Chapter Ten – Carter

Carter took one last look at the house he had never called home and shut the gate. This time he didn’t lock it. As soon as he had finished talking to Will, he would come back and spend the day clearing the driveway and cutting back the weeds that had taken over.

He began to make a mental list of what he needed to do as they walked. He needed the utilities back on—he was not going to get a lot done without electricity, and he wanted them to move in here as soon as possible. It was time to make this old house into a family home. One where he and Caroline would raise kids.

“Will should be in his office,” Caroline told him as they entered the gates of the training center. It was a hive of activity. There were people painting the old warehouses, some assembling big glass houses, and some hauling wood. “Wow, things have moved on in the few days I’ve been away.”

They opened the door of Will’s office to find a man sitting behind a desk, talking on the phone. He put his hand up and waved, and mouthed, “I’ll be two minutes.”

Caroline slipped back outside, and they stood watching the workers. “There are a lot of people involved,” Carter observed.

“There are. I recognize some people from Bear Bluff. Looks as if everyone has been recruited to lend a hand. I’m not sure why,” Caroline said as the door behind them opened.

“Sorry, I was ordering more soil.” Will looked closely at Carter, before offering him his hand. “Carter Eden. I remember watching you in Space Monkeys. That was a good movie.”

Caroline raised her eyebrows. “You watched Space Monkeys?”

“Guilty as charged,” Will said with a grin. “It’s one of Carter’s lines from the movie.”

“Don’t start quoting more lines,” Caroline pleaded as Will opened his mouth to say more.

Carter laughed. “I didn’t expect to find anyone who remembered those old movies.”

“It was one of your first. A classic,” Will said, eying Caroline sideways. “What? I can’t understand how you have never watched one of Carter’s movies.”

“I’m sorry I’ve been too busy to watch Space Monkeys,” Caroline said hotly.

“What about Under a Midnight Fire?” Will asked. “That was a war movie.”

“Is that the one where you drove a tank?” Caroline asked.

“Guilty as charged,” Will and Carter said in unison.

“Oh my god, you two. Is this what I’m going to have to put up with every day?” Caroline asked, shaking her head but looking secretly happy that Carter was so relaxed around Will. Carter had expected to be wary of Will, from the way Caroline spoke about him; he’d also expected to be jealous. Nothing was further from the truth. He was a straight-up, what-you-see-is-what-you-get kind of a guy.

“Every day?” Will asked, suddenly interested. “So that is how you got Carter off that mountain, and there was me worried about you going up there alone.”

“Will thought you might chase me off the mountain or something,” Caroline told Carter.

“We had heard you had gone wild,” Will confided. “But Caroline insisted she could do the job, and if there is anything I have learned over the last six months while we have been getting this place up and running, it’s that if she says she is going to get a job done, she will get it done. No matter what.”

“You are making me blush,” Caroline told Will.

“I believe in giving praise where it’s due. I haven’t been able to devote as much time as I should to the project, so having you here… Or not here,” Will said cryptically, “has shown me how much I need you.”

“Will, what is going on?” Caroline asked, nodding to the hive of activity in the yard below.

“We have a journalist coming over to write a story on us. Fiona set it up.”

“Fiona?” Caroline asked. “Is there no one that woman doesn’t know?”

“It’s someone she’s helped in the past. Fiona said she’s trying to better herself, and it tied hand in hand with what we’re trying to achieve here.”

“And no one says no to Fiona,” Caroline said tartly.

“Come on, how bad can it be? Anyway, I’m hoping to get some coverage and maybe drag in some companies to buy whatever we produce.” Will pressed his lips together, looking uneasy. But not as uneasy as Carter felt at the mention of the press. He wanted to grab hold of Caroline, and get out of there, go back to his house, and lock the gates with them both on the other side of it.

“What’s up?” Caroline asked Will.

“Nothing…” Then he continued, “It’s a responsibility of creating something new.”

“You run a billion-dollar company. This is what you are good at,” Caroline reminded him.

“I know, but this is more personal.” Will smiled, and then his face broke into a wide grin. “And I don’t want to let people down.”

