Hooked on You

by Kathleen Fuller

  His father walked into the office, picked up the folding chair that was leaning against the wall, and brought it over to Hayden. He flipped it open, then sat down. “Start talking.”

  “There’s nothing to talk about.”

  “Right. Because you’re fine.”

  Hayden grimaced, then turned to him. “I’m a little bothered, that’s all.”

  “A little?”

  “Fine. A lot. Now will you leave me alone?” He closed his eyes. “Sorry. Again. I didn’t mean that.”

  “Apology accepted. And no, I’m not leaving you alone. Not until you tell me what’s going on. I haven’t seen you this upset since you were a kid.”

  “I guess I’m acting like one too.”

  “That depends. What’s got you so hot under the collar?”

  Hayden ended up telling his father everything but leaving out anything personal about Riley. “I thought she was the one for me, Dad. I really did.”

  His father sat back in the chair and stroked the short beard he’d started growing recently. “And now you think she isn’t?”

  “She made that decision for me.”

  “Hmm. I see.”

  “See what?”

  Dad leaned forward. “Son, I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but this might be the first time something didn’t come easy to you.”

  Hayden looked at him, incredulous. “Are you kidding me? Do you think playing ball was easy? That getting rejected by the majors over and over was a picnic?” He clenched his jaw. “That losing my career was fun?”

  “Not at all.” His father’s tone was even. “But you have to admit, Hayden, you’re a gifted athlete. You’ve always worked hard, but you had something ninety-nine percent of people don’t have: superior speed, incredible coordination, intense discipline. Those things aren’t taught. And they’ve given you a leg up.”

  “All right.” Hayden spun around in the chair and faced his father. “I’ll give you that. I’ve got some talent.”

  “Some?”

  “A lot.” He threw up one hand. “But that doesn’t negate all the hard work I’ve done in my life. And not just at my sport. I kept up my grades, worked here at the store—”

  “And now you own this store.”

  “Not without a fight.”

  Dad scoffed. “Three weeks of negotiations is not a fight. Hayden, listen to me. Along with strong discipline, you tend to be impatient. You’re used to getting what you want.”

  Hayden was dumbfounded. No one had ever said that to him before. He’d been told he was intense. Competitive. Not a quitter. But I quit Riley, didn’t I?

  “There are higher stakes in the world than a career,” Dad continued. He looked around at the office. “I wasn’t ready to give all this up.”

  That surprised Hayden. “What?”

  “It’s going to be hard for me to walk away. I’ve worked in this store since I was seven. My dad and grandpop had me unpacking boxes and filling shelves as soon as I was able to do it without knocking things over. I love this store.” His gaze turned contemplative. “I would have worked here until my last day, I think.”

  “Then why are you walking away?”

  “For your mother. For years she’s come in second. Actually, third sometimes, because of you boys. She’s spent her entire married life supporting me and you kids, and I finally realized two years ago that she needed to be first for once. She wants to travel. To see the country and maybe some parts of the world. I want to give that dream to her.” He smiled. “It’s my turn to sacrifice.”

  “Harry.” Jasper poked his head inside the door. He was wearing a Price’s Hardware shirt Hayden had given him. The man spent so much time at the store and was so helpful, Hayden thought he needed to make Jasper an official, if somewhat sporadic, employee. “Someone wants to know if you have Allen wrenches.”

  Dad laughed. “We’re a hardware store. We have every wrench you can think of.”

  “That’s what I told her, but darned if I can find any of them. Did you move them, Hayden?”

  When Hayden shook his head, Dad said, “I’ll be right out.” After Jasper left, Dad got up from the chair. “Now, that’s a switch. Usually Jasper is helping me.” He looked at Hayden. “I’m sure you’ll figure this out, son. Just don’t take as long as I did.”

