Page 9 of Autumn Leaves and Pumpkins Please

Once I’m parked again, I head inside. This store is my own personal version of a candy store. More than likely, I should have a chaperone because I always spend way too much money and buy things, I have no need for at the moment. Everett is behind the counter and greets me as I enter. He’s worked here since high school. Now, he helps run it and eventually he’ll own it. It’s a family-owned business. Everett is the closest thing I have to a best friend. Well, he’s the closest thing I even have to a friend. We grew up together and if anyone knows me...it’s him. His sandy blonde hair is buzzed to his head and his brown eyes are always friendly. “Jayse, how’s it going?”

I walk over to the counter and shake his hand, just like I always do. “Pretty good. How are you?”

He nods his head. “It’s been really busy. The store has been packed. I can’t seem to keep certain things in stock. I’ve been ordering trucks more than once a week. Cayley has been a handful too. Terrible twos and all.”

Everett is a single father now. His wife, Dianna, passed away giving birth to their little girl during their first year of marriage. Everett was devastated. He’d had a crush on Whitney for years until he met Dianna. Losing her was one of the hardest things I’ve seen him go through. I only managed to watch his downward spiral from afar because I was too lost in my own shit to actually be there. “That’s great about the store. Sorry that Cayley has been a bit of a handful, but I’m sure she’ll grow out of it.”

“So, I heard a little rumor.”

Oh, this can’t be good. News is a sport around this small town. News becomes gossip and travels at the speed of light. Sometimes, it’s a good thing but other times it’s a curse. “This can’t be good.”

Everett chuckles. “You know how it goes in Blue Ridge.” He gives me an apologetic smile and a shrug of his shoulders.

“Well, I guess let me hear it since I’m not going to be able to escape it.”

“You and Capri Owens?” he asks. Everett doesn’t come across nosey, just genuinely interested.

I sigh. “It’s not like that...at all. I just helped her out and now I’m working in Clark’s building which is why I’m here.”

Everett laughs again. “Smooth change of subject, but I will accept. Let’s find what you need.”

Capri said it’d take a while before she was done at Chop Chop, but I ended up spending at least forty-five minutes in Schmidt’s Handy Dandy Hardware. Once Everett and I get everything loaded, I head back down to Chop Chop. I don’t see any sign of Capri, so I get out with the intention of going inside but then I spot her sitting in a chair, nose in a magazine and hair wrapped in a towel. Quickly, I climb back into the truck and rest my head. The autumn breeze blows through the truck and my eyelids fall closed as I drift off to sleep.

I don’t know how much time has passed, but I wake up as the passenger side door opens. I’m still half asleep so it takes me a moment to realize that caramel colored hair beauty standing there looking at me is Capri. “Are you okay there?”

My hands rub my eyes and I look again and sure enough her seafoam green eyes are still staring at me. “Yeah, you just look...different.”

She picks up a strand and examines it. “Yeah, it’s been a long time since I had a color of hair that’s this close to my natural.”

“I like it.”

Her eyes dart up to mine and a flush fills her cheeks. “Me, too. So, are you ready to go?”

“Yeah, but I have one more idea before we head back.”

Capri drops her head back on the head rest. “I don’t like surprises.”

I look over and wink at her as I put the truck in reverse. “You’ll like this one.”

EIGHT

Capri

Surprises are not for me. I’ve never had a good “surprise” in my life so call me crazy but when Jayse said he had an idea...well, it felt like another word for surprise. Especially, since he won’t tell me anything about what’s going on or what we're doing. Agitation grows within my body and I’m finding it more difficult to sit still. A part of me wants to jump from this moving truck and run for the hills, but somehow, I know that’s a bad idea.

Jayse’s eyes cut towards me. I can feel them. “Would you please try to relax?”

“I am relaxed.” My tone comes out in a bite and proves I’m not at all relaxed like I’m claiming to be. Then there’s the fact that my leg hasn’t stopped bouncing since he mentioned his idea.

His chuckle annoys me. Earlier, I thought his chuckle was cute and endearing but now it’s just pissing me off. “Yeah, you seem super relaxed.”

I look at him. Normally, he’s the one with tense muscles and a jaw locked so tight that even a crowbar couldn’t pry it apart, but it’s like we’ve switched roles. Don’t get me wrong, when I first arrived in Blue Ridge, I was very much like him. Constantly, tense, so much so that my entire body ached for months from it. However, as time went along, I realized I was safe here, tucked away in this small town in the mountains. “I told you I don’t like surprises.”

“I never called it a surprise,” he comments, flashing me a brief smirk before turning back to the road in front of us.

Sighing, I reply, “An idea that the other person has no clue about is just another word for surprise.”

Jayse pulls into a parking place in front of Burger Hop. A quick glance at the clock on the dash of his truck tells me we’ve only been driving for approximately seven minutes. It feels more like seven hours. “Do you want to come in?”

---