Chapter Twelve
“I’m sorry, what?” Sawyer set the blue cheese and smoked pepper-bacon burger he’d been about to bite into back on his plate.
Seth went ahead and sank his teeth into his Vermont cheddar, glazed onion, and beer-mustard burger, then groaned in appreciation. “This is a definite yes,” he said, and made a pencil mark on the paper Sawyer’s new chef, Hudson Walker, had laid on their table when he’d delivered their first taste-testers. “Seriously, I can’t believe Noah let you hire that guy away from him.”
Sawyer grinned at that. “I think Noah realized early on that Hudson was destined for greater things than his inn kitchen. Besides, I didn’t steal him so much as swap him. Bert was the perfect hire for the glorified food-truck type menu I thought I’d launch with, but the moment Hudson dropped by and began riffing ideas about turning my expanded food-truck theory into a full-blown artisanal menu, locally sourcing all the food and pairing it with my craft beers . . .” Sawyer shrugged. “It just came together. Bert is happy at the inn. He’s a very charming guy, so he gets to mingle with the guests directly, which is more his style anyway than being stuck back in the kitchen. Noah says everyone loves him. Win-win, really.”
Seth traded their plates and took a bite from Sawyer’s untouched burger over his protests, then closed his eyes on a slow groan of pleasure. “He’s a genius. You’ve hired a genius.” Seth reached over and marked the box on Sawyer’s sheet. “I don’t think this taste test is necessary,” he said. “Just let the man cook. It’s a safe bet anything he puts on a plate is going to be a home run.”
“This was his idea,” Sawyer said. He glanced around at the handful of other tables and got numerous thumbs-up from the guild artists that Hudson had invited for that afternoon’s private “menu development meeting” as he called it. “He’s just trying to pare down to the best ones.”
Seth noted everyone was either busy eating or scribbling enthusiastically on their response sheets. He grinned at Sawyer. “I don’t think this is going to help narrow it down much. It’s going to be a ten-page menu before we’re done.”
“And this is just for the burger section,” Sawyer said, then picked up Seth’s burger, turned it around, and took a bite from the other side. His reaction was pretty much the same. “You might have a point,” Sawyer conceded as he set the sandwich down and wiped his chin with a napkin. “Also, you’re not going to just drop that bomb in my lap and pretend it’s business as usual. What do you mean, you and Pippa are going to ‘give the people what they want’? What does that even mean?”
Seth took a sip of beer, then tried to explain. “I was in my truck heading into town the other day and heard that Bonnie Raitt song ‘Something to Talk About.’ You know it?”
“Who doesn’t?” Sawyer said. “So, you’re saying you got this crazy idea from a song? Because that’s even more insane.”
“It’s not insane. It got me thinking, if the folks around here thought they’d gotten their wish and Pippa and I were together, they’d move on to some other mission in life.”
Sawyer frowned, pushed his plate back and folded his arms on the table. “Please tell me that Pippa actually knows about this.”
Surprised, Seth said, “Of course she does. What, you think I’d lead her on?”
“I honestly don’t know what to think. Why not just let people want what they want and you stick to your principles,” Sawyer said. “Such as they are.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Just that if you’re so dead set on beginning something with the first woman I’ve ever known to turn you completely on your head—and your ass, if you want my opinion—then this screwball idea seems to be playing with fire. Like, of the inferno variety.” He made an explosion motion with his hands.
Seth picked up a French fry and popped it into his mouth, grinning as he chewed and swallowed, then said, “Yes, well, see, that’s the other part of this plan.”
Sawyer closed his eyes, only it wasn’t in food rapture this time. “I’m afraid to ask.”
“What? Who got your butt out of that very tricky sling that time in Jakarta? And who, might I ask, thought up that very incredible tactical retrieval in Mumbai? Both successful, need I remind you, given we’re sitting here talking about them. I’m a great planner.” He grinned and bit into another fry. “Everyone says so.”
“Yes, well, despite the fact that your mood seems to have made a remarkable recovery, for which we’re all thankful, I’m afraid even your admittedly brilliant military strategizing can’t conquer the Blue Hollow Falls gossip grapevine. So why bother?”
“Do you want to hear my plan or not?”
Sawyer waved his own fry. “Go on. Let’s hear it.”
“It was something Mabry said, actually, that made me finally realize I might be trying to fight this thing a little too hard.”
Sawyer put his fry down. “Wait. So you’re saying that I—the man who has also saved your bacon on more occasions than need mentioning here—have a heartfelt conversation with you, urging you to follow your heart, and that doesn’t get to you. But a man old enough to be your grandfather says, ‘go get her’ and that is what makes you rethink things?”
