Page 29 of Make Me Swoon

“Maybe,” she mumbles but she looks doubtful and I wonder if it’s because she doesn’t think that he can cook or because he isn’t here tonight.

The band starts back up and we take a break from talking to listen to the music. Flynn hangs out with us for a bit and we debate a second round, but I think everyone is tired after a long week. Besides, we all have to work tomorrow, so when Sutton says she’s going to head out, we all decide to call it a night.

Madelyn has to go back to the market to make sure that the delivery is put away and that there weren’t any other problems. She heads across the street to the market and I watch Flynn as he watches her go.

Sutton and Iris both head back to their cars, but I’m just walking home.

“I’ll give you a ride,” Flynn says, nudging my arm and I nod my head, yawning as I follow him over to his car.

“You know, if you like Madelyn, you should just tell her,” I say as Flynn turns out onto Main Street.

He doesn’t answer me right away and I’m ready to let the subject go when he finally does speak.

“It’s more complicated than that,” he says quietly and I get the feeling that he’s relieved when we pull up outside of Prim + Proper.

“Thanks for the ride,” I say as I climb out and he nods but seems distracted.

I wave as he backs out and I’m about to head up to my apartment when I remember the note that I wrote out to Hudson at work. I don’t see him when I look into the restaurant windows, so I sneak over and slip it beneath his windshield wiper before I head upstairs.

I let myself into my apartment, kicking off my shoes and heading into the bedroom. I’m looking forward to showering and then heading to bed.

I got paid today and I pull out the cash that I got from the bank this afternoon. I count it out, grabbing the box from beneath my bed and opening it up to add the new cash. I owe Hudson three grand and I count it out. I’m at two thousand five hundred and fifty-eight. I’ll be able to pay him back in two weeks.

Why does the thought of paying him back and getting to move on from Destiny Falls no longer hold the same appeal?

Stan asked me today why I was being so weird lately this morning and I admitted that I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I thought that he might be able to offer me some kind of wisdom or advice.

He had suggested college. According to him, “that’s where kids go to figure shit out.” The only problem with that is that I never really liked school and the thought of going for four more years makes me feel like I’m dying a little bit inside. I doubt that I could afford it either and I don’t want to take out a bunch of loans. Especially not for something that I don’t even want to do.

When I had told him that, he said I just needed to figure out what I loved and try to make a career out of that. Figuring all of that out though seems easier said than done.

I know that I don’t want to work for a big company or corporation and I don’t want to work in food which is probably a good idea since I can’t actually cook anything and I don’t want to smell like grease every day if I were to work at some fast-food place. I don’t want to have a long commute, work in a cubicle, or do the same thing every day.

I have this long list of things that I don’t want, but nothing that I do.

My mind flashes to the Mystery Cabin, to my friends that I’ve made here, and to and I realize that maybe I do know what I want after all.

TEN

“So, this is your place,” I say as Hudson opens the door for us and ushers me into the foyer of his house.

Hudson lives in a two-story white house right on the water and only about a block and a half away from his restaurant, Prim + Proper. The place is beautiful with a bunch of windows to let in natural light and provide amazing views of the lake and bridge behind it.

“Yeah, this is my home,” he says and I let him take my hand and give me a quick tour.

There are dark brown hardwood floors running throughout the first floor and up the stairs. The walls are white and I wonder if that’s by choice or if he just didn’t want to bother with painting them a different color.

The living room and stairs are to the right and the dining room is to the left. Neither are decorated very much, just the bare necessities like a couch, TV, kitchen table, and chairs.

He leads me down the hallway, past the stairs and into the kitchen. It’s obvious that this is the room that he loves the most.

The counters and the appliances all gleam under the lights. There are cookbooks on the shelf under the kitchen island, spices lined up on a huge shelf that almost covers an entire section of wall, and shiny copper pots and pans hang from the rack on the ceiling.

The cabinets are painted a dark teal color that matches the hardwood floors and white backsplash perfectly.

“I like it,” I tell him as he pulls out a cushioned stool for me at the counter. “It looks like what I imagine is a chef’s dream kitchen. Is that why you bought this place?”

“Partly. I like the layout but what really sold it for me was the location. I have my own little slice of beach right outside those doors,” he says, nodding to the double back doors.

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