It took an act of Congress (not really, but you get it), a really good head start on the chapter Sunday night and an actual lunch break today for editing to get this update out, but it was worth it, I think. You'll get to know Judson a little better as well as some insight into Wade's head. Funny enough, I'd actually already written the part below where Zoe is called crazy before last night's episode, ha.
Thank you all so much for leaving me so much love with your reviews and story alerts. I'm trying to respond to all of them, but if I miss you or you have your PMs turned off, please know I truly appreciate and read all of y'all's feedback.
This chapter is inspired by Taylor Swift's "I'd Lie."
Things I Own: An umbrella I need to find before the skies open up over Nashville tonight. Things I Don't Own: Hart of Dixie
Zoe looked up and smiled as Judson returned from taking a phone call outside.
"Never a dull moment in medicine, is there?" she asked him.
"What?" he replied, settling onto the couch beside her. "Oh, yeah. That was actually an old rancher who's cattle I used to take care of. He'd forgotten I'd left town. He peered the screen of Zoe's laptop. "You're still re-arranging that thing?"
"It has to be perfect," Zoe told him, dragging small squares and rectangles around on her screen. "If I can pull this off, if I can make this Halloween festival the best Bluebell has ever seen, then these people may finally start to give me a chance."
"You worry too much about what the people around here think," Judson commented.
"They're my patients," Zoe told him, almost defensively. "Or I guess most of them are Brick's patients, but with a little bit of luck, a whole lot of sucking up and a perfectly, strategically arranged festival of booths, games and lots of candy, I might just win a few of them over."
"Why does it matter so much to you?" Judson asked. "Aren't you only here for a year?"
"Well, I mean, in theory," Zoe answered. "But I learned from experience that making plans only goes so far. You make plans and God laughs or whatever that saying is and you end up in the great state of Alabama. I'm not counting on anything."
"You aren't thinking about sticking around here, are you?" Judson asked. "I mean, if I were only planning to be here a year, I certainly wouldn't be spending my Thursday night arranging and re-arranging where the cornhole tournament should go."
"It's complicated. I have to bring in a certain amount of the patients or I'll lose the practice. And to get patients, I have to fit in, assimilate to the community or whatever." Zoe looked at him. "And as someone else who is also new in town, you would do well to get involved with this. It's going to be the party of the year."
"Seeing as I'm the only vet in town, I've got a corner on the market. People have to bring their pets to me unless they want to drive 45 minutes or so to the next closest animal hospital. They can like me or not, I really don't care. As long as I take care of their pets, they'll keep coming."
"So blasé," Zoe commented, turning her attention back to her computer. "What is cornhole, anyway?"
"Basically, people throw bean bags at pieces of wood with holes in them."
"Huh. So I guess I need some sort of equipment for that?"
"Well, yeah. Cornhole boards and bean bags." He watched as Zoe opened up a spreadsheet on her computer and added a line underneath 'cornhole tournament' that said 'boards and bean bags.' Next to that, she typed in 'Wade.' "You sure have Wade helping you out a lot." He'd only met the guy once, but had a strong dislike for him. He didn't care for George either, but as he was the only lawyer in town, he couldn't risk crossing him in case he was ever in need of legal assistance.
"Trust me when I say it's completely against his will," Zoe said. "Half of this is stuff I asked Lavon to do and he put off on Wade so I'm not entirely guilty. Besides, Wade is one of the only people around here who will give me the time of day. And seeing as you're going to be out of town – again – I've got to take whatever help I can get."
"Zoe, I already told you, I can't miss my grandma's birthday. She's going to be 90. She doesn't have many of these left."
"I know," Zoe answered. "And I wouldn't want you to. It's just that we've been dating a month and you've been out of town on long weekends every single one of them. I'm looking forward to the first time we're in the same town for the same weekend and neither of us have to set foot in a medical office, animal, human, or otherwise. All this grabbing a few stolen minutes after long days at the office and calling it a night early so we can get in bed at a decent time is getting old."
"Soon, Zoe, soon," Judson said, squeezing her again.
"Soon as in next weekend?" Zoe asked hopefully.
"Quite possibly," he nodded.
"I'll make it worth your while," Zoe teased. Judson reached out and shut the top of her laptop.
"How about a preview?" he asked, leaning in for a kiss.
"I like previews," Zoe replied just before Judson's lips landed on hers.