“You won’t,” Caroline said, punching him on the arm. “Especially since Carter has agreed to let you use that parcel of land you need.”

“Did she twist your arm?” Will asked. “She’s not a woman to mess with.”

“I am beginning to see that,” Carter said looking at Caroline with eyes that made her blush for a whole other reason. Damn, he liked the way her cheeks turned pink. “She didn’t so much twist my arm as open my eyes.”

“I’m glad. I mean really happy, no matter how she persuaded you.” Will nodded thoughtfully. “As long as you are sure. We could do with the land, for sure, but not if you aren’t truly onboard.”

“I am,” Carter said.

“We came over to look at the plans, so Carter can see exactly what you are planning.”

“Sure, come into my office. You’ll have to excuse the mess. I’m going to haul my PA down here for a couple of days to figure it all out,” Will said apologetically.

“I can do it for you,” Caroline said.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course, I can streamline the paperwork.” Her expression changed when she entered Will’s office and saw the pile of papers on the floor, half hidden by his desk. “What happened?”

“Dylan happened. He sent so much paperwork over I don’t know where to start. And if I do start organizing it, I’ll fall behind outside.”

“Listen,” Carter said. “I’m going to get out of your way.”

“No, look at the plans first,” Caroline insisted. She went to a drawing that was pinned to the wall. “See, this here is the parcel of land we need. It takes very little of your acreage. But means we can link the center with the field here.”

Carter looked at the plans. “It makes sense.” He cast a glance at Caroline, realizing fully how much this meant to her. She had left the army, left that life behind, and now she was trying to build something new. Something for other people. He needed to support her. He wanted to make her happy.

“But?” she asked.

“It would make more sense if you used this land too.” He stabbed his finger at the plan. “It’s for growing and planting, right?”

“It is. We aim to teach people to grow their own food. Along with protecting the countryside. Nature and business working together. It’s important for somewhere like Bear Creek. We have such an amazing wilderness surrounding us.”

“I’m sold,” Carter said. “On one condition. You plant hops so I can make some beer.”

Will chuckled. “Man, I would love to share a beer with you sometime.”

“No drooling over the movie star, Will. It’s unbecoming,” Caroline said.

“You wait until I tell Freyja, she loves your movies too,” Will said.

“Oh my god, next thing I know you are going to name something after him.”

“Good idea,” Will said, winking at Carter, who grinned.

“I have a street named after me already. And a boat, and I believe the number of babies being named Carter shot up the year I starred in Gun on the Run.”

“Oh, I loved that movie…” Will gushed.

“OK, go. Just go or Will is going to be next to useless for the rest of the day.” Caroline pushed Carter toward the door, while Will went to his mountain of paperwork, while humming a tune.

“Is that the theme song?” Carter asked, as Caroline opened the door for him.

“It is. I am going to have it stuck in my head for the whole day,” Will admitted. “And I might even go home tonight and see if it’s on Netflix.”

Caroline rolled her eyes. “I am starting to see why you went up that mountain.”

Carter was relaxed and happy as she followed him out the door and pulled it closed behind her. “I like him,” he admitted.

“Why, because he’s your number one biggest fan?” Caroline asked.

“No, because he has vision, and good sense.”

“You could tell all that from one conversation?” Caroline asked.

“Yes.” Carter kissed her lips. “He sees how special you are. So he must have sense.”

“Flattery. I think I preferred the scowl.” But her cheeks turned pink and she smothered a smile.

“It might be back by the end of the day. I’m going to tackle some yard work.”

“And you have a big yard,” Caroline observed.

“I do.” He pulled her into him for once last kiss, before releasing her with a groan. “Five o’clock, don’t be late, I’ll be waiting.”

“I’ll be there,” she said and watched him leave. Carter could feel her eyes on his back until he left the center and all its hustle and bustle behind.

He walked home with a sense of pride. A stupid as it seemed, he’d just gotten over one of his greatest fears, that people would not treat him as a real person. But Will had done just that—except for the movie references.

As he opened the gate of his house and walked in, he surveyed the grounds differently. This was one more challenge to overcome, and overcome it he would.