The Sweetest Thing

by Leeanna Morgan

  As they walked around the corner of the building, Noah’s eyes widened. “The garden is huge.”

  “Mr. Jessop doesn’t do things by halves.” Cassie smiled when their head gardener grunted his approval. “He has a team of people who help him. Next year, we’ll hold a fundraiser for a greenhouse. With the right heating, we’ll be able to grow vegetables year-round.”

  “What do you do at the moment?”

  “When we can’t grow our own, we buy frozen vegetables.” Cassie started picking beans. “How much do you need?” she asked Willow.

  “A full bucket. It looks as though we’ll have at least forty-five people for dinner tonight.”

  Cassie smiled when Noah added more beans to the bucket. There wouldn’t be too many times when the chief executive of Wilson Enterprises picked fresh beans for his dinner.

  And the funniest thing of all was that he seemed to be enjoying himself.

  Noah placed a ladle of hot beef casserole on the plate of the last person standing in line. He’d never served dinner to so many people before. It hadn’t been as bad as he imagined.

  “Well done,” Pastor John said from beside him. “I think we can safely serve our dinner now.”

  Noah looked around the dining room. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. Some people were talking and laughing, others were quiet, but didn’t look upset by the noise around them.

  It was like a typical family, only much larger than his own.

  He placed a ladle of beef on John’s plate, then turned to serve Willow.

  “Not me,” she said. “I’m trying a vegetarian diet.”

  “I thought everyone in Montana ate meat?”

  Willow grinned. “You’ve been watching too many movies.”

  With his eyebrows raised, he turned to Cassie. “Beef?”

  “Yes, please.”

  Just seeing her smile made him happy. He gave her a generous serving of beef, then added a roll.

  “Am I getting preferential treatment?” she asked.

  “I’m hoping you might take pity on me and give me a few extra beans.”

  Cassie dipped her tongs into the beans and gave him an extra-large scoop. “Just for you, but don’t tell Pastor John.”

  “Don’t worry,” John said from behind them. “No one will mind.”

  By the time they ate their dinner, Noah felt as though he’d been living here for months. No one cared about who he was or what he did. They were interested in hearing about his family and listening to what he thought about Sapphire Bay.

  Pastor John, with his big, bushy beard and lumberjack shoulders, was one of the most charismatic people he’d met. He wanted the best for the community and he was working hard to make a lot of people’s lives more rewarding.

  All Noah had to do was look at the faces of everyone in the dining room to know what a difference he was making.

  He refilled Cassie’s glass with water. “You haven’t told me about the tiny home project.”

  Her face shone with excitement. “John has been working with other organizations to see if we can build a village of tiny houses. Long-term rental accommodation in Sapphire Bay is almost non-existent. What is here is too expensive for people on a limited budget. The tiny homes will provide an affordable housing option for a lot of people.”

  John joined the conversation. “A similar program is underway in Bozeman. The School of Architecture at Montana State University designed their tiny homes. They’re happy for us to use the plans and they’ll even send a team of students to help build the first house.”

  “Will the village be built beside The Welcome Center?”

  John shook his head. “There isn’t enough room. In the first stage of the development, we want to build at least eight houses. They’ll have a communal kitchen, laundry room, and recreation area. The entire village would eventually have twenty-five homes. I’m looking for a plot of land, but it’s proving more difficult than I thought.”

  Cassie placed her knife and fork on her plate. “Each house will only cost ten thousand dollars to build. If we can attract sponsors and find a plot of land, construction could start before Christmas.”

  “Have you approached local businesses to see if they would help?”

  “They’re very supportive,” John said, “but there’s only so much money to go around. That’s why I thought we’d contact organizations from outside Sapphire Bay. If we can secure enough funding to pay for the land and materials, the community will build and furnish the tiny houses.”

  “Do you have a sponsorship program?”

  Willow leaned forward. “I’m working on one now. We were thinking of having three funding tiers. That way, organizations can decide how much they want to invest in the project.”