“First off, Mabry Jenkins was married to the love of his life for more years than we’ve been alive, so I think he’s got you beat there, and secondly, who better to listen to than my elders?”
Sawyer lowered his fry, then popped it into his mouth. “Okay. Point taken.” Sawyer folded his arms. “So, are you saying this was Mabry’s idea? This big plan of yours?”
“No,” Seth admitted. “But after talking about his wife, he said something about how, back in his day, if a man met the right woman, he didn’t whine about the obstacles, he just went after her and let the rest sort itself out.”
Sawyer lifted his hands, then let them fall in his lap. “Pretty sure that’s exactly what I told you.”
Seth grinned. “I guess it was something about his delivery. Anyway, I ran into Pippa in the parking lot that same day, and Mabry had already gotten me to thinking and then there she is, and we hadn’t spoken in a while and . . .” He shook his head. “I think part of this is how fast it’s all come at me. How real can that be, right? And she’s connected to Moira and her life is half a world away, and let’s remember that, oh, she happens to be this rock star of the folk music world, which is easy to forget here when she’s just being Pippa MacMillan, but we all know that’s going to be a thing.”
Sawyer shook his head, as if trying to keep up with him. “It’s scaring me that I followed all that, but okay, so, what did Mabry say about that?”
“It wasn’t about our situation specifically, it was just something he said about how you can’t gauge how real something might or might not be based on time alone. Sometimes you just know.” Seth looked at Sawyer. “He made a comment about how he knew his wife was the one for him the first time he made her laugh. And I had all these instantaneous flashbacks to every single moment Pippa smiled, or I made her laugh, or her reaction to something else that I recalled. I didn’t even know there were that many, or that I’d obviously internalized every last one of them. Mabry saying that, it was like . . .”
“A punch right to the gut?” Sawyer said.
Seth just nodded.
Sawyer grinned then. “I might know something about that.” He leaned back in his chair. “It’s true, sometimes you just know. Though Mabry’s a better man, or a more courageous one anyway, for just going after her right from the start. I did exactly what you’re doing. Fought it tooth and nail, using logic as my defense, when nothing about attraction is logical. But it’s what we do to keep from getting our hearts stomped on and handed back to us in a basket.” He rested his forearms on the table again. “The thing is, it’s always going to be a risk, no matter who it is. Obstacles or not. You don’t take that risk, then you never reap the far, far, greater reward. And if Pippa isn’t worth that risk, then who is?”
Seth nodded in agreement. “That’s where my head has been these past few days as well. Seeing Pippa in the parking lot right after talking to Mabry was like a one-two punch. Then I heard that song, and it got me to thinking.”
“Wait.” Sawyer pushed his plate aside. “I’m confused. So you’re saying you do want to pursue things with her after all? But you’re going to do that by having a pretend relationship? What am I missing here?”
“Okay, I’ll start from the beginning.”
Sawyer sighed, but waved another fry. “Have at it.”
“We agreed—Pippa and I both did—early on, that it was a bad idea to start something. I knew—I think we both knew—that living under the same roof was going to prove a very bad plan if we hoped to keep our hands to ourselves. So, I leased Noah’s cabin. Then Mabry had his accident and we spent a very intense day dealing with that. And after it was over ... things might have happened.”
Sawyer’s eyebrows climbed halfway up his forehead. To his credit, this was not paired with any kind of knowing grin. More ... concern, which Seth appreciated.
“Nothing like that,” Seth quickly added. “But we did give in, momentarily, to things. I’m not a kiss-and-tell guy, so—”
“And I’m not asking for details. I get the gist. A line was crossed.”
Seth nodded. “And I think it’s safe to say we both then realized that my plan, about the cabin, was absolutely the right idea, because . . .” He shook his head, blew out a long breath.
Sawyer did smile then. “I’d launch into the you’re-an-idiot speech again, but since it looks like you finally got that memo . . .” He made a sweeping gesture with his hand. “Proceed.”
Seth smiled at that. “So we’re living apart, but she continued coming to the vineyard, seeing Dex, helping Bailey and Jake. She gave me plenty of space, but otherwise didn’t seem all that bothered by our being, you know, in the same vicinity.”
“Unlike yourself,” Sawyer said, then raised his hand. “Just a guess.”
“Ha. Yes, I was having a harder time with that than I thought she was. So I put increasingly bigger distances between us, but that wasn’t working out too well either. Then we had a pretty big moment by Big Stone Creek, which I can’t explain, but the end result was that I found out she was just as affected, which was why she wasn’t staying away. But she promised she would, and I stood there like an idiot and let her walk away. Then I blew any chance of pulling my head out of my ass when she overheard my conversation with you in your office that day and boom, it should have been over. Only it wasn’t. Because now I knew we both thought there was something, a big something. And then I talked to Mabry, and he said what he said, followed by me walking outside, straight into Pippa. We dance around each other, reaffirm the decision to steer clear, but agree we should at least be able to talk, and she drives off and I’m left standing there asking myself what in the hell is wrong with me? I get in the truck, and I hear the song.” Seth leaned back in his chair. “My point being, at every turn, rather than consider giving it a chance, I’ve just driven my decision to not have this relationship into the ground, then smacked it a few more times with a pile driver, for emphasis.”
