Page 90 of Every Beat of My Heart

Owen hadn’t caught a ball in a game yet. Part of it was that Bryce wasn’t throwing to him often, and the other part might have been because he didn’t believe in himself. He was improving at the quarterback position, but I worried he’d never get an opportunity to play because Bryce was better.

Owen worked one night on the farm during the week. Due to the football schedule, it fell on the same night I worked at the fire station. He also worked another few hours on the weekend.

When Claire picked him up, she’d drop off a casserole for the family, knowing we were too busy to do more than eat sandwiches and pizza.

I hadn’t spent more than a few minutes with her in weeks, and it sucked. I wanted more time with her, not less.

I wished Teddy would let Charlotte work her magic. I was all for bringing in more income when it wasn’t me working more hours.

I missed teaching and resented that the farm was taking me away from that and Claire.

One day, I was setting up freshly cut trees in the lot when Dad stopped to talk. “You’ve been grumpy lately.”

I let out a breath, deciding to be honest. “I haven’t been teaching as much. I miss it.”

Dad considered me for a minute and I braced myself for a negative comment about how I spent my spare time. “Have you thought about getting your teaching certificate?”

“I’m already working full-time at the fire station.” I set up one tree, taking a few seconds to walk around it.

“That one’s a beauty,” Dad said.

“I almost didn’t want to cut it down. But it will be sold in no time.”

Dad helped me grab a second tree from the bed of my truck. “Do you enjoy teaching more than firefighting?”

“Why are you asking? I thought you wanted me to be a firefighter.”

We set the second tree in a stand. “It’s not about what I want. Other than wanting you to be happy.”

His comment made me uncomfortable. I was used to my family assuming I was immature and irresponsible. They never mentioned wanting to see me happy in my chosen profession. They just wanted me to choose one, and I had. Now I needed to prove myself by sticking with something for once. “I just wish we could hire more help here on the farm.”

Dad nodded. “I’m not getting any younger.”

“Have you had any progress with Charlotte? Has she revealed her report yet?” I’d seen her around the farm observing how things were run, and she’d asked some questions about it.

“She said she’s sending it this week,” Dad said as we grabbed another tree out of my truck.

“I hope she has some ideas we can work with.”

Dad grunted when he grabbed his end of the tree, reminding me he was getting too old for the heavy lifting. “You’re not the only one. The challenge will be getting Teddy to go along with it.”

“Maybe we need to overrule him. We have to do what’s best for the farm and for you,” I said.

Dad frowned. “I don’t think he wants Charlotte living in the cottage.”

“Why not? He doesn’t live here, and it’s tucked away from the rest of the farm. He’s not likely to run into her much.”

His brow furrowed. “I think it’s the idea of letting someone else live here. Someone who’s not a Calloway.”

I shook my head. “And she’s a Monroe.”

“He’s always felt like he’s been the one in charge. Ever since your mother died. At first, I was a mess, and he helped out. And I leaned on him a little too much. It wasn’t right, and now it feels like it’s too late to tell him to take a step back.”

“It’s not too late.” I couldn’t imagine what Teddy went through. Fiona was the oldest, but she was away at college. So Teddy transferred to a school closer to home so he could be there for us. He helped Dad drive us to practices and games. He sacrificed a lot for us. I probably wasn’t appreciative of his part over the years, but it came with a heavy dose of criticism.

He had a lot of opinions about how we should live our lives, and I never quite measured up.

Once we had the third tree secured, Dad grabbed bottles of water for both of us. “How are things between you and Claire?”

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