Second Chance In Stonecreek

by Michelle Major

  She loved this little corner of the Willamette Valley, from the terra-cotta and classical revival-style buildings to the bright yellows and golds of the leaves in the fall.

  “At least I’m not getting a ton of side-eye anymore,” Maggie said to Brenna as they stood a few feet from the face-painting booth, waiting for Ellie to be transformed into a Bengal tiger.

  Brenna toasted her cider cup against Maggie’s. “I told you all they needed was time. People were a little shocked that you walked away from the wedding, but that doesn’t change what you mean to this town.”

  “There are still a few who haven’t forgiven me.” Maggie lifted a finger to touch the small butterfly one of the teenagers working the face-painting station had drawn onto her cheek. Ellie had insisted Maggie get her face done before the girl would agree to sit. “My grandmother might be one of them.”

  Brenna made a face. “I can’t help you there. Oh, no. Don’t turn around.”

  Maggie immediately looked over her shoulder to see Griffin walking toward them, an unfamiliar woman at his side. The woman was beautiful, with flowing, raven-colored hair, a fashion-model-thin frame and long legs tucked into vintage cowboy boots. She wore a baggy dress that just grazed her thighs, but the shape of a dress didn’t matter when a woman looked like that. Griffin towered over her and was leaning close as the woman gazed up at him.

  Maggie’s heart stuttered.

  No, they weren’t heading toward her. The two of them were so engrossed in each other they could have been walking on a deserted street for all they noticed the crowd around them.

  Until Griffin looked up. His green gaze caught on Maggie, the heat from it like being stabbed with a hot poker.

  “What part of ‘don’t turn around’ confused you?” Brenna muttered under her breath.

  “It’s fine,” Maggie said, her voice weak as she faced forward again. “Who is she?”

  “Maggie?”

  Heat pooled low in her belly at the sound of Griffin’s rich baritone. Pathetic. She was the most pathetic woman on the planet. This man had rejected her four months ago. She had no reason to be twitter-pated over him. She had no reason to feel anything for him. To borrow from one of Maggie’s favorite old-school pop songs, tell that to her heart.

  But she spun around, pasting a bright smile on her face. “Hey, Griffin. How’s it hang—”

  She yelped when Brenna pinched the back of her arm. Hard.

  “Hey,” Griffin said slowly, darting a dubious glance between the two of them. “I’m...um...doing fine. How are you?”

  “Hunky-dory,” she said, then inwardly cringed as Brenna groaned. “I’m fine, too,” she amended, her cheeks feeling like they’d just caught fire. “Fine.”

  “Great.” Griffin nodded and she watched his throat bob as he swallowed. “I wanted to introduce you to an old friend.” He indicated the woman standing next to him. “This is Cassie Barlow. Cassie’s an interior designer up in Seattle. We’ve worked on a few projects together over the years.”

  Is that what the kids are calling it now? Maggie thought to herself. She held out a hand, her cheeks aching from the perma-grin plastered across her face. “Nice to meet you.”

  “You, too,” the woman said, her eyes bright. “Great butterfly.”

  Seriously, could cheek muscles grow so hard they cracked? “I had my face painted,” Maggie said, then sighed. Master of the obvious. How charming.

  “My daughter demanded it,” Brenna offered quickly. “Maggie did it for Ellie.”

  Griffin introduced Brenna to Cassie and then Cassie turned to Maggie again. “Grif tells me you’re mayor of this town.”

  Grif. She called him Grif. Oh, yeah. They worked together. Worked together on getting busy, most likely.

  Maggie blinked when she realized everyone was staring at her. “Yes, mayor,” she agreed like an imbecile. “I’m mayor.”

  Cassie tilted her head and Maggie thought the other woman must think her the biggest ninny she’d ever met. But Cassie’s eyes remained kind. It was ridiculously difficult to hate someone with such kind eyes.

  Ellie ran up to Brenna at that moment, her face painted in black and orange stripes. The girl held up her hands like claws and growled at her mom, then turned to Maggie and roared loudly.