Wade jumped at the sound of footsteps, spilling the cereal he'd been pouring all over the kitchen counter.
"What's got you so hot in the heels?" Lavon asked, coming in from outside.
"I'm hidin,'" Wade told him.
"From Zoe?" Lavon guessed. He poured his own bowl of cereal and took the carton of milk Wade offered him.
"She's crazy," Wade informed him. "Completely crazy. And I blame you."
"Me? What do I have to do with anything?"
"You told her she could plan this damn festival. Which, by the way, has gone from a friendly backyard gathering to a Halloween Extravaganza. Her words, not mine."
"If I remember correctly, you were the one sitting right where you are now saying 'let her do it, Lavon.'"
"That was before I knew she was crazy." Lavon laughed.
"She is aiming mighty high," he conceded. "Didi spent 30 minutes fussing about Zoe and her festival last night. Something about a hay bale maze."
"Ah yes. The hay bale maze. If she brings me one more drawin' of what she thinks it should look like, I swear I'll throw in the pond and hope Burt Reynolds' alligator friends are hungry."
"And then you'd jump right in behind her and save her," Lavon told him. Wade shook his head.
"You think I'm jokin,'" he said.
"Boy, Lavon Hayes knows better than anyone that you don't do a thing you don't want to do. Zoe has you wrapped around her tiny little manicured finger and you don't mind one bit." Wade opened his mouth to argue. "Don't," Lavon cut him off. "Lavon Hayes knows what he knows."
"You were a lot more likeable when you were single," Wade shot back. The door opened and closed and Wade didn't need to turn around to know who it was. He groaned and Lavon grinned.
"Morning," Zoe greeted them, helping herself to a cup of coffee.
"Good morning, Dr. Hart," Lavon replied. Wade shoved a heaping spoon of cereal in his mouth and didn't say a word, even when Zoe sat down next to him at the kitchen island. "How's the Halloween festival coming?"
"Halloween Extravaganza," Zoe corrected. "It's going to be amazing. I've got cornhole. I've got bobbing for apples. Sack races, pin the tail on the donkey, dart toss, candy, a hay bale maze, face painting, a costume contest, a pumpkin carving contest, even a petting zoo. This will be the best Halloween Bluebell has ever seen."
"Or the most expensive," Lavon commented. "You've got a budget, remember?" Zoe waved a hand.
"Not a problem," she said. "I've hardly spent any of it. Turns out, if you ask nice enough, people are willing to help you out. Or at least cut you a good deal. Speaking of… What are you doing tomorrow afternoon?"
"Going up to Mobile with Didi to get all the things you've assigned her to pick up for this Halloween show of yours that you can't get around here," Lavon answered. He didn't look altogether pleased about his Saturday plans.
"I'm busy," Wade answered.
"Doing what?"
"I don't know yet. But I'm gonna find something. Or someone." Zoe scoffed at him.
"What do you need, Zoe?" Lavon asked.
"The Saunders Orchard over in Mayfield? They're willing to donate a bunch of pumpkins for the festival. Rose knew someone who knew someone… Anyway, I need someone to pick them up tomorrow morning."
"Definitely busy," Wade said.
"Yeah, busy getting my pumpkins," Zoe told him. His mistake had been revealing he didn't have actuall plans for tomorrow, just intentions. Wade shook his head.
"I'm goin' on strike," he told her. "I'm not so much as thinking about Halloween until Sunday which you've designated as set up day. I'm going to enjoy a weekend free of any and all things Halloween. Unless a slutty nurse walks into the Rammer Jammer. Then I may reconsider my stance."
"Come on, Wade. It'll just take a couple of hours."
"I am not spendin' my Saturday drivin' almost an hour one way for a bunch of pumpkins. You done gave me enough to do without drivin' all over south Alabama." He stood up and took his bowl to the sink. "Where's your boyfriend? Why can't he do it?"
"Judson isn't my boyfriend – at least not yet. We're just dating, getting to know each other. Not I need to explain that to you. And he left this morning. He had to go back to Louisiana this weekend for his grandmother's 90th birthday. He won't be back until Tuesday."
"Out of town again – imagine that," Wade commented. Zoe didn't hear him.
"Zoe, just take the truck," Lavon said. "Wade'll make sure it's got gas in it. It's not much to look at since it's the plantation work truck, but it'll get you where you need to go. I'm sure someone over at Saunders will help you load it when you get there then you can just pay one of these teenagers around here twenty bucks and they'll help you unload."
