“Hey,” Brayden said from the bottom step, blocking her escape, “It’s going to be okay. I promise, that store will still be yours when the day is over. Whatever it takes.”
Tempted to ask what that meant, Ava lingered on the stairs. “What did you want to tell me?” she asked instead. “Last night?”
Brayden traced his fingers down her cheek. A tactic no doubt meant to distract her, judging by the dimness he hid behind a smile. “We’ll talk when the day is over.”
“We need to go,” Kinley called out the passenger window of Laurel’s car. “Time’s ticking.”
Ava’s best friends hadn’t given her any clue what their plan might be. For all Ava knew, they were going to stand on the street corners with signs to spin or hold a parade. It didn’t matterwhattheir bright idea was, though. All that mattered was that Ava wasn’t alone in this critical hour.
“I’ll grab Elsie and meet you all at the store,” Brayden said to Ava, kissing her gently on the lips. For a moment, every worry disappeared. “Merry Christmas Eve.”
Ava hurried into the back seat of Laurel’s SUV, her lips still buzzing and fingers tingling. How one simple brush of their lips could make her dizzy was a mystery Ava didn’t care to solve.
“You two sure have gotten cozy,” Kinley said. “He does know that we know the truth, right? You two don’t have to pretend in front of us.”
Ava bit down on her bottom lip, but her enormous smile won out in the end. “It’s not fake anymore.”
At a stop sign, both Laurel and Kinley turned their heads and stared at Ava. “What?”
Giddiness filled Ava, and she found she rather preferred this feeling over the anxiety and gloom of these past several months. “We decided to try it for real.”
“That’s great!” Kinley squealed. “I’m so happy for you!”
“How much do you know about this Brayden character?” Laurel asked, her voice much too serious for so happy a moment.
Kinley whapped Laurel with the back of her hand. “You could’ve waited untilafterChristmas,” she muttered.
This dynamic certainly reminded her of the old days. “Out with it,” Ava ordered. “If you know something, you better spit it out right now.”
“I did some research on him,” Laurel said, her eyes locked on the road in front of her. “Seems no one in town knows who he really is, so it made me curious. Did you know he’s a multi-millionaire?”
“What?” Ava was certain Laurel made a mistake. “Hismomhas all the money,” she countered. “He’s just a regular guy. I’d know if Brayden was secretly wealthy.”Or would I?
“He’s worth eight figures, Ava,” Kinley said. “There was an article in a business magazine a couple of years back. So, unless he gave away his fortune—”
“Which he didn’t, because he’s bought up a bunch of properties in town. Under the company Northern Lights Property,” Laurel added.
“He owns that?” Ava asked, her words barely above a whisper. “He’smylandlord?” Ava was taken aback by the news. She tried not to let it upset her. People were entitled to their anonymity, after all. Though it made a lot more sense now why her December rent had been waived. And the gift basket from her landlord . . . “So what if he has money and doesn’t want people to know? I think it speaks more about his character that he doesn’t flaunt his wealth. Don’t you?”
Laurel turned onto the main strip and headed up the hill toward the Forget Me Not. “He’s in line to take over one of the most successful marketing firms in the country. He’s the reason that company has grown at the rate it has. He’s about as far from an Average Joe as they come.”
Ava let out an annoyed sigh. “Are you trying to ruin my happiness or something?” Ava shot at Laurel. “I know this already. He’s not going back. He told me last night. Unless you know something that actually matters, drop it.”
“It’s just that I don’t get why he doesn’t make a donation or something to the store,” Laurel continued. “Kinley told me about that massive order you received. The one from a company in Anchorage.”
“What about it?” Ava asked through gritted teeth.
“We may have peeked at your notes last night when you were at the wedding. That company is one of the major clients he won for Young Elite Marketing Services two years ago. I made a call and found out he worked with that Vanessa Stinson specifically on that account. I thought her showing up and ordering seventy-five baskets was . . . strange.” Laurel pulled into a parking spot, and it was then that Ava noticed how full the parking lot already was. “Did you know your best customer is his grandma?”
Ava’s head was spinning, and she didn’t like it one bit. She recalled all the decorations throughout his house, ones fromherstore. Had Brayden been secretly trying to save the store and letting her believe she was doing it on her own? “Stop,” she pleaded. “Please, just stop.” She pushed out of the SUV, but before she could make it to the front door, Brayden stood in her path.
“Hey, Elsie’s in the truck—”
“Youliedto me.”
“I—”
“How many things have you done in secret?” She practically growled the words at him, but it was that or yell and cause a scene. “And why did I have to hear about it from myfriends?”
