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He hugged me back, and then I watched as he made his way over to the counter to board. When he was gone, I grabbed my bag and began the walk to my gate.
* * *
I’d never been so happy to see the Welcome to Willow Valley sign before. I’d slept most of the flight home, but I was still exhausted. I was looking forward to my own bed and getting back into some sort of a routine. While the cab drove down the road, I leaned back in the seat and looked out the window. We drove by Bluebird Books. I could see Trinity inside at the counter and smiled to myself.
We rounded the corner. The park was full of kids, some skating, some sledding, and I smiled to myself. We came to stoplight, and I glanced over at the post office. I had to do a double take as I saw Fred come walking out the front door with a man who looked just like Tristan. When I turned to look again, the cab pulled away from the curb, and the two men had disappeared around the side of the building.
“Must be more tired than I thought,” I muttered to myself as I sat back against the seat.
“Here we are,” the driver said as he pulled the cab up to the curb.
I glanced out the window to see the front door to the diner open and a line of people waiting outside. What the hell was going on? I opened the door and stepped out carefully onto the sidewalk, while the driver pulled my bags from the trunk of the car. I reached into my purse and pulled some money from my wallet, handing it to him. “Keep the change,” I muttered as I began walking toward the front door.
I stepped into the diner. Cici and Melinda were busy waiting on tables, while a couple of my kitchen staff were working on serving the line at the bakery counter. The diner was full, and I swallowed hard as emotion overcame me.
“Welcome back, Brooke,” Bessy whispered in my ear as she and Harry left the restaurant. “Sorry to hear about your mom,” Harry said, stopping to give me a quick hug.
Just then the voices in the diner quieted, and I noticed everyone was looking in my direction. Melinda stopped what she was doing and placed the coffee pot down on the counter and smiled.
“What’s going on?” I questioned.
“Well, what’s it look like? Just another day at The Crispy Biscuit,” she said, shrugging her shoulders and smiling. “Welcome home.”
She approached me and wrapped her arms around me, hugging me tightly as everyone watched. As I hugged her, I looked over to Cici, who stood with a smile on her face, and to the two kitchen staff who stood behind the counter. Then to all the residents of Willow Valley. Peggy sat over in the corner, tears in her eyes, as she waited for Trinity to arrive I was sure. It was, after all, their day to come in and have coffee together.
Melinda slowly released me, and I looked at her, still shocked at what was before me. “I still don’t understand how you did this,” I whispered.
“Well, why don’t you come on in and I’ll tell you.” She smiled, wrapping her arm around my shoulders and guiding me to the only empty table in the entire place.
Tristan
I’d just returned from dropping off all the Baking Crate orders and had stepped into the back door of The Crispy Biscuit, heat hitting my face. January was colder in this town than December, I thought to myself as I removed my coat and hung it up by the back door.
I went over to one of the cooling racks and pulled a tray of cookies from it. They’d been selling like crazy over the last few days, so Melinda and I had made an extra batch today. I was just about to take it out front when I heard a cheer out in the diner. I smiled to myself. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits today. I lifted the tray and stepped out of the kitchen and froze.
Brooke stood there, in the middle of the diner, a smile on her face. Then she turned and met my eyes. I froze, I didn’t know what to say or do. I just stood there, a tray of cookies in my hand, and stared at her.
The diner was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Cici quickly came over and took the tray from my hands, sliding it onto the counter, then she too stopped.
“Tristan, I…” Brooke went to speak but stopped, tears lining her eyes.
I figured she’d be angry, and I had been right. I’d been the one to overstep, and I’d told the girls not to worry about it, that I’d take the blame.
“Don’t be angry at them. This was my idea,” I bit out.
“You did this?” she questioned, looking around.
I nodded my head. “I just thought I was helping. Just whatever you do, don’t take it out on them. They don’t deserve it. Give me a few minutes to grab my things and I’ll be on my way,” I said, glancing over at Melinda.
She met my eyes and shook her head, trying to signal something, but I wasn’t about to be torn apart in front of the entire town. A low murmur broke out in the diner as I backed up into the kitchen. The door had just swung shut when my phone rang. As much as I wanted to get out of here, I knew I had to answer it, so I reached deep into my pocket and pulled it out.
“Tristan,” I heard Lance’s voice on the other end of the phone.
“Hey, Lance,” I replied. I already knew what this call was about. I was supposed to be in LA today but had decided to stay until Brooke was back.
“So, I decided to go soft on you. You still have a job. I realized I wasn’t being very fair to you the other day.”
The voices out in the diner were louder now, but I ignored them and concentrated on my phone call.
