Page 38

TWENTY-EIGHT

AMOS

“Great recap of the tree lighting. Thanks.” Bo, sitting on my left, drew a tidy line through the agenda item. “All right, let’s switch to touching base on our remaining events. How are things going with carriage rides over the covered bridge? Are drivers accommodating the carriages without issue?”

I tried to pay attention while someone reported a broken carriage axle and tracking down a replacement, but it was difficult.

My attention kept wandering to Mickey and how off he seemed.

The best way I could describe it was sulky.

Not like a pouty teen, but someone who was upset about something and was doing their best to get through their obligations for the day. Adulting was hard.

He hadn’t arrived until right before the Holiday Hoopla meeting began, so we didn’t get to chat at all.

He’d given me a small smile before taking the chair on Bo’s other side.

The tables were arranged in a hollow square, and Bo and I sat on each side of a corner, so I was angled enough to see Mickey easily.

Since I couldn’t reach him to knock my foot against his in a casual gesture to tell him I hoped he was okay, I decided to text and see if I could cheer him up.

Amos: All this talk of wagon axles makes me miss the Oregon Trail game. Were you a ford the river kind of guy, or did you prefer to caulk your wagon?

When the corner of his mouth lifted as he glanced at me, the pressure in my chest eased.

I hoped I could snag him after the meeting to check on him.

Odds were that Bo would have to hurry to his next meeting, so we might get a chance to connect before I had to head to Sparky’s to work the rest of the day.

Mickey: I always died of dysentery before I got to the deep rivers.

I bit back a laugh.

“Next up is the Christmas Eve Community Dinner. Thanks to everyone for your enthusiasm about the Good Morning, USA visit. I’m still working with them to arrange where they want to shoot B-roll and do interviews.

Once that’s settled, I’ll reach out to relevant folks so we can get that squared away.

My inbox is full of people asking how they can get themselves or their business on TV, so I’m doing my best to try and accommodate what makes sense. ”

Bo sounded exhausted. I couldn’t imagine the extra work this was putting on him. He deserved a vacation after this was over.

“For transparency, they figured out that Drake Derry is living in town and that his twin, Dirk, is planning to be here for Christmas. They’re pushing me to ask Drake and Dirk to sing some Melodious Moon songs at the dinner. It’s not happening, but I wanted you to know they’re asking for it.”

Several in the room shared their support of Bo’s decision. Maplewood was protective of their own—those who grew up here or chose to move here.

I’d wondered if something like that would happen.

I’d recognized Drake when I’d run into Mickey and his friends at the pub, and Mickey had later filled me in on why Drake was in town and how he wasn’t performing any longer.

It made sense that Good Morning, USA would want to highlight a local celebrity in their footage, and I respected Bo for pushing back.

“Mickey and Amos, can you give us an update on the dinner itself and anything you need from us?”

I suspected Mickey wouldn’t object to me giving the update, so I jumped in.

“Since Good Morning, USA is attending the dinner, we’re expecting higher numbers of people hoping to get on TV or see the spectacle.

Bo has secured more funding, if needed, to cover the additional food, so we won’t turn anyone away.

As you saw in Bo’s email, we’ve moved the event to the Maplewood festival grounds.

We could use everyone’s help in spreading the word about the venue change.

The high school has offered to put signage out on the day to direct any stragglers. ”

“Do you need more volunteers?” Roger asked.

“Yeah,” Mickey said. He cleared his throat and sat straighter.

“The increased attendance means more food to serve and more tables to bus, and we’re still trying to find additional volunteers.

We’d rather have too many volunteers and send people away than be short-staffed on the night.

Both Red’s and Sparky’s have offered to pay their regular staff to work the event, and most have agreed.

” His voice didn’t hold its usual, friendly tone. There was a heaviness to his words.

What the hell was going on? I hated that I couldn’t pull him into a hug and try to help ease whatever was making him so off-kilter. If we had to keep our growing relationship a secret, how could I be a true partner and give him support when he needed it?

“We also still need volunteers for delivering meals to community members who can’t join in person,” I added.

Mickey smiled at me, and I returned it. Gossips be damned.

“Huge thanks to Mickey and Amos for pulling this off.” Bo turned his head to make eye contact with each of us.

“I know you weren’t expecting to take this on, and the demands keep growing.

You’ve done a great job in helping us celebrate this huge Holiday Hoopla milestone while honoring a special part of Maplewood’s history. ”

Bo crossed another item off his agenda. Seriously, how could someone freehand such a straight line?

“How are things shaping up for the New Year’s Eve party?”

Ten minutes later, the meeting wrapped up and people began filtering out. Mickey, Bo, and I didn’t move.

“Hey, Amos.” Roger, from the city’s power and light utility, approached.

“There are a couple of Sparky’s regulars in the shop”—he shot an apologetic smile to Mickey—“and they’re talking about how great that burger special was.

Cheese from a place called Mystic Rind? They wanted me to ask if you had any inside tips on where they could get some of it.

We’ve got a holiday potluck coming up, and one of the guys offered to make buffalo burgers with that cheese. ”

“ Maplewood Matters? ” I milked every minute of the semester of high school drama class to try and look nonchalant while I was screaming inside. Pieces began falling into place about Mickey’s mood.

