Rachel wasn’t sure how she felt about her kids being out of her sight, but if this truly was going to be their home, then she needed to relax the reins a little.
“Sure. Are you all right with that, Rachel?” Gunner asked.
Was she all right being in her van where there was a fold-down bed six feet away from the tall, rugged, tattooed biker? No, but she wasn’t sure how she could articulate the fear she now lived with. Rachel was barely five foot three and Gunner was easily a foot taller than she was. She’d lost a lot of weight over the last couple of months, and she definitely didn’t have any muscle tone. If he wasn’t a good guy, she wouldn’t stand a chance against him. She didn’t know enough about him yet to know if she could trust him.
Rachel cleared her throat, which had gone dry at the thought of being alone with Gunner in her van, and croaked out, “Sure.”
“We’ll be about fifteen minutes behind you if that’s okay. I’m sure Rachel wants to see the spaceso she can start deciding how to display items,” Gunner suggested.
Despite knowing she’d be leaving her kids alone a little longer, Gunner was right. Rachel was itching to see the space. She’d had ideas tumbling around her head since Clara had given her the offer of a job. Now to see if they’d work in the space provided.
So many fun things she could do, and, hopefully, Gunner would accept her ideas and not discount them because she was a woman.
The kids jumped up to go with Clara, but Rachel pulled them aside for a minute.
“I want you to enjoy your time, but no fighting between you two. You treat your sibling like they are a new friend you just met and want to impress them with your behavior, got it?” Rachel said, making sure her face was conveying the severity of her request. Rarely did the kids see her not smiling, but their fights could be epic and today was not the day for Bluff Creek to be introduced to them.
“We promise we’ll be good,” Marcus said, grinning at her. She hoped the mischief shining in his eyes was from excitement and not something he was planning to irritate his sister.
“Yep, we’ll be good,” Michelle said, her body wiggling in excitement.
“Okay, love you and listen to Clara, Beth, and Flick,” Rachel gave one last direction before watching her kids walk out the door.
“They’ll be fine—spoiled rotten probably but fine,” Gunner said.
Following Gunner across the street, Rachel had her first good look at Broken Hearts Brewing in the daylight. The building’s bricks were painted a bright white. A large pink and red heart logo was painted on the upper level of the building. Inside the heart shape was a red and pink drawing of an anatomical heart. A ribbon ran across the heart with Broken Hearts Brewing Company lettered underneath with the phrase“Love Is Just a Sip Away.”The bottom level of the building had white brick decorated with pink and red hearts that went up about four feet. The rest ofthe building had huge windows. A large pink and red striped awning extended over the front of the store.
Gunner opened the door, holding it open for her. Her first glimpse of the space had her catching her breath. It was exactly what she’d hoped for. Warm wood floors with one wall being floor-to-ceiling bookcases. Display areas along the back were just waiting to be filled.
“The furniture will be coming soon. Sofas, coffee tables, comfy chairs to read and relax in, along with some regular dining tables. The only things set in stone are the food display cases and the built-in bookshelves. We can discuss where you think things might go, but if, once it’s set up, we realize we need to move things, we can. This is a learning experience. Back here,” Gunner said, walking toward a hallway. “This is the smash room, bathrooms, and this door is to the staircase for upstairs, which is currently extra storage. It’s been painted and has wood floors, so it’s available if we need to expand at some point.”
He opened a second door. “This is the employee area along with storage for items. I’m open to whatever you think about all the areas.”
Rachel couldn’t keep from smiling. This was better than she dreamed. She was ready to dig in and get things set up.
“Let’s head over to the compound and get you settled in your house. The workmen are supposed to completely finish today, which means we can sweep and wet mop and not worry whether stock we put out will get dirty after today.”
Gunner’s smile had her reminding herself that this was a new place and everything looked fine, but she’d learned over time that not everything was as it seemed. She’d wait to relax and trust everyone once they’d earned it.
Chapter Four
Rachel kissed Marcus’ forehead. “I love you, buddy. Sleep well.”
“I will, Mom. I like it here. And did you see the big fence they have around the property? No one’s getting in,” Marcus said, closing his eyes.
Oh, the innocence of children. Rachel did love the tall fence surrounding the property, but she didn’t know everyone who lived here. How could she trust them if she didn’t know them?
Clara, along with what could only be termed as an abundance of people, had helped move all their personal belongings into the house. When Regina, Clara’s friend, had realized that Rachel had two children and did crafts, she changed which house Rachel and the kids were going to live in. She walked them two houses down to onethat had three bedrooms, a full basement, and a loft that Regina thought would be perfect for all Rachel’s crafts. She had to admit it was a lovely space. And because it was hidden from people walking in, if she wanted to leave things out while she worked on them, she could.
Multiple kids had shown up to play with Marcus and Chelle. Rachel had tried to keep track of the names but had given up. Between the adults and kids, she’d met at least fifty new people today.
Her refrigerator was filled with some meals that could be heated up to eat, and her pantry was stocked with all the necessities. Every need she’d had, they’d taken care of.
Her only embarrassment, besides how little they had, was when Phoebe had asked Michelle where her toys were. Michelle had piped up that her bad daddy had sold their toys. The silence in the house was deafening. Rachel had only hoped that no one would ask any questions. She needed just one day when she didn’t have to think about the kids’ dad.
But no one had asked questions. In under an hour, though, toys for both the kids had shown up.
Rachel walked around the house checking the doors and windows before glancing into Michelle’s room. She’d fallen asleep almost before she’d finished her bath.