  Hayden stared at the empty doorway. Sacrifice. He always thought he’d sacrificed a lot in his life. The future had always held uncertainty, until he came back to Maple Falls. Then he’d known what he wanted—to work in the store, to rehab an old home, to live in his hometown for the rest of his life, and recently, to revitalize it. It wouldn’t be easy and would take some time, but he was confident he could get it done with a lot of dedication and persistence.

  Then there was Riley. He’d thought dedication and persistence would have gotten through to her, but he’d been wrong. Now that she wasn’t going along with his timetable, he’d decided to move on. He’d been so deep in his own hurt pride and impatience that he forgot the most important thing—she meant everything to him.

  Somehow he would find the patience he needed. He would swallow his pride. He would make sure to match her rhythm, not force her to go along with his. He’d always been a leader, a team captain. The star of his family, the town, his own life. Now he would have to let that go and put someone else first . . . if she would let him.

  He’d have to try.

  He shot up from the chair and went to the front of the store. His father was busy with the wrench customer, so Hayden told Jasper to let him know that he would be gone for the rest of the day. Jasper agreed, and Hayden went to the back parking lot and jumped into his car.

  Then he stilled. Riley was probably back in New York by now, but on the off chance she wasn’t . . . He got out of his car and headed to Knots and Tangles.

  * * *

  Erma sat behind the front counter and worked on another chemo hat, this one teal and cream, interspersed with speckles of pink and pale-gold. She was using a smaller hook and thinner yarn than the pattern required because the hat would be for a child or teenage cancer patient. She smiled as she lifted her gaze and looked around the shop. What would her mother and grandmother think of how everything had turned out? They’d be happier than a pig in a muddy wallow. She was sure of that.

  The bell rang and Hayden dashed into the store. Erma set her crocheting down and got up from the chair with the help of her cane and plenty of ibuprofen. Her leg was hurting from lack of care the past two days, but she intended to slow down from now on until it fully healed.

  “Hi, Hayden,” she said, surprised to see him.

  “Has Riley left?”

  Erma shook her head. “Not yet. But she has a flight scheduled for Friday.” She would have sworn Hayden almost swayed at the news.

  “Where is she now?”

  “In the back.” Erma walked to him. “She’s very tender right now. I don’t know what happened between you two, but whatever you say to her, be extra careful. She’s had a rough time.”

  He nodded, his expression as serious as she’d ever seen it. “I understand.”

  “I hope so.” Erma narrowed her gaze. “I won’t stand for her getting hurt.”

  “Me either.”

  She watched him go to the back room and prayed he meant those words.

  Chapter 18

  Riley looked at the canvas in front of her, then at the selection of yarn she’d chosen from the Knots and Tangles inventory. The colors were a wild variety of cool aqua, deep purple, fiery red, and lemon yellow, along with a few lighter neutrals she would intertwine sparingly. She separated the fibers of the aqua yarn and placed a few of them on the canvas, the vision for this art piece slowly coming together. Hopefully not too slowly, since she wanted to finish it before she left on Friday.

  When she heard footsteps coming into the room, she turned, then froze. Hayden. Despite everything, she still marveled at how sexy he looked in a hardware store uniform. Extremely sexy.

  “H
ey,” he said, stopping a few feet from her.

  “Hi.” She set the fibers on the table and shifted on her stool.

  His gaze went to the blank canvas. “Are you working on something?”

  “Yes.” She couldn’t keep her eyes off him.

  “Uh, a new art piece?”

  “Yes.” Her heartbeat started to kick into gear.

  Hayden moved closer to her. “Can I ask what it is?”

  “No.”

  “Okay.” He threaded his fingers through his thick hair. “Artist privilege?”

  “Yes.” Wow, did he smell good. Fresh soap, the outdoors, and a scent that was pure Hayden.

  He glanced away and shoved his hands in his pockets. Then he looked at her again. “Can we, uh, talk?”

  “No.” She got up from the stool, unable to resist him anymore. She went to him and put her arms around his neck. “I don’t want to talk.”

