Chapter Eleven

By early April, Sarah had almost given up hope that any agency in Seattle was going to ever respond to her job applications. She’d checked every job site online and all the major and minor marketing firms in Seattle’s webpages for new listings on an almost daily basis. She’d tapped out her networking options, too. There just weren’t enough openings right now. At the moment, Sarah was focused on finishing an ad for TLC. Jack and Cornelius had gotten several leads from experienced loggers from the earlier job advertisement she’d done for them. Now that they’d been able to complete hiring, she was helping boost TLC’s visibility for more contracts. She figured she could multitask while covering a shift at Three Sisters Apothecary. She was tweaking the design of a social media ad when an email alert popped up that made her squeal out loud.

“My goodness!” Gran spun around from her spot across the store where she had been dusting shelves and checking stock.

Sarah grinned like a loon. “Sorry, just excited.” This news was what she needed to boost her optimism that things would start to go her way.

A sly smile crossed Gran’s features. “Got a hot date lined up? Going to bring them to Bridget’s wedding as your plus one?”

“Ha-ha, Gran.” Sarah shook her head, but stretched her lips wide. “I got a response from a job application.”

Gran frowned. “You mean for a position at an agency? Back in Seattle?”

“Yes, Gran.” Sarah tilted her head as her expression faltered. “You know I’ve been waiting.”

“Well, with all the work you’ve been doing around town I thought maybe you’d changed our mind and decided Fallbank was home again.” Her grandmother shrugged. “There’s lot of reasons to stay. After all, Bridget is getting married and she and Jack are moving. You could move into the house.”

Sarah fought against rolling her eyes. “And live next door to my ex-boyfriend? Not happening.”

“It was a suggestion.”

She arched an eyebrow at Gran. “I’m going back to Seattle.” Why didn’t her family get it? Fallbank wasn’t her home anymore.

Gran responded with a Look. “Don’t get sassy with me. Wanting my grandchildren nearby isn’t a bad thing.”

“I’m not saying it is. I’m keeping your expectations in check. I don’t want you to be upset when I move back.”

The door chimed and Sarah turned to see the manager of a funky upcycled clothing store enter. “Hi, welcome to Three Sisters. Is there anything we can help with?”

The brunette crossed over to the counter. “Yes, I understand you did the recent marketing for Dori and Sam. Is that correct?”

“It is.” Sarah nodded.

“Wonderful. I’m Vivica and I wondered if you could do the same for my shop? The clothing store on Fraiser Lane?”

The email response asking for a phone interview weighed in Sarah’s mind. “I’m not sure…”

“I’ll pay. Dori and Sam both told me you had reasonable rates and with no one in town having this kind of skill, I could use the help. Please?”

Vivica looked so eager, Sarah couldn’t find it in her heart to say no. The money would be nice and it wasn’t as if the job interview was tomorrow. Even if she did get the position, she had time to do this. “All right. Why don’t we meet up tomorrow at your store so we can chat about what kind of campaign you’re thinking?”

Vivica’s eyes lit up. “Thank you. That’s perfect. I’ll see you then.”

As she departed, Sarah toyed with a lock of her blonde hair. So many people around town seemed to need her assistance. Why had no one offered these services in Fallbank before?

Another ringing of the bell above the door brought her out of her thoughts and back to the present. Cornelius walking in had her standing straighter. “Hey.”

“Hi, Sarah. Gran.” He hugged her grandmother and a pang hit Sarah square in the chest. He had always treated Gran like family, even after they’d broken up. She adored him for that. She knew how much Gran liked Cornelius.

“What brings you in?” Sarah asked.

“Wedding planning.” He nudged his glasses back up his nose.

Sarah melted a little on the inside. There was something so endearing about his glasses, a kind of sweetness that covered the heat he unleashed in the bedroom…not that she’d seen that side of him in quite some time. “What planning?”

“Bachelor and bachelorette parties. I’ve been instructed that they would like a joint one. At least for part of it.”

“That sounds fun,” Gran said.

“No, it doesn’t,” Sarah replied. “Why do they want to do this together? It defeats the purpose of the ‘one last night as a singleton’ vibe these parties should have.”

Cornelius shrugged. “I agree, but I’m just the messenger. They were thinking an overnight in Seattle. Jack wants to invite his sister and brother-in-law. We’d get rooms at the same hotel, separate dinners, but come back together afterward for the end of the night partying.”

Sarah pursed her lips as she considered. “I suppose that could work. We could go to a club or two, try to get VIP reservations. I know a few places. The girls could do a spa day before the festivities.”

“Good idea. The guys could play golf or maybe there’d be time to catch a fishing charter.”