Sawyer didn’t say anything and Seth knew he was processing, so he sat back and waited. “So, what you’re saying is that you can’t tell Pippa you’ve changed your mind and flip-flop on her, because she’ll feel she can’t trust you to know what you want, and she’ll be worried that you could flip right back the other way again.”
“Bingo,” Seth said, tapping the table with the flat of his palm for emphasis. “Hence the plan.”
Sawyer rubbed a hand over his face. “Which is, exactly?”
Seth leaned forward and lowered his voice. “Pippa made the comment that the townsfolk didn’t seem to be moving on to another subject; they still want to see us together, and they make that pretty clear at every opportunity, even if they’re kind about it. Pippa said she was getting used to it. The truth is, I think she’s kind of charmed by it.”
“Because you think she’s not so averse to the idea after all.” Sawyer made it a statement.
“I know she’s not,” Seth said, then leaned back in his chair. “She said she was sorry it was bugging me so much. I countered with the idea that maybe we just give them ‘something to talk about.’” He laughed then. “She thought I meant one of us should be seen around town with someone else.” Seth specifically didn’t mention the singing, nor would he, even to Sawyer. That was Pippa’s news to share. “Then she wondered if I was trying to tell her I was interested in someone else. Her reaction to that was interesting.”
“Well, that’s good then, right?”
Seth nodded. “I told her I meant we should just let the locals think we’re a thing. Then they can move on and focus on the next big to-do.”
Sawyer laughed as the light finally dawned for him. “And you think that if you pretend to be together, you could just innocently-not-so-innocently let things progress naturally from pretend to real, like it was just this great plan backfiring on both of you?”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
Sawyer rolled his eyes. “I say that like a guy who thinks that sometimes the hard part of being a brilliant strategist is that you tend to overthink things way too much.”
Seth smiled. “I thought this was kind of brilliant, too.”
“I think it’s an utterly insane way of approaching a fairly straightforward concept. There’s this wild new thing the young kids are doing called dating. You should try it. Take her out to dinner. In fact, bring her here for dinner. Do a little dancing. Take a nice long drive. Hell, walk the vines together holding hands.”
Seth grinned. “You missed your calling. You should be running a dating service.” He was not remotely put off by Sawyer’s reaction. In fact, he’d expected it. This was how Sawyer had reacted to every one of his successful plans to get their missions accomplished and their butts safely back to base camp. To Seth’s way of thinking, this reaction meant he was on the right track. He popped another two fries in his mouth, then pointed a third at Sawyer. “Sunny is a very lucky woman.”
“She is,” Sawyer agreed, grinning despite his clear irritation with his best friend.
Seth was okay with that. “The thing is, if I ask her out, try to go the normal route, there’s all this pressure and worry. Like, should-we-shouldn’t-we, what if he changes his mind again, what should I think about this, how should I react about that. All of the crap that dates are so fraught with when you’re trying to get to know someone, trying to find out if this is the one you’re meant to be with.”
Realization began to dawn. “Ah. But if you’re just pretend dating, for the sake of getting the locals off your back, then there’s nothing to worry about, because it’s not real. So you can just be yourselves.”
“Exactly,” Seth said. “We let our guards down, just act naturally. Actually, even planning how we’re going to put on this little song and dance is a thing that will probably draw us closer together. We’ll have some laughs, and in the meantime . . .” He lifted a shoulder. “Things will sort of figure themselves out. We’ll either go from pretending to real, or we’ll figure out we were right to nip it in the bud. But at least we’ll know.”
“You’ll know,” Sawyer countered.
“We’ll both know,” Seth said. “If she decides to still keep her distance, I’ll respect that. I have no choice but to respect that, but at least we’ll have tried. I’ve given up pretending if I ignore it, it will go away.”
Sawyer must have seen something in Seth’s expression, because he leaned forward immediately. That had been his skill as a commanding officer. No one could read a situation, or a person, better than Sawyer. “But you don’t think she will back off, do you? Because, perhaps, this little charade has already begun? And maybe it won’t be a charade for long?”
“Last night I went up to the cabin to get Bailey. They were having movie night. Pippa and I sat outside and talked while Bailey was inside cleaning up. And yes, I told her my idea.”
“How’d she take it?”