  “But—”

  Riley kissed him, this time not holding back. She murmured against his mouth when he drew her against him, his hands wrapping around her waist, then grazing her back and finally cupping the back of her head. Perfection. This was where she belonged. In his arms. In his life.

  Finally he pulled away. “Riley,” he breathed. “What’s going on? Erma said you’re leaving.”

  “I am.” She rested her hands on his shoulders. “Friday.”

  “And this kiss?”

  “I thought it might be the start of the apology I owe you.”

  He laughed but still looked dumbfounded. “It’s the best apology I’ve ever had.”

  She led him over to the thrift store couch she’d purchased last week before her world came crashing down. Now she was building it back up, the bricks fresh and new, the foundation solid. She and Mimi had talked for hours, opening their hearts and their pain to each other, strengthening their already tight bond. Hayden, she hoped, would be next.

  “I don’t want you to leave,” he said as soon as his backside hit the couch. When she started to speak, he added, “But if you do go, I’ll respect that.”

  He sounded so formal, and now she was questioning her boldness. But she wasn’t going to back down now. She had thought about him almost nonstop since she and Mimi finished their marathon talk session, and she had to stop denying how she felt about him. She almost laughed, seeing him here in the shop right now. She had planned to seek him out after work today. In fact, it had taken all her self-control not to run over to the hardware store and beg for his forgiveness.

  “I shouldn’t have let Tracey get between us.”

  Hayden frowned. “I didn’t realize she was.”

  “She always is, at least for me. I’ve let my past take over my present.” She was afraid to say the next words but knew she had to. “I’m scared, Hayden. I’ve always been scared. Of getting too close to people and being rejected. I’ve always made sure I’m in control of my life and my feelings. I thought keeping my distance from people would silence the fear. And it did for a while.

  “Then I came back here. And you came into my life, and the Bosom Buddies, and Harper, Anita, and Olivia—

  “The Three Musketeers.” At her questioning look he added, “That’s what I call them.”

  “Yes, them. And finally this shop, even this town. It all beckoned me, which made the fear return. It exploded when Tracey showed up.”

  Hayden’s eyes were filled with sympathy as he took her hand and remained quiet.

  “I can’t keep running away from the past. I have to face it. I’m not sure what that involves right now, other than getting some counseling. Mimi said she will too.”

  “That’s good. It’s helped me out a lot.”

  She wondered about that, but now wasn’t the time to ask. “I’m telling you all this because . . .” Her breath started to hitch. “Because . . .”

  “You don’t have to say anything else, Riley. I’m in the wrong here too. I told you I would be patient and earn your trust. Then at the first sign of hardship I rushed you and flipped out. I’m so sorry about that.”

  “It’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not.” He ran his thumb over her cheek. “I still have some stuff to work out, things I thought I’d conquered, and a couple issues I didn’t know I had. I talked to my counselor, Doug, on Monday, and he helped me, but I think seeing him on a regular basis for a while would be good for me.”

  Riley nodded. “I’m glad to hear that. Hopefully I can find someone who can help me.”

  Hayden removed his hand from her face. “In New York?”

  He sounded so forlorn that she wanted to hug him again. “No. Here. In Maple Falls.”

  His eyes widened. “You’re staying?”

  “Yes. But I have to go back to New York and settle things with Melody and wait until we find her another roommate. As soon as that happens, I’ll be back.”

  “And I’ll be waiting.”

  She smiled, her heart full. “I was hoping you’d say that.”

  He tugged her into his lap, then gave her a long, lingering kiss. When they parted, she laid her head on his shoulder.

  “Can I take you to the airport at least?” he asked, playing with a strand of her hair.

  “Absolutely. You can pick me up, too, when I come back.” She raised her head from his shoulder. “If that’s not too much trouble.”

  “Never.” He cupped her face. “I’m hooked on you, Riley McAllister.”

  She chuckled. “I see what you did there.”

