“Breathe…” Mimi instructed softly. “Breathe and hear me out.”
Heidi drew in a breath, holding it for a moment, and trying not to let her mind spiral once again regarding her predicament, her money, and what to do about her future. Going back to California – back to Joe – was never going to happen… nor did she want to grovel or admit defeat to go back home. No, she needed a fresh start, time to heal, and a chance to prove herself… to herself.
“Stay here,” Mimi began softly, and immediately, Heidi rejected the idea, interrupting her.
“I can’t… I can’t stay here or…”
“Shhh,” Mimi stopped her, beginning once more. “Listen to me and hear me out, sweetie. I think you should stay here and let Fate work its magic. I never imagined living in this town, yet when I met Jack’s grandfather – those were the best years of my life.” Heidi’s lips parted to argue – and Mimi put a gnarled hand over her mouth. “Life slows down here in Fate. You get a chance to breathe, to look around and see some smiling faces, and neighbors greet each other. You could have a garden, take up a hobby, or start a business…”
Heidi’s heart skipped a beat at the words, causing her to pull the hand away from her mouth. “I can’t – there’s no capital to get things started or fund…”
“Shhh! Don’t you listen, child?” Mimi chided, her lipstwitching. “Private conversations are only private if people don’t listen. Do you think I’d offer this to just anyone?”
“Offer what exactly?”
“My cafe.”
“What?” Heidi hissed in disbelief – stunned. “Your… café?”
“It’s been sitting empty for about three years now, since my last tussle with gravity and my grandson got all prissy in his too-snug-officer-britches,” Mimi muttered and put a hand to her head. “I had to give up things, and that little shop has been chugging along since my mother ran it. She made simple meals for ten cents a plate – and I took it, turned it over, and started making cakes, pies, donuts, and whatever suited me… until I started falling.”
Heidi knew her mouth was hanging open, but made no move to close it either. She was flabbergasted at the offer, the opportunity, the sheer volume of trust that these folks just tossed around like it was nothing. After being used and betrayed by Joe, feeling abandoned and lost, not only had Jack offered up a home, a place to stay temporarily… but his grandmother was offering to make it permanent – plus give her a job.
“I don’t know what to say…”
“Think about it.”
“I don’t know what to think either…”
“Keep things running, heck – make it yours. Just tell your children and grandchildren someday that a doddering old woman saw something special in you… and took a chance that this was fate.”
“I don’t believe in fate.”
“Well, not everyone can be perfect,” Mimi had told her, patted her on the cheek, just as Jack pulled up for them to leave.
And now, hours later, Heidi was here, sitting silent inthe passenger seat of the truck with a man who looked just as miserable and confused as she was right now.
“I feel like I should say something,” she whispered hesitantly, almost in an off-handed type of apology for something unknown, and then added, “But I’m not apologizing because I didn’t do anything wrong speaking up for myself or…”
“I never want you to apologize for speaking up for yourself,” Jack interrupted and turned off the truck as he pulled into the gravel driveway, letting the truck coast for just a second before actually stopping. “If I made you feel like you needed to apologize – then it’s me who should be doing the apologizing.”
“No, you didn’t do anything.”
“I know,” he replied after a moment and looked at her. “It’s not because I didn’t want to either – but rather it’s not the right time.”
That took her aback for a moment.
“You’ve got a lot of moving parts going on in your head, your heart, your life… and I don’t need to add to that chaos,” he said in a hushed voice. “But if you ever stop running, stop spinning out of control, then I hope you take a second look back on today and realize you spent it laughing with someone who would like to call you a friend.”
She drew in a shaky breath, wanting to tell him so much – about Mimi, the offer, the fact that she could use a friend or two… and was scared to let someone in.
“Now,” he said with a slight yet tired smile as she met his eyes. “Lemme walk you to Mimi’s door like a proper gentleman. In small towns, if you’re caught sitting with a man in a dark vehicle, well – they think you’re up to no good, and that’s how rumors get started.” She let out a nervous laugh as he chuckled. “I mean, if we ain’t dating – then we suredon’t need things to get around that we were neckin’ in the dark, right?”
“True,” she smiled and then hesitated, pointing at the door. Jack laughed a little harder, got out of the truck, and moved to open the door. He had been the one to tell her to scootch over and had no qualms about doing things the old-fashioned way… and maybe Mimi was right about this town. Maybe Fate was growing on her after all. Climbing out of the truck, Jack held out his arm politely, and she took it, flashing a quick smile to him as he leaned toward her, whispering.
“Now, if you change your mind about dating, good ol’ fashioned neckin’, or anything else in the dark,” he chuckled intimately, his breath warm in the evening air against her cheek. “I’m at the big house over there. I like to spend some evenings on the porch, debating on what project I want to snowball next over a cold beer or some lemonade.”
She looked up at him in the moonlight, smiled, and nodded. “I appreciate the offer, Officer Chance…”