“We were dancing at the time,” he said, by way of explanation.
Sawyer lifted his brows again. “Okay.”
“So, I thought it went well,” was all Seth said, not commenting on the kiss. Then both his smile and all of his bravado dimmed. “Only I haven’t heard a word from her today. Maybe she assumes I’m taking the lead, since it was my idea.”
“But you’re worried she’s having second thoughts.” Again, Sawyer didn’t make it a question.
“Not worried so much as . . . well, okay, maybe worried sums it up. It’s possible I could have put the plan into motion in a less ... emphatic manner.”
“Ah,” Sawyer said, his lips twitching. “Hard to be in a pretend relationship when only one of you is pretending.”
“Yeah. I might not have thought that part all the way through.”
Sawyer grinned widely then. “No pain, no gain.”
“Kiss my—”
“So, what did you think of the burgers, mates?”
Seth and Sawyer looked up to find Hudson standing beside their table. He was as tall as Sawyer and as solidly built as Seth, with a flashy grin, a mop of wild curly hair on his head, and the kind of swagger one would expect from an Aussie with his extraordinary culinary skill set.
“Which one was your favorite?”
“Yes,” Seth said with a grin, handing his scorecard to Hudson, showing every box checked. “When is dessert day?”
Hudson laughed. “I’m still working on it, mate. But you’re on the invite list, I promise.”
“These were amazing, Hud,” Sawyer told him. “Let’s go with the top four vote-getters, and if it’s a ten-way tie, then chef’s choice.”
“I knew I liked you,” Hudson said, then moved on to chat with the artists and crafters seated at each table.
“Smart move, making the guild your lab rats,” Seth said, watching Hudson work the room as well. “They’ll be raving about this to everyone who stops by the mill for weeks.”
Sawyer smiled. “That’s the idea. All for one—”
“Burgers for all,” Seth finished, and they both chuckled.
Drake and a few other crafters got up and went over to the stage. They’d stowed their instruments there earlier and Drake climbed up on stage and stepped behind the mike. “Okay if we play a little, work off those amazing burgers?” Drake called out to Sawyer.
Sawyer waved his hand. “Please do.”
Moments later the sound of a fiddle being tuned and riffs from an accordion punctuated the lively chatter populating the dining area, as did the laughter coming from whatever table Hudson was visiting.
“You know, you’ve created something really special here already,” Seth said, taking in the scene. “I can’t believe it’s all come together so quickly.”
Sawyer smiled. “Tell me,” he said. “I feel like my head is spinning every day, trying to focus on the brewing, and get this up and going at the same time. Hudson has been a godsend in more than one way. He’s been interviewing sous-chefs and kitchen help. I’m going to have to hire a restaurant manager soon so I can focus on the brewery side of things.” He shook his head. “Not complaining, mind you. I’m so grateful this has blossomed like it has. Not just the brewery and pub, but the whole mill. Addie Pearl held a meeting last week with all of the crafters and artists in residence so far, and everyone’s saying the same thing. It’s been an overwhelming response since we opened our doors with that big holiday open house. In the dead of a pretty brutal winter, too. We’re all excited to see how things grow over this coming summer.”
“You build it, they will come,” Seth said. “It’s got everything going for it, and this place, where folks can sit, chat, linger, and enjoy the whole mill vibe, it’s just the icing on the cake.”
“Get that winery of yours going and we’ll be sending the crowds right up the hill to you. Maggie was by here yesterday to give us an update on Mabry and she said she and her husband have decided to move here for good. Apparently, her husband is thinking he might retire and work with Maggie and the boys to open a cidery to go along with Mabry’s apple orchards.”
Seth’s eyebrows shot up. “Truly? That’s a fantastic idea.”
Sawyer nodded. “Create something of a destination location, what with your farms being side by side. And you’ve got Ansted on the other side of the mountain with his pumpkin farm. I think you all could make the fall harvest months a huge event time. Then, when you get the event venue up and running, you’ll have wedding season to balance that.” He grinned, leaned back in his chair. “Hard to believe when we started working on this rundown place and your horrifically overgrown fields, that we’d get here just a few short years later.”
“Speak for yourself,” Seth said, chuckling. “I still feel like I have such a long way to go. If this crop of table- and stock grapes happens, then next year I’ll start pressing and fermenting.”
“I’ll be serving the Bluestone & Vine Llamarama Label here before you know it.”
Seth chuckled. “Fingers crossed.” He’d named his label long before he’d harvested his first bunch of grapes. He’d done it partly for Sarah Bianchi, and partly because it just suited the way he thought. He’d thought he’d go on to have a herd of llamas back then, but Dex was worthy of the label all by himself, even if he would forever be the only one.
“Now all you have to do is get the girl,” Sawyer said.