"But I don't know where it's at," Zoe said.
"It's not hard. Just go north on the highway until you see the big sign for Saunder's Orchard then turn left. If you make it to Mobile, you went too far," Lavon told her. "But if you're worried about getting lost, I'll even throw in my GPS."
"So you're just going to send me all by myself in a beat up pickup truck? I thought southern men were supposed to be chivalrous or whatever." Zoe crossed her arms, irritated that her plan wasn't working for her. A thought struck Wade. He fixed his gaze on her, leaning casually on the counter.
"You don't know how to drive," he stated.
"I do so know how to drive," Zoe bit back. Wade grinned and shook his head.
"No, you don't. Otherwise, you'd have a car instead of traipsing up and down these dirt roads day in and day out in your high heels and beginnin' for rides from me and Lavon. Havin' a car is kind of necessary around here – the public transportation system isn't up to crack."
"Or non-existent," Zoe shot back.
"Hence the need for a car. And in your case, the know how to drive it."
"Zoe Hart can't drive," Lavon said, grinning. "I think Wade might be right."
"I grew up in New York! We don't need to drive!" Zoe exclaimed. The two men laughed at her dilemma. "You know what? George Tucker has a truck. I'll ask him. I'll have to deal with Lemon's psycho Daisy Mae wrath and give Brick one more reason to hate me, but at least I'll have some damn pumpkins!" She turned to storm out of the kitchen. She was halfway out the door when Wade called after her.
"Fine!" he said. "I'll go get the pumpkins. But you're comin' with me. And buyin' lunch!" Zoe stopped on the porch and turned.
"Really?" she asked. She was trying not to look too hopeful.
"Apparently."
Zoe smiled. "Thanks, Wade," she said. She turned and headed back to her carriage house. Wade sighed and turned to face Lavon who was grinning like a Cheshire cat.
"If I'd have known all it took to get you to agree to something was to threaten to ask George Tucker, I wouldn't have had to hire professional painters to paint the house last spring," he said.
"Shut up and pick up a controller so I can kick your ass at this game right quick," Wade told him, turning on the TV and Xbox. Lavon laughed and grabbed his controller.
It was nearing 3AM when he locked the doors of the Rammer Jammer. It had been busy, even for a Saturday night, the busiest night of the week. Alabama football was on a bye week, but that just meant people could pay attention to other matchups and it seemed like half the town had congregated at the Rammer Jammer to watch the Auburn/Ole Miss game.
All he wanted to do was climb in his car, drive home, pull the covers over his head and sleep until noon, at least. Instead, he crossed the road to the town square where Zoe was sitting on the ground amongst a sea of hay bales and pumpkins.
"You still at it?" he asked, sitting down on a hay bale near Zoe.
"Last one," she answered. She looked as exhausted as he felt. They had gotten up early – or at least early for them on a Saturday – to pick up the donated pumpkins, stopping on the way back for lunch at a burger dive Wade knew of. He'd been surprised to see Zoe devour a burger nearly as big as her, but he'd learned within Zoe's first week in Bluebell that she was full of surprises. By the time he'd helped her unload, it was time for his shift. She'd been out there working ever since, stopping just long enough to come inside for a quick dinner.
"I thought Rose was out here helping you," he said, looking around for the girl who followed Zoe around like a puppy dog.
"She was. I sent her home a couple hours ago. She's not as skilled at staying awake for long periods of time as I am." Wade noticed the empty coffee cups and a discarded 5 Hour Energy nearby, but it looked like the caffeine was wearing off.
"I'm impressed, though, doc. You had to have carved at least 50 pumpkins tonight."
"55," Zoe corrected. "Trust me."
"How'd you get through 'em so fast?" he asked.
"The Tark twins? Turns out they're good for something besides finding every patch of poison oak in Bluebell. I saw them giving their mom a hard time while she was trying to shop so I did the neighborly thing and asked them if they wanted to help. All I had to do was cut the tops open. They gutted these things in record time. Rose got a few friends to help with the carving, at least until the football game came on."
"Look at you, bondin' with the town folk," Wade teased.
