Page 5 of Keep My Heart (The Haydon Falls #1)

Nick

‘So when’s your mom’s party?’ Tessa asks, setting a watermelon on the counter.

‘Tomorrow at four,’ I say. ‘But my dad wants us over there early to help get the barn decorated.’

‘That’s so sweet of him to throw her a surprise party.’ Tessa looks at Matt. ‘You should do that for me someday. Gather up all the kids and throw me a party.’

‘ All the kids?’ He gives her a funny look. ‘We only have two.’

‘So far,’ she says with a devious smile before turning back to the fridge.

‘Wait—what are you saying?’ He holds onto her arm before she opens the fridge door. ‘We’re having more kids?’

‘Maybe,’ she says with a shrug and a smile.

He sighs. ‘I’m gonna have to get another job.’

She laughs as he walks back to the counter to get his beer.

‘Maybe it’ll be a boy next time,’ I kid.

‘Yeah, maybe,’ Matt says, looking over at Tessa and smiling. He’s always saying they’re done having kids but I think he secretly wants another one.

‘Do you think your mom knows about the party?’ Tessa asks me as she searches for something in the fridge.

‘I don’t think so. My dad’s pretty good at keeping secrets. He’s kept her out of the barn all week by telling her there’s a family of rats living there. He told her he sprayed the place with chemicals and that it’ll take a week for it to take effect.’

‘Eww, rats,’ Tessa says. ‘That’d keep me away too. The party’s in the new barn, right? The one they built a few years ago?’

‘Yeah, he’d never have a party in the old barn. It’s in rough shape. It’s just used to store equipment.’

A few years ago my parents built a barn next to the house that’s more like a regular building that was made to look like a barn from the outside.

The inside has concrete floors, a beamed ceiling, and a large open space where we can set up tables to sell our products.

There’s a room in the back that was made into a kitchen so Mom could make the apple pies, donuts, and other apple desserts we sell.

Tessa glances at Matt. ‘Honey, you got the marinade, right?’

‘What marinade?’

She sighs as she shuts the fridge door. ‘When you went to the store last night I asked you to get the marinade for the steaks.’

‘Shit, I forgot. I’ll go back and get it.’

‘Mommy!’ Bella yells as she runs into the kitchen. ‘Mia hurt her finger!’

We hear wailing coming from upstairs.

‘I’ll go check on her,’ Matt says, racing out of the kitchen.

‘What’d she do to her finger?’ Tessa asks Bella.

‘She was wearing your shoes and fell down.’

Tessa leans down to her. ‘Bella, I told you to stop playing dress-up with my high heels. They’re for mommies, not little girls. ’

‘But they’re pretty.’

‘Go upstairs and be with your sister. See if Daddy needs help.’

She nods and runs off.

‘It’s always something with those two,’ Tessa says, laughing.

‘Yeah, I’m not sure I could handle that, although you and Matt make it look easy.’

‘Trust me, it’s not easy.’ She rolls her eyes, smiling. ‘Not even close. But we love it.’ She opens the fridge. ‘I can’t believe he forgot the marinade. Maybe I could just make one.’

‘If you want, I could go to the store.’

She turns back. ‘Would you? I hate to ask, but Matt’s probably going to be up there awhile and—’

‘I’m happy to do it. Just tell me what you need.’

She gets out her phone. ‘I’ll text it to you.’ She sends the text. ‘Let me get you some money.’

‘Forget it. It’s on me. Need anything else while I’m there?’

‘No, just the marinade. You can take Matt’s car.’ She grabs the keys from the drawer and hands them to me.

‘I’ll be back in a few minutes. Call if you think of anything else.’

‘I will. Thanks, Nick!’

As I go out to Matt’s car, I call up Sawyer.

‘You in town yet?’ he answers.

‘Yeah, just got here. I’m at Matt’s house, or actually I’m running to the store, but I’ll be going back there when I’m done. Did you leave me a key?’

‘Yeah, but I’m not sure I’m going out now. I think my date might’ve ghosted me.’

‘Is this the girl you met online?’

‘Yeah, and I haven’t heard from her in two days. I’ve called her and texted her to see if we’re still on for tonight but haven’t heard back.’

‘I’d say it’s not happening. You could come over to Matt’s house for dinner. His wife said there’s plenty of food.’

‘Thanks, but I think I’ll stay here. I’ve been working on a new brew and think I almost have it figured out.’

‘Working on a Friday night? You sound like you’re turning into me,’ I kid.

‘I’m not that bad yet, but I could be. I just really like what I’m doing. It doesn’t even feel like work, you know?’

Actually, I don’t. My job definitely feels like work.

Sometimes I’m not even sure I want to keep doing it.

