Buns (Hudson Valley #3)

They all did, in fact. The boys were playing, Roxie had wandered over and was going on and on to Chad and Logan about the play that Polly was involved in at school and whether they’d be able to attend next month. It was like an episode of some sitcom where everyone was good-looking and happy and having all the sex they could ever want before heading down to the local coffee shop or diner to one-up each other with jokes and one-line zingers.

And I was the girl sitting on the prep table under the dish towel trying to figure out exactly where she fit in. I was the girl who came in for a four-to-five episode arc, the one whom one of the main characters fell for, and he became part of a stronger, more defined story line as he weathered whatever this outsider had to offer. Even though, technically, I’d been around just as long as anyone, I was still on the outside. Because I’d be leaving at the end of my story line, packing my bags and heading out into the gray wasteland of sitcom characters, blowing out of scenes just as quickly as I blew in.

Archie would remain. I’d be the Girl Who Brought Him Back to Life. Or the Girl Who Made Archie Great Again. Or worse, the Girl Who Broke His Heart.

I winced, rubbing at the sudden hollow feeling in my chest. I needed to get back to the hotel, I needed to lie down and get some sleep and not think about this right now. But that wasn’t in the cards.

“I can see you working yourself over there, kiddo,” Natalie said, “but I think you’re overthinking this a bit.”

“How can I not overthink this? I overthink everything, and you’re telling me this is the time to just trust the universe to not cock it up?”

“Yes. I literally think that exactly,” she said. “Get out of your head, Clara. You got this, trust it.”

I didn’t answer, just kept rubbing at that space in my chest as things wound down for the evening.

“So, since everyone is here,” Roxie said, jumping up on the table next to Natalie so we were sitting in a row, “I have some news.” Leo came to stand in front of her, grinning big. “Well, we have some news.”

“You’re pregnant. I knew it! I fucking knew it, didn’t I tell you Roxie was going to be the first?” Natalie crowed, waving at Oscar and trying to pull him over to her with her own version of a laser tractor beam. “Didn’t I tell you?”

“Hush, Pinup, let her talk,” he groaned, but submitted to the tractor beam.

“Yes, Pinup, let her talk,” Roxie said. “But no, I’m not pregnant.”

“Not yet,” Leo said, running his hand possessively along her leg.

“Everyone hush,” I instructed, leaning forward so I could see Roxie’s face. She was beaming. “Except Roxie.”

“Well, it’s not a huge surprise, I suppose, but Leo asked me to marry him. And—”

“She said yes!” Leo yelled, swooping her up into his arms and swinging her around the kitchen, nearly taking Archie’s head off in the process.

Squeals of congratulations and mazel tovs rained down on the happy couple, Natalie bowling everyone over to hug Roxie tight. Archie shook Leo’s hand and slapped him on the back, Oscar did the exact same thing and nearly bowled Leo over in the process. Roxie’s hand was forcibly removed from her back pocket by Natalie and there it was, the ice cube.

Sparkling and shiny, a diamond the size of a skating rink sat on the third finger of her left hand. And just as sparkling and shiny, her eyes and his face. Thrilled. Proud. The two of them gleamed like they were lit from within.

I was thrilled. I was proud. So why did it feel like my own grin was plastered on, that my congratulations and that’s incredible and of course I’ll be a bridesmaid were heart-spoken but not heartfelt?

A question I continued to ask myself the entire car ride home. Archie, however, prattled on enough for the both of us.

“I’m thinking if we use the smaller dining room on the first floor for Zombie Pickle Class, the one we only open up when we’re booked to capacity, then we shouldn’t run too much into the regular dinner service. We’d have to figure something else out in the summer, but maybe if we change the time or switch it to weekends in June and July . . . I don’t know, what do you think?”

I barely had time to take a breath to answer before he was off on another tangent.

“Another thing, I’m wondering if we should offer a discount on overnight stays to anyone who takes the class. Might be another way to introduce some new faces around here from town, I know how much you want to bring in locals more and more, this might be a good way to do it. Not during the high season of course, but if we offered a discounted rate in the fall, maybe thirty percent off and throw in a room upgrade? Not everyone could take advantage of the offer, but maybe more than we think, any thoughts?”

This time he didn’t even wait for me to answer, he just launched into another monologue.

“Oh, before I forget, I talked to Oscar about bringing up a few of the cows, just a couple, and maybe one of the calves. Bryant Mountain House has a barn, it just hasn’t been used for years, but maybe this summer we could partner with him to introduce a new farm-to-table concept to our guests, get Leo involved too. Did I ever tell you there used to be cows up here, just for milk and cheese and butter? It’s true, I came across an old menu card last year from the thirties, and it said ‘featuring milk from our own Bryant Family cows.’ Can you believe that? I bet Leo could help us get some chickens going, our guests would love knowing they’re eating eggs fresh from the farm. And if Oscar brings a calf up too, what a great learning opportunity for the kids when they come to stay up here, especially for those city kids who never see where their food comes from. Leo was telling me all about the program he started a few years ago where the Maxwell family sponsors schools in the city to bring kids up for field trips, and did you know most of them have never even seen a chicken? Bears and lions, yes, because they’ve been to the zoo, but can you imagine kids who’ve never seen a chicken?”

“Not every kid gets to visit a farm, Archie. Not every kid even gets to go to the zoo.” I sighed, looking out the window and into the night. It might be spring on the calendar, but tonight upstate New York was frosty cold.

“Most kids get to at least go to one or the other, though, even if it’s just a field trip. I remember my entire class took the train into the city when I was in fourth grade just to go to the Bronx Zoo.”