Seth shook his head. “I don’t know,” he said. “The more I listen to myself explaining it to you, the more I think maybe you’re right, about all the planning.” He checked his cell phone, then tucked it back in his pocket. “And maybe all this is moot. Maybe she’s going to make the decision for me.”
“Maybe so,” Sawyer said, then looked beyond Seth’s shoulder. “Whatever the case, I think you’re about to find out.”
Seth turned and saw Pippa entering the room. Jake was with her, and he was carrying an old fiddle case.
Pippa waved and Seth started to lift his hand in response, then he realized she was waving to Drake. In fact, he didn’t think she’d even noticed he was there. He thought about getting up, going to talk to her, but then Drake was crossing the room and he, Pippa, and Jake disappeared back through the doorway.
“What’s that all about?” Seth wondered.
“There’s one way to find out,” Sawyer said, then made a shooing motion. “Go see.” He grinned. “Maybe you’ll get the chance for a little PDA. No better place to put your grand plan into motion than at the mill. Before supper, every man, woman, and sheep will know the two of you are making more than googly eyes at each other.”
Seth shook his head, but looked at the now empty doorway. “I don’t want to intrude on whatever she’s got going on. I don’t even think she saw me.” He turned back to find Sawyer leaning back in his chair, arms folded across his chest, a very satisfied smile on his face. “What?”
“Nothing. Other than this is going to be a very gratifying time in my life.” He lifted his hands and gestured around him. “My brewery is taking off. The guild has the mill hopping. Sunny just got her new grant approved for her next research proposal.” He folded his arms again. “And I finally get the chance to see you make a complete fool out of yourself over a girl.”
“Har, har,” Seth grumbled, wondering why he’d thought it was such a good idea to tell Sawyer anything in the first place.
“Fair is fair, after all,” Sawyer added.
Seth thought about that and a smile creased his face. “Yeah, well, there is that.” He pushed his chair back and stood. “You were pretty spectacularly awkward in your pursuit of Sunny. It’s a credit to her she saw through all that to the stellar man underneath.”
Sawyer stood, too. “Thanks, I think,” he replied, chuckling. “I’m sure Pippa will do the same. Eventually. I’ll be happy to have a chat with her if you think it will help.”
Seth just gave him a quelling look. “I think I can handle this on my own.”
“Yeah,” Sawyer said with a laugh, “because you’re doing an awesome job of it so far.” Sawyer walked around the table and clamped a hand on Seth’s shoulder a little harder than was necessary. “Just don’t go hurting her and make me have to hurt you. Don’t screw this up.” He let his hand drop away.
Seth rubbed his shoulder. “Gosh, thanks, Dad. I’ll do my best.” He snagged his fleece off the back of the chair. The unusually warm spring weather had taken a dip back toward the frigid that morning. “I’m going to head back up to the vines. I’ve got a distributor coming by later this afternoon. It looks good that he’ll be able to handle getting my table grapes sold this fall, along with bulk stock grapes to other vintners.”
“That’s great news,” Sawyer said, though Seth could see that he was disappointed Seth wasn’t going to go track Pippa down right that instant.
“It’s not a done deal yet,” Seth said.
The trio of musicians on the stage, still sans Drake, started up a lively tune featuring a folk guitar, a bass, and the accordion. Folks immediately started tapping their toes and the couple who ran the photography studio in the mill got up and started an impromptu little dance.
“Sunny has been playing Pippa’s music over the greenhouse sound system that Noah helped her and Stevie set up,” Sawyer mentioned, out of nowhere. “She says the orchids like it.”
“And why wouldn’t they?” Seth asked, suddenly needing to get out of the mill, back in his truck, and on up the road. Back to his winery, his vines, even his dang llama. To the life you understand.
“You listen to her music?” Sawyer wanted to know.
“That’s a story for another day,” Seth replied. “I really need to get on the road.”
Sawyer nodded, finally conceding he’d done all he could.
Seth got his fleece on, but never made it out to his truck. Will intercepted him as he was heading out the main door to the side parking lot.
“Have you seen Jake?” Will asked, looking none too happy.
Seth stopped, frowned. “Yeah, he’s with Pippa and Drake. Is something wrong?”
Will was older than Sawyer and Seth, just shy of forty. He topped out right about six feet and his wiry build belied the fact that he tossed bluestone and granite around all day like they were pick-up sticks. “Where are they?” he asked, prompting Seth to put his hand, gently, on Will’s shoulder.
“What’s wrong? Has something happened?” Then Seth recalled what Jake had been carrying when he’d stepped into the pub. “Is this about the fiddle?”
Will had been about to push past Seth, but his green-eyed gaze swiveled right back. “So he does have it?”