  Noah nodded. “If you need any help, send it to my secretary, and she’ll forward it to my marketing team. Cassie has her email address. In the meantime, I’ll think about how Wilson Enterprises can spread the word about the project.”

  John breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you. A lot of organizations will want to be involved, but the hardest part is finding creative ways to approach them.”

  Noah smiled. “The casserole worked for me.”

  Cassie nudged his arm. “I thought it was the green beans.”

  When he looked into her eyes, a warmth spread through his body, filling his heart with a sense of rightness, of knowing he was where he needed to be.

  Willow cleared her throat. “Tell us about New York City, Noah. If I was going there for a vacation, where would I visit?”

  He pulled his gaze away from Cassie and focused on Willow’s question. “Do you want my honest answer?”

  Willow nodded.

  “I wouldn’t go there for a vacation. What you’ve got here is one hundred times better than New York City.” And for the first time since he’d arrived, he understood why Cassie had chosen to live here.

  By Saturday night, Cassie was exhausted. For most of the week, when she wasn’t in her store serving customers or creating jewelry, she was at Pastor John’s church, making sure everything was ready for the auction.

  In half an hour, the auctioneer would bang his gavel and take the opening bid for the first donated item. If the hum of anticipation in the audience was anything to go by, it would be a successful evening.

  “Everyone seems excited to be here.”

  Cassie jumped.

  Noah had snuck up behind her. And oh, my goodness…he looked amazing.

  His charcoal gray suit hugged his broad shoulders and narrow hips as if it had been tailored especially for him. It wasn’t as if it was the first time Cassie had seen a man in a suit, but Noah managed to take her breath away. “You look very handsome.”

  Noah glanced at his suit. “It’s the best I could come up with at short notice. Do you like my tie?”

  She stared at his chest.

  He pulled back his shoulders and his broad chest looked even more delectable.

  Cassie poked him in the ribs. “Behave yourself.”

  “That’s not as much fun. They’re meadowlarks.”

  For a moment, she had no idea what he was talking about. Then she remembered to look at his tie.

  Sitting along the edge of the blue stripes were rows of little birds. If you looked really carefully, you could just make out the shape of the meadowlarks.

  “I went shopping at the general store. Mabel convinced me that this tie is a patriotic addition to my collection.”

  “Because of the meadowlarks?”

  Noah grinned. “They’re the state bird of Montana.”

  “It’s perfect.” She laughed at the mischief in his eyes. Suddenly, she wasn’t quite as tired as when she’d arrived.

  A few minutes later, Megan and William arrived with Sam and Caleb. While Megan introduced everyone, Cassie studied Noah.

  She didn’t know anyone who took a suit on vacation with them, but Noah wasn’t like most of the people who visited Sapphire Bay. She had to keep reminding herself th
at this part of Montana would never be on his list of places to visit.

  If she’d accepted the jewelry award, he wouldn’t even be here. They would have met in Manhattan at the presentation. He would have said hello and asked about her collection. They would have shaken hands, smiled for the cameras, then gone back to their separate lives.

  That thought alone was enough to bring her back to earth with a bump.

  By the end of next week, Noah would be negotiating with his company’s suppliers and getting the best deal he could for his wealthy clients. She would still be living in Sapphire Bay, creating jewelry and making sure Acorn Cottage was ready for the next booking.

  “There you are,” Sam said to Cassie. “John’s looking for you. The auctioneer hasn’t arrived and he’s worried.”

  Cassie touched the sleeve of Noah’s jacket. “I have to go. Will you be all right with everyone else?”

  “Of course he will,” Megan said. “As long as we choose our seats now, we’ll be able to sit together.”

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Cassie assured Noah. “Save a seat for me.”

  “I hope you find the auctioneer.”

  “So do I.” Cassie maneuvered around the people inside the large meeting room. If they couldn’t find the auctioneer, they might not have a fundraising event. Unless Pastor John was prepared to try his hand with a gavel. And knowing John, nothing was impossible.

