Chapter 53

53

STERLING

" I heard you were in New York now," Cameron Adams said as he and I ended up next to one another at the bar. "How's it going there? I was surprised when someone told me you didn't go pro. Did you seriously go to business school instead, you big nerd?"

I shrugged and flashed him an easygoing smile. Cameron had been part of our larger circle of friends in high school. He and I had never been super close, but we'd played ball together and he was a decent guy. It just so happened he'd also been one of the people who had only ever gotten to know the front I'd put up—and that was all I was willing to show him now, too.

I wasn't here to reestablish deep connections with anyone. I had already done that with Daphne and it was tearing my soul apart.

"Yeah, man. Stanford. As soon as I got accepted, that was it for me and football. It was great and I loved it. Still do, but it was going to take too long to start paying the kind of bills I wanted to be racking up."

He laughed. "Let me guess. A penthouse with a view and a couple fancy cars?"

I dropped my chin in a nod and smirked. "Wall Street got me there faster and without so much risk of a career-ending injury."

"I never knew you to be afraid of taking risks."

"I'm in finance," I said, shrugging. "Every move I make is a risk. And this way, my knees still work."

He laughed and nodded. "I hear that. Every time it rains, my wrist still throbs like a bastard."

Bryan, another of our old teammates, joined our conversation with his wife. "Are you still talking about that wrist injury?" he asked with a smile. "You've been milking that story for years."

Cameron laughed. "Oh, whatever. Did you ever get that hernia fixed, Three-Balled Bryan?"

His wife, Lana, widened her eyes and looked at her husband. "Have I missed something all these years?"

Bryan groaned. "No, honey, it wasn't a third testicle. It was just my guts poking out. But I got it fixed before we met." He turned to look at Sterling. "Hey, North. The farm is looking pretty good these days. Lana and I took our kids out there during the festival. It's a hell of improvement from the way things were looking last year."

"Thanks, Three-Ball," I said, smacking my palm into his when he offered me his hand to shake.

He rolled his eyes and chuckled. "I didn't miss you pricks at all."

I gave his wife a smile. "Good to you see you, too, Lana. You keeping this joker in line?"

She smiled. "Hello, Sterling. Thanks for opening up the farm for the festival. Our boys love it every year, even if Bryan wasn't so eloquent about it."

I laughed. "It's no problem. I know it's been getting a bit rundown, but we're fixing all that. It's going to look even better by next year."

"We're looking forward to it," Bryan said. "Are there still fish in the pond? The boys have been nagging at me to find out."

"Not at the moment, but that's a damn good idea, actually."

Restocking the pond and opening it up to local kids as a fishing opportunity would be a good way to draw people in during the spring and summer.

"Do you know if your dad is thinking about converting one of the barns into an events venue?" Cameron asked. "My girlfriend is on my ass about a ring, and she wants to get married on a farm. She's been going to the festival since she was a baby and now she's got it in her head that she'd love to get married on your farm."

"It's an idea I've thought about," I admitted, suddenly realizing that while everyone I'd spoken to tonight had asked about New York and what I did there, most people were more interested in the farm.

Their feelings about it so far seemed mixed. A few had mentioned how bad it'd been looking these last few years while others were only interested in our plans for it going forward.

I'd only been here for about thirty minutes, but I'd already added a bunch of new ideas to my mental list. The more I was talking to others about it, the more I saw an opportunity to turn it into something new and up with the times.

"Our boys have also asked if you have a campground," Lana said, her voice as soft and shy as always. "Do you think that might be something that's on the cards for next year? The entire baseball team wants to camp out there for a night or two. Someone told them there are some pretty nice hikes on the property and lots of space for them to practice."

"I'll bring it up with my dad," I said. "It's a good idea. Campouts are fun and the farm is close enough to town that it should be easy for the kids to get there."

"What about the bakery?" another voice asked from behind me and I twisted to see Sheryl, a girl who had obviously been in our year but I'd never spoken to before.

I only knew her name because it was on a sticker stuck to her dress, but I smiled like I knew exactly who she was, stepping into the role of charming marketer once more. "What about the bakery?"

As she looked back at me, she seemed surprised that I was addressing her at all, but she blinked rapidly past it and then cleared her throat. "I was, uh, we were wondering if perhaps the space would be available for classes? I run a little pottery workshop twice a month and we used to use the cafe next door to you, but they're getting pretty busy and it's been a struggle to find enough space for fifteen ladies every second weekend."

"Just call either Daphne LaSalle or June Gracen," I said, confident that this would work without even having to talk to my dad about it. "I'll tell them to wait by the phone. We'd love to host you."

I knew both June and Daphne would go for this in a heartbeat. First, because they were both creative people. They'd probably end up joining the workshops, but moreover, this put fifteen asses in seats in the bakery twice a month.