Instead of relief, what Seth thought he saw in Will’s eyes was a flash of—grief? Regret? He wasn’t sure. Whatever it was, this was no small thing to him. He’d never seen Will this disturbed. “I’m guessing he didn’t have permission?”
“I don’t know what’s gotten into him lately. Ever since he met up with Pippa MacMillan, he’s been a changed kid.”
Seth smiled then, thinking maybe he was beginning to understand, but kept it gentle. “He’s a brand-new teenager, with brand-new hormones. He’s got a little crush on her. It’s okay, Pippa knows just how to handle it. She’s great with him.” At least in as much as Seth knew.
“So great that she’s talked him into taking one of my fiddles without asking?” Will asked. “I think we might have different interpretations of great, then.”
He went to push past Seth again, and this time Seth put his hand on Will’s arm, not as gently, but not in anger. Not yet, anyway. “Whoa, whoa, hold on. Tell me what’s happening.”
“This is between me and Jake. And Pippa, apparently.”
“I know you’re angry,” Seth said, realizing now he’d clearly misread just how upset Will was. “But I promise you, there’s nothing nefarious going on here. Pippa is one of the kindest, most generous people I know. She’d never encourage any kind of dishonesty. Maybe Jake wanted to impress her, I don’t know, but I don’t think it’s worth—”
“This doesn’t have anything to do with you, Seth,” Will bit off. “Let me pass.”
If it has to do with Pippa, it does, was the first thought that ran through Seth’s head. “Fine,” he said, “I’ll go with you.”
Seth thought he heard Will swear under his breath, and still confused by what would send one of the smoothest, most even-tempered men he knew into such an agitated state, Seth decided he’d take the lead. Not that he thought Will intended to do any physical harm to anyone, but why take chances?
Just then the squeaky, rusty notes of a fiddle echoed down from the upper floor, followed by a mix of male and female laughter. Will turned around and was up the stairs before Seth could stop him. “Wait,” he called, knowing he should save his breath.
Will strode right into the music studio classroom without knocking.
Seth was right behind him. “Sorry,” he said. “I tried to—”
“Jacob Wilson McCall,” Will said to his son, stopping just a few feet into the room, his tone far calmer than Seth would have expected, which, in turn, made it feel that much more portentous.
Drake sat on a stool in the front of the room, his fiddle in one hand, bow in the other. Jake sat on a stool next to him, in a mirror pose, with his fiddle and bow—or Will’s fiddle and bow—in his hands in the same position. Pippa sat on a folding chair facing the two, her hands clasped. Or they had been. She’d risen immediately to her feet and turned to face their surprise guests.
“You must be Jake’s father,” Pippa said, smiling and extending her hand, as if Will wasn’t standing there, glaring a hole right through her. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Jake talks about you nonstop.”
“Dad,” Jake croaked, fumbling to stand up, almost knocking the stool over. His ears were tipped in bright scarlet. “I can explain.”
Pippa turned then. “Oh, Jake, no,” she said softly, as awareness dawned.
Will was already past Pippa, having ignored her outstretched hand. “Pack it up. We’re going home. Where you’ll be staying for an indefinite period of time when you’re not at school. You’re grounded.”
“Will,” Drake began. “He just wanted to learn—”
Will turned to Drake and though his expression was still tight, he seemed to be realizing that he was making quite a scene, so his tone was more modulated when he said, “I don’t have a beef with you, Drake. This is between me and my son.”
“Mr. McCall,” Pippa said. “I’d like to—”
“Jacob?” Will said, cutting her off, and Jake, who’d already hastily packed up the fiddle, walked quickly toward his father.
The two turned, leaving Pippa standing there, her mouth hanging open in dismay, only to find Seth in the doorway, blocking their exit. “First,” Seth said very quietly to Will, “you’ll do me the favor of turning around and showing your son how you treat a lady. Pippa clearly didn’t know. This isn’t on her.”
Will stared down Seth for a long moment.
“Dad,” Jake began, but stopped when Will shot him a quelling look.
Real concern etched Seth’s features then. He’d never, not ever, seen Will like this. An outburst was one thing, but this was so out of character it was alarming. Something else was clearly going on here. Something that involved far more than Jake’s borrowing a musical instrument without asking.
“Jake,” Seth said kindly but firmly, “why don’t you go on out and get in your dad’s truck. Your dad will be out in a minute.”
“Seth—” Will began, a warning tone in his voice.
Seth waited until Jake had cleared the room and his footsteps could be heard on the steps leading down to the main floor, then he stepped closer to Will and lowered his voice so it didn’t carry past the two of them. “I don’t know what in the hell has gotten into you,” he said, his tone calm, his gaze far from it, “but I know you well enough to know you’re going to regret how you’re handling this.”
