Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70570 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70570 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
“Probably both,” teases Samuel.
TJ snorts at that, then eyes me. “Anyway, if you ever feel like Spruce, or even Nadine, is coming on too strong—pun not intended—just know there are about fifty of us who can totally relate.”
I decide to give in to TJ a little; he seems like a genuinely nice guy, after all. “I’ll keep that in mind. As it is, Nadine is apparently keen on setting me up with someone. The second I got into town, she told me there was a guy she wanted me to meet.”
“Oh, really? Wonder if I know him,” thinks TJ out loud.
Samuel chuckles. “Well, obviously it’s me, Malcolm.”
I shoot him a look. “Obviously it’s not.”
“Who else could it be?” exclaims Samuel. “She’s always been interested in my love life, wondering if I met anyone. I bet she was about to introduce us before she saw we’d already gone and introduced ourselves.” He smirks at me. “Wish I’d known this before. Didn’t know I had Nadine on my side.”
“You don’t.”
TJ, appearing uncomfortable, swipes the list off the counter. “I’ll, uh, get to fulfilling this and get out from between whatever’s going on here. Heh. Make yourself at home, boys. Go ahead and … take a seat at a table. You know, if you can find one,” he adds as an awkward joke, nodding at the entirely empty place. “Should just take me a few minutes to get this sorted. Ten, tops.”
He heads off. I eye Samuel. “It’s not you, otherwise she would have said something when she saw us at the tree.”
“Doubt it. She was givin’ us space.”
“Really? You think that woman’s known for giving space …?”
“All I’m sayin’ is …” He takes a step toward me, looking smug. “When Nadine plays matchmaker, you know you’re done for.”
“Yeah, I know, I’ve had firsthand experience, and it didn’t end all that well,” I bite back.
Samuel squints. “Really?”
“This conversation’s over.” I leave him at the counter and go for the table by the window, where I drop into a chair and stare out into the street. It’s entirely empty outside. A total ghost town.
After a moment, Samuel quietly joins me at the table, taking the seat next to mine, and says nothing. We stare out the window together in joint silence.
I’m thankful for said silence.
After a while, two people finally come around the corner, arm-in-arm, moving as slowly as paint dries—a man and woman, maybe my dad’s age.
“Mr. and Mrs. Myers,” identifies Samuel softly.
I squint through the window. “I’m supposed to know them?”
“Nope. But they lost their family dog a few months ago.”
“Ran away?”
“Lyme disease.”
“Oh.” A moment passes as we continue to watch them. I find myself imagining their sadness when their family dog died. Guilt for my attitude fills my chest. “That’s sad.”
“Well, the dog was pretty old and had other problems, so … who knows, maybe it was a blessing in a way.”
“Hmm.” The two of us fall silent again. Suddenly the silence feels too silent. “Seems like a nice guy,” I mumble.
“Who?”
“TJ. I know of the McPhersons,” I add. “With my dad being so close to Nadine, we hear a lot about them. And the Evanses, too. All the big families. We don’t really have that in Fairview,” I point out. “No one really stands out.”
“You stand out.”
I look at Samuel.
He returns my gaze with a gentle one of his own, the twinkle of his eyes still visible even under the shadow of his cowboy hat.
Suddenly, he whips his hat off and sets it on the table in front of him. “Sorry.”
I lift an eyebrow. “Sorry?”
“Probably comin’ on too aggressive. Ever since you fell into the Christmas tree. I never properly apologized for yellin’ at you the way I did. Thought you were one of Tanner’s kids at first … ‘til I got a good look at you.” He says all of this to his hat, then smirks. “After I got a good look at you … phew … I was done for.”
I turn back to the window, not sure what to do with that.
“What?” he protests with half a laugh. “Is that even too much? Can’t a fella say when he finds you cute? I mean, thank the gods for that frilly red scarf you’ve got on, otherwise the tree wouldn’t have caught you like it did.”
“It’s a gift from my mother. Lost her a few years ago.”
Samuel stiffens up. “Oh. I’m … I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean—”
“It’s fine.”
“Was she sick?”
I smirk. “Ran away.”
My tone confuses him, until he realizes it’s the opposite of the exchange we just had about the dog. “Oh. She … She ran away? For real?”
“Yep. Left my dad. Well, left me, too, I guess. Not even for another man. She was just … unhappy. It was a rocky time. Lots of tears. Nadine knows next to nothing of it, as my dad isn’t the tea-spilling type. More the ‘bottle up the tea and let it fester in the depths of an emotional basement for decades’ type. He talks about Mom like she’s still around sometimes, like she’s just … running an errand.” I gaze down at the table.