It took more begging than I was proud of, but eventually she agreed. We would be driving into town separately, since she refused to ride in Tyler’sstink-mobile.
I met her at the diner in town, which she had insisted upon. Her friend Dora Lynn ran the place and Shelby said people didn’t bother her there or Dora would run them off. My heart broke for the gorgeous little farmgirl who was squaring off against the whole world.
CHAPTER 9
SHELBY
It was weird sitting at the diner with anyone aside from Shane, Lila, or Jake. Even weirder, I was sitting across from the enemy. Carter Allory, the CEO of the company that had ruined my life and crippled the town. The weirdest part?
Carter asked Dora Lynn to put cheese on his chicken-fried steak, gravy on the side. When it arrived, I looked at it with suspicion. In theory, the idea was sound but I had never seen anyone order a chicken-fried steak like that.
He caught me looking. “What? I’m hungry.”
I nodded. “Sure, you worked up an appetite earlier, but that’s not exactly traditional.”
“Tradition is overrated.” He poured a generous portion of gravy onto the cheesy, deep-fried meat. “Why shackle ourselves to the past?”
“Sometimes the past shackles itself to us, like it or not.” I picked up a wedge of my club sandwich. “There’s still people in town who won’t even look in my direction.”
Carter chewed his food and grinned. “To be fair, that might be because you’re so mean.”
I chuckled at that. “I didn’t used to be so grumpy but losing everything can do that to a girl.”
“You haven’t lost everything,” Carter said, wiping his mouth. “You’ve got your farm. You’ve got your evil ducks.”
“Those ducks aren’t evil,” I said, smiling. “You’re just a scaredy cat.”
“I want to make it clear,” he said, leveling his gaze at me. “I wasn’t afraid of the ducks. I was afraid of hurting them, which is not the same thing.”
“If you say so.” I eyed him skeptically as I took another bite of my sandwich.
“What’s the story with people in this town holding a grudge against you anyway?” he asked. “You had nothing to do with the farm closing, and no offense, but it kind of seems like the people in Ferris dislike you more than they dislike me.”
“Yeah, because they hold me to a higher standard than they hold you,” I said.
“How so?”
“Because Allory is an outsider. People expect companies to screw them over. It’s a tale as old as greed. But my family and I are local. This land is in our blood. This is our community and my parents chose to turn their back on it.” I sighed and picked up a fry. “Or so people think. My parents didn’t know your father would shut it all down, but they also didn’t care that much when it happened. They took their money and left.”
“Sounds like you’re not happy with them.” His green eyes bored into me, peeling away my layers and leaving me feeling vulnerable and exposed.
“That’s none of your business, Carter.” I sat up straighter and gathered my composure. “All you need to know about me is I’m trying to continue my family’s legacy. My grandparents worked Whitaker Farms before my parents did, and the line goes way back before that. I’m not going anywhere.”
He put his fork down. “Shelby, it might be inappropriate to say this, considering who I work for, but I’m very sorry my fathershut down Whitaker Farms. Hell, I’m sorry he bought it in the first place. It would have been in good hands once you took over.”
I waved his comment away because I didn’t want him to see how deep his words had penetrated my soul. His kindness shone a light into some of the darker places inside me where doubts took root and festered.
When I was sure my voice wouldn’t crack, I said, “Thank you. If I had the family farm back, I would reopen it and bring some life back to Ferris.”
“Even the people who’ve been mean to you?” Carter asked.
“Even them.” I nodded. “Community includes everyone, even the assholes you disagree with. A rising tide lifts all ships, and I’m not looking to leave anyone stranded in the water.”
“You should run for mayor.”
I threw a fry at him. “And you should stop running your mouth.”
I smiled to take some of the sting out of it. Carter claimed he was different than his father, and to his credit, everything I had seen from him so far lined up with that claim. He didn’t seem like a ruthless businessman who just cared about making the numbers go up on a spreadsheet.
