Page 16 of Snowed In With the Maverick
Andrea considered. This would be publicly attaching herself to the project, and risk more people finding out about her past life. Then again, it wouldn’t really be out of the question that she would be interested in the dino park. After all, people coming from out of town would need a place to stay.
It would also mean another opportunity to spend time with Seth. The lunch had been good. He’d listened to her ideas, and any time she asked him a question in return, he took a moment to think about his answer before responding. She liked how thoughtful he was, and how he seemed to consider all angles. She had confidence that if he decided to move forward with the park, he’d do it in a measured and purposeful way.
There was also the undeniable and intoxicating electricity between them, which she was still trying to make sense of. On one hand, the alarm bells were real, and they were there for a reason. Yet Seth was proving to be everything Harold wasn’t. He was confident without a trace of arrogance. Intelligent, but never a know-it-all. And then there was the way his clear blue eyes locked onto hers, as though every word she spoke mattered to him. It stirred something in her, something she wasn’t ready to let go of just yet.
The waiter came with the bill. Andrea reached for her purse but Seth waved her off. “Please,” he said. “You’ve been so helpful.”
“You tell your family there’s another Taylor Beef fan in town,” she said.
The early afternoon air was crisp and cool as they exited the Silver Spur onto Central Avenue, and the sun was high overhead. According to Nina Sanchez, soon the downtown would be decorated for the holidays, and what was a fairly ordinary small-town main street would be aglow with lights and Christmas displays in the shop windows.
Thanksgiving and Christmas were generally quiet times for Andrea. She’d lost both of her parents when she was young, her mother to ovarian cancer when she was only eight, and her father early in her university years to a heart attack. Her aunt and uncle in Boston always extended an invitation to visit, and every few years she accepted, and there was always a kind colleague who made sure she knew she was welcome to join their family, but for the past few years, Andrea had spent the holidays holed up in comfy clothes, with a stack of books and either a nice meal from a local catering company or else an Uber Eats order of whatever she was feeling like in the moment.
This year would be the same, although she’d have to make sure she had groceries: Most of the businesses would likely be closing down for a few days.
Seth walked Andrea to her car. “Are you in a rush to get home?” he asked. “That burger was good, but I have a bit of a sweet tooth. How do you feel about a splitting a warm apple fritter from the bakery?” He checked his watch. “Last time I went in they were pulling out their second batch of the day right about now.”
Andrea hesitated. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Seth, but going for dessert now did really feel like a shift from a business meeting to a date. “I’ve got to get to the hardware store and pick up a few things,” she said. “Rain check?”
She detected a flicker of disappointment on Seth’s face. “Sure thing,” he said. “I’ll call over to Town Hall on my way back to Bronco. Let them know about our plan to set up an information booth.”
“If there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know,” Andrea said. They reached her car, and Andrea pulled her keys from her pocket.
“As long as you’re there, that’s all I need,” Seth said. “And I suppose I can manage a whole fritter to myself.” He slid on his sunglasses and Andrea’s knees just about buckled. Sharing a fresh-baked pastry with this absolutely gorgeous man felt like the most indulgent thing she could have possibly done with her afternoon, and what she needed was to channel the austerity of a nun.
She got in her car, and looked through the rearview mirror after executing a U-turn to see Seth waving from the curb.
Andrea waved as she drove away, then took a deep, steadying breath in. She’d survived the lunch. And now they were going to be spending a few more hours together at an information booth.
Tenacity was an engaged community, as far as Andrea could tell, and there would likely be a steady stream of people coming in and out of the Town Hall on voting day, so hopefully they’d be preoccupied.
But the truth was, the spark of attraction between them was growing, and that was the last thing Andrea needed right now. She was focused on rebuilding her life, and the last thing she needed was to get distracted by something—or someone—that could complicate everything she was working so hard to rebuild.
* * *
The bells on the door jingled as Andrea let herself into Tenacity Feed and Seed, a one-stop shop in a large industrial building for anything from feed and equipment, farm goods, gardening supplies to plumbing and hardware items. Owner Mel Hastings looked up from the desk as Andrea entered. “You’re back,” he called. “Second time in two days.”
She smiled and gave him a quick wave. “Just call me Joanna Gaines,” she said, referencing one of her favorite reno show hosts. “I’m learning as I go. Thank goodness for YouTube.” She pulled a small slip of paper from her pocket. “I’m looking for some mesh tape and joint compound.”
“Right this way,” said Mel. She followed him through the store, back past the lawnmowers, the lighting section and the plumbing supplies, and watched as he pulled her items off the shelf. “Anything else you need?” he said.
“That’s everything,” said Andrea. “Until tomorrow, I guess.”
Mel chuckled. “Good for you, teaching yourself these things,” he said.
“Thanks,” said Andrea. “I don’t mind it, actually.” Plus the fact that although her settlement had been decent, she’d sunk most of it into the property, and needed to budget her money carefully over the coming months before she opened for bookings. Then, there was no guarantee she was going to be an overnight success.
She wasn’t worried—if necessary, she could do some online consulting or teach a distance learning class through one of the colleges or universities, but the whole point of coming to Tenacity was to take a break from all that. So, avoiding paying for labor was the strategy.
When she was checking out, she noticed a campaign sticker beside the cash register for JenniLynn Garrett, as well as a small pile of the pamphlets like the candidate had dropped at the café earlier. Mel noticed her looking at them. “You could do worse than vote for JenniLynn, that’s for sure,” he said. “That woman has a heart of gold, and a will of steel. She loves this town. Born and raised.”
The idea of a rancher and mother helping to shape the community resonated with Andrea. JenniLynn seemed to have genuine support from the people here, and it was reassuring to see. “Good to know,” she replied, accepting the bag of supplies Mel handed over.
“And listen, you run into any problems or need help figuring out how to do something, you just call me,” Mel said.
It was such a simple offer, but it hit Andrea harder than she expected. A lump formed in her throat as she realized how much those words meant. She was a stranger here, with no family or friends to lean on, yet the people of Tenacity were already extending a hand. “Thank you, Mel,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Mel chuckled, a smile crinkling the corner of his eyes. “See you tomorrow, Andrea.”
