Chapter 27
My feet slip and slide as I race down the hall toward the front door where a pile of Christmas lights sit, reminding me I have yet to put up the lights at the library.
I don’t even have time to make a mental note as I shove my feet back into my boots and run out the door, sans coat.
The bitter chill and promise of snow slaps me in the face as I race toward Arlo, who stands in the driveway loading up his truck.
“Wait!” I skid to a stop, nearly slamming into the poor man, then almost causing myself to stumble backwards and down on the moose stone once more.
“It’s okay, Wren. I understand.” He sounds dejected, and we haven’t even spoken yet.
“That’s not my name,” I tell him.
“Wren.” He hangs his head. “Don’t do this.”
“Do what?” I screech, not understanding how he took that conversation with Lark completely wrong.
“This.” He waves his hand between us. “Don’t hurt me.”
“I’m not trying to hurt you, Arlo.” I reach for him, but he slides away.
I’m determined to make this work, so I grab his sleeve and latch on like a parasite.
“We need to talk about this. What you heard isn’t what I meant.”
“It sounded pretty clear to me.” Again, he breaks my hold. “You should give Christian a chance and see if you can make it work.” He doesn’t believe his statement if the sneer on his face has anything to say, and it says a lot.
“Arlo, I was messing with her.” Why, oh why, does my snark always come back to bite me in the ass? I should have just told Lark the truth instead of trying to make light of the situation.
Karma is a sick and twisted hormonal woman.
“It didn’t sound like you were messing with her.” He waves his hands at me before tucking them into his back pockets. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll get your car done as soon as possible and you can be on your way.”
He goes to open his truck door, and I ninja kick it like my life depends on it. Well, my love life, because it does.
“What was that for?” Arlo yells at me.
“Because you are being a stubborn mule!”
“No, I’m not!” he shouts. “You wanted nothing more than to leave this town, so I’m going to go to my shop and make that a possibility for you so you can finally move on with your life.”
“You can’t mean that.”
“Of course I mean that,” he grumbles, trying to open his truck door again.
“Arlo, listen to me.”
“No, Wren, I’m tired of trying to explain myself to you. I’ve poured my heart out to you enough, and I don’t want it to get hurt.”
“If you would just listen, you would see—”
“I have lights to put up.” He stomps past me and up the porch steps, where he flings open the door.
Hot on his heels, I follow right behind him as he picks up the messy pile of lights in the hall and turns to face me.
“Move,” he growls.
“No, you are acting like a child.”
“You can’t face your emotions.”
I roll my eyes like a Valley girl in Cali holding a surfboard. “Of course I can’t, that’s why I have you.”
“You don’t have me.”
“Yes, I do.” I smile, and I don’t think it’s pleasant.
“Move,” he repeats.
“No. I won’t move until you admit you are being a child.”
“What is all of this about?” Saffron comes barreling out of the kitchen and down the hallway with Autumn and Willow in her wake. Lark peeks over the banister with Cooper at her feet.
Darn it, I don’t want the little guy to get out, but I also won’t back down.
“Your son” —I earn myself a death glare from Arlo— “is being a stubborn ass!”
Everyone gasps.
“I said what I said.” I jut my chin out.
“Oh no.” Lark backs away, knowing Mom does not curse unless I’m irritated, and Arlo knows just what buttons to push.
“What did you do?” Saffron scolds her son.
“Nothing. I just told her I’d back away so she and Christian can make it work between them.” He almost sounds sheepish as he speaks.
“Oh, I’m out.” Autumn backs away, grumbling under her breath about idiot brothers.
Willow leans against the doorjamb, my brother peering over her shoulder, but then he rightfully scurries away.
“You fool.” Saffron shakes her head.
“I’m not a fool, I just think that—”
“What is he doing?” Saffron cuts Arlo off to point at the floor.
Cooper is doing his danger paws, trying to make himself look scary. “Oh, he’s just putting out a warning.” I frown.
He wouldn’t.
“Out of the house!” Saffron yells.
Her shout only startles Cooper more.
His tail goes up.
“Out.” Arlo pushes me out the door, tossing the lights and trying to catch me all in one suave, fell swoop.
Somehow, he succeeds.
Cooper danger paws at the door, and Saffron swats him out of the house and slams the door in our faces.
“Cooper,” I scold. “Bad skunk.” His little tail still goes up, vibrating with anger.
“He won’t. You promised me he wouldn’t.” Arlo hides behind me.
“Of course not,” I assure him, but the little guy is far too spooked. His tail is up, and his scary paws are out. I crouch down.