  “I’m ferocious,” she announced.

  Maggie cowered in mock fear, never so grateful for the interruption. “Oh, scary tiger,” she said, making her voice tremble. “Have mercy on this little butterfly.”

  “You’re too tiny for me to eat,” Ellie said with a nod. “I better go get a corn dog.”

  Maggie grinned, then looked up at Griffin and Cassie. “You heard the tiger. We’ve got to feed her before she starves.”

  “It was lovely to meet you,” Cassie said softly.

  “You, too,” Maggie agreed. She gave a casual wave. “See you around, Grif.”

  Griffin gave a sharp nod but didn’t respond.

  And even though Maggie wanted nothing more than to escape this awkward interaction, she couldn’t quite force her legs to walk away from him until Ellie took her hand and tugged.

  Chapter Two

  “She thinks we’re together,” Cassie murmured as Maggie disappeared into the crowd milling about the town square.

  “We are together.” Griffin unclenched his hands, which had ended up fisted at his sides, and concentrated on keeping his expression neutral. It took every bit of willpower he possessed to watch Maggie turn away. He wanted to reach for her, to pull her close and bury his face in her hair, breathing in her flowery scent.

  “As in we’re dating.” Cassie rolled her eyes.

  “We’re not dating,” Griffin said as if his old friend needed clarification. “We haven’t dated for years.”

  Cassie smacked him hard on the shoulder. “I know that, you idiot. Your Maggie doesn’t.”

  “She’s not mine,” he muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets. He continued to stare in the direction Maggie had walked. Every few seconds he’d get a glimpse of her caramel-colored hair or a flash of the bright butterfly painted on her cheek as she turned to say something to Brenna. This was the first time he’d seen her since he’d ended what was between them. Ended it before it had really had a chance to start.

  Stonecreek was a small town and, as mayor, Maggie was a very visible resident. He’d holed up at the vineyard for most of the summer, repairing the damage to the tasting room from the fire that Maggie’s sister had accidentally started when her plans for teenage seduction had gone awry.

  Cole Maren, the boy Morgan Spencer had set her sights on that night, had worked tirelessly at Griffin’s side. Despite the kid’s past and less-than-desirable family situation, Cole seemed determined to stay on the right track. Griffin wished he’d made that choice when he was younger. It had taken him years of running from the stupidity of his youth to straighten out his mind and soul.

  A weight settled in his chest like a lead balloon as he watched Maggie and he wondered how successful he’d actually been.

  “You look at each other,” Cassie said, moving toward a vendor selling handmade soaps and lotions, “like you belong together.”

  “You don’t understand how it is in Stonecreek,” Griffin said with a sigh.

  Cassie dabbed a sample of lemon-scented lotion on her hands, turning to Griffin as she rubbed it into her skin. “What’s there to understand? You care about her. She cares about you. All that other family history stuff is just noise. It doesn’t have to matter, Grif. Trust me. I’m all about cutting away things that don’t matter these days.”

  Griffin opened his mouth to argue, then shut it again. Cassie had paid this unexpected visit to him to share that she’d been diagnosed with a brain tumor. She was due to start treatment in Seattle in a couple of days and said the doctors had given her a great prognosis. But the news had changed her—maybe
for the better—as she seemed at peace in a way he hadn’t ever known her to be.

  “You have to try,” Cassie urged.

  He glanced beyond her and spotted Maggie talking to a tall guy who looked to be in his midthirties. Brenna stood a few feet away watching Ellie play in the bouncy house, like she was trying to give Maggie and the stranger space. The man handed Maggie his phone and she punched something into it. Her number, Griffin assumed, and felt adrenaline stab his gut.

  “Give me a few minutes,” he told his friend, earning a wide smile.

  “I’ll meet you in front of the stage,” Cassie agreed. “The band is starting in a few minutes.”

  He nodded and headed in Maggie’s direction, absently waving to the people who called out greetings.

  “We need to talk,” he told her, moving to stand between her and the man.

