If Someday Never Comes

Chapter 41

Sydney's POV 

Well, that escalated quickly and unexpectedly...very unexpectedly. After Quinn shared our big news she explained that she couldn't make it to Michigan because she felt it was her responsibility to host a service for Mrs. Anderson and I agreed. I even offered to come out there but she said she would Facetime me during it so I could be there in spirit. She also wanted to get a head start on going through her apartment which was a job that I also offered to help with but once again she denied it. The stubbornness in that girl ran thick.  

The minute I woke up Wednesday morning I started packing, the goal was to be heading North by 3 pm so I could be there before it was dark. 

After successfully shoving a sufficient amount of clothes into my suitcase and guzzling a cup of coffee, I took off across the street to see the progress the guys made yesterday and to see if the equipment and coffee beans had shown up. I was grateful to see all the contracts come back signed and in my inbox from the bakeries and our new Instagram already had 42 followers. I mean, I don't wanna brag but that is more than The Tavern. So, look out Westville, we're on the rise. 

My nerves kicked in as I passed Brooks's Jeep parked in front of The Graveyard, I hadn't talked to him since that morning in my office, except through a checklist of emails. Yes, I got the contracts emailed, no he hadn't heard back from the courthouse about the permits, etc., etc. 

But my nerves dissolved the minute I stepped through the doors and I nearly wanted to cry. The floor looks so incredible with the paint and the brick even though they weren't finished laying it.

 It felt like I walked into my favorite cup of coffee, warm, delicious, and something I would thoroughly enjoy. 

I loved how it was all coming together and as I took in the room, the excitement bubbled in my chest, there was still so much to do, light fixtures, trim, countertops, and cabinets but we were on the way. My baby was being born piece by piece. The emotion clogged the back of my throat and it wasn't until I heard Brooks's voice interrupt my delicious daydream, that I swallowed down the tears that were ready to brim over, "You okay there?" 

"Yes," I point at him, "I'm just excited, it looks beautiful." I look around in a daze once more. 

Brooks stared at me with a slight smirk spread across his face, when my eyes snapped back to him and I took a step forward, his cheeks turned a deep pink.

 I whispered so no one else could hear, "And for the record, next time you catch me crying, I expect you to ignore it or run furiously in the opposite direction so we don't have anymore..."I hesitate, trying to think of a word that describes what happened between us without having to say it..." moments." I chuckle wanting to make a point but also remain in friendly territory. 

A look that resembled disappointment flashed across his face, but quickly shifted to reserved, stoic, and truthfully annoying "The paint colors and floor turned out nicely." 

"Uh...Thanks," unsure if he heard what I said or if he was choosing to ignore it completely. 

Which was REALLY annoying because I have thought about that moment over and over again. It's played on a loop in my head and my dreams, except in the dreams...well, we already know what my subconscious has been up to. 

 Then the reality hits that maybe it wasn't a big deal to him. My ego could take the hit, it was used to it at this point with Brooks, all the little moments that meant so much to me but didn't mean as much to him. Yet, it felt like he had pushed a bruise I tried very hard to pretend I didn't have anymore and that made me defensive and prickly. So, I covered it up by blowing past him to praise the guys for their hard work while I felt Brooks rolling his eyes behind me. 

Mentally I was flipping him off. 

Luckily all the tension was cut by the delivery guy showing up with the boxes of equipment, and one by one as he brought the boxes in, Phil, Jay, and the three younger guys moved to the door to help carry them back to the storage room on the other side of my office. 

Brooks stood in the middle of the room in his navy blue suit and his hands tucked in his pockets. He looked so fancy and unbothered that my current annoyance with him grew, so to prove a point, to whom I have no idea, I walked over to the stack of boxes sitting by the door that the man in the brown uniform had unloaded and lifted one. It was heavy, really heavy, and out of the corner of my eye I could see the stoic Brooks Dawson moving in my direction, but before he could reach me  I shouted, "Don't do it, Dawson." 

But he didn't listen and grabbed the box right out of my hand as if it weighed nothing, "What the hell, I had that!" I hissed at him.

"You were about to topple over," he says matter of fact. I crossed my arms and glared, as he handed the box off to one of the younger guys who scampered away quickly, becoming familiar with these stand-offs between the two of us.  "Well, at least I was willing to help," I fire at him. I see a glint of amusement in his eyes and it makes me want to flip him in the forehead, "Well, me rushing you to the hospital in the middle of the day for a broken arm wouldn't be any help to anyone now would it?" 

I couldn't help it, couldn't resist it, the way he pulls me in so easily especially now that we've slid into friendlier territory, I bit back the smile trying to etch its way across my face, and said, "You are annoying." 

"So, I've heard." 

Ugh, this man was exhausting and pretty, God, he was pretty. Looking into those hazel eyes, I remember how easy it was to get lost in them but now, an intensity lived behind them instead of an innocence. It drew me in and spit me back out but what's new? This is Brooks Dawson for shit's sake, he was a case of walking whiplash.

Just as he was about to speak again the delivery guy came in with five smaller packages, "Sydney Graves?" he asked as he held them in my direction with a sweet smile. 

"Yes, that's me."  I smiled back and took the packages from his hands, they were the coffee beans that I was going to sample. I still hadn't settled on which company I wanted to distribute but I did know I wanted them to be organic, high altitude, and fucking delicious. 

So it looked like I had my main task for the rest of the day and that was sampling all this coffee, my eyes lit up as I held them in my hands while the delivery guy stood there for another moment. As I looked up I noticed him looking around the room, before asking, "Is this your place?" Once again focusing all his attention on me, this time making me blush. It wasn't hard to notice that he was handsome, but before I could answer Brooks stepped in close beside me and said, "It's ours." in a downright icy tone that made a shiver run down my spine and my jaw nearly hit the floor. 

I was so caught off guard that I didn't have any time to recover before the delivery guy backed away slowly wishing us both a good day. "Ours?" I asked the only word I could form at this point. 

"It is, isn't it?" he said with an even tone before waving goodbye and walking out the door, leaving me standing there, coffee bags in hand, heart pounding in my chest, and a warm tingly feeling spreading across my skin. 

It was at that moment I decided I needed to get out of town and fast because distance was the only thing that kept me from sinking further into the quicksand that surrounded Brooks. I wasn't running away I told myself like I had done so many times before, but I was clearing my head, rationally because that's what responsible people do. They don't run, they rationalize, right?

 I don't know I've never done this before. So, here's hoping.

I told the guys goodbye and to call if they needed anything. Then I grabbed my bags of coffee beans, decided Layla and Kelsey were the perfect two to help me pick a favorite, and sprinted across the street to throw everything in my car. 

I was winded by the time I seatbelted myself in, cranked the stereo, and headed North but because the universe is a tricky bitch, I passed Brooks on my way out of town and even though I couldn't see through his tinted windows I could feel his gaze on me as I passed by. 

I took a deep breath, held the steering wheel a little tighter, and whispered, "Michigan here I come." 

AN: Looking a little green Brooks? HAHA. Also-Sydney's internal spirals may be my fav. 😂