Chapter 9

9

MARIGOLD

A fter running into Chance at the restaurant, Scarlett suggested a new wine bar a street over. It had a rooftop deck with an amazing view of the mountains. The heaters were on, and Oakley was welcome as long as we stayed outside.

The walls of the deck were covered in ivy. There were various potted plants that added to the greenery and a waterfall. For the moment, I was safe from running into Chance. He wouldn't find us here unless Scarlett told them where we were.

Scarlett swirled her drink. "It sounds like you've been spending a lot of time with Chance."

"I wouldn't say that," I said as I sipped a little too much of my wine, then followed it up with water. If Scarlett noticed my discomfort, she didn't mention it.

She raised a brow. "You ran into him at the harvest festival, adopted a puppy together?—"

"We did not adopt a puppy together. We were out for a bike ride, and he suggested I adopt Oakley before someone else did. I've been wanting to do it, and it was the push I needed." I was grateful to Chance because I adored having Oakley, even though it had only been a few short hours.

She tipped her head to the side. "And a bike ride together?"

"At the harvest festival, he mentioned that the guys are always busy now. Eli has you, Oliver has Joey, and Xander is always meeting someone new."

Scarlett winced. "I feel bad that I'm messing up their friendship."

"I wouldn't say you're messing it up. Things change as we get older. More of us are going to settle down, get married, and have kids. We won't be hanging out at the bars on Friday nights. Not that I do a lot of that now." The thought of more of our friends getting into serious relationships bothered me a lot.

I'd held onto the hope of a family for myself since I started reading romance books as a teenager. But now that I'd gotten older and hadn't found someone I could settle down with, I was starting to lose the belief that I would.

"Who would have thought that I'd be the first one of us to be in a serious relationship?"

"Not me." I could say that seriously because Scarlett was known as more of a wild child. She traveled the country performing plays. No one thought she'd settle in Telluride because of a man. She also had the theater, but a big draw was Eli Wilde.

I wish I could have something similar to her whirlwind story, but it didn't seem to be in the cards for me.

"We'll find you someone, but you won't be able to meet anyone new if Chance is hanging around.”

I breathed a sigh of relief that she didn't seem to think anything was happening between us. He was scaring off any potential guys because of my attraction to him. It was overshadowing everything else. Distracting me from my goal. "You think a dating app is my next step?"

"It's a start." Then Scarlett's gaze narrowed on me. "I know you had a crush on Chance."

"You did?" I practically choked out.

Scarlett nodded. "When we were kids. I noticed how you acted around him. All silly and giggly."

I swallowed hard. I'd thought that was a secret I'd hold onto forever.

"I'm only saying this because I don't want you to get hurt. Chance isn't looking for anything serious. He's vowed never to be in a relationship or get married. He doesn't want to lead anyone on, so if you still have a little crush on him, I'd let it go."

"You don't honestly believe that he can't get married because he's the town's sheriff?" I asked, remembering what he'd said to me.

Scarlett rolled her eyes. "I don't see things the same way he does. I don't remember Mom being particularly upset about Dad working, but I was younger. Maybe he saw things I didn't. I wasn't exactly focused on my parents' reactions to things that weren't about me back then. I was a selfish teenager who only cared about herself." Scarlett ducked her head as if she was ashamed.

"I wouldn't say that."

"Whatever he observed between my parents made him draw this conclusion. He's never wavered from it. Have you ever seen him date anyone since high school?"

"I assumed he dated women out of town so he wouldn't have to deal with a messy fallout."

"I'm sure that's part of it. But he also feels like he can't have what Eli and I have. That he'd hurt whoever he dated. He couldn't meet their expectations. He's married to his job."

She wasn't saying anything I hadn't already known. "I know."

"I don't know what's going on between you two, and you don't have to tell me. I just worry about you."

That was what I needed to hear to finally push me past this crush and onto more serious possibilities. "Will you help me set up a dating profile?"

"Of course." Scarlett scooted her chair closer. I wanted it to be as honest and as transparent as possible. I was looking for a serious relationship, and I was a librarian. I was hoping to eliminate anyone looking for a hookup.

"It's perfect," Scarlett declared when I hit Save.

I set the phone down as if it could bite me. "I'm so nervous. What if I don't get any interest?"

Scarlett waved a hand. "I wouldn't worry about that. There's more men on those things than women."

"How do you know?" I didn't remember her ever talking about apps.

"I tried one out a time or two. When I was lonely and in a new town. It was hard to meet people outside of bars."

I remembered her saying the only free time they had was late at night after a show.

"I don't want to meet someone at a bar. I prefer a night in." I'd even put that in my profile. I probably sounded like an old maid.

