Page 64 of The Story of Us
She bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from crying. No more. The romantic hiatus was officially back on. Technically, she’d never called it off, and it wasn’t as if she and Sawyer had actually gotten back together…
She blinked hard, but a lone tear managed to break free and slide down her cheek. The title at the top of her word document seemed to mock her.
The Story of Us
Could a person on a romantic hiatus even write a love story?
Doubtful—and the romantic hiatus was definitely still a thing. In fact, it mightalwaysbe a thing. She was starting to think she was better off alone.
She reached for the delete key, ready to put the story of Harrison and Mary—and Sawyer and Jamie—behind her once and for all. That story was over. For good.
But she couldn’t seem to press that button, no matter how hard she tried.
Sawyer hadn’t pulled an all-nighter since college, and he’d forgotten what a toll it took on his body. His head ached, his eyes felt as if someone had poured sand directly into them, and he kept bumping into things as he changed into his best suit and packed his messenger bag. In general, he felt like garbage.
But somewhere beneath the fog in his head, hope stirred. Somehow, over the course of the past ten hours, he’d managed to completely alter the architectural plans for the Ridley project. He’d also put together a completely new animated diagram, showing the extent of the construction in detail—both old and new. He was one hundred percent ready for the town council meeting, which was scheduled to take place in the early evening.
Sawyer had a feeling the town would be pleased with what he’d come up with, even Jamie.EspeciallyJamie. He hoped so, at least. But right now, his biggest obstacle wasn’t the Waterford council or the business owners or his own sleep-deprived state. It was Ridley. More specifically, Dana Sutton, who didn’t have clue what Sawyer was up to.
He had to tell her, obviously. He’d need her approval in order to move forward with the new design at the council meeting. And getting that approval was going to be tricky. She’d see no reason whatsoever for reinventing the wheel when they had a solid plan currently in place and Ridley already had the majority of the town on its side. He’d have to be awfully convincing, so he didn’t waste any time. He headed straight to Portland without bothering to call first, and when he burst through the doors of the Ridley offices, he found Dana sitting in the conference room with her morning cup of coffee and an untouched muffin.
She did a double take when he strode into the room. He was supposed to be in Waterford, not Portland, but they didn’t have time for lengthy explanations at the moment, so he launched straight to the heart of the matter.
“There is a tree in the courtyard of True Love Books & Cafe,” he said, walking directly to Dana’s seat at the head of the table.
She abandoned the papers she was reading and cocked her head. “…Okay?”
Sawyer did his best to ignore the fact that she was looking at him as if he’d lost his mind. Maybe he had, but he’d managed to find his heart.
“The original builders crafted the entire store around that tree.” He spread his arms out wide.
“Yeah. And probably chopped down a bunch of others in the process.” Dana stood and planted a hand on her hip, a sure sign that he needed to get to the point.
“We don’t know that for certain. But what we do know is that they went to extraordinary lengths to keep that tree alive and thriving.”
Dana’s gaze narrowed. “Where are you going with this?”
Sawyer took a deep breath.Here goes nothing.“I have an idea for the Waterford redesign.”
“I know.” She laughed. “I’ve seen it.”
“No.” He shook his head. “No, a new idea.”
And for the first time since Jamie told him goodbye, he thought that maybe—just maybe—that heartbreaking conversation didn’t have to be the final page of their story, after all.
This wasn’t The End.
It might even be time for a new beginning.
Chapter Nineteen
If there was a worseplace than an all-romance bookstore for someone to try and power through heartbreak on Valentine’s Day, it had to be a flower shop.
Jamie popped into Anita’s Flowers at lunchtime, hoping for a reprieve from the lovey-dovey shoppers who’d been browsing through True Love Books & Cafe since sun-up. People were still dropping by to read Mary and Harrison’s letters, but most of the customers at this point were looking for last-minute Valentine’s Day presents. Jamie had been recommending romantic reads, wrapping gifts and selling poetic Valentine cards for five hours straight. She needed a break. In truth, what she really needed was a pair of bunny slippers and a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream, but those things would have to wait until after the town council meeting. In the meantime, she needed her aunt’s shoulder to cry on.
Except she hadn’t anticipated being confronted by dozens upon dozens of long-stemmed red roses and festive Valentine’s bouquets. She probably should have. Scratch that—she definitely should have. But she’d been so desperate for a reprieve that she’d temporarily forgotten that flowers were the number one Valentine’s Day gift of choice. Fanciful arrangements covered every possible surface in her aunt’s shop. The rare spaces that weren’t occupied by pink and red blossoms were filled with heart-shaped balloons and giant plush animals—teddy bears dressed in red bow ties and cute white doggies holding roses in their mouths. It was kind of like getting bonked on the head by Cupid…
Or a hardback copy ofPersuasion. Take your pick.
