“I’d like to think I have some restraint,” I frowned, but Sage raised a valid point. “We do need to talk, though, and the last thing I need is for the entire town to catch wind of things.”
“Yeah, that’s true,” Sage wrinkled her nose, thinking. “Too bad it’s freezing out. There’s a lot to do in Hartwood Creek when it’s warm out. Picnics by the lake, hikes in the woods.”
“You can do stuff in the winter, too,” Tabitha argued. “Ice skating, tobogganing—”
“Things she probably shouldn’t do while pregnant,” Sage pointed out.
“Right, not really that safe. Hmm. What about a romantic horsedrawn carriage ride? Noah has a connection he could use,” Tabitha winked.
“Guys, I’m sure he’s thought of something already. And if not, it doesn’t have to be so grand. We could grab something to eat and go for a walk or a drive. The important thing is we need to talk about how all this is going to work.”
* * *
Noah
* * *
The rest of the week passed by in a bit of a blur. James started working on the plumbing in the Sprucewood cottage, and he told me tonight that he should be able to wrap things up with it sooner than anticipated.
On Friday night, I was expected at my parents’ house for dinner, so Nellie and I planned our date for Saturday. She didn’t seem overly enthusiastic about the prospect of going out again, and kept insisting the date was to talk more about ’the situation’. Regardless of her trepidation, I was going to make it a good one.
But first, I had to get through a family dinner. I was fully anticipating an interrogation, of sorts. There was no way that word of Nellie and I dating hadn’t reached my parents yet, especially not with Charlotte knowing.
Damien must have told her Monday night, because she came to work on Tuesday with a smug smile and quizzed me for twenty minutes, until Nellie pulled up. Blessedly, she’d left Nellie alone, but the secret smiles she shot my way every time I interacted with Nellie said it all.
I showed up at my parents’ house a little after six thirty. They lived in the same house we grew up in, a beautiful, four-bedroom log cabin north of the resort. My brothers and I maintained the unassumed road that led to their cabin as part of resort management, though Dad was able to keep their property itself maintained.
The cabin was built in the early eighties, using wood milled from the extensive property my dad had inherited from his parents. The resort itself was at the beginning of the property, lining Hartwood Lake and going north into the woods.
Hartwood Creek flowed from behind my parents’ house, sweeping around the back and travelling through the woods, connecting my property and Damien’s, as well as the property that had belonged to our grandparents and been passed down to Easton. The creek went all the way to the northeast side of town.
Easton was already there, and so was Damien, Charlotte, and the girls. I’d been the last to arrive because I’d gotten held up at the resort answering a guest’s questions.
“What took you so long? We almost started eating without you,” Easton said when I finally walked in and took off my coat.
“City folks,” I sighed, shaking my head. Everyone at the table let out a murmur of sympathy.
“Was that the couple in the Whispering Pines cottage? Yeah, called it soon as I saw their electric vehicle pull in.” Easton chuckled.
“And yet, you left me to deal with it.”
“You’re the best at dealing with disgruntled guests,” Easton pointed out. “Damien scares the shit out of them, and I have a hard time not laughing in their faces.”
“That’s true,” Charlotte agreed. “I’ve had to come to the rescue a few times when Easton’s dealing with a guest. They don’t take too kindly to being laughed at.”
“Exactly.” Easton pointed at Charlotte with a smirk. “I can’t help it that my face reveals my thoughts. Damien’s the same, only his face reveals his want to murder anyone who talks to him. So, it falls on you, brother dearest, to handle the difficult guests.”
“How is the new girl at handling guests?” Mom asked, setting a serving bowl of salad down at the table. She’d made an obscene amount of spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, along with a large Caesar salad and homemade garlic bread. Spaghetti and meatballs were the girls’ favourite meal, and Mom often cooked for their palates.
“Yeah, Noah, how’s the new girl at handling guests?” Easton smirked, ignoring Damien when he turned to scowl at him in warning. He tilted his head towards his daughters as he scooped some pasta onto their plates.
“From what I’ve seen, she can handle her own,” Charlotte interjected, coming to my rescue with a sympathetic smile. “She’s picked up on the job quickly, I don’t even have to check on her anymore.”
“Definitely an improvement from Jeannine,” Damien shocked me by putting in his two cents’ worth. “At least she shows up when scheduled.”
“Yeah, that’s definitely a perk.” It made me feel relieved that my brothers and Charlotte all seemed happy with Nellie as an employee.
“But that’s not the only perk, right, Noah?” Easton was still goading me, and I sighed. If I didn’t come clean soon, Easton would probably blurt it out for me.