After I excused myself from the group, I got pulled into another conversation that ended up going in the exact same direction. Henley Cooper smiled at me, batting her lashes when she found out I was in New York.

"I'm there too," she said excitedly. "Not on Wall Street like you, but I work in Tribeca. It's funny though, I always thought your family were generational farmers."

"We are," I said, forcing the smile I gave her in return. "I've never been much of a follower, though. I broke the mold."

"I suppose you have," she said easily, still smiling as sympathy filled her eyes. "It must be hard on your dad, though. My family and I haven't been out there for a couple years because it was in such bad shape the last time we visited. It's a real shame. It used to be a great place for a family outing."

"It will be again," I promised instead of bristling at the comment. The fact of the matter was that I wasn't sure I'd feel safe letting my own kids run amok there—and I didn't even have kids yet. I had no idea what it felt like to be worried for their safety. "Do yourself a favor and visit again next year. It'll be amazing."

Her smile widened. "I'm sure it will be. My parents still live in town and my son and I visit a few times a year. We'll be sure to check it out when we come again."

"Please do." I was moving on to greet some more of my former classmates when I caught Daphne and Eric from the corner of my eye.

They walked in with Daphne on Eric's arm, but it wasn't my friend I was focused on. It was my girl. She looked like a dream, wearing a flowing red dress that wrapped around her chest, hips, and waist as if it'd been painted onto her curves. From there, it flared out slowly, sparkles on the skirt catching the light as she moved.

I couldn't tear my eyes off her. She was radiant. Stunning.

With her hair in a braid and loose tendrils framing her face, some kind of shiny gloss on her lips, and her curves so perfectly showcased in that dress, she was so beautiful that it made my entire body ache. I was about to make a beeline for her when an announcer stepped onstage.

"Can I have your attention please?" she said into the microphone and I turned along with the rest of the crowd to see one of the volunteers smiling at us. She waited until everyone had quieted before she leaned in to speak again. "Welcome, guys. It's so good to see all these familiar faces back at Allisburg High. My name is Lacey-Lee and I'm going to be your emcee for the evening."

A smattering of applause broke out. She curtsied, chuckling before she cleared her throat. "To kick the night off, we decided it might be fun to recreate the king and queen dance from your senior prom, so could we have Sterling North and Fiona Marksmith on the dance floor, please?"

I groaned. Could the timing be any worse?

I considered ignoring the request, but a few people had already turned to start shooing me toward the stage. I could practically feel Daphne's eyes on me as I went, and I silently cursed whoever had come up with this godforsaken idea.

I really should've paid more attention to the planning of this thing.

Fiona was already at the center of the dance floor when I broke through the last of the crowd. Smiling, she opened her arms. Objectively, the girl looked stunning. With a skintight black dress and her hair loose and hanging in a sleek red curtain to her waist, she looked like sex on a stick, but even as I hooked my arm around her slender waist, I couldn't find a shred of attraction toward her.

I sighed as I slid my palm into hers. "Hey, Fi. What's up?"

"Sterlo," she murmured against my ear, wrapping her manicured fingers around the back of my neck and holding me closer than necessary. "When are we going to have that drink? I've been waiting for your call."

Irritation crept through me. "We're not going to have a drink, Fiona. I turned you down, remember?"

"No, you said you were busy that day. You never said it wasn't going to happen."

I pulled back so that I could look her in the eyes this time while I said it. "It's not going to happen."

"We could get back together, baby," she purred, smiling as her gaze met mine. "That's what I wanted to get drinks to talk about. My offer in New York is solid and I could be there as soon as the end of next month."

"That's great for you, Fiona, but it has nothing to do with me," I said firmly, making sure she really understood me this time. "I'm not sure where all this stuff about us getting back together is coming from, but that's not happening either. What we had was fun when we were kids, but that's where it ended. When we were kids ."

As I spun her out and away from me, my eyes landed on Daphne's and got stuck there. She was watching with Rachel and Jake, uncertainty splashed all over her expression, with her brow slightly furrowed and her lips parted.

Fiona smiled at the crowd as she twirled, even working in a little shimmy, but her eyes hardened when she pressed up against me once more. "Why are you being so stubborn about this? We're a match made in heaven. We were good together. It's not going to hurt to give it another shot."

"Yes, it will." Others started joining us on the dance floor and I let go of Fiona, striding purposely toward Daphne and extending my hand when I reached her. "May I have this dance?"

She hesitated for a beat before she nodded, then put her hand in mine and allowed me to lead her onto the dance floor. I knew Eric was around here somewhere and I knew he was probably really not going to like this, but my father's words from this morning repeated over and over in my head.

I needed him to see that I was different with her. Even if might make him want to gouge out his own eyes.