Chapter 18
The musky scent of fall leaves floated thick in the air as Memphis helped Lucas and Ty off the hayride trailer. The sun had been playing peek-a-boo with them all afternoon as patches of clouds came and went. He’d detected hints of rain too, not only in the familiar, earthy scent, but he’d felt a few drops land on him as they helped Betty with her traditional Golden Acorn Hunt.
Boy, was he getting used to this. Memphis had really taken to life at The Homestead since arriving. He’d been grateful for the way he’d been able to reconnect with his family. Sure, they were helping run an inn, which took work and cooperation. But with the assistance and well-natured advice of Betty and Trenton, who’d been running the inn for years, they’d been able to find the joy in it and to focus on the perks too.
All of that got even better once Ty came along.
“I can’t thank you guys enough for joining in on the fun,” Betty said as Emmitt helped her down from the trailer. “Hiding acorns in leaf piles and tree trunks isn’t so bad, right?”
“It’s thebest!”Lucas piped out as he jumped in place.
Dominique, Mable and Don’s granddaughter, mimicked the jumping action, a golden acorn in each small fist. “Let’s go, Lucas!”
Ty chuckled as the two darted toward a particularly thick pile of leaves. “I’m just glad we could be a part of it,” Ty said to Betty. “What a fun way to get out here and enjoy the fallen leaves.” They might be well into November, but the weather wasn’t half bad.
“I agree,” Ava said as she looped her hand around Richard’s arm.
Trenton repositioned his cowboy hat after helping Andie hop down. “I’m just glad we have so much help this year. It definitely makes the task feel like more pleasure than work.”
“That’s for sure,” Betty agreed.
“I’m only here for the food,” Maverick said as he jumped off the trailer and tucked his hands into his pockets. “I can’t wait to roast some of those dough boys,” he added.
Memphis mused that it was nice to see him getting around so well. Throughout the month of October, he’d lost his limp completely. Mainly because he no longer had to baby the wounded area. He was all healed up and working to get back in shape. It seemed the guy’s ego was on the mend as well. He and Emmitt had invited dates to meet them at the bonfire tonight—a couple of ladies they met late on Halloween night after the party at Andie and Trenton’s wrapped up.
Memphis groaned inwardly. A week had passed since that night, but he still felt embarrassed about getting slammed on cider—at a family function, no less. Plus, he had a very distinct memory of blabbing to Ty. He couldn’t recall everything he’d said, but he definitely remembered bringing up her ex-husband. Whining about him, more specifically.
Ugh.He hated that an insecurity like that had poured out of him at such a moment. The truth was, Memphis felt confident in that department—for the most part, anyway. The guy was long gone. But he couldn’t stop thinking about the conversation he and Ty had the night after their river run date. If he wasn’t mistaken, Ty had said, in essence, that her greatest sorrow was that Lucas’s real father wasn’t a part of her life. It didn’t help that she talked about how great their chemistry was.
He’d kept his insecurities on the matter quiet though. At least, until Holly’s wicked wassail hit him.
So far, Ty hadn’t touched the topic. He hoped she’d keep it that way. The last thing he needed was to hear her talk about the guy again. He was part of her past, and Memphis was here in the present. That’s all that mattered.
A soft giggle sounded from some place in the distance. It sounded like Ava, but wasn’t she… Memphis spun around to see that Richard and Ava had disappeared into the nearby trees. Hmm, they seemed to do that quite a lot.
Not far off, Maverick was actually sitting on top of Emmitt’s shoulders. The two laughed as Maverick reached to place an acorn on a ridiculously high branch.
“No one will ever find this one,” he said through a laugh.
“You better not go hurting yourself again, Maverick,” Betty cried.
As Memphis glanced over the rest of the group, he saw Trenton placing kisses to Andie’s cheek while he mumbled something. This was the month of Thanksgiving, and he sure had a lot to be thankful for. All of them did.Thiswas the family type of lifestyle they’d missed out on growing up. Mom and Dad tried, of course, taking them on vacations around the globe. But never without plenty of nannies and staff to accommodate every individual whim. Even as children, the kids did whattheywanted to do, when they wanted to do it. And often times, that meant a whole lot of division, even during their “family” vacations.
The truth was, had Grandpa not made that plea bargain at the start of the year, they’d have likely gone their whole lives never knowing the close connection they had to one another now.
Memphis was quick to turn his attention back to Ty—the best addition to his life yet—where she plucked a few golden acorns out of the pail Betty held.
“You ready, Memphis?” she asked. “We’ve got to go hide these bad boys.”
Memphis grinned as another wave of gratitude washed over him. And excitement too, for all that lay ahead. He dunked a hand into the pail as well, securing a few of the acorns in his grip. “Ready.” Inwardly, he was hoping to have a moment alone with Ty. There was something he’d been dying to tell her, and now felt like the perfect time.
“Here,” he said, turning his back to her and hunching down a bit. “Hop onto my back and we’ll head over to that stack of hay bales over there.”
To enhance the Meadow of Fallen Leaves hayride trail, the women had created a few photo op areas at some of the stops. Here, in addition to hunting for acorns, families could load their little ones onto the stacked bales of hay. With smiles on their faces and golden acorns in their fists, children could pose for a picture or two.
“Okay.” Ty stuffed the acorns into her jacket pockets and climbed into place. “Lucas is having such a blast with Dominique,” she said in his ear as he walked.
Memphis glanced over to see the two of them scooping the leaves into one massive heap. “Yeah,” he said. “It’s great how well those two get along.” Memphis began a determined march toward the tall haystack that served as a backdrop. It could be a barrier to give them a little privacy.
