected my employees, and Aspen was a good one.
Ford nodded. "That's good."
"She probably wouldn't want to know that you asked about her." I had a feeling she'd be upset if she was private when it came to her siblings.
"I don't know who my brothers and sister are now."
I tipped my head to the side, considering him. "Maybe you should find out. Spend some time with them."
"That's not a bad idea."
Was Ford so closed off that he didn't know how to connect with his siblings?
That explained why he had trouble communicating with me when he left.
When we dated in school, we saw each other all the time.
It wasn't hard to stay in touch. But when he enlisted, he had to make an effort, and he didn't. I'd always thought it was because he didn't want to. But maybe he didn't know how.
"I think Aspen would appreciate the attention. As much as she wants to maintain her privacy, she seems to love her family. I can't imagine what it would be like to have so many brothers."
"Yeah, she had a hard time growing up with us, and I suppose it didn't get easier when we brought Cooper in.
She didn't have any girls to play with. But she gravitated toward what we liked.
I was so much older than her; I wasn't one of her playmates.
She was an annoyance. Not someone I connected with. "
"I’ve always had a good relationship with Eve.
We're close in age and have a lot of the same interests.
" Then I smiled at the memory of us playing hotel on rainy days.
"We made up elaborate pretend games. My favorite was hotel.
I'd set up the ottoman as a desk, and check everyone in.
She'd be the rich guest needing the best room.
" I smiled at the memory. "I had a built-in playmate.
I'm sure that made it easier on our parents. "
"You didn't fight at all?”
"As teens, we argued about borrowing each other's clothes, and friends. I didn't want her hanging around my friends. I wanted something for myself. But we got over that and are close now." I couldn't imagine going into business with anyone else.
"I guess we didn't talk much about Eve when we were together," Ford said, and I shifted uncomfortably in my seat.
I didn't want to recall our time together. Nothing good could come from it. "I guess not."
He smiled. "We were in our own world."
"Aren't teens inherently selfish?" I thought we'd be together forever. I didn't think about all the ways things could go wrong.
"I certainly was."
Was that part of his admission that he hadn't handled things well? "I guess it's easy to focus on yourself at that age. You have all these decisions to make about your future. What do you want to do? Who do you want to be?"
His forehead creased. "I was so focused on work; I had tunnel vision. I'm not proud of it."
"You don't need to apologize to me again."
He winced. "I abandoned you, my family. I was happy to lose myself in something bigger. I had a mission, and I was happy to execute it. It was easy to forget about everything at home."
"I'm sure your family understood."
"That's why I left the military when I did. I didn't want to retire at twenty years with nothing to show for it. My brothers started the business without me, and I felt like I was left out. I wanted to be part of my family again."
I smiled. "I'm sure they're happy to have you home."
Our food came, and when the server left, he said, "Mom wants me to invite you over for dinner."
My mouth opened and closed. I adored his parents, but could I handle a family meal when we weren't together anymore?
"You can say no. I'll tell her you're busy."
This was my chance to prove I could be around Ford, and it didn't affect me. "No. It's fine. I'd love to come."
He arched a brow. "Are you sure?"
"I'd love to see your family. Aspen's more than an employee; she's a friend."
He nodded. "You have your meeting tonight, but what about next Sunday?"
I smiled. "Please ask your mother what I can bring."
He popped a piece of sausage in his mouth. "I know what she'll say. Bring yourself."
I cut my French toast. "Your mother is great."
He picked up his fork. "Yeah, she is."
I leaned back in the booth. "I'm going to want to take a nap after all this sugar."
"Do you have to work today?"
"We need to plan the town hall meeting.”
"I'm sure you’ll do great," he said with a smile.
I was feeling more confident about a lot of things. I'd spent a morning with Ford, and it was fine. I wasn't obsessing over his muscles, all the ways he was different now than he was back then, or even his concern for his sister.
The more I spent time with him, the easier it would get. It was like ripping off a Band-Aid.