Page 5 of Made for You

I follow Margaret back to her office. Walking into the small cramped space, and taking a seat across from her desk folding into the small chair.

“What can I do for you today? Was there something wrong with the last boxes?” She looks at me concerned.

“Oh no, I actually wanted to talk to you about doing more. The guests are loving the welcome boxes we leave in the cabins, but we just finished renovating four of the bedrooms in the main inn so we will be opening those for bookings this weekend. Would you be able to provide baked goods in the morning, and maybe a few snacks in the afternoon for guests?”

She claps her hands in front of her, “Oh! How wonderful! Yes I would be happy to do that for you. Would you be able to pick up a few times a week in the morning? I don’t know if I can leave the shop everyday. And I don’t want to ask Esther to leave hers everyday.”

“Of course, I can make Wyatt do some pickups after his shifts at the station too.” I start to stand when she begins to speak again.

“While you’re here, do you think I could ask you for a favor?” Trouble glints in her eyes and I know it’s not a favor I’m going to want to agree to. But we both know I will.

I close my eyes and breathe in deeply, “Sure. What can I do for you?”

I don’t really have the time to do anything else for anyone else but I can’t say no to her. Or Esther. No matter how much they contribute to the gossip about my grumpy attitude.

“Do you think you could help Esther and I plan the Valentine’s Day dance?” I scoff at her request. “I know, you don’t love Valentine’s day, or love, but we need help. It’s become too much for Esther and I to handle on our own.”

I scrub my hand over my face. I definitely don’t have time for this. It’s not that I don’t love Valentine’s Day. Which, I don’t, but that isn’t the reason.

My eyes settle on a photo behind Margaret. It’s of a teenage me, and her granddaughter, the namesake of the bakery, Violet.

The photo is from the last Fourth of July she came to visit. I looked forward to Violet coming every summer until the summer she didn’t. Unfortunately, back then we didn’t have social media to keep in touch. And being a young kid I was too embarrassed to ask Margaret for her number or address.

In the photo she’s holding the small wooden wolf I had carved for her that year. Grandpa taught me how to whittle and carve a few years prior and every summer I made Violet an animal for the day of her arrival.

She looks behind me to see what caught my eye and turns back to me with a soft smile.

“I wish she never stopped coming. Now I only see her for the one week I go to New York City to visit.”

“I didn’t know she was in New York City. That’s nice. She never really struck me as a city girl, but I guess times change,huh?” I continue to stare at the photo. Her green eyes still captivate me even as an adult.

Violet was the only one who ever understood me in my awkward years. Loners together. I’d sit and play video games, while she was happy to lay next to me reading her books. Sometimes I’d bring a piece of wood with me to carve small items for her while she read. We’d lay out on the cove of the inn and just sit in silence together. She never pushed me to bemore. I’d give anything to have that relationship back.

“She’s not. A city girl, I mean. She’s there for culinary school. Has big dreams of opening her own restaurant one day. She always says she’s going to come here to take over the bakery for me. But that starts a fight with her mother, so I bet she’ll end up in the city working for some egotistical chef.” Margaret frowns at the thought.

“Right. Well, I’m sorry for her. But I have to get going so I can finish my to-do list before the storm.” I stand to leave the office.

“What about the Valentine’s dance?” she asks.

Damn. I thought I could leave without answering her question.

“Yeah, sure. Let me know what you need when you drop off the food. Speaking of, how about Friday to start? We have all four rooms booked up this weekend, and the cabins.”

“Thank you, Liam,” she places her hand on my shoulder, “you’re a good egg, despite what the rumors say.”

“Yup. See you Friday.” I nod and leave the office, waving to Esther on my way out.

I’m so damn tired oftherumors.

At least I don’t have to deal with it until Friday, and I’m thankful to have the inn booked up. We have a lot of clients that come for snowmobiling in the winter. We’re right next to the trails and offer a great spot for people to stop and get some rest. The whole town allows snowmobiles and four wheelers as vehicles so it’s easy for them to get around town and our inn is central to everywhere they want to be.

I finish the last item on my to-do list an hour after I’m supposed to meet my brothers. Of course they come searching and find me outside one of the cabins.

“We said we would help you,” Hunter yells across the yard.

“With storm prep. This is my usual shit that I do every day before a booking checks in.” I toss another log in the pile against the cabin.

“They don’t check in for four more days, Liam.” Hunter scoffs at me, like I’m crazy and overbearing about my to-do list.

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