Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 132834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132834 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 664(@200wpm)___ 531(@250wpm)___ 443(@300wpm)
My mind was racing, putting together ideas of things I would have liked at Nicky’s age. There’d been no fun in this house back then, but there could be now.
Griffen raised an eyebrow. “Absolutely. That’s a great idea.” Throwing a glance at Royal, he said, “You guys going to be around?”
“Definitely,” Royal said with a grin. “You should stop by the bakery when you’re in town and see what Daisy and Grams have for Halloween. Daisy’s been making truffles lately, and she said something about a special design for Halloween.”
I nodded as Hope said, “So there’s us, and Royal and Daisy. Tenn and Scarlett will be out trick-or-treating with August and Thatcher, and Quinn and Sterling will still be at work. I don’t know about Avery.”
“Avery has an event at the brewery tonight, so she won’t be here,” Royal supplied, “but I bet Aunt Ophelia and Claudia would love to play trick-or-treat.”
The knot in my chest dissolved completely. Not only were they willing to play along, they seemed into the whole plan. We were going to give Nicky the best Halloween we could manage, considering he couldn’t leave the house. “Cool. I’m headed out to the store now. Be back in an hour or so with candy and stuff.”
“Sounds good,” Griffen agreed. I was about to make my escape when he added, “Finn? This is a great idea. Thanks.”
I felt my shoulder jerk in an involuntary shrug as I ducked out of the office and headed to my car. The warmth in Griffen’s expression as he thanked me was so far outside my expectations that I had no clue how to respond. A part of me was still waiting for Griffen to be Prentice or Ford. All business, no heart.
Maybe Griffen really wasn’t anything like them. Maybe, possibly, things were going to be different. I wasn’t sure I was ready to think about that.
Chapter Twelve
FINN
I went a little crazy when I got to town. I hit the grocery store first and picked up what I needed for the marshmallow squares and the brownie bites, but the candy situation left much to be desired. Everyone else in Sawyers Bend had gotten here first, cleaning out the candy aisle in preparation for trick-or-treating. I found a few packs of Smarties and some lollipops. Not what I had in mind.
It probably didn’t matter. Nicky was in kindergarten. Candy was candy. He’d be fine with Smarties and lollipops, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. I liked the kid, and being sick on Halloween was the worst, on top of having to watch his friends go out and trick-or-treat without him. Hoping Daisy and Grams had something resembling candy, I headed for Sweetheart Bakery on Main Street.
Sweetheart Bakery was a mainstay in Sawyers Bend. Most of the town agreed that Daisy and Grams were the best, from the perfect chocolate chip cookie to custom cake design.
Royal was an unlikely match for the town baker, but he and Daisy had crossed paths a few months ago when she stopped a saboteur from dumping cockroaches in the Inn’s ventilation system. They’d been inseparable ever since. Royal had good taste. Daisy made a mean cookie and was as sweet as anything that came out of her kitchen. I had to admit; I was partly inclined to like Royal just based on Daisy. She wouldn’t have fallen for an asshole, and an asshole wouldn’t have had the good judgment to hang on to a woman like Daisy.
My brain immediately went to Griffen and Hope. Hope had always been kind. Shouldn’t that mean I could trust Griffen?
The answer was a resounding no, because Hope always had a soft spot for Griffen, even when we were kids. I knew she was in love with him; it was all over her face every time she looked at him. He seemed to feel the same way about her, but that didn’t mean he deserved her. The Hope I’d grown up with would have put up with a lot of shit from Griffen before she fell out of love.
And even if Hope and Royal were good people, it didn’t mean they hadn’t known about the kidnapping and left me to die along with Ford and our father.
Though I had to admit, that was seeming less and less likely. Surely one of them would have said something by now if they knew the truth. The story about me dropping out of college to join the army hung over all of us.
The only people who knew it for a lie were those who knew the truth about the kidnapping. And so far, Griffen, Royal, and Hope were doing a great job acting like they thought it was the gospel truth. I’d even pressed the lie the day of the bonfire, and Griffen hadn’t pushed back. They could be playing a long game or not know how to broach the subject, but my gut said they were in the dark. Which left the real question—when was I going to tell them the truth?