"Don't sell yourself short. You're beautiful, engaging, and caring. Any man would be lucky to have you."

"You're sweet, but you're also my best friend. You have to say that."

"I can be honest." She gestured at me. "You're the complete package."

"Only for a man who wants to get married. Most men our age have a bit more time before they have to settle down. Biologically there is no limit for them."

"That's not a problem. Adjust your preferred age range to older. You might meet more divorcees and single dads, but that's not an issue for you, is it? Those guys are more mature and have probably been through something meaningful. They know what's important in life and hopefully learned a thing or two from their first marriage."

"I can do that." I didn't care so much about age. Just that we were on the same page. I had visions of guys reaching out to me, but Chance's face always appeared.

Why couldn't I get him out of my mind? He had been nothing but friendly toward me. If I saw a flash of heat in his eyes, I was sure I was projecting my feelings onto him.

Scarlett leaned closer. "Have you thought about which play we should perform next?"

The first play had been my work, The Enchanted Forest. The title wasn't original, but then again, I was writing plays for children as a way to stretch my writing muscles. I hadn't expected anyone to actually want to perform them.

"That night we were trying to decide, Chance and I thought the castle one would be cool. But I think we should do a holiday one next. It's that time of year, and we can always do the castle one in the spring."

"That might be a little tight. It's already the end of November."

"Everyone will love it, though." It was something I could distract myself with too. No more Chance St. Claire on my mind.

"Do you have anything written? I don't think I've read a holiday one from you yet."

I shook my head. "No. But I have an idea."

Scarlett tipped her head to the side. "How long will it take you to write it?"

My forehead wrinkled. "If I have uninterrupted time, maybe a week."

Scarlett tipped her head to the side. "Even with your schedule at the library?"

I nodded. I'd need to walk Oakley and play with him. But I was sure if I got up early to write and stayed up late, I could have something drafted fairly soon.

"It's up to you. I don't want to overwork you at the holidays."

"I want to do this." It was a story line I'd dreamed about as a little girl. I was so lonely all the time. I came home to an empty house and sometimes spent all evening without talking to another person. Other than the occasional check-in from my parents saying they were working late again.

It was about a girl who wanted to run into Santa. She'd ask him to decorate her house for Christmas. Her second wish was for her parents to be home for Christmas, not making an excuse to work at some point during the day. It always felt like they wanted to get away from me. Now that I was an adult, I realized they were just devoted to their work and derived their sense of purpose from it.

But I wasn't sure how I could alter the story to fit a wider audience. My experience wasn't most people's. I'd need to think about it. It wasn't ready to write. Not yet.

But I wouldn't tell Scarlett that. I was sure I could come up with something that could work with a more universal theme.

"I don't have any issues with doing a holiday production. I'm sure everyone will be excited." Scarlett clapped her hands together.

I hoped I could finish the story in a way that would satisfy everyone. It was a risk since I didn't have the story flushed out completely, but I wanted to do this for Scarlett. I was so grateful she was home for good.

"Killian is coming home for Christmas this year. The family is excited about it."

"You're going to have the perfect Christmas this year between your family and the Wildes." It was her first holiday at home with both of the families. I hoped she didn't hear the longing in my voice.

"What are your parents doing for Christmas?" Scarlett asked.

"They said they hoped to be home this year." They always said that, and it was never true. Since I turned eighteen, they gave up any pretense of doing things for me. They probably assumed I didn't need them anymore.

Scarlett smiled politely. "Oh, good. That will be nice."

I didn't tell Scarlett that they never came. She hadn't been home for the holidays in years, so she wouldn't know. I usually laid low on the holidays so no one felt like they had to invite me to their family's Christmas dinner. I didn't want to be pitied. I'd always been fine by myself. But I couldn't help but think it could be better if I was dating someone.

Scarlett smiled and clapped her hands together again. "I have a feeling it's going to be the best Christmas ever."

"How could it not be? You're going to be home."

"You're the best friend a girl could have. I was absent for so long, and everyone welcomed me back. Sometimes I don't feel like I deserve all of this. Eli, my family, the theater." Scarlett waved her hand around us.

"You deserve all of that and more." Scarlett struggled with feelings of not fitting in, but she'd recently overcome those thoughts.

Scarlett reached across the table and squeezed my hand. "This is going to happen for you too."

"I know it will," I said with less conviction than she had. I wasn't so sure. There must be a reason that my parents didn't want to spend time with me. Maybe I was really boring like some of the guys I'd dated insinuated.

The thing was, I knew what I liked and what I wanted. I wouldn't settle for anything less. I wouldn't sit around and feel sorry for myself either.