  Her fine brows furrowed. “I don’t think so.”

  “Come on, Maggie,” he coaxed. “It won’t take long.”

  “Everything okay?” the stranger asked.

  Maggie looked around Griffin and smiled at the man. “Just a little bit of bothersome town business.”

  Griffin felt his eyes narrow.

  “It was nice meeting you, James,” she said sweetly.

  “I’ll call you next week,” the man answered, and Griffin’s hand itched to deck the guy.

  Maggie held up her index finger to someone behind Griffin—Brenna, he guessed—then looked up at him, her gray eyes cool. “So talk.”

  “Not here.” Before she could protest, he circled her wrist with his hand and led her away from the crowd.

  “Is this necessary?” she asked tartly.

  “You sound like your grandma when you use that snippy tone,” he said, flashing a smile at her.

  She glared in return.

  He continued to the edge of the park that took up one full square block in the middle of downtown Stonecreek and moved around the side of the town hall building.

  “Griffin, what are you doing?” She dug in her heels and tugged her wrist from his grasp.

  He turned and could see the freckles that sprinkled her nose and upper cheeks and the bits of gold around the edges of her eyes. He smelled the light scent of her shampoo and damn if he didn’t want to press his face into the crook of her neck. As much as he thought he had his feelings under control, the reality of this moment still slammed through him with the force of a tornado.

  Then she licked her lips and it was too much. All of it. The return to Stonecreek, the acrimony he couldn’t manage to fix with Trevor, their mother’s expectations and the constant undercurrent of his past mistakes that seemed to follow him everywhere, trailing behind like a child’s blanket.

  He did the only thing he could think of in the moment.

  He pressed his lips to Maggie’s mouth. It was perfect. Her softness, the sweet taste of apples, the feel of her body so close to him. All of it perfect.

  Until she slapped him.

  She shook out her hand, seeming as shocked by her reaction as he was. His cheek stung, although he figured he deserved that snap of pain and so much more.

  “You kissed me.” The words were an accusation and he had the good sense to realize how out of line he’d been.

  “I’m sorry.” He ran a hand through his hair. “It seemed like a good idea at the time.”

  She made a noise in the back of her throat that might have been a growl. “Are you crazy?”

  “About you?” He flashed a smile. “Yeah. Yeah, I—Oof.” He stumbled when she pushed on his chest. Hard.

  “No, no, no,” she said, her voice low, almost a snarl. Each exclamation was punctuated with another shove. “You don’t get to do this, Griffin Stone.”

  He’d seen many sides of Maggie, but never had he seen her so angry. Color stained her cheeks and her breath was coming out in ragged puffs. “I’m not—”

  “You rejected me.” She jabbed one finger into his chest. “You said horrible things about my sister and my family.”

  “I was angry.” He wrapped his fingers around hers, pulled it away from his body. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

  “I’ve moved on,” she announced, yanking her hand from his. “Just like you.”

  “Like me?”

  “The woman you introduced me to. The one who calls you Grif. Oh, Grif...” She gave an overly girlish laugh. “You’re so handsome, Grif. So strong, Grif. Oh, Griffy-poo.”

  “Cassie has never called me ‘Griffy-poo’ in her life.”

  “Not the point,” Maggie ground out.

  Right. What was the point? Why had he pulled her away from the festival in the first place? It certainly hadn’t been to kiss her. If he’d been thinking about anything other than how much he missed her, he would have known that was a horrible idea.

  He’d wanted to talk to her about Cassie. She’d misinterpreted and—

  “I’m dating someone.”

  The statement jolted him back to the present moment.

  “No.” The word came out as a puff of breath.

  Her eyes narrowed again. “Yes. Well, not yet exactly. I’m going to date someone.”

  “Hypothetically?” he demanded, feeling a muscle tick in his jaw. “Or in real life?”

  “Real life. The man you saw.” She paused as if searching for a detail she’d forgotten. “James. He’s a doctor.”

  “Bully for him.”

  “For both of us,” she agreed. “I met him working on the hospital fund-raiser.”

