Page 197 of The Compass Series

HAILEE

“ H e’s here! He’s here!” people chattered around the Starlight Inn the following morning as I organized the bookshelves in the sitting room.

Those words alone made my heart pound faster within my chest.

The people surrounding me hurried from where they were socializing and dashed out of the building.

I knew exactly where they were going—to the clock tower to see the golden boy of Leeks, Wisconsin.

The man of the hour. The Oscar-winning celebrity who was born and raised in our town.

The one, the only, Aiden Scott Walters. America’s—correction, the world’s—heartthrob.

I couldn’t believe the day had finally come.

The news of Aiden returning to our small town had been all anyone had been able to talk about since Laurie informed everyone of the news about three weeks ago.

It had been five years since Aiden stepped foot in our town, and a lot had changed for him since then.

He’d been a star in an Emmy- winning drama series.

Last year, he starred in three blockbuster films, and just recently, he’d won his first Oscar.

It was hard to believe there was a day and time when he was my Aiden.

My best friend, my other half. My person.

Now, we were nothing more than strangers.

People didn’t talk enough about the shift from friends to lovers and then to strangers.

It cut a little deeper than most heartbreaks, and that wound never completely healed.

At one time in my life, I thought Aiden would always be in my corner, and I’d be in his. I was his biggest cheerleader, and he was mine. That was why when I broke his heart and ended things with him, I also shattered my own.

“Hailee! Hailee!”

I turned around as I held Shakespeare’s collection of sonnets in my hand to find Henry standing behind me. He shook with excitement as he stared at me through his thick-framed round glasses. His shaggy blond hair was swept across his forehead, and he brushed his hand through it, making it messier.

“Yes?” I asked.

“Did you hear the news? Aiden Walters is here!” he exclaimed as if he’d come dashing into the room to reveal that Santa Claus was, in fact, real and came to town a few months early.

I smiled at his joy. “I think everyone heard.”

“He’s right in the town square by the clock tower. Rumor has it he’s signing autographs!”

“Oh?”

“Yeah!” Henry stood there blinking at me repeatedly.

I blinked back with a lack of expression.

I’d pushed all my emotions deep down that morning, hoping nothing would let my feelings come out that day.

It turned out Henry felt enough for us both at that very moment.

He was grinning ear to ear like it was Christmas morning, and his happiness was enough to make my day not suck.

Henry was a gentle soul. He was a nerdy sixteen-year-old who’d just started working at the inn a few months prior.

He’d been bullied a lot for just being himself, which infuriated me.

He didn’t fit in a lot with people, something I could relate to.

Henry always had a lot on his plate, but still, he found more than enough reasons to smile each day.

I hoped the world wouldn’t steal that away from him—his joy.

All in all, Henry was a good kid. He worked hard, never complained like the other employees, and he always was quite the gentleman whenever I crossed his path.

“Go, Henry,” I said, waving him off. “Go meet America’s sweetheart. Take the whole day off.”

“Oh no, I won’t take the whole day. I need the pay. I want to buy that new virtual reality game in a few weeks! I just need like fifteen minutes or so, and I’ll be good.”

“I’ll cover for you and make sure you get the pay. Besides, the big festival for Aiden’s return is happening tonight. You should go enjoy it with your friends.”

“Then you’ll come, too?”

I laughed a little. “I can’t. I’m going to be busy.”

“Dang. I was going to win you a stuffed animal,” he joked.

“Well, if you’re really okay covering for me,” he said, already backing up and taking off his name tag.

“Thanks, Hailee! I’ll get a picture for you if you want!

I’ll see you later! And maybe we’ll run into one another at the festival if you get a bit of free time!

People said there will be fireworks!” He excitedly skipped away as I was left there in the solitude of a now completely silent inn.

A part of me wanted to dash outside, too.

I wanted to see Aiden—hug him, hold him, and tell him that I’d thought about him repeatedly over the years—but I couldn’t.

I wouldn’t. I was determined to do my best to stay out of his way over the next few weeks.

The less interaction I had with him, the better.

I went back to organizing the bookshelf for a while, glancing out the window every now and again toward the clock tower. The crowd was massive, and I couldn’t help but feel my heart start racing faster as I set my eyes on Aiden.

That man.

My heartbeats.

How were they still controlled by him after all this time?

It turned out that that heart of mine was still somehow connected to the man who stood only a few hundred feet away from where I worked.

I wondered when that feeling would fully fade away, or maybe when you once had love for a person, reminiscences of that love would always tug at one’s heart.

Perhaps I’d always be tethered to his essence in some way.

My racing heartbeats were proof of that the moment I saw Aiden grab his suitcase and start walking in the direction of the inn.

Wait.

Why was he walking toward the inn?

What?

No.

“You have got to be shitting me,” I breathed out, completely distraught as to why he was heading my way with a train of groupies and townspeople behind him.

“You better not come in here, Aiden Walters, or so help me…” I grumbled to myself, placing my hands on top of my head in a state of complete shock.

He didn’t hear my order as he walked right into the inn. My boss, Mr. Lee, sat behind the front desk, and the moment he saw Aiden, his eyes lit up with joy.

“Well, well, well… if it’s not Leeks’s superstar!” Mr. Lee said, leaping up from his chair. He hurried over to greet Aiden and pulled him into a tight hug. “Welcome back home. Welcome to your home away from home!”

