Page 39 of Cozy Girl Fall
15
October had hit fast and hard, the remaining leaves on the trees turning red overnight and blanketing every sidewalk and open space in town until it seemed like something out of a fall Pinterest board, especially now they had built the annual bonfire on the green by the stores.
Penny had agreed to meet Ethan and Tasha by the church at seven and, as she wrapped on her scarf and slipped temporary heating pads into her boots to keep her toes warm, she couldn’t help feeling just as nervous as she was excited. This was her first outing with all three of them since she and Ethan had begun seeing each other again. At least, that’s what Penny thought they were doing. They hadn’t really had thedefine the relationshiptalk yet, especially because it had been a hectic few weeks getting the orchard as ready as possible before they started setting up for the Halloween Orchard Fest. They’d both been too exhausted to do much more than hang out at his house, watching the occasional movie or just talking. It had been nice to spend more time around each other without feelingthe need to rush into things. He brought her coffee in the morning while they worked at the orchard and she cooked them dinner at least once a week, but it hadn’t progressed beyond that. She’d always left before it got too late, and he’d been a perfect gentleman which had been nice … and a little annoying.
She got the sense that he was holding back because he thought it was what she wanted. And to begin with, it had been. But now … It had been almost two weeks since their movie date and she was getting antsy to take things further. Maybe it was this thought that had made her pick out her tightest black jeans, the ones that made her ass look phenomenal, and the scoop-neck red sweater that made her eyes look extra bright and her hair intensely dark. Then, to top the outfit off, she’d grabbed a matching red beanie with a pom-pom on its top, remembering Ethan’s fondness for her in hats. And anyway, it was bitterly cold outside and she wanted to be both toastyandcute.
“I’m off to the bonfire!” she called out to her parents as she left the cottage. They were upstairs, still getting ready, but would be joining the rest of the town for the festivities. Her car was cold when she climbed inside and she blasted the heat as she turned on the wipers, brushing off the brown leaves that covered her windshield. She pulled out of the drive smoothly and turned the car toward the road that would take her into town. If her parents had been ready on time they could have carpooled, but she hadn’t wanted tointerrupt them based on all the giggling coming from their bedroom.
Therewasone other thing she was starting to feel nervous about, besides hanging out with Ethan and Tasha together for the first time in years.
Ethan’s deadline.
He hadn’t mentioned it again since they’d had coffee a few weeks ago, so she couldn’t be sure how serious he’d been. But whether it was his imaginary Christmas deadline or her own self-imposed departure date, it felt like time was becoming scarce and she was no clearer on where she was going next or whether she and Ethan were in this for the long haul. She’d like to think so, but it was still so new. Equally though, everything felt so familiar, so natural between them, like they knew each other so well already, not least because, once upon a time, they had. But she wanted to get to know the person he was now, even if their connection felt as strong as ever. She kept turning the conflicting thoughts over in her mind as she drove into town, no closer to figuring out her answer by the time she parked her car behind the church and stepped out. She could already smell the sweet smoke from the bonfire in the air and felt her nerves ease at the familiar scent as she walked past the fountain and toward the green, looking for Ethan and Tasha.
Ever since she was a kid, Penny had loved the annual bonfire. There were stalls dotted all around selling warm cider and hot chocolate, cakes, and fries, but themain draw for Penny was, of course, the bonfire itself. She’d mentioned to her mom about having a stand for the orchard there, offering to help with running everything so it wouldn’t be too much work for her parents, but the applications had already closed for vendors by the time she’d mentioned it. Still, there was always next year.If she decided to stay, that was.
She spotted Tasha and Ethan pretty quickly once she’d made it through the small crowd of people standing by the entrance. Seeing them together almost threw her off. She hadn’t noticed the night they’d gone for drinks but now they were older the resemblance between them was uncanny—they’d always looked alike, given that they were twins, but it seemed more obvious now than when they were growing up.
Penny lifted her hand and waved, relieved when Ethan’s face lit up and Tasha beckoned her over. “Hey,” she called and then hugged them both once she came to a stop in front of them. “Hope you weren’t waiting long, my parents were running late so I had to leave without them in the end.”
“We would never expect you to be on time,” Tasha said, grinning widely as she smacked a kiss onto Penny’s cheek.
“Hell might freeze over,” Ethan added and Penny shot him a mock glare.
“You guys aresofunny. Truly. I can barely breathe for laughing,” she said in a monotone and then couldn’t help laughing when they did. “What are we in themood for? Cider? Hot chocolate?” Penny linked one arm with Tasha’s and held out her other hand to hold Ethan’s as she led them toward the large park where the bright flames could already be seen.
Tasha’s stomach growled. “I guess food first?”
Most of the food trucks that were typically dotted all around town had congregated around the town square for the night. They found a cart selling veggie corn dogs, hot dogs, and beef dogs that smelled surprisingly good and got one of each to share at a picnic table nearby, alongside hot wine for Tasha, cider for Penny, and hot chocolate for Ethan.
Penny wrinkled her nose at the idea of hot wine—she couldn’t imagine anything quite as gross—but Tasha seemed to be enjoying it well enough.
Once the hunger in their stomachs had been sated, they stood up and moved closer to the fire. A small barrier had been erected the whole way around, presumably to prevent any accidents, but otherwise everything was just as Penny remembered it. The sky held fragrant smoke, the stars just peeking through, and the wood crackled and popped like it was its own song. They sat on the grass a few feet back from the flames, enough to feel the heat but not close enough to sweat. Penny was grateful it hadn’t rained the night before otherwise the wet mud would have been a pain to navigate.
They chatted between themselves for a little while, reminiscing about bonfires from their childhoods andhow so little had changed in the intervening years. Tasha perked up as she looked out over the flames, clearly having spotted someone she was interested in talking to, and she stood up with her wine in hand to cross to the other side of the bonfire. “I’ll see you guys later, I want to say hi to Tayla from work.”
Ethan wrapped his hand around Penny’s waist and they sat quietly, sipping their drinks. It was one of the things she’d loved most about dating Ethan all those years ago—they’d never felt the need for mindless chatter. They had plenty to talk about, but sometimes just enjoying the silence was perfect.
Her head lowered onto his shoulder and his hand tightened on her hip, like he wanted to bring her as close as possible, and she understood the feeling.
His corduroy jacket was soft under her cheek and his hands were warm on her body despite the lack of gloves, but then Ethan had always done well in the cold. Penny, not so much.
“Do you want to move closer to the fire?” he said, as if he’d had the same exact thought, and she smiled.
“Sure, my nose is getting a little cold.”
He laughed, tapping the tip with his finger and then following it with a kiss before he stood and offered her a hand. “Come on then, let’s—”
Something warm splashed onto Penny, trickling down her cheek as sticky sweet wine collected in the strands of her scarf and the ridges of her puffer jacket.
“Oh my gosh! I’msosorry, Penny. I tripped over my own feet. I’m just super clumsy, right, Ethan?”
Penny’s hands curled into fists as she pushed to standing and Shelby’s eyes widened, like she hadn’t realized they were the same height. Her face was carefully blank, her manicured nails lightly holding a now-empty paper cup as she tried to mask her sneer.
“It’s fine,” Penny said, biting back her frustration, not wanting to cause a scene in front of the whole town. Ethan opened his mouth, as if to argue, when Penny shook her head. “I hated this scarf anyway.”
Shelby nodded sympathetically, pushing her bottom lip out in a small pout that probably helped her get her own way more often than not. “Why don’t you go home and change? I’ll look after Ethan while you’re gone.”