  “Do I have five thousand dollars?” Pastor John’s voice boomed across the main meeting room of the church.

  The auctioneer’s car had broken down somewhere north of Billings. Despite his best efforts to take his vehicle to a garage, it was unable to be driven. So, John had done the unthinkable and was standing at the front of the room, leading the auction process.

  Cassie had no idea if he was doing everything correctly, but it sounded impressive. And more importantly, everyone in the room was enjoying themselves.

  Noah stuck his hand in the air. “Ten thousand dollars.”

  Everyone had been growing more and more excited as Noah and another man bid against each other for Natalie Armstrong’s painting. But even Cassie gasped this time. “Are you sure,” she whispered from beside Noah. “That’s a lot of money.”

  He looked over her shoulder and leaned in close. The other bidder was two rows behind them. “Natalie’s paintings sell for more than forty thousand dollars in European galleries.”

  Cassie’s eyes widened.

  The man behind them placed another bid.

  Noah stuck his hand in the air. “Twenty thousand dollars.”

  Silence fell over the crowd. All eyes turned toward the other bidder.

  “Twenty-eight thousand.”

  The audience went wild. Claps and cheers rang out across the room. Even Pastor John looked as though he was astounded that anyone would buy a painting for that amount of money.

  “Silence, please,” John yelled into the room. He looked at Noah. “Do we have another bid?”

  Cassie bit her bottom lip, half-praying that Noah shook his head. The oil painting was stunning, but paying more than twenty-eight thousand dollars was ridiculous. For most people, it was a down payment on a house, a new vehicle, or enough groceries for two years.

  “Thirty-five thousand dollars.”

  The roar from the crowd drowned out John’s response.

  Cassie dropped her chin to her chest. Oh, my Lord. That amount of money would pay The Welcome Centers utility, phone, and grocery bill for an entire year. They could buy new blankets and sheets, and replace the washing machines and dryers.

  John’s gavel was banging so hard against the desk that it sounded like a machine-gun, spitting bullets across the room. “Quiet, please!”

  No one was listening, except the man two rows behind them.

  When most of the noise had died down, a deep voice yelled, “Thirty-seven thousand dollars.”

  Cassie grabbed hold of Noah’s hand. “Don’t do it.” She looked at Noah, pleading with him not to increase the bid. “It’s an incredible painting, but that amount of money—”

  “Is nothing compared to what I earn,” Noah whispered in her ear.

  She closed her eyes, scrunching them tight as she waited for what he’d do next.

  “Forty thousand dollars,” he yelled.

  Mass hysteria descended over the room. John tried to bring order to the chaos, but no one was paying him any attention.

  Noah squeezed her hand. “Breathe.”

  “I can’t,” she yelled back. “It’s too much money.”

  “Order! Order!” John’s voice boomed across the room.

  Cassie would have laughed if it weren’t Noah who had placed an astronomical bid on the painting.

  “Do we have any more bids?” John yelled.

  The audience gradually calmed down, waiting to see what happened.

  The man behind Cassie and Noah remained silent.

  Her shoulders relaxed and she breathed a sigh of relief. At least Noah wouldn’t be spending any more money on—

  “Forty-five thousand dollars.” The man behind them yelled.

  Pastor John’s mouth dropped open. He looked at Noah. “Do we have another bid?”

  Noah shook his head and Cassie slumped in her chair. Thank goodness it was over.

  “Sold to the man in the blue sweater,” John yelled. “Congratulations.”

  Noah leaned against her shoulder. “What’s next?”

  “Are you serious? You nearly spent forty thousand dollars, and you still want to bid on other things?”

  “It’s an auction. It’s for a good cause.” Noah plucked the program out of her hand. “There’s a barbecue in here somewhere that Mabel told me about.”

  Cassie’s eyes narrowed. “Have you cooked a meal on a barbecue in the last ten years?”