“You don’t know a damn thing,” Will said, but didn’t move away.
“I get that. Whatever the hell this is about is your business. You don’t want to tell me, fine. At the moment, I’m just trying to keep you from making a bigger ass out of yourself than you already have.” He held Will’s stormy gaze with his own steely one, then said, “If you think you have it in you, apologize to Pippa. That’ll be one less regret you’ll have later.”
Will held his gaze a moment longer, and that’s when Seth saw what was lurking behind the anger. Fear. The bald, uncontrollable, crumple-to-the-knees kind of fear. Seth knew that look, because he’d seen it on the faces of his comrades many, many times, and on his own face as well. He also knew the fury was so big because anger was the only emotion potent enough to quash that kind of terror. He saw the twitch at the corner of Will’s mouth, the throb in his temple, and knew if he were to shake Will’s hand right then, he’d feel a tremor there, too. The kind pure force of will couldn’t control.
Seth was just about to make his excuses to Pippa and Drake, and get Will the hell out of there so he could fall apart in private, when Will sucked in a hard breath and turned to face Pippa and Drake. Neither of them appeared angry. Concern was the only emotion etched on their faces.
“This has nothing to do with either of you,” he said stiffly. He looked at Drake. “It’s kind of you to offer, but Jake will not be learning how to play the fiddle.” He glanced at Pippa then, and Seth saw his jaw tighten and his throat work. “Jake talks about you nonstop,” he told her, sounding neither complimentary nor damning. Simply stating facts. “I’ve never seen him quite like this.” He took a moment and his throat worked, but none of the rigidity went out of his frame. If anything, Will seemed so stiff, he looked brittle rather than hard. “I’ve appreciated your music for a very long time.” Will paused, then added, his voice hardly more than a rasp. “It reminds me of . . .” His voice quavered, badly, and when he finished, he sounded like he’d swallowed a handful of gravel, the emotion in his voice was so thick. “Someone I loved. Very much. I’d, uh . . .”
He stopped then, and Seth could see Will was visibly trembling now. Seth wasn’t sure how to comfort him, or help him, or if it would be welcome if he tried. All he could do was let Will say his piece.
“I’d appreciate it,” he managed, the words being ground out through a world of emotion, “if you’d leave Jake be. It’s not about you. I just . . . please.”
Seth looked from Will to Pippa. Tears were making tracks down her cheeks, and he could see it was costing her to not go to Will, to try to comfort a man who was clearly in a great deal of pain.
It was a humbling moment, for all of them.
“I promise,” she said, her voice thick with tears. “If in time, you ever reconsider, you’ve only to—”
“Thank you,” Will said, then turned and exited the room, his stride determined but no longer rigid.
Pippa looked at Seth. “I didn’t know,” she said, her eyes huge with sorrow, her voice trembling. “I’m so sorry.”
Drake, who had packed up his own fiddle, walked over to Pippa and put a hand on her shoulder. “I think we all know this is about Will. Don’t take it personally. You just wanted to help.”
She nodded, swiped away a few tears, and smiled. “Thank you for being willing to help, Drake. It was very kind of you.”
Drake shrugged. “I’ll always support a budding musician.” He walked to the door, pausing by Seth. “Sorry, man,” he told Seth. “Thanks for sticking up for her, though. It was the right thing to do.”
Seth just nodded; then Drake left the classroom, too.
“He was speaking about his wife, wasn’t he?” Pippa asked, tears glittering on her eyelashes again.
Seth turned to her. “I think that’s a pretty safe bet, yes.”
“Does he ever talk about her?”
Seth shook his head. “Not in the time I’ve known him. He’s a quiet man. But a good one, despite what you just saw. This was so far out of character for him,” Seth began, feeling he needed to defend Will, who’d been nothing but a good friend to him.
Pippa nodded. “I could see that. Jake is such a great kid, and I don’t doubt his dad is responsible for that. Jake told me that his mom died when he was little, that he doesn’t remember her. Do you think Will talks to him about her?”
Seth shrugged. “Don’t know. But given the fact Jake took that fiddle—which clearly has some history behind it—without asking, indicates there’s some kind of disconnect there.”
Pippa sighed. “I feel so bad for both of them. Will is still hurting, and so is Jake. I wish there was some way to help them. If they’d just talk about it.”
“As a rule, my gender isn’t big on that.”
She smiled then. “I don’t know, you do pretty well.”
“I grew up in the estrogen ocean—I had no choice.”
She let out a short, surprised laugh at that. “Maybe we just need to stick Will and Jake in a house with my sisters and your sisters for a month.”
Seth chuckled. “There’s an idea.”