“Now, all that’s left is picking the weekend.” She reached for her phone and pulled up her calendar. They decided on the third weekend in April.

“I guess I should go.” Cornelius rubbed a hand on the back of his neck. He looked down then back up at Sarah. “Thanks for all the work you did with getting the new guys recruited. Those ads helped.”

Sarah gave him a soft smile. “Glad to do it. Anytime.” She paused and reached for her computer. “I was just working on these mock-up designs for the campaign Jack asked for. Want to take a peek?”

As he leaned closer to examine what she’d come up with, Sarah couldn’t help but shift into him. A small gap remained between them, but she could smell his earthy, woodsy scent and feel the heat from his body. He bit his lower lip as he studied her screen. Her body flooded with memory and hunger for him. She knew what he could do with that mouth. How incredible he was at kissing…and more than just her mouth. Once upon a time, he’d known how to light up her body until she burst into a thousand sparkling stars. It was a sensation no one else had come close to creating with her.

Being back in Fallbank, this close to Cornelius, reawakened all the passion and feelings long since locked away. Her body tingled and she throbbed between her thighs. Then he turned to her with a smile bright enough to make the rain outside disappear and that throbbing blossomed into an aching slickness. Her nipples pebbled and Sarah swallowed hard. Oh, boy. She needed a spicy book and her vibrator tonight. She needed to rein herself in.

He caught her gaze and held it. Did he feel the same intense attraction, too?

“This is…good. Great. Sarah. Um, I mean, great job, Sarah.”

“Thanks,” she mumbled and broke eye contact. Embarrassed heat filled her cheeks and she glanced at Gran who was watching with avid curiosity. Ugh, she didn’t need that. Gran wouldn’t meddle, but she would make her opinions known. Sarah suppressed a sigh and turned back to Cornelius. “I’ll send these over to you and Jack.”

“Cool. I guess I’ll head out then.”

“See you.” She watched him go, then as soon as the door closed, said to Gran, “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” Gran asked.

Sarah saw through Gran’s faux-innocent expression. “Don’t say anything about Cornelius. He’s dating Jane. There’s nothing going on between us.”

“All I was thinking about was Vivica and the new marketing job you have. Seems like Fallbank could use someone with your skillset. I heard there’s a vacant office for rent half a block over on Waterfall Lane. I wasn’t going to comment on you and Cornelius at all. If you’re the one reading into things, then maybe you should look closer at your own feelings.”

Sarah sighed. “There’s nothing there.”

Gran threw a Look at her. “Uh-huh. You can only ignore things for so long. But I’m not getting in between you two.” She paused and went back about her work. “So long as you and he get back together.”

 

* * * *

 

Cornelius’ phone rang with an alert for a new FaceTime call from his mom. He swiped despite standing in the middle of a forest on a job site. They were on a break and he was the boss. Plus his mom had cancer, so there was no circumstance he wouldn’t answer when she called. “Hey, Mom. How are you?”

Her pale and worn face filled the screen. She’d lost her hair and dark bags colored underneath her eyes, but her smile still burned like a thousand-watt light. If that ever failed, then he would full-blown worry.

“Hi, honey. I’m getting through it. How are you?”

“Staying busy. Work is going well.” He flipped the camera to face out and panned the forest. “I’m on site.”

“Oh, I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

“Never too important for my best girl. What’s up?”

“I just wanted to let you know the latest update. My doctor did another scan and no new growths. With the surgery successful at getting the whole tumor, I’m in a good place. Three more rounds of chemo to go.”

Relief hit so hard, he staggered back and landed on a log. His whole body shook with alleviation. “That’s amazing. I’m so happy.” He crinkled his nose at the itchy sensation in it and blinked against the gathering moisture blurring his vision. “I’m freaking thrilled, Mama.”

His mom swiped at her own eyes. “Me too, baby. Me too.” A shaky laugh escaped her. “After all, I have to be around to hold my grandbabies.”

“Ma…” Cornelius groaned.

“I know, I know. I don’t want to pressure you. I do want you to be happy.”

He nodded. “I get that. I’ve been seeing someone. Sort of.” He’d been on another date with Jane and they had a third lined up for next Saturday.

“Why don’t I sense more excitement from you?”

Jane and Cornelius were past the blundering, basic getting-to-know-you phase and working up to friendship—which was the real issue. Friendship. The feelings he had were platonic. Jane was nice. That was it. Nice. He didn’t know if he should keep at it with her or cut his losses. He didn’t want to lead her on and make her believe there was more between them, but surely she felt that. She hadn’t turned him down when he’d asked her out, but at the same time they still hadn’t even kissed. Of course, two dates didn’t mean much. It was early. “We’ve been out twice. Still getting to know one another.” He shrugged. “She’s nice, but I don’t know if there’s a spark there yet. Too soon to tell.”

