Page 13 of Love for a Lifetime

Who could blame them? The Black Star, Golden Comet, and Leghorn were adorable. It helped that they had plenty of personality too. Ginny was subdued, Gretta was feisty, and Gertie was funny.

Anna chuckled as the hens took turns jumping off the chicnic table, flapping their wings frantically, before trotting off together as if they were headed to ladies’ night at the local watering hole.

“They’re cute. I’ll give you that. But I have no idea how you have a hundred thousand followers on Instagram when all you post about are the chickens.”

“Who doesn’t love chickens?” Olivia asked as she followed the group toward their play area.

Yes, her hens had a play area. They also had a hotel, a tree house, and a sunning yard. Hence the name, Cluckingham Palace. They were also free to roam, so they often visited the goats or hung out on her dad’s front porch.

Olivia’s phone dinged and a banner popped up at the top of her screen, reminding her she had an unread message from Dawson.

She clicked it and read his reply. “Dawson is on his way.”

Anna straightened. “Now? Why?”

Olivia wasn’t gung-ho about seeing him after her embarrassing breakdown yesterday. He’d only hounded her once every hour since then, and she wasn’t doing a good job of convincing him that she was as fine as she claimed.

Probably because she wasn’t, and it hit her hard that he knew she wasn’t, despite her insistence.

“He hasn’t seen the goats today.”

“Does he come over every day?” Anna asked.

“Pretty much. I mean, I don’t think I could go a day without seeing my chicks either.”

Anna looked down at her clothes. “I would have worn something different if I’d known Dawson would be here.”

Olivia replayed the video and fought the urge to react. It wasn’t a secret that Anna had a major crush on Dawson. She’d been trying to get his attention for years, and while he was always friendly to her, he hadn’t made the move Anna had been waiting on all this time.

Did that ticking time bomb bother Olivia? Yes and no. She wanted her Anna Banana to be happy, but the thought of losing her best friends to each other made her stomach churn.

She would not be jealous. She would not be jealous.

“You look great. Don’t worry about it,” Olivia said as she moved to the little room outside the palace where she kept treats and equipment. She reached for a plastic cup and handed it to Anna. “Here. Throw these in the sunroom and let me video the feeding frenzy.”

Anna took the cup and looked inside. She jerked back with a yelp and shoved the cup back at Olivia. “It’s full of worms!”

“They love mealworms. Don’t worry. You don’t have to touch them. Just toss a few at a time.”

Anna frowned at the cup, but even the sour expression couldn’t spoil her beautiful features. The woman was model-pretty and with little to no effort. Her straight hair was the perfect shade of sunkissed blonde, and it fell over her shoulders like a golden waterfall. Her blue eyes and easy smile made sure she was never without admirers. Yes, plural. Half the men who came into Blackwater left enamored with her.

As they should because Anna was awesome. They’d been friends long enough for Olivia to know.

Olivia made the motion. “A toss is like this.”

Anna took the cup of worms. “I know how to toss.” She narrowed her eyes at Olivia. “You owe me for this.”

“I have a surprise for you that’ll make you love me again,” Olivia said, trying to contain her smile.

That got Anna’s attention. “Let’s toss some worms.”

After five minutes of filming the chickens munching on worms, Anna stalked out of the sunning room. “Where’s my prize, woman?”

Olivia skipped over to the supply room where she’d stored the box. She cut it open and pulled out the apron she’d ordered. “Look at it!”

Anna’s eyes widened, and she let out a hearty laugh. “What is that?”

“It’s an egg apron. A new online shop wants me to feature it on Instagram.” She held up the apron. The white material was durable with prints of colorful chickens on it. Small pockets for collecting eggs were attached in straight rows along the front.

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