“Of course, it was,” Sage said. “But I’m pretty sure you already know that’s not going to work. If anything, it’ll encourage them more. Especially because you and Noah have some serious chemistry going on. If you weren’t pregnant already, the looks alone he was giving you at the New Year’s party would have done it.”
I felt a little sick at that. I mean, I knew we had chemistry, and I knew Noah knew it. But was it that easily detectable to outsiders, or was Sage seeing it because she knew our history?
Sage could see me internally freaking out. She moved her phone closer to her face, like she could get closer to me. “It’s not a bad thing, Nell. I think this is a good thing. Fake date pretense or not, it’ll give you the opportunity to talk to him, and you do need to talk to him.”
“Yeah, that’s true.” Sage had a point, as reluctant as I was to admit it. Noah had been understanding about my request for taking another Friday afternoon off, but he’d also sort of reprimanded me. I could easily switch my appointments with Dr. Kramer to Mondays, but he was still going to wonder why I needed time off so frequently.
Plus, I’d started showing. It wasn’t detectable to anyone but me, but that would change in no time at all. I needed to put my big girl panties on and tell him already.
“This is a good thing,” Sage repeated. “And, I mean, if your intention was to have word get back to the Hartley triplets about you two pursuing a romantic relationship, you are kind of ahead of the game now. If I heard the news, they probably did, too.”
“I guess so,” I sighed, wondering if that was a good thing. Maybe we’d put even more pressure on ourselves.
The week passed in a blur. I was busy at work booking reservations and staying on top of the daily tasks required of me. On Friday morning, I put together all the check-in packets for that weekend’s guests entirely by myself, the additional task serving well to distract me from tomorrow night’s plans.
Despite Fridays being check-in days for many guests, I had limited contact with them. Most folks arrived after I’d left for the day.
There were two wooden boxes mounted to the wall beside the door labeled check-ins and check-outs. The check-in box was slightly bigger, the lid opening to reveal the packets with each guest’s name on it. The check-out box was smaller and locked, with a slot for the keys to drop in.
All payments were processed the day guests were set to arrive, so there was no need for them to wait around until the office was open to pay for their stay.
With all the check-in packets ready to go by noon, I put them in the check-in box then returned to the office and keeping myself busy while I waited for someone to come in and relieve me so I could go to my appointment in Springwood. I was simultaneously hoping and dreading that someone would be Noah.
I hadn’t seen much of him this week because he’d been busy helping with some plumbing issues one of the cottages was having. The only time I caught a glimpse of him was at lunch briefly, and despite the winks and flirty smiles he sent me across the table, he’d kept his distance.
I expected his brothers to call us out, to demand to know why we thought it’d be appropriate for us to go on a date, but neither Damien nor Easton said a thing about it. It was as if they didn’t know—and maybe they didn’t. I wasn’t about to bring it up, even if I’d entertained the idea briefly as a way to get out of the date in a moment of insecurity and panic.
The bell in the back chimed, and I waited with bated breath until the door to the laundry room swung open, revealing Charlotte.
“Hope it’s going better in here than it is in the Sprucewood Cottage,” she winced, shaking her head.
“Yeah, it’s been quiet. Booked a few more reservations and I have all the check-in packets ready to go out front. I take it the plumbing issue isn’t going so well?”
“You could say that,” Charlotte sighed. “The guys are still trying, but I’m going to make an executive decision and call a plumber. They might be handy, but they aren’t that handy, and I’m worried about the hardwood floors if they keep trying it their way.”
“Ommf, yeah.” I opened the web browser, about to type in local plumbers.
“I’ll call James, he’s our usual plumber.”
“Right,” I wrinkled my nose at myself. I should have guessed they already had contacts.
“Noah tells me you’re off to Springwood for an appointment?” Charlotte asked, picking up the phone and dialing a number straight from memory.
“Yeah, I should head out soon if I’m going to make it in time,” I replied, hoping Charlotte wouldn’t ask any further questions, like what my appointment was for. I didn’t want to have to lie to anybody, but I wanted to tell Noah first.
“Okay, no problem. Thanks for getting all the check-in packets ready,” Charlotte smiled warmly, sitting down in the desk chair, and turning her attention to the phone. “Hi, James? Yeah, it’s Charlotte. We’ve got a bit of a situation here, can you come out?”
I grabbed my coat and outdoor boots, dressing and putting away my indoor work shoes on the shoe stand. Then I made my way to the kitchen to grab my lunch bag and headed out.
The drive to Springwood passed quickly with the help of my extensive playlist. Waiting for Dr. Kramer, however, felt like a slow and torturous process.
The OB was running a few patients behind, so I didn’t get seen until forty-five minutes after my appointment. Dr. Kramer came in, looking a little frazzled. “Sorry about that, Nellie. We had a delivery last night, and it set me back.”
“No worries,” I assured her. I figured that was typical for an OB. They did deliver babies, after all.
“How have you been feeling?”
“Pretty good,” I answered. “A little nervous about everything we talked about last time, but otherwise, I’m okay.”