The perfect storm boils over.
Cooper sprays.
“No!” I make a grab for him, but Arlo grabs for me, and together, we tumble down the steps out of the way of Cooper, who now stands on the steps looking satisfied and smug. I swear his sharp little teeth pull into a smile.
Arlo gags into the grass while I try to breathe through my mouth. Meanwhile, Cooper just pads his way to the rocker where he waddles up, sits, and settles in for a nap.
I smell awful. My head spins and I sink onto the ground beside a gagging Arlo.
“I can’t believe he sprayed me.”
“Us.” Arlo gags. “Us.”
I blame him. “It’s your fault.”
“How?” he sputters.
“You wouldn’t listen to reason,” I say, still trying to breathe through my mouth.
Just then, Saffron opens the door with a clothespin on her nose and tosses us cans of tomato soup before she slams the door and turns the lock.
“She just locked us out.” I stare at the door incredulously then turn to Arlo. “She just locked us out.”
“With cans of tomato soup,” he grumbles before he breaks into a sneezing fit. “Why did you not get the beast’s scent glands removed? Who has a pet skunk with the scent glands intact?” He crawls toward the cans of soup, dragging them to him.
“He’s never sprayed before.” My heart actually hurts for my little guy, who’s still curled up on the rocking chair. “Our argument must have scared him.”
“It’s your fault.” Arlo shakes his head. Little hairs spill from the bun sitting at the nape of his neck.
“Nope, I refuse to argue further.” I sniff, sighing in relief as the stench dissipates. “I’m already getting used to the smell.”
“Speak for yourself.” Carrying four cans of tomato soup over to his truck, he eyes the interior warily then shakes his head. “How are we supposed to get out of this cold and get the smell off of us?”
“He ruined my clothes.” I pick at my shirt with a frown, seeing little bitty droplets on my sweater. At least it wasn’t a good sweater. It’s old and battered and almost threadbare.
“We need to get out of the cold and take a tomato bath.” Arlo keeps eyeing his truck, his lips turning up in a sneer.
“Does that even work?” I jerk my head at the cans, unconvinced.
“No idea. I have a few more back at the apartment above the garage.” With a growl, he digs his keys out. “I’ll have to air it out.” He turns back to me. “Try not to smudge my seats with the smell.”
Rolling my eyes, I follow him over and hop in the passenger seat, mocking him as I wiggle on said seat. “I’m sure the oil stains act as a barrier.”
He gives me that side-eye I thought only women could perfect. Ignoring me, he starts the engine and peels out of the driveway, jerking me around.
“We should talk.” I slip on my seatbelt as Arlo takes the curves with anger. “Arlo, I had already decided to stay two nights ago when I fell off the couch and onto that Matchbox car.” The one still in my purse that I had to leave at the B&B. It’s safe there, and I’m safe with Arlo.
“It didn’t sound like that earlier.” I can see the flush rising in his face.
“Arlo, listen to me. Okay?” He gives me that side-eye once more, and I press on, “I like you. I like you a lot. Maybe more than I should. I’ve been here four weeks, and I feel like someone has flipped my life upside down.
I didn’t plan to end up here, but I believe in destiny and adventure.
Sometimes what I logically understand gets confused with how I feel and vice versa. ”
We drive over the covered bridge and into town, where so many of the townsfolk are busy setting up their lights.
“Fear sometimes pulls blinders over our eyes so we struggle to see what is right in front of us.” I lick my lips, keeping my voice soft.
“Christian and I will never get back together. We were teenagers, Arlo, and in an immature relationship doomed from the start. I knew it then, but I pushed forward.”
I watch as his shoulders relax as he pulls into the little gas station beside his garage and throws the truck in park. I knew we were going to his apartment, but sitting here with the promise of being alone together for a little longer sends a flutter of desire throughout my body.
One I won’t deny any longer.
“Arlo.” I turn to him, unbuckling both of our seatbelts.
“I want you. I won’t run anymore. I want you and all your hard edges, all your soft edges.
The scruff. The family. Everything you laid out before me and every single encouraging word.
I want you, and I want to make sure that I return each kindness. ”
“Birdie.” His voice cracks on my name.
“Shall we go take that tomato bath?” I wink as I climb out of the truck, leaving the insinuation to settle between us.
I climb down, getting a slight whiff of myself, and sneeze as I hurry to the door. Looking back, I find Arlo still sitting in the truck, his jaw open and his hands clenching the steering wheel.
I think I broke him.