Chapter 14

14

DAPHNE

E ver since we'd gotten home from the cabin, I'd been insanely busy. Just as I'd known would happen, tourist traffic had picked up around town because of the festival and the bakery was overrun with customers.

From seven a.m. until three p.m., I slung coffee and pastries, and then I went to help my mom with the homecoming preparations. It'd been five days straight of this and I finally had the day off tomorrow.

I left the farm after my shift, in desperate need of a good book and a hot bath, but that would have to wait until after the homecoming prep at the high school. As a teacher, my mom was used to this surge of action and excitement around town this time of year, but I'd taught elementary school.

My little ones hadn't quite had the same level of excitement as that which hung around the high school at the moment. They'd just looked forward to the parade.

I'd also never helped out quite as much with the prep as I was this year, but since helping my parents was one of the reasons I'd taken a break from teaching, I couldn't exactly bail on them now. Even my dad, the local dentist, was helping to paint banners at night.

If he could come home after a full day at work and still muster the energy to help, then so could I. I smiled as I thought about the scenes I'd seen from my parents this last week.

Somehow, after more than three decades of marriage, they were still dedicated to one another, so in love even if they did argue and squabble as often as any other couple.

So lost in thought that I nearly missed it, I suddenly realized that something was wrong with my truck. There was a weird noise coming from somewhere, and since it seemed to be following me, it had to be coming from my vehicle.

As I pulled over and climbed out, I groaned. One of my tires was completely flat. "Crap. This is the last thing I need right now."

The irony was that I was the town's favorite mechanic's sister, but I didn't have a spare at the moment. Eric had borrowed it for one of his elderly clients to take on a road trip and I'd happily agreed, but now, even though I knew how to change a tire, I didn't have one to put on.

Frustration snaked through my blood, and I took a deep breath. Groaning again, I dropped my head back and glared at the clouds floating overhead. The distant rumble of an engine made me look at the road again, and I nearly cried with relief when I saw dust rising from somewhere nearby.

It took a few seconds until the vehicle responsible for it came into view, and when it did, my relief turned into mild humiliation. Of course, Sterling is going to be the one to find me stranded next to the side of the road.

On the other hand, his family's property was just behind us, so it shouldn't have been too much of a surprise that it was him. He pulled over when he saw me, sliding his sunglasses to the tip of his nose as he hopped out of Eric's old truck and took a look at my tire.

"Bad luck," he said sympathetically. "Did you hit something?"

I shook my head. "Not that I know of. It was probably a nail."

"Can I help you change it?" he offered, striding over to me. He looked like some kind of movie star with those big expensive sunglasses over his eyes, a trendy long-sleeved T-shirt, and a pair of cargo shorts paired with another set of designer sneakers.

I arched a brow at him. "You? I'm pretty sure you don't get your hands dirty anymore, Mr. Investment Banker."

To my surprise, he chuckled, bent over, and put his palms flat on the dirt road before he smirked at me. "There. They're dirty. Now can I help you, or are you going to yell at me for even offering?"

I sighed. "I would yell at you, but as it happens, I could use a little help right around now. I don't have a spare."

"What?"

"You heard me."

He frowned. "Where is it?"

"Ask Eric."

"Cool. I will. I'm on my way to see him right now. He asked me to come help the high school team practice for the homecoming game."

"You're on your way to the school?" I asked, relief once again racing through me. "I need to get over there myself. Can I get a ride?"

"Of course." He waved toward the old truck. "Hop on in. What are you going there for?"

"Homecoming," I said. "Same as you, apparently."

"Are you helping out your mom?" he asked as we climbed in and buckled up. "How is she, by the way? I keep meaning to pop in at your place to see her, but I guess I just haven't gotten around to it."

"She'd love it if you would," I said.

Sterling turned over the engine and got us underway, one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting casually on the gear shift. How he managed to look so darn cool doing the simplest stuff, I'd never know, but he just did.

Everything about him screamed cool, confident sophistication, and now that I thought about it, it had always been that way—even before he'd worn designer clothes and had even known how to spell sophistication .

I supposed he was just one of those people who had been genetically blessed with coolness. Oh, brother. I'm still such a damn nerd. There has to be a better word for it than that.

I sighed, and he glanced at me. "Something wrong?"

"No," I said, then changed my mind. "Yes, actually. Where have you been? I haven't seen you since the cabin, which is weird, considering that I work on your family's property."

He shrugged. "I've been around. I've been helping my dad with the pumpkin patch and getting some work done. Plus, I've been trying to do some repairs, which has been like pulling teeth."

"Pulling teeth? Why?"

He dragged in a deep breath and paused for so long that I was pretty sure he wasn't going to tell me. "I don't know if you know this about him, but John North is a pretty stubborn man."

I chuckled. "So that's where you got it from."

"Hey," he protested. "I'm not that stubborn."

"Have you met you, Mr. One-Word Answers? ‘Just drop me off at Eric's shop.'" I put the words in air quotes and he let out a soft groan.

"Are you ever going to forgive me for that?" he asked.

"Nope," I said. "Not until you tell me what was wrong with you those first few days you were here."

Once again, he hesitated for a long time before he responded, his eyes on the road as he navigated us into town. "It's complicated, Daphne. Too complicated to get into it right now. Suffice it to say that I'm sorry I was so rude. If it helps, I felt bad about it."

"Well, that does help," I fibbed. "If you ever want to talk about it?—"

"Thanks, but I won't."

Not to me, you mean . I sighed, running my fingers through my hair and looking out at all the activity on the streets. There were kids running with balloons and smoke rising from barbecues being held in the park.

I toyed with the ends of my hair, knowing that it was none of my business but deciding to press on anyway. I'd apparently already opened a tiny can of worms. I might as well find out just how deep it ran.

"How come I've never seen you at the bakery since you've been back?" I asked. "I'm there every day, but I've only ever seen you that one time when you brought the pumpkins."

Sterling tensed, his shoulders stiffening as his chest rose on a deep breath. Since I was still pretending to be looking out the window, I only caught a glimpse of his reaction from the corner of my eyes, but I wished I would've been able to see his face as well.

The guy was mysterious as hell, but every so often, his face and body language betrayed him, like his body just had, but his face was still mostly covered by those sunglasses.

"It's pretty simple," he said finally. "I don't come to the bakery because it reminds me too much of my mom."

My stomach dropped and my heart broke for him. "Shit. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to pry."

I felt him glance at me even if his head didn't turn. "No, you did mean to, but it's okay. You're curious. I get it. I know it's odd that you work at Northfield Farms and you've never seen me in the bakery. Don't feel bad."

Too late.

He pulled up to the entrance of Allisburg High, rolling to a stop right in front of the doors. "This is you. I'll let Eric know about your truck when I see him. He should be at the field already."

"Yeah, thanks," I said. "Have fun with the team."

I climbed out, heading to the door, but I took one last look at the truck as Sterling drove over to the football field. Maybe I read him wrong before.

There still seemed to be a hint of the guy I'd had a crush on in there somewhere. It was just taking some time to coax him back to the surface.