  “Of course I have,” Noah muttered.

  If his nose could have grown, it would be as long as his arm.

  Cassie pointed to lot thirty-two. “It’s there. If you win the barbecue, I want a picture of the first meal you cook on it.”

  For some reason, Noah looked incredibly smug. “Deal.”

  John banged his gavel on the desk and the next item appeared on the stage.

  Before Cassie knew what was happening, she was in a bidding war for two baskets of preserved pickles and jams.

  If Cassie thought Noah’s bids on the painting were extreme, she was in for a shock. Because, regardless of how much he had to pay, he was winning the next item.

  Pastor John banged his gavel. “Lot twenty-six consists of a beautiful piece of jewelry created by C.J. Davis. Cassie’s lovely gold, pearl, and diamond necklace has graced the cover of Marie Claire. It also featured in an article about up-and-coming artists of the twenty-first century. I have a pre-auction bid for five thousand dollars. Do I have another bid in the room?”

  Cassie’s mouth dropped open. “Who would have placed a bid for—”

  “Six thousand,” Noah yelled.

  The room erupted in applause.

  “No,” Cassie hissed. “You can’t buy my jewelry.”

  “Yes, I can.”

  Pastor John looked at one of the volunteers. She had a cell phone to her ear, bidding on behalf of another person.

  The volunteer stuck her hand in the air. “Six thousand five hundred.”

  Cassie’s head swiveled back to Noah. “Don’t even think about it.”

  “Ten thousand.”

  “Oh, my goodness.” Cassie was almost hyperventilating. “That’s too much money.”

  “Ten thousand five hundred.”

  Noah settled in for the long haul. “Eleven thousand.”

  While the audience was clapping and cheering, Cassie sent him a ferocious scowl. “This is ridiculous. I’ll make you another necklace. You can donate some money to The Welcome Center.”

  “It’s my bid,” he reminded her, “and I don’t like losing.”

  Cassie’s gaze darted to the volunteer who was on the phone. “Think of
it as a strategic retreat. But whatever you do, don’t go any higher.”

  The volunteer’s hand rose. “Eleven thousand two hundred.”

  Noah looked at the picture of the necklace on the data projector. Two rows of cream pearls came together in an art deco clasp of polished gold. Small diamonds shone from the clasp and wound their way through another strand of smaller pearls, adding sparkle and drama, and something even more special to the design.

  Whether Cassie agreed with the bid or not, he wouldn’t be going home without it. “Twelve thousand.”

  She brought the auction program up to her face and hid behind it. “This can’t be happening.”

  The people around them were hardly breathing, waiting for what would happen next.

  The volunteer shook her head and John smiled.

  “Going once…going twice…sold to the man in the gray suit. Congratulations, Noah.”

  Strangers reached out to shake Noah’s hand, but the only person he wanted to talk to was Cassie.

  But she was being swamped with even more people, thanking her for donating the necklace. She looked overwhelmed and worried. He moved closer, wanting to protect her from the well-meaning people around them.

  Without knowing how it had happened, Cassie was becoming an important part of his life.

  Chapter 7

  After the auction, Cassie and her friends helped Pastor John tidy the room. The auction had raised more than ninety thousand dollars for The Welcome Center. John was thrilled and so was the rest of the community.

  “I can’t believe what Noah paid for your necklace,” Megan said to Cassie as she stacked one chair on top of another.

  “Or the bid he placed on Natalie’s painting,” Sam said. “If it weren’t for him, the sale price on those items wouldn’t have gone nearly as high.”

  Apart from helping The Welcome Center, Cassie had no idea why Noah had spent so much money. As well as taking home her necklace, he was the proud owner of a fancy barbecue and a large box of Brooke’s fudge. He probably earned a lot of money, but what he’d spent tonight was crazy.

  “Does anyone know who was bidding against Noah for Cassie’s necklace?” Sam asked.