A short while later, we said our goodbyes. I was positive Eli had texted her at some point and asked when she'd be headed home. I tried and failed not to be jealous. I couldn't remember the last time I had good sex. She alluded to it here and there, and it sounded amazing. Like nothing I'd ever experienced.

I immediately went home and began to plot my holiday play. I brainstormed until it was late, then took Oakley out one more time before collapsing into bed.

I spent the rest of the weekend, plotting and brainstorming. I didn't even look at the dating app. I didn't have time. Not with this new deadline and Thanksgiving coming up this week.

During the week, I bought small portions of what I'd make for myself for Thanksgiving, planning to write through the weekend. The library wasn't open, so I had plenty of time to write. There was a reason I'd offered to do this now. I had the time, and it would distract me from the holiday.

My parents knew Thanksgiving was my favorite holiday, but it didn't change their minds every year to spend it somewhere else.

At this point, I didn't think they could call Telluride their home base. They still maintained a home here, but I was there more often than they were. I didn't have particularly good memories there, but it was still my childhood home.

I managed to avoid seeing Chance all week. I was positive he was busy with his family and work. Other than walking and playing with Oakley, I focused on the script. By Wednesday, I was positive I was on the right track with the story line.

The little girl wouldn't be lonely like I was. She'd have a little brother she adored and a puppy. But she always dreamed about the magic of Christmas and whether it was real. She needed a sign that it was. One that she could only get from Santa himself. So she planned to lay a trap for him.

I had fun coming up with the various options that would be easy to act out on stage. I was so buried in my work; I wasn't answering my phone or paying much attention to Oakley.

He'd been quiet for so long; I began to wonder if he was eating something he wasn't supposed to. He loved chewing the spines of books. I learned early on to keep them out of reach.

I went in search of Oakley, finding him with his nose in a yellow chocolate-chip bag.

I immediately grabbed the bag and put it on the counter, my hands shaking.

He'd managed to nuzzle open a cabinet and pull it out. How many chips had he eaten? I wasn't sure how full the bag was before he got into it. I knew chocolate was bad for dogs, but I wasn't sure what I should do.

Panicked and feeling like the worst dog mom ever, I dialed Chance since he was with me when I adopted Oakley.

"Marigold." Chance's voice might have been pleased, but I couldn't see past my escalating fear.

"Oakley got into some chocolate, and I don't know what I should do." My voice was high pitched, nothing like my regular demeanor. I couldn't think straight.

Chance's voice was calm in my ear. "Do you have hydrogen peroxide?"

"If I do, it would be old." I chewed my lip as I ran for the cabinet under the sink.

"That won't do. You'll need fresh. I'll grab some from the store and bring it over." I heard the jingle of keys and the sound of his footsteps. "Do me a favor and call the vet."

"I don't even have a vet set up for him yet."

"I'll text you the number of a good one. Tell her I sent you. Everyone raves about her. Oakley will be in good hands."

I wrung my hands. "Thank you, Chance. I don't know what I would have done?—"

"We're not out of the woods yet. Take Oakley outside and keep an eye on him. He might puke or have diarrhea. Call the vet."

"I will," I promised before he clicked off.

I let Oakley out. He seemed okay for now. Maybe a little lethargic, but I was looking hard for any sign that he wasn't well. I waited for the contact information for the vet to come through, then dialed. I explained to the person who answered the phone what had happened. Unfortunately, I didn't have a good answer for how much chocolate he'd eaten.

They said to try and make him puke, watch for any signs of toxicity, and if he didn't expel the chocolate, to bring him in.

I watched Oakley as he paced the back yard. Was this normal behavior? Was he a little slower than usual? Was he feeling ill?

When I heard the pounding on the door, I raced for the door, wrenching it open without checking to ensure it was Chance.

"He's in the backyard?"

"Uh-huh," I said as Chance rushed toward the kitchen and opened the fridge.

"You have plain yogurt?"

I reached under his outstretched arm to snag the container. "Here."

"Can you grab the dog bowl while I get this ready?" He opened drawers until he found the measuring spoons.

Chance was calm whereas my heart was racing. I was so glad he was here. I placed the bowl on the counter.

Chance scooped a dollop of plain yogurt into the bowl, then mixed a teaspoon of hydrogen peroxide into it. "We can give him more if he doesn't puke right away. But we can't exceed two teaspoons for his size."

"The vet said to bring him in if he doesn't puke."

"We're going to do that anyway to get him checked out." He carried the bowl outside where Oakley was laying on the patio.

Chance crouched down in front of him. "Here you go, boy."

I was so appreciative that Chance was here. That he was a calming presence. I couldn't think clearly, much less do what he'd done.

If I wasn't reading too much into things I suspected that Chance was just as worried about Oakley as I was. That melted my heart toward him just a little bit more.