  He mock-frowned, then grinned. “Oh, I get it. Hook. Knots and Tangles.” Then he turned serious. “I mean it, though. I’m here for the long run. No matter what.”

  Riley leaned against him again, fully trusting in his words.

  Epilogue

  Three months later

  Riley adjusted the sign in front of Knots and Tangles. Grand Reopening. It was surprisingly cool for a mid-September morning in Arkansas, and since business was usually best on Saturdays, she expected today to go well.

  She admired the display of brightly colored yarn in the windows. Not only had Mimi decided not to sell the business, but she also said she would wait until Riley came back to relaunch the store. Riley caught a glimpse of her reflection in the front-door glass and tugged on the hem of her thin, wheat-colored sweater, layered over a plain white T-shirt. She’d half expected Harper to comment on her reopening day outfit, which included jeans and brown slip-ons, but it seemed her friend had finally accepted Riley’s comfortable style.

  Her grandmother kept the store open while Riley was in New York and pulled out all the stops for the event this weekend—advertising in the local paper and those of nearby towns, offering special sales, and providing snacks in the back room. Hayden had applied his rehabbing skills and turned the area into a half-workroom, half-storage area. And of course the Bosom Buddies and the Three Musketeers were out in full force. Olivia disliked the nickname. “It’s too cliché,” she’d said more than once, but they hadn’t come up with anything else they could all agree on yet. They were all inside, ready to support Mimi and Riley on their new adventure, starting in about fifteen minutes.

  Riley had hoped to return to Maple Falls sooner, but two weeks after she returned to New York, she received a call from one of the small art galleries she’d contacted three years prior about showing her work. She couldn’t believe the owner remembered her, but the woman invited Riley to showcase one of her artworks in an amateur art show she was promoting the following month. Riley had not only finished the mixed media project for Mimi’s store, but she’d also gotten several interested offers for the piece. She’d turned them down. That work of art was for Knots and Tangles and was prominently displayed right above Riley’s new line of dyed yarns. She’d learned the process from Lorri and perfected the technique during her time in New York. She had also decided she would sell some of her art online and in the store when she returned home.

  Home. She was finally home.

  She moved off the front step, then turned
to inspect the store entrance, making sure it was warm and welcoming. Satisfied that it was, she’d started to go inside when she heard Hayden’s low whistle. She turned from the door and faced him, smiling.

  “Hello, beautiful.” He joined her on the shop’s stoop. “Ready for today?”

  “Definitely.” Like her, his dress was casual—jeans, white T-shirt, black-and-gray plaid shirt—and she nodded her approval. He looked amazing, as usual. She had a few extra minutes before the shop opened, so she sat back down on the stoop, patting the empty space next to her. “You didn’t have to take off work for it, though.”

  “But bosses can do that, you know.” He smiled as he sat down, close enough that their legs touched. “I figured I’d stick around and see what it’s like to work in a yarn store.”

  “You’ve decided to learn how to knit?”

  He shook his head.

  “Crochet?”

  “Nope.”

  “Dye yarn?”

  “Tempting, but no.”

  She frowned. “Hayden, I think you’re going to be bored out of your mind. I’m sure there’s something you’d rather be doing than hanging out here.”

  “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do, because you’re here.”

  She could barely breathe. She’d only been back in Maple Falls for two weeks, although she and Hayden had talked on the phone every day she was in New York, and he’d taken a weekend to spend with her in the city. Seeing the city through his eyes had been fun, and although they had spent time apart, their relationship was stronger than ever. As he’d promised, he didn’t push her. He was patient and gave her the confidence and trust she needed.

  Melody had approved, of course, and although she was sad that Riley was moving, she was also happy for her.

  “Couldn’t happen to a better roomie,” she said, hugging Riley before she got on the plane back to Arkansas.

  “Come visit me as soon as you can.” Riley fought the tears in her eyes.

  “I will.” Melody hugged her again.