"Whatever it takes," she answered. He watched her as she carefully removed the stencil she'd been tracing onto the pumpkin as they talked. Of course Zoe couldn't just carve a simple face. Every pumpkin had an intricate design – a haunted house, a witch with a cauldron, black cats walking along fences. None of them were lit yet, but he knew they would be impressive when she finally put a candle in them. She bit her lip in concentration as she worked a small saw into the pumpkin's flesh and started following the lines she'd created.
She was beautiful. Her dark eyes, so full of exhaustion, were focused, the small tool in her hand maneuvering expertly, no doubt due to her training as a surgeon. He couldn't take his eyes off of her and she was so engrossed in her work she didn't notice his staring.
He hadn't meant to fall for Zoe Hart. He hadn't really admitted to himself that he had. But he felt an overwhelming urge to protect her, shield her from whatever he could, whether that was harmless pet alligators, burnt spaghetti or veterinarians who raised his suspicions. He found himself coming up with excuses to see her, whether it was waiting to fix the fuse box until she'd turned up to fix it herself or planning his meal times around when she was most likely to be in Lavon's kitchen. He was sure no one had ever been happier to need stiches as he had been the night he'd gotten caught up in his own thoughts and forgotten about the jagged fence behind the Rammer Jammer.
He was no fool though. He and Zoe were from two different worlds. She wasn't even planning to stick around. He couldn't deny the tiniest shred of hope he had that she might change her mind when her year was up, but it was hard to doubt that she wouldn't jump at the chance to take off New York or some other big city the moment she was offered a fellowship. It seemed like Bluebell was growing on her, but she was a city girl at heart and there was no denying that.
Besides, he'd promised himself a long time ago he wouldn't go there. He wasn't a relationship guy. He could never be half of a George and Lemon. It just wasn't in him. He was attracted to Zoe, but it couldn't go past that. He had realized that the night the heat wave broke as she stood on his porch, getting soaked as she softly told him she wasn't that kind of girl. It had pained him to accept it, watch her walk across the yard to her house and away from him, but if things had gone too far, she would have woken up the next morning full of regret. He'd rather want her from afar than run the risk of losing her.
"Done," Zoe stated. She held up the pumpkin to admire her work. It was one of the more simple ones, a ghost floating through a night sky, but it looked as good as the others. Wade clapped.
"Bravo, Doc," he said.
"What are you still doing here anyway?" she asked, stifling a yawn. "I figured you'd go home and pass out after so much physical exertion today."
"My stamina is quite impressive," Wade told her with a smirk. He wouldn't act on his desires, but he couldn't resist teasingher just a little. Zoe just rolled her eyes. "Besides, I couldn't let a pretty girl walk home." Zoe was too tired to banter with him. He helped her clean up and when the last of her coffee cups and pumpkin guts were gone, she looked around.
"Think all of this will be okay sitting out here?" she asked. "I asked the officer on patrol to keep an eye on it, but…"
"This is Bluebell, Doc. No one is going to mess with your pumpkins and hay bales, especially not when they know they're for a town event."
"You sure? Teenagers get rebellious…"
"They'll be fine," Wade confirmed. And he didn't doubt it. He'd seen the officer's patrol car cruise by several times through the window of the Rammer Jammer and once since he'd been sitting with Zoe, but even that was unnecessary. It just wasn't something to worry about in Bluebell. "Come on," he said. "I've got to spend most of my Sunday making these hay bales into a maze. I'd like to get some sleep before then."
Zoe followed him to his car and got in as he held the door. She'd gotten used to that – the men around town seemed to have it ingrained in their very souls not to let a woman open a door or pull out a chair for herself if they could help it. It was nice, a definite change from the men she'd known in New York.
The short drive back to the plantation was a quiet one, both too tired to carry a conversation. Wade slowed to a stop in front of Zoe's and realized she had fallen asleep in the passenger seat. He took a moment to take in her sleeping form before reaching over and gently brushing her hair out of her face.
"Doc?" he said. "Time to wake up." Zoe stirred almost right away, not having the time to fall into a deep enough sleep. She blinked a few times, finding her bearings.
"Thanks for the ride," she told him as she opened the door. "And for helping me earlier."
"No problem," he told her. "Thanks for lunch." She gave him a tired smile as she shut the door. He waited until she was safely inside before turning towards his own place.
Thanks so much for reading! Look for the next update this coming weekend - lots more on Judson and Wade, not to mention Zoe's 'Halloween Extravaganza!'