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They spent the next twenty minutes walking around the house and surrounding area in an attempt to work out where they could set up a designated parking zone as well as a great location for the stands. The longer he spent with Kelly, the more the tension and stress seeped out of him.

“As I said earlier, we’re well into the harvest,” he said in the east orchard. “This area is closest to the house, so if we can get it picked, it won’t be so chaotic. The less machinery we have around the house, the better. The last thing we want is for someone to get hurt.”

“Yeah, I don’t think you want a hike in your insurance premium. I’ll also speak to Macy to find out what insurance they already have in place. I’m sure they have something.”

“They should.”

“You know, the design for the flower arch is going to fit perfectly here. It’s going to complement the one at the entry to the farm.”

“Wait. Why would you need to have any sort of flower displays here?”

“For aesthetic purposes, not to mention we’ve got a completely different color scheme here to what will be displayed in town. We always have large flower displays, Tate. It’s as traditional as Betty Lou’s fried chicken.”

Tate didn’t understand the need to have various flower arrangements. Not that he had anything against them, of course, he just didn’t think they were necessary for his farm. “This is an orchard. We have an abundance of trees to give you the aesthetics you want. If we have to have colors on display, we could tie ribbons around the base of the trees.”

“Oh, that would be perfect. I love that idea.” He watched as Kelly pulled out her tablet and used the pen attached to it to make some notes.

“Great, so we can forget about the flowers and just go with the ribbons?” Yes, at least he got one thing he wanted out of this.

“What? No. No way. There will be flowers.” Kelly tapped her pen on her tablet. “Along with ribbons around the trees.”

“Come on, Kelly, why do we need to have buckets of flowers when we have this gorgeous vista?” He waved his hand toward the trees behind him. Maybe if he kept repeating it she’d come over to his way of thinking.

“Tate, let’s be reasonable here.” Her tone suggested she was talking to a willful child, and he was anything but a child.

“Stop right there. Don’t say any more. If you can’t talk to me like an adult, this meeting is over.”

“I thought I was talking to you like an adult, but with the way you’re acting now…”

Tate turned his back on her. It was rude, but he had a gamut of emotions bombarding him. Anger at his brother. Frustration that he was the one whose working life had to be turned upside down to cater to Tyler’s whim. Not to mention the more they walked around the farm, the more he realized that keeping disruption to a minimum was going to be difficult.

A hand landed on his shoulder. Warmth speared him at the point of contact. His body reacted in a crazy manner whenever Kelly got close. Did she feel anything as well?

God, why was he wasting time on even letting that thought take root in his mind? Kelly had made her feelings about him more than clear. She thought he was the town’s playboy. Not to mention a child. He was anything but a child, and as silly as it seemed he was ready to settle down. He wanted the relationship his parents had right up to the moment Mom died. Having that with Kelly Turner was as likely as Tyler changing his mind and canceling the Founders’ Day festival at the farm.

Shaking off Kelly’s touch, he took two steps forward before turning to face her. “You know what, I don’t care what you do. You can decorate all the trees with blooms. Make the orchard an English flower garden.” With that he brushed past her and headed into the orchard. At least the trees understood him. He always found peace among endless rows of branches and leaves. This was where he belonged and he would make sure nothing happened to them.

*

Kelly wandered intoBetty Lou’s Diner in a bit of a daze. Tate’s abrupt attitude change had been dizzying. He’d gone from being super friendly and fun when having their tea to abrasive and argumentative when they’d discussed the layout and decorations for the festival.

“Hiya, Kelly. You eating here or picking up some donuts?” Norma’s exuberant greeting was a welcome distraction from her train of thoughts.

“Hey, Norma. I’d like a table, please.” The last thing she wanted to do was go home and cook a lonely meal. It wasn’t like she didn’t normally do that, but tonight she needed to be surrounded by people.

“Sure, hon, follow me.” Norma picked up a menu and led her through the busy diner to a booth in the back, facing the main street. “Sweet iced tea for ya?”

Kelly slid across the red vinyl and grabbed the menu from Norma. She didn’t need it but took it anyway. “Actually, can I have a Coke instead?”

“Sure. I’ll be right back.”

Norma scuttled off and Kelly gazed out the window. Summer was settling in around Sweet Ridge. The days were getting longer, and people walked the streets heading toward the town center. The green space had become more popular over the years, and when she let herself, she pictured a time when she, her husband, and kids would visit the area as well. The kids would play on the swings and other equipment while she and her husband would watch them from a bench, fingers entwined as they talked about nothing and everything.

As each year passed without her finding her special person, the dream drifted further and further away. Slowly, she was coming to the realization that she might travel through life alone, and she was adjusting to that thought.

You don’t have to be alone. What about Tate?

And what in the hell was she thinking? After today, the only thing she and Tate would be having was polite conversations. Anything else was never going to happen. Yes, she might find him good-looking, and yes, her heart always seemed to do the do-si-do around him, but he couldn’t be the man of her future, could he? Attraction didn’t always lead to happily ever after. But was she being close-minded to the possibility that dating a younger man was a bad thing? There were more eligible bachelors around town these days than ever before. Perhaps the time had come for her to live a little. Yet the pull toward Tate was one she couldn’t deny.