The long hours, the stress, and the demanding clients make me not want to be a lawyer, but after all the money and time I spent on school, I feel like I can’t go back and change my mind.

Even if I could, I don’t know what else I’d do.

‘What time you think you’ll be here?’ Sawyer asks.

‘Not sure. Maybe around eight? Matt’s gotta get the kids to bed. He probably doesn’t want me there too late.’

‘Just let me know. If my date falls through, I’ll let you in. You can still take the key if you want to come over to get some time away from Mom and Dad.’

‘I’m only here a few days. That’s not long enough to need a break from them.’

‘It might be if Mom starts in with the marriage talk,’ he says with a laugh. ‘She’s been laying it on pretty heavy with me lately. You’re the oldest, so she’ll be even worse with you.’

‘She knows I’m too busy to date right now. Her efforts are better spent on you.’

‘Yeah, well, it’s not happening.’

‘I’m at the store. I should go. I’ll text you later to let you know when I’m coming over. ’

‘Sounds good. See ya.’

I’m staying with Sawyer tonight because Mom doesn’t know I’m home. If she knew, she’d ask why, ruining my dad’s surprise. I could tell her I’m home for her birthday, but I don’t usually come home for that, which would make her think something’s up.

Sawyer lives in the space above the brewery. It was meant to be an office, but he turned it into an apartment by having a kitchen put in and hanging a curtain to divide his bedroom from the rest of the living area. I’ll be sleeping on his couch tonight.

Going into the grocery store, I get out my phone and look for Tessa’s text. I find it and see the name of the marinade. I look up at the signs above the aisles, not sure where to find bottled marinade. Living in New York, I rarely shop for groceries. I eat out or get takeout.

‘Excuse me,’ I say, stopping one of the employees as he walks by. He’s a kid, maybe 16, with braces and a huge zit on his forehead.

I’m so glad to be done with the teen years.

It’s such a shitty time of life with the raging hormones and braces and zits popping up on your face at the absolute worst times.

I had that happen right before one of my tutoring sessions with Lyndsay.

I swear the thing wasn’t there when I got home from school, but an hour later it looked like a crater had formed between my eyebrows.

Lyndsay kept looking at it. I almost told her I was sick so she’d leave, but I didn’t want her to go.

Our tutoring sessions were the only time I had alone with her and I wasn’t giving that up.

‘You looking for something?’ the kid asks.

‘Yeah. Where do you have marinades?’

‘By the salad dressings. Aisle four.’ He smiles and I immediately see the resemblance to Mr. Petro, my high school English teacher.

‘Hey, are you Petro’s kid?’ I ask .

‘Yeah. Why?’

‘I had your dad for English.’

He looks confused. ‘When?’

‘Like 15 years ago. Is he still teaching?’

‘Yeah, but not here. He got married and moved to Eau Claire. I stayed here with my mom.’

Mr. Petro was married when he was my teacher, which means he got divorced and remarried in the past 15 years.

I haven’t even had a serious relationship in 15 years, unless you count Mina, a girl I dated for over a year, but neither one of us wanted to get married.

We talked about living together, but it never happened and eventually we broke up.

‘Next time you see him, tell him Nick Kanfield says hi. Or just say Nick, the orchard kid. He’ll know who you mean.’

Growing up, my brothers and I were known around town as the orchard kids.

The apple orchard is a huge deal around here because it brings in a lot of tourists in the fall when people swarm the state to see the fall colors.

We get tour buses, vacationers from all around the country, people from Chicago coming up for the weekend.

The orchard brings a boost to the local economy, which is why my parents are like celebrities around here.

That might be a stretch calling them that, but in a small town, it’s kind of true. Everyone knows them and knows our name.

‘Your parents own the orchard?’ the kid says, sounding impressed.

‘They do. You been there?’

‘Yeah, of course. Everyone has. My parents took me there every year.’ He smiles. ‘I liked the pumpkin patch the most. One year I got this huge pumpkin that was so awesome. I’d never seen one that big.’

‘My dad planted a new field of pumpkins last year. You should check it out this fall. Hey, I need to get going, but it was good meeting you.’

‘Yeah, see ya.’

The orchard started with just apples, but my dad quickly realized pumpkins drew in even more people than apples, so when the fields next to his went up for sale, he bought them and planted pumpkins.

He gets people coming from all over to pick pumpkins, especially families and school groups.

It’s kind of cool hearing that kid talk about it, like going there was something special.

I’ve always just thought of the orchard as a business, but to some people it’s more than that. It’s a memory they’ll never forget.

Continuing to aisle four, I get out my phone again to check the name of the marinade.

‘Oh! I’m so sorry,’ a woman says, bumping into me. ‘Nick?’