Page 69 of Hand Picked
“Awesome. I get a referral bonus,” I teased.
“But you should consider taking your own advice.”
My grin slid into a confused frown. “What do you mean?”
He shook his head. “Well, you might’ve noticed that you tend to—”
“Hey, Webb? Luke?” Gage stood on the path, a respectful distance away. “Sorry to interrupt, but I got delegated to come find you. Helena got a great idea about your house, and she called in a bunch of favors and… I think we figured everything out, if you wanna come back to the diner and hear about it. Or if not, that’s okay, and Knox said to remind you it’s not selfish to focus on your mental health.”
“An idea about my house?” Luke looked up at me.
“I told them a little bit of what’s going on,” I said in a low voice. “Everyone seemed really surprised. You hadn’t told anyone about the state of the place, had you?”
“Who would I have told? And I was taking care of things—”
“Yourself. I know. But remember what I said about letting people help a little?”
Luke nodded.
“It’s especially true when they’re volunteering to help fix up your house in time for your mom’s visit.”
“Fix up—” His eyes widened. “But that’s not alittle, Webb. That’s… that’shuge. I couldn’t possibly—”
“You really could. Because if I know Helena Fortnum, she’s called a dozen people, and they’re all gonna be thrilled to help. And this visit will put your mom’s mind at ease.” I paused. “But if you really don’t want to, then say so, and I’ll back you. I promise. I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
“Hey, guys?” Gage shifted from foot to foot. “You remember I might be a Vermonter in my heart, but my blood is still Floridian, right? It’s freakin’ cold out here. What should I tell them?”
“Tell them—” Luke called, then hesitated. “Tell them we’re coming to hear the plan. And thank them.”
Gage scurried off, and I kissed Luke swiftly before lifting him to his feet.
“Have I mentioned recently how much I like you, Luke Williams?” I demanded. “Because I do. I’m really glad we’re… whatever we are.”
The unspoken label hung in the air between us, but it didn’t seem awkward. It seemed hopeful. Exciting. Full of promise.
“And thanks for getting my kid to see me as a hero, too,” I continued. “That was… unexpected.” Kind of ironic, too; I’d have thought Aiden would have picked his belovedMr. Williamsover me any day of the week.
Luke smiled softly. “I didn’tgethim to do anything, Webb. Aiden’s a smart kid. He already knew his dad was great… just like I did.”
My face went hot and I cleared my throat. I wanted to kiss that soft smile more than I wanted my next breath.
Luke’s eyes were bright, like maybe he was thinking something similar, and I realized if we stayed out here any longer, things were going to turn indecent.
He shot me a teasing grin. “So, would now be the time to talk about the apple tithes you might owe me?” he asked. “You know, as part of Ye Olde Friendship Agreement?”
I slung my arm over his shoulder as we walked back toward the diner. “I think I might have a better way to repay you. We can discuss it later.Privately.”
For the first time in a while, I felt optimistic. My family was whole and happy, things with Amanda were going better than expected, spring was in the air, and I was confident that if the town came together, we could get Luke’s problems sorted…
But in our excitement, we forgot the issue that had brought us together in the first place… until Genevieve and Hand-Fast Watch showed up at the house.
With that motherfucking scroll.
ChapterFifteen
LUKE
You could get a lot of work done in three weeks if you put your mind to it… assuming you also had the entire town of Little Pippin Hollow behind you.