“Are you going to talk to him? Or try?” she asked quietly when their smiles faded once more. “I will honor my promise, about steering clear of Jake, but I can’t help feeling that’s not going to help matters any. If this is about his wife, Jake’s mum, and it looks to be, then Will’s sticking his head in the sand won’t make this go away. If he doesn’t want to confront his painful past, he doesn’t have to. Only Jake’s not a little kid anymore. And he clearly wants to pursue things that Will wants to keep dead and buried.” She lifted her hands, let them drop. “Forcibly keeping Jake from exploring that part of his life, whether it’s about his mom, or his interest in music . . . that’s going to eventually drive a wedge between them. My parents didn’t understand me at all when it came to my passion for music. Fortunately, they supported me anyway, but if they hadn’t? If they’d forbidden me?” She blew out a breath. “I don’t even want to guess what measures I’d have been willing to take. I mean, it would be one thing if I—or Jake—wanted to pursue something illegal, or that could get me killed or something. But it’s music we’re talking about. I don’t think Jake fancies himself a career musician. He just wants to play music like his mom and dad did.”
Seth looked at her. “Jake’s mom played?”
“You didn’t know? I don’t know if she played, but she was a singer. That’s how she met Will, back when he was in the military. He played the fiddle at some local place near whatever base he was stationed on and she asked to sing with the band.” Pippa lifted her hand. “That’s all I know. I’m not sure what all Jake knows. That’s all he told me.”
Seth nodded. “I’ll talk to Will. At some point. I think we need to, for Jake’s sake, if nothing else. I’ll talk to Sawyer, too. And Addie Pearl. Will’s mom was a good friend of hers, from childhood, I’m pretty sure. I don’t think she knew Jake’s mom. Jake didn’t come to live here until his mom passed, but I can see if Addie Pearl has any insight into what happened.”
“Good,” Pippa said, sounding relieved. “That’s really good. If there’s anything I can do—”
“I will let you know,” Seth said.
Silence fell again, and just as Pippa turned to retrieve the purse she’d left leaning against the folding chair, Seth heard himself blurt out, “Have you given my proposition any thought?”
Clearly surprised, Pippa turned to him and let out a little laugh. “I thought I made my answer to that pretty clear on the porch steps last night.”
Now it was his turn to look surprised. “I hadn’t heard from you today, so I wasn’t sure if you’d had second thoughts. Bailey hasn’t said a word to anyone, by the way. She texted me this morning to make sure I knew the secret was safe with her.”
Pippa rolled her eyes, but her smile was filled with affection. “I wonder how much she heard.”
“Hard to tell,” Seth said, “but she seemed pretty happy with the end result.”
Pippa frowned. “I didn’t think about—isn’t it wrong, letting her think we’re . . . you know?”
“She’s been raised with barn animals. I don’t think she’s squeamish at the idea that we might be having—”
“I didn’t mean that!” Pippa laughed, looking a bit shocked. “She’s ten.”
“She’s helped birth more goats than the average midwife.”
Pippa covered her eyes. “Aye, and I could have done without knowin’ that, couldn’t I?”
Seth grinned. He liked it when she went full Irish. “Aye, that I do,” he said, his own brogue fairly dead-on, given his grandparents had been straight over from the old country.
“What I meant,” Pippa said, “is that it’s not fair to let her think we’re happily involved, then I take off and—” She lifted a shoulder. “I mean, I know it’s not her heartbreak, it would be mine, but she’s still a young, impressionable girl and ... I hate to set her up to be sad. It’s wrong.”
Seth nodded. “That’s true.” He closed the distance between them, lifted Pippa’s chin with his fingertips. Her beautiful blue eyes were swimming with emotion again, but he wasn’t sure he fully understood the source. Only one way to find out. He had been bold enough talking about how Will should face his fears; the least he could do was man up and tackle his own. “Would it be a heartbreak? For you?” he asked, his voice barely above a rumble.
Her bottom lip quivered, just the tiniest bit, and he was rubbing the pad of his thumb over it, soothing it, before he could think on the wisdom of his action.
She searched his gaze, then whispered, “Would it be for you?”
It was a pivotal moment. He could feel it like a gravitational surge, rooting him to the spot, wrenching her question into tight focus. There was no backing down now, no big, elaborate plans meant to save them from themselves. Just this moment. And this woman, asking him for his honest response. “I think it will be, aye,” he said, the brogue gruff, as was his voice.
“Me too,” she whispered, then made a sound like a half laugh, half sob. “We’re so hopelessly bad at this staying apart thing. And I’ll be honest, Seth, I don’t want to pretend to be with you.” She took a deep, shuddering breath and held his gaze as directly as she ever had. “I want to truly be with you,” she said simply, and yet so boldly. So bravely. “Whatever that means, wherever it goes.”