Page 38 of The Marriage Auction 2: Part 2

I lifted my hand toward her, but she backed up another couple steps, her pretty eyes turning ice cold. “Why don’t you take the car and leave? I’ll meet you back at the house later tonight.”

“Summer, I’m…I’m sorry for what I said.” I tried and failed to sound genuine.

“No, you’re not.” She rubbed at her arms as though chilled. “Just go,” she mumbled, her bottom lip trembling.

“I just need to wrap my mind around all of this. Figure out what to do, and the best way to move forward for everyone involved…”

She huffed. “Everyone involved. That’s rich, Jack.” She ran her long fingers through her hair and sighed. “The only two people that matter in all of this are us. Me and you. The ones who are supposedly getting married.”

“Summer, please…” I tried.

“Or is that off the table now too?” She continued, undaunted. “Because what? You’re unhappy with what my family grows? Something that’s perfectly legal in thirty-eight states medicinally and twenty-three recreationally. Not to mention that number is growing every year.” She spun around in a circle with her arms out as if putting her vast indoor farm on display. “Why, might you ask, is it growing so astronomically? If you’d even bothered to ask before freaking out…it’s because the therapeutic properties cannot be denied.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t handle my initial response well, but this is not something I’m used to seeing. Cannabis may be run of the mill in the States, but it is nowhere near as well-received in Europe. And completely illegal in my own home country. Please excuse me if I reacted out of shock and fear of the unknown.” I fisted my hands, unsure of whether I was trying to convince her or myself.

“Look Jack, I’ve lived my entire life being different. My family is nowhere near what is generally thought of as ‘normal’. And for us, and in this town, it’s celebrated. Outside of our area, maybe not. We’re okay with that. I’m also okay with the fact that I provide a product that carries a stigma. Because I don’t carewhat other people think. I only care about the people I help. The ones with crippling anxiety and depression. The cancer patients who can finally eat a meal because my product made it possible for them to feel hunger or settle their stomachs enough from the endless bouts of vomiting. Also, those suffering from seizures and epilepsy. Then there are people with chronic pain. Do you know what that’s like? To be in pain every single day of your life?” She looked me up and down and scowled. “Of course you don’t. You’re in peak physical condition. But for those who have neuropathy, arthritis, muscular conditions, and more, cannabis is the only natural thing that provides relief.”

“Summer…”

She slashed the air. “And then there are the people that just want to chill the fuck out. Let their minds and bodies relax for a single freaking hour after working an eight-hour day that they gave their all to. Cannabis has endless uses and every last one of them are to help people. To ease pain. To relax the mind. You’re either going to get behind this with me, or you’re against me, and this thing between us stops here.”

An icepick to the gut couldn’t have hurt more. Surprise, shock, and confusion swirled in my mind and soul as I processed her ultimatum. I was either with her, or against her.

Summer stood tall and proud, even though tears were filling her eyes. The power and strength in her conviction was incredible to behold. She glowed with it. Her belief not only in her product but in what she and her family were doing for the greater good was breathtaking.

Had I ever in my twenty-eight years felt that passionate about anything in my life?

No.

Outside of helping Erik find his way back to himself and heal from the damage of that helicopter accident, I didn’t think anything in my life had brought the level of fire I couldsee burning in Summer’s gaze. It oozed from her very pores, sparking with the light and essence of a thousand stars. This woman would not be deterred.

Regardless of how we met, what commitments we’d made, the contract we’d signed, it would all end here if I couldn’t wrap my mind around and get onboard with the path this woman, her family, and their company were taking. But I wasn’t the type to jump in with both feet. No, I weighed all options fully. Planned, evaluated, dug into the details before making any decision, lest I make the wrong one.

Summer wasn’t like that. She was a free spirit on a path to enlighten the world with her cause and make it a better place while doing it.

I held up my hands in supplication. “I can see this is incredibly important to you, and my initial response was a bad one. I’ve already apologized for my knee-jerk reaction. I’m going to need a little time to process this information, if that’s all right with you.”

She lifted her chin in defiance, and it took everything I had not to smile. She was so damn beautiful. Her ire and the breadth of her conviction only made her more so. My hands itched to pull her into my arms, hold her close, and make the last twenty minutes disappear so we could start over. Alas, it wouldn’t change anything. She was still the owner and operator of a business I didn’t understand and knew nothing about. All I did know was that it wasn’t legal where I came from. Wrapping my mind around that part alone would be difficult, but I’d evaluate every possible angle and determine the best route for moving forward.

The one thing I did know with my entire heart was I didn’t want to lose her. I’d barely gotten to know her and already she’d wedged herself under my skin and into my psyche in a way Ifound refreshing. She brought a lightness and excitement to my world I wasn’t ready to let go of. Not now, maybe not ever.

Summer was everything I was not.

Free-spirited. Open-minded. Honest to a fault. Non-judgmental. Inclusive.

I’d never met a more welcoming person in my life, and I knew I never would again. People like Summer were like touching the sun. They burned so brightly one couldn’t behold them for longer than a few minutes if they weren’t worthy. I knew I wasn’t worthy of such a woman, but I wanted to be.

Wanted her.

Desperately.

“Just take the car and go. I’ll do some work here and have my dad bring me back later.” She sniffed and cleared her throat.

“Summer,” I called out as she moved to walk along the seemingly endless rows of plants.

She turned around, her expression sad and withdrawn, no longer light and airy as she’d been when we arrived.

“I’m sorry for how I reacted. We’ll talk…”

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