Page 77 of Middle Ground

I laugh. “You just have a little something here,” I reply, gesturing to my own cheek.

“Here?” He reaches up and swipes at his cheek, but it’s the opposite one.

I shake my head, taking a step forward. “No, the other one. Here, let me.” I reach for his face, swiping a thumb along his cheekbone, and I’m instantly transported back to that day we spent baking in my kitchen. My breath hitches, and I quickly pull away. “There, all better.”

“My hero,” he says with a smile.

I clear my throat and cross my arms. “You looked like you wanted to say something when you came over here.” Changing the subject is for the best, lest I melt into a puddle of awkwardness.

“Right.” His smile turns to one of pure excitement. “I have a new idea.”

He looks like a kid on Christmas, bouncing on his toes in anticipation of opening his gifts. As much as I hate to admit it, it’s adorable.

“Alright.” I wave him on. “Let’s hear it.”

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while, how that green space beside the inn doesn’t really have a use. But we could give it one. It would be easy enough to rent one of those large tents and host events out there. I even have our first client.”

I arch a brow, admittedly a little impressed. “You’ve been busy today. Who’s the client?”

“I overheard someone talking about this charity dinner that’s happening soon, so I talked to the people who are running it.”

This charity dinner for the local animal shelter gets thrown every year, and it’s essentially an excuse for the Fraisier Creek elite to dress up and pretend they’re New York City socialites attending some stuffy, highbrow art gala. It’s a Big Deal. I’m not a huge fan of attending, but it does raise a lot of money when all is said and done, so I suck it up.

“And,” Jackson adds, a glint of mischief in his eyes, “I’ll even let you take me as your date.”

“Yeah?” I ask, raising a brow. “Is that supposed to be a plus?”

“Oh, how you wound me, Ellison. What do you think?”

Of all the ideas I’ve had for the inn, something like this has never occurred to me. The side of me that is overrun by my own fears and insecurities wants to protest, to shut him down, simply because he was the one to come up with the idea. But I push that part of me aside.

We’re supposed to be partners after all. I haven’t been very good at the whole collaboration thing, but I want to try. I owe it to Cherie. I owe it to myself and Jackson.

“I like it,” I reply. “Let’s do it.”

The way Jackson’s face lights up with his smile sends butterflies swimming through my stomach.

The more I think about it, the more I recognize that maybe Mom was right. Sometimes, I do let my pride get in my way. But I’m trying to fix that.

“I think we make a good team, partner,” Jackson says.

I offer him a tired smile. “I think we do, too.”

His eyes soften on me. “It’s late. Let me walk you home.”

I push away from the wall as I nod. “I’d like that.”

Walking this familiar path back to my cottage withJackson feels comfortable, and a warm feeling spreads over me. He doesn’t touch me, just walks beside me, but it makes my heart race nevertheless.

After the fire, everything felt a little hopeless. But maybe things are starting to look up now. This plan of Jackson’s has some merit, as long as we can pull it off.

And if we can continue working together like this, maybe our forced partnership will turn out to be a good thing after all.

CHAPTER 27

JACKSON

I thoughtthat finishing the repairs after the fire would put Meyer more at ease, but with each passing day, she seems to grow more and more on edge. Every time I ask, she insists that she’s fine, but I can’t bring myself to believe her. I’m just waiting for the day she decides she wants to trust me with the truth. Her truth.