I felt tension radiating from Mickey. Even Bo stiffened on my other side.

“Yeah, they did a whole thing about the hot new cheese in the area, but no one knows anything about it. I’d like to try it, but I only eat at Red’s. No offense.”

“None taken. Sorry, but I don’t believe it’s available for sale anywhere.” It took effort not to look at Mickey, but I didn’t want to accidentally give him away. Not that Roger would jump to that conclusion.

He nodded as though he expected the answer. “Thanks anyway. See you guys later.”

Once Roger left the room, only the three of us remained. The silence was stifling until Bo cleared his throat.

“Did I hear that right? Mickey’s cheese is at Sparky’s?”

I looked to Mickey for guidance. I wasn’t sure how much he wanted Bo to know.

“Dad wouldn’t use my cheese on any dishes, but Amos made it happen. Beth put it on a burger special.”

Bo assessed me, and I let him. I wanted him to see how much I cared about Mickey, and no matter what happened between us, he deserved to have his dreams come true. If I could help him achieve that in any small way, I was glad to.

“Good. It’s about time more people get to enjoy Mickey’s talent.”

My shoulder’s relaxed.

When Bo’s phone buzzed, he cursed. Fatigue radiated from him. “I’ve got to go. Mickey, I’ll call you later. Okay?” His brow creased in concern.

“Sure. Talk to you later.”

Bo gave me another look as he stood, but I couldn’t read his expression.

When he neared the door to the library meeting room, Mickey called out. “Can you close the door behind you? I need to talk to Amos.”

Bo paused, then nodded. “Sure. Later, guys.” He closed the door.

I moved to take Bo’s seat so I could touch him. Since we were alone, I reached under the table and squeezed his thigh, trying to offer support despite the nausea crawling up my throat. “What’s going on? You seem miserable.”

“I learned something today, and I’m not sure if I should tell you or not. I don’t know how to ask if you want to know without telling you too much, in case you don’t want to know. But it also doesn’t seem fair to make the decision for you.”

My head spun trying to sort through the riddle.

“If you want to know, it might be something you need to keep from Sage. It would be your decision, but know that’s a possibility.”

Some possibilities loosely formed in my mind, but I didn’t want to examine any of them closely. “Tell me.” I was desperate to know what had him so upset.

He stared into my eyes. “Are you sure? We can’t go back from this.”

“Are you about to tell me you’ve murdered someone and need help hiding the body?” My ridiculous attempt at a joke to break the tension made Mickey smile.

“It’s not that bad.”

“Okay, then tell me.”

Mickey squeezed his eyes closed. “I learned today that our dads are friends too. I don’t know if they’re aware that our moms are friends, but I suspect they know. Our grandfathers are friends too.”

“What about Sparky and Red?” I asked quietly. My body went unnervingly still. Shock? Resignation?

“The falling out really happened, but I guess after they died, our grandfathers formed a friendship.” Mickey filled in some more things he’d learned from his dad during a tense conversation this morning.

“So our grandparents retired to Florida together.”

Mickey’s mouth formed an O. “Shit. You’re right. I thought it was a coincidence they lived in the same town.”

“You’re sure Sage doesn’t know?” It was hard to imagine them not knowing, but Mickey didn’t, so I guess it wasn’t that unbelievable.

“I really don’t think so.”

This was a big secret to keep from them. Now I understood Mickey’s riddle.

“Should I have not told you?”

I gripped his hand. “You absolutely should have told me.” I wasn’t sure when my family would have told me, if ever.

Would Sage have just kept the knowledge to themselves if they started a friendship with Mickey?

If I lived in Boston, I couldn’t imagine why it would have ever come up.

It made me nauseous to think of a different version of my life where I hadn’t come home and gotten to know Mickey, and instead, he and Sage became secret friends. I could’ve missed out on so much.

I wanted Mickey and Sage to be friends. I wanted to have dinner with my sibling and boyfriend and watch them hit it off. My boyfriend? The idea of calling Mickey my boyfriend sent tingles to my fingertips. I wanted that so badly.

I reached out and pulled him in for a hug. “Thank you for telling me, and I’m sorry you had a hard conversation with your dad.”

He pressed his lips against my neck. “Thanks. I didn’t realize how badly I needed a hug.” His attention darted to the closed door, and I wasn’t sure he even realized he’d done it.

That simple movement crushed my heart into a thousand pieces. The rivalry might not be real to our families, but it had a fucking real impact. I never consented to this ruse, but it sure as hell was affecting me.

“I’m sorry I’ve passed the burden on to you. The secrets keep getting bigger.”

My heart mended itself as I stared into Mickey’s eyes. Mickey had a lifetime of viewing me as the enemy, but he trusted me enough to tell me the biggest secret of our lives.

I’ve fallen so hard for this man.

“Where do we go from here?”

I cupped his cheeks and pressed my lips against his in a gentle kiss. “We’ll figure it out. Together.”

Even as I said it, doubt crept in through the cracks in my heart.

Our families wouldn’t have fanned the feud fire for so long if they hadn’t deemed it necessary.

I had to believe they could weather any scandal.

The town cared about the food and supporting the local businesses more than the truth of some rivalry.

I had to believe that. I didn’t want to have to choose between Mickey and keeping our families’ secret because if I did, I would choose Mickey.