"We wanted to give the guys some moral support and see where Kyle used to live since we've never been here before." Natalie tilted her head to the side, her gaze inquisitive. "Did you know Kyle growing up?"
"You could say that," Ella replied with a small laugh as she wrapped up the jars of body butter. "We dated in high school."
"Oh!" Hailey looked at Ella through new eyes. "You must be Ella!"
The blonde woman's reaction momentarily perplexed Ella, until she realized that, while the two women had introduced themselves just a while ago, Ella hadn't mentioned her name at all. "Yes, I am. How did you know?"
"Because our guys gripe and grumble worse than women," Natalie said with a roll of her eyes. "Wes kept complaining all week about what an awful mood Kyle was in, all because of some old girlfriend named Ella who lived in his hometown who'd put him in the friend zone when that's the last place he wants to be." Natalie raised her eyebrows, as if looking for more information on the subject from Ella.
Horrified that she'd been the topic of gossip and these two women knew more of her private life than she would have liked, Ella buried her blushing face in her hands and groaned in dismay. "I can't believe this is happening."
"I'm sorry, Ella," Natalie said, touching her arm compassionately and pulling her hands away until they were looking at each other again. "We're not the kind of girls who judge, and trust me when I say we get it. Making things work with our guys wasn't easy, either. Wes and I were frenemies for years before I realized he was definitely a jerk, but he was my jerk," she joked.
"That's so true. Not easy at all," Hailey jumped in before Ella could say that there was no making things work between her and Kyle. "I staged a fake engagement with Max that he didn't have any clue he was a part of until I was caught in the lie. Luckily, he agreed to pose as my fiancé, but considering I'm a matchmaker by trade, it was all a bit embarrassing, and it took me a while to realize that Max wasn't faking his feelings for me at all."
Their stories made Ella smile, even if she knew a happy ending like that wasn't in the cards for her and Kyle. Resolving her father's dislike of the Coleman family after all these years was nearly impossible, not to mention that Kyle was content with his life in the city, and Ella could never be happy there. She had a market to run for her father, which was their livelihood, and responsibilities in Woodmont she could never shirk like her sister so easily had.
She finished the women's transactions and gave them each their bags with their items after tossing in a few samples of some homemade caramels from another artisan. "It was really nice to meet both of you," Ella said, meaning it. At a different time, or in another place, she could easily imagine these two women as her friends.
"It was a real pleasure meeting you, too. We hope we see you again sometime soon," Natalie said meaningfully.
Ella couldn't deny the pang of sadness that tightened in her chest. Unfortunately, unless they came back to Woodmont for another visit, she knew she'd probably never see them again.
Chapter Nine
Kyle tossed the last of the sledgehammers, shovels, and other demolition tools that they'd used throughout the day to clear out the property into the bed of his truck. He slammed the tailgate shut, then went to lock up the building for the night.
It was nearing six in the evening, and he'd sent all the guys home over an hour ago, once there was finally nothing left inside the structure but the framework and bare bones, which was exactly where he needed the space to be since everything was going to be rebuilt to new specifications. He was hoping the permits would be approved quickly so the new construction could start soon, and once it did, he knew from experience the remodel would go fast.
But for now, the heavy lifting had been done, and he'd been grateful for the help he'd had today. While his partners and laborers had gone back to their places in the city, Kyle decided to stay one more night so he could do a final walk through the building tomorrow morning to make notes for the renovation supplies he needed to order that week.
As he walked toward the large double doors leading into the new event center, he cast a surreptitious glance over at the market, which was also shutting down for the night. Employees were pulling in items from the sidewalk, and Kyle could see William, the longtime manager, cashing out the registers while the younger clerks wiped down counters and straightened products on the shelves.
Kyle pulled out the keys to the building and secured the doors and lock, debating on whether or not to head over to the store to talk to Ella and apologize to her, because as much as he hated to admit it, Wes had been right in calling him a dick for his behavior toward her during their lunch break. The woman made him crazy, and his purpose for being so abrupt with Ella was to show her that he was just fine and dandy with that fucking friends request she'd issued.