His mom tilted her head. “Hmm. Well, I hope there’s clarity for you both in the near future.” She flashed her grin again. “Enough about that. Tell me how things at TLC are going.”

Thank God his mom intuited when not to push him. “Good! We’ve had a string of new interest coming in for us to clear some areas and also new avenues for selling the timber.”

“Wonderful. What prompted this new influx?”

Cornelius stared into the blue eyes that were an exact match to his own. Did he want to tell his mom? Suppressing a sigh, he said. “We hired Sarah Wildes for marketing. She’s done outstanding work. Sarah had to move back to Fallbank for the time being.”

“Sarah? She’s in Fallbank again? That’s…” She pressed her lips together, but pink filled her cheeks.

This was why he hadn’t wanted to mention Sarah. His mom still held out hope the two of them might get back together one day. She’d see this as the perfect opportunity. Cornelius could see the excitement in her features, the light in her eyes, the hint of a smile playing at the corners of her lips, the flush of her skin. At last this brought a little color back to her face. “Mom, don’t. We’re not—we’re friends. Business partners. That’s it.”

“I didn’t say anything,” she protested, but her smile gave her away.

He used work as an excuse to hang up and halt the conversation he didn’t want to have. “All right. I need to get back at it. The others will be wondering where I am. As the boss, I gotta set a good example.”

His mom winked at him. “Thanks for indulging your mother.”

“Never too busy for you, Mama. I love you.”

“I love you, too. Take care of yourself. Make good choices.”

He chuckled. “I will. Promise.” He clicked the end button and tucked his phone in his pocket.

The following Saturday he found himself thinking about his mother’s words. “Make good choices.” As Jane ambled alongside him toward the bowling alley, he wondered if he was making the correct ones. Jane had been so eager, so happy to see him when he’d picked her up at the Wild Rose. He wished he could say the same. Instead, he found himself digging deep for enthusiasm. He needed to get his head in the game or throw in the towel.

She asked him about his day and he responded on autopilot. He was mid-sentence when he glanced up the street as Three Sisters Apothecary was coming up. He always seemed to know when it was close by. As he looked, Sarah stepped out and locked the door behind her. As she turned, their gazes caught. She froze. He paused in mid-step and mid-thought. Despite the distance between them, he felt her pull. Her blonde hair was like a bright beacon calling to him. He ached to move toward her.

“Cornelius?” Jane asked. “Are you okay?”

He shook his head and jerked his attention to Jane. His date. “Yeah. I’m good. Sorry about that. I was thinking about something my mom said earlier. On the phone.”

“Oh. All right.” She still had her brow furrowed, so he drew his lips up to smile.

“Anyway, so we finished the job today which is ahead of schedule so the landowner will be happy. That means we can get this wood sold off sooner and get profits back to all of us.”

Cornelius fought the urge to glance back and search for Sarah again. Instead, he and Jane continued on with their walk to the bowling alley. It turned out she wasn’t the best bowler and Cornelius made an effort to be a bit goofier for her. Her laugh was nice and he enjoyed hearing it. At the end of the night—the completion of date three—he walked her back to the inn. As she stood in front of her little cottage looking up at him with hope in her eyes, he gathered his courage. Leaning in, he pressed his lips to hers. Jane softened into him, a sweet little hum coming from her throat. As he stepped back, she blinked up at him with the hint of a smile flirting at the edges of her lips.

“Would you… That is, do you… want to c-come in?” Her voice was low…timid.

He didn’t know if she wanted him to go inside and was nervous or if she thought she needed to make the offer because he’d kissed her. Cornelius didn’t want to make her uncomfortable and in all honesty, he didn’t want to go in. Try as he might, he didn’t feel anything when kissing Jane. “I have to be on a job site at six in the morning tomorrow. I’d better not.”

She swallowed hard. “Okay. I understand.” She fiddled with her keys and looked down. “This was fun. Thanks, Cornelius.”

“Yeah, I had a good time.” And he had, just not in a romantic sense. He needed to get his head sorted out. “Listen, Jack’s bachelor party is next weekend, so I won’t be around. How about I call you and we can do something after that?”

Jane nibbled on her lip, still looking unsure about his response. “Sounds good. Have fun.” Her tone was shy all over again. Whatever progress he’d made in getting her out of her shell had been undone by his rejection of her offer. The sad part was that Cornelius didn’t think he was bothered by the turn of events.

“I’ll try.” Cornelius laughed but knew he wasn’t funny. “Night, Jane.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek.

Jane lifted the corners of her mouth. “Good night.”