  “The one I’m hosting at the tasting room?”

  “Your mother is the official host,” she pointed out, not very helpfully in his opinion.

  “It’s my vineyard.”

  “Your family’s vin—”

  “You know what I mean,” he interrupted.

  “I know...” She blew out a long breath. “We are not together. Your choice, Griffin. Has something changed?”

  Panic spiked through him. He wanted to say yes, but it wasn’t true. He was as messed up as he’d been four months ago. Their past was messy, the present just as complicated. He’d told her he didn’t do complicated. He’d hurt her. The pain he’d caused still reflected in her gaze and he hated himself for it.

  He’d grown so damn tired of hating himself.

  “I’m sorry,” he said again, then shook his head.

  She gave him a sad smile. “So many apologies between us.”

  “I want it to be different.” As if that mattered when he was too much of a coward to do anything about it.

  The smile faded from her face. “Me, too.”

  “Maggie—”

  “I need to get back to the festival.” She straightened her fitted red turtleneck sweater. The bottom edge of the butterfly on her cheek had smeared slightly where his thumb had grazed her face. “Brenna will be wondering about me.”

  He nodded. “Have a good night, Maggie May.”

  She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, a small diamond stud glimmering in her lobe. She had beautiful ears. Every inch of her was beautiful to him.

  “Have fun with Cassie,” she said, then whirled and hurried away.

  He wanted to call after her, to explain there was nothing between him and his ex-girlfriend. But what good would that do? Would it change everything that prevented him from committing to Maggie?

  No. It felt like nothing ever changed in Stonecreek.

  Cassie had told him the noise around them didn’t matter, but it was all Griffin could hear, drowning out even the beat of his own heart.

  * * *

  Morgan Spencer shoved her phone into the top drawer of her desk when she heard her father’s footsteps on the creaky staircase of the house where she’d been born. Literally born in the bathtub down the hall.

  This home and town were all she’d ever kn
own. Her perfect life and her perfect family and she didn’t fit in at all.

  There was a soft knock on the door and then her dad entered.

  “Hey, Mo-Mo. No Fall Fest for you this year?”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m grounded. Remember?”

  Her father grimaced, looking slightly sheepish. “Of course. I remember. Fire at Harvest Vineyards. You and a toppled candle.”

  “It was an accident,” she said, shame pulsing through her at the reminder of her stupidity.

  “I understand, but there are still consequences to your actions, young lady.”

  “I’m not so young,” she shot back.

  “You’re sixteen.”

  “Duh. It’s a wonder you even remember.”

  “Attitude isn’t going to help, Morgan.” Her dad’s tone had turned abnormally disapproving. Jim Spencer was a big man. At fifty-one, his shoulders remained broad and only a sprinkling of silver darted his thick brown hair. Tonight he wore faded jeans and a ratty sweatshirt. From the earthy scent emanating from him, Morgan knew he’d spent the evening in his art studio. He spent most of his time there, immersed in the casts and sculptures that seemed dearer to him than his own children.

  Morgan was probably the only one who cared about inattentiveness. Maggie had been fifteen when their mother died. She’d grown up quickly, stepping in to help raise Morgan and their younger brother, Ben, who was fourteen now and taller than Morgan. Ben had always been easy—‘the Buddha baby,’ Dad had called him. As long as he had snacks and video games, that boy was happy. Grammy had helped with all of them, but Maggie had always been the apple of Vivian Spencer’s eye. Morgan’s sister was smart and driven, polished and self-possessed in a way Morgan could never be.

  Had never tried to be. She was the black sheep of the family, more so now that she was in high school and her inclination toward rebellion had found an outlet with the fast kids at her high school. She tended to fade into the background in the face of Maggie’s perfection and Ben’s affable nature. So when she’d discovered that she could get attention from the popular kids at school just by doing stupid things like playing chicken on the train tracks or toilet papering the principal’s house, it had been fun. It made her feel like she belonged for the first time in her life. Who wouldn’t want to belong?