Did Mr. Lee know that Aiden was staying at the inn?

The worst trait about Mr. Lee, bless his loving, bald head of a soul, was his ability to forget to tell me the most important things. Like the fact that my ex was staying at the inn where I spent the majority of my time. Why was he staying here? Why wasn’t he staying with his parents?

Aiden seemed somewhat surprised by Mr. Lee’s warm embrace but melted into the hug. It was no secret that Mr. Lee gave the best hugs in all of Leeks. I knew I hadn’t seen much of the world outside of our small town, but I had no doubt that he might’ve had some of the best hugs in the whole world.

“It’s good to see you, Mr. Lee. It’s been a long time,” Aiden said.

His voice was deep, and strong, and oh-so kind.

That hadn’t changed much. What had changed was the fact that he was built like no other.

Aiden was always a good-looking guy. He had the kind of smile that made it easy to fall head over heels.

“I was surprised to hear you wanted to stay at the inn instead of with your parents,” Mr. Lee mentioned.

You and me both, Mr. Lee.

It was fine. I could deal with one weekend of avoiding Aiden.

Aiden grinned, and my heart almost exploded. “No, sir. I have a few work commitments and business calls I’ll be taking throughout the next few months. Figured it would be best to have my own space.”

Months?

I’m sorry, did he say months?!

He was giving me heart palpitations. My stomach was twisting and turning. Now for a fun game of “is it gas or is it anxiety?”

Probably both.

Mr. Lee nodded toward Aiden in understanding. “Makes sense. We have more than enough room for you here.” He placed his hands on his hips and glanced around. “Let me get someone to help with your suitcase.”

Not it!

I took a nosedive behind the couch in the sitting area before their eyes could locate me.

My breaths weaved in and out as I placed my hand over my mouth to somehow muffle my state of panic.

I wondered if they could hear my erratic heartbeats, too.

My heart pounded against my rib cage as if it was trying to escape to Narnia.

Far, far away where Aiden would never find it.

Where was a cupboard to walk through when you needed one?

“Don’t you worry, Mr. Walters, I’ll help you with your bags,” Henry said, probably tripping over his feet as he hurried back into the inn.

“My name’s Henry J. Peterson. I am the bellhop for Starlight Inn.

Anything you need, I’ll get it for you. If you’d like, I can even give you my cell phone number.

You can dial me up day and night, Mr. Walters. Truly. I am at your beck and call.”

“Fewer words, more working,” Mr. Lee told Henry, waving him away. “Take Mr. Walters to Room thirty-four. Best room in the inn, Aiden.”

A wave of nausea hit me as I realized that for the next few months, I’d be working for my famous ex-boyfriend. Or even more so, my ex-best friend.

Good grief.

“I appreciate that. Thank you,” Aiden said to Henry.

He sounded so grateful for the help, and I knew he meant it.

Aiden was one of the humblest guys in the world.

When people in the tabloids called him one of the kindest guys, I knew it was true and not some role Aiden was playing up.

Gratitude could’ve been his middle name.

As Henry started rolling Aiden’s suitcase toward the staircase near the sitting area, I held my breath once more as they chatted their way up the stairs, allowing my cheeks to look as if they were storing nuts for a great winter harvest. A sigh of relief hit me as I heard Aiden thank Henry before he closed the door behind him.

“What are you doing?”

I jumped out of my skin as I turned to see Mr. Lee staring at me behind the couch. I stood and smoothed out my outfit. “Dusting.”

“Dusting the… carpet?”

“Yes.”

“With your body?”

“Uh-huh.”

He narrowed his eyes as if trying to figure me out. Good luck, Mr. Lee. I can hardly figure myself out.

He shifted his weight to his left side and crossed his arms. “Are you okay, Hailee?”

I pushed out a fake grin. “I’m dandy.”

“Great. I need you to be on top of your toes these next few months with Aiden staying here.”

“Few months?” I questioned, trying not to sound too nosy. “I actually wasn’t aware he was staying here.”

“I know, right? I logged him into the system under a fake name. Totally what Hollywood actors do, you know.” He winked my way as if he pulled a fast one on me. “I never thought I’d get to do that. Pretty cool, huh?”

“Yeah, totally neat,” I muttered, pretending that my panic wasn’t rising with each passing second. “He can’t really be staying for months, though, right? He’s a busy actor. He must have to go back to California at some point.”

“Who cares? As long as he’s here, it’s great for us.

” He looked toward the front window of the inn, where a crowd was still stationed due to the arrival of Aiden.

“We’ll need to make sure his stay is safe, with all the fans around.

Do you know what this could do for our business?

Having an Oscar-winning actor staying with us? ”

“Oh, I don’t know, give me a heart attack,” I muttered.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, Mr. Lee. I’ll make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible for Mr. Walters’s stay.”

He smiled, pleased. “Great. I’ll let you get back to work.” He glanced back over his shoulder toward me and narrowed his eyes. “By the way, for future reference, we do have vacuums. You don’t have to dust the carpet with your body.”

“Right. Vacuums. Funny how I didn’t think of that.”

“You’re a smart girl who just had a dumb moment. Happens to the best of us.”

He walked away, leaving me alone with the silent storm forming in my head. Aiden Walters was staying in town for the next few months at the Starlight Inn.

How was I supposed to avoid him when I was also in charge of making sure he was comfortable?