Page 7 of My Ex, the Pumpkin King

“Oh, even better. She helped you trap me into this.”

“She didn’t, really,” Rachel rushes to explain. “She didn’t know I knew you until she was getting ready for your date. I saw your picture and… everything just came out.”

“Everything came out,” I echo, my mind still catching up as she pieces the puzzle together.

“Yeah. Everything.” She clears her throat, glancing at the doors. Her face contorts, her eyebrows furrowed and her lips pinched to the right.

Maybe she regrets this now. But I still want to know why she came in the first place.

“After all this time, why do you even care?” I finally ask, my breath releasing in a whoosh. My body is tired now, as if being on alert the past five minutes has worn me out.

“I just want to know why, I guess.” There’s that familiar shake, small but still audible in the otherwise quiet room.

Her head whips toward me. She seems tired. Her shoulders aren’t tall and proud now, although she’s not slumping, and her face searches mine as if she desperately needs an answer and I’m hiding it from her.

“Why what?” I ask.

“Why did you leave me?” Her voice cracks with emotion.

Of all the things I expected her to say, that wasn’t one of them.

“Why did I leave you?” I repeat, wondering if this is some joke. “Rachel…”

I’m at a loss for what to say next. My body gravitates toward her naturally, turning in my seat of its own accord, and she does the same. Our knees brush, her skin warm even through the material of my pants, but then she jerks away from the contact, averting her eyes.

“You just disappeared,” she says. “You didn’t even come to the party.”

Unsure of how to respond, I stall by taking another sip of wine. My eyes stay locked on Rachel as I swallow, and she determinedly avoids my gaze. But her body is still facing mine, which has to mean something.

“I did come to the party.” I finally break the silence. “But you didn’t seem to miss me.”

“You didn’t even wait for me at graduation,” she counters, her head jerking back up. Her eyes light up like they’re on fire, the anger now palpable between us. “So you’re going to throw it in my face? That I tried to have fun at the party after my boyfriend abandoned me?”

“Abandoned you?” My own anger rises in my chest, the memories flooding back of Parker swinging her around on the field. “You were all over Parker. I figured you didn’t need me anymore.”

As soon as I say the words, I know they’re unfair. The hurt splashes across her face, and she reaches for the fork in front of her. She taps it on the table in a repetitive beat. Her jaw tightens, and I’d bet money she’s chewing the inside of her cheek.

The doors open and Chester balances the tray of our food expertly, heading over to us and setting our plates down with precision. They land on the glass tabletop with an echo, though the silence between Rachel and me is so thick you could cut it with the butter knife Chester brought.

Apparently he deemed it necessary to keep the steak knives away from us for the evening.

“Chef said anytime you’d like a hamburger, you come and visit us, ma’am.” Chester smiles at Rachel shyly, and she laughs.

“Thank you. It looks delicious.”

“Thank you,” I repeat, and Chester nods before disappearing once again. I don’t blame him. He’s probably got enough to worry about rather than hang around for whatever this mess is.

We dig into our food, an unspoken truce between us as we enjoy our dinner. There’s one thing we both always hated, and that’s cold food. When my teeth sink into the burger for the first time, I groan against the meat. “God. This is the perfect burger.”

“Mm-hmm,” Rachel manages around her own mouthful. Her eyes are closed as if she’s savoring the moment. She chews slowly, and when she opens her eyes, I look away quickly, not wanting to be caught observing her.

“So, how’s college?” I make an attempt at normal conversation, ignoring the elephant lingering in the room. His steps are loud, but I’m trying.

“It’s been fine. I only have one semester left, then I’ll be taking over the farm’s finances full time.”

“That’s great,” I exclaim, and I mean it wholeheartedly. Regardless of what happened with us, I wish her and her family the best. “How are your grandparents?” A pang shoots through my chest at the thought of Junior and Faye. They always treated me like a member of their family. I thought I would be some day. Pushing the emotions aside, I refocus on Rachel’s words as I take another bite of my burger.

“They’re doing great, the same as always. We’re working on the garden right now, and the—”

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