Page 35 of Unbreak Me

Day glanced at me, his fingers drifting to the pendant around his neck. He looked away after a moment, fiddling with the chain absently as he stared into the flames.

"I grew up in the city," he said finally. "But now I see what I missed. This kind of calm—being surrounded by nature." He lowered his gaze to the pack of cigarettes on the table, hesitating for a moment before deciding against it.

Max padded over to him and nudged Day’s hand with his furry head. Day smiled faintly and scratched behind the dog’s ears, his fingers ruffling through the fur.

"I’m glad you like it here, Day," I said, leaning back and watching him. "When I bought this plantation, I thought it was too big. I was sure it’d overwhelm me. So, it makes me happy that someone else can appreciate it, too."

"I do appreciate it, really," he said softly, still staring into the fire. "And… not just the plantation."

His heart was racing nervously as he said it, so I didn't press him on the topic.

Instead, I raised my gaze to the starry sky and let the moment be, feeling hopeful, allowing myself to savor the quiet of the evening—Day’s presence, the warmth of the grill, the glow of the flames, and the peaceful sound of the night settling around us.

???

On Friday, the worker who was supposed to help me fertilize the raspberries canceled at the last minute. To my surprise, Day offered to help.

Over the past week, he hadn’t done much heavier physical work on the plantation, aside from helping pack orders and cooking. I didn’t expect him to, but I kinda hoped he would show up more often, even just to accompany me. Most of his time wasspent in front of his laptop, though I’d caught him circling the greenhouses once or twice, as if he wanted to help weed the beds, but he seemed too shy to ask.

So, on his sixth day at my place, when he volunteered to help with the fertilizer, it was unexpected—but very welcome.

We spent the afternoon watering the raspberry rows with nettle manure. The conversation stayed practical, but it was a refreshing change from our usual routine. When I asked if he didn’t have work to do, he told me he’d finished a few big projects the night before and had some free time.

At one point, he took off his gloves to wipe his forehead, not realizing he left a smudge of dirt on his temple.

"Uh, you’ve got some dirt here," I muttered, gesturing toward his face.

He quickly wiped at it, but the smudge only spread toward his cheekbone.

"Still there," I said, pointing again. He tried one more time, but now there were two streaks of dirt across his face.

Feeling a little bold, I took off my gloves and stepped closer to help. Normally, I wouldn’t do that, but after our pleasant grill time, I grew hopeful that we were heading in the right direction

When my hand brushed Days’ skin, I felt a strange tingling, and my heart started pounding.

Our eyes met. For a moment, I saw panic in his expression. Quickly, I wiped the smudge away and stepped back, realizing I’d crossed some unspoken boundary.

"Sorry," I muttered, turning away and slipping my gloves back on. "You’re sweaty, and the dirt stuck to you," I added, trying to justify my actions.

"It’s okay," he whispered, but I could tell it wasn’t.

Did I misread him? Did I rush things? He obviously wasn’t ready for that kind of contact. It made me feel a little disappointed—our days had been so smooth and pleasant, and Ihad allowed myself to hope… perhaps too much? It wasn’t what he wanted right now.

So, I promised myself I wouldn’t rush things again.

???

On Saturday, Frank came to visit us. I wasn’t thrilled about the meeting because I knew how pushy, even nosy, he could be. He didn’t mean any harm; it’s just that, being over fifty, he had that lack of subtlety sometimes characteristic of his generation