I glance at him, my footsteps slowing.
“I was, but you’re my best friend and you’re not a bad guy. You didn’t treat her badly. If anything, you thought you were doing the right thing and part of that is my fault. I shouldn’t have interfered the way I did.”
My head shakes. “No, you had every right.”
“I was only trying to protect her.”
“I know,” I say softly, my voice quiet.
“I know you were only trying to do the same.” He’s quiet again for a beat. “We’re good, Jace.”
Relief washes over me. “Thank you. I don’t want anything to ever threaten our friendship.”
“Me either,” he says, nodding as he glances at me again. “You’re a good guy, Jace. You and my sister both deserve to be happy.”
“That’s all I want,” I admit as we reach the end of the path and step into the grass. “I just want to make her happy.”
“Then the first step is to tell her the truth.”
I nod, swallowing over the lump lodged in my throat. “You’re right.”
Noah smiles back at me, clapping his hand on my shoulder before he walks me over to my truck. “Trust in yourself and in her.”
I climb in behind the steering wheel with his words nestling deep inside my chest. There’s no need to let my fear control me anymore. It’s time that I trust myself and her. My feelings are safe with her.
For the first time in days, something like hope stirs in me.
And I let it lead me into town—to Willow.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
JACE
The streets of Sugar Hill Hollow are crowded with people from all over as they head into the different shops along Main Street. Groups of people stand in the center of the cobblestone streets, lifting their cups of maple flavored lattes with the steam rolling from the tops.
It’s amazing to see just how many people showed up for the Harvest Festival. It really breathes life back into the sleepy town, drawing in tourists and locals. It’s the biggest day of the year for the businesses that participate.
A smile tugs on my lips as I pause outside, peering in through the picture window of the bakery. Natalie and Miss Maggie are on the other side of the counter, dishing out different baked goods to the patrons.
The line snakes around the perimeter of the store and trails out onto the sidewalk, along the front of the bakery. The maple cookies that Natalie and Willow collaborated on are sure to sell out.
Continuing down the street, I bob and weave through some groups of people before I reach my final destination. Pausing out front, I tilt my head back, my eyes rolling over the name of the shop scrawled on the sign above.
She’s my final destination.
Stepping to the side, I move out of the way as four women file out of the shop. Their laughter drifts with the cool fall air, smiles lifting their lips as each walks past me, carrying their own bag with Alder’s Tap House written on them.
Warmth builds in the center of my chest, the heat radiating throughout the rest of my body as I step out of the cold and into the store. The smell of maple and cedar flood my senses, and with it comes a lightness that settles over me.
It smells like her.
I pause by the door, a smile lifting my lips as I see her mother standing behind the counter and her father off to the side, talking with a customer. They must have come to town to help out today.
My footsteps are light as I walk along the glass front wall. The store is bustling with customers, their voices filling the space, echoing off the bottles of maple syrup.
But there’s only one sound that vibrates through my soul as I walk farther into the shop. Her laughter drifts through the maple tinged air and my mind is laser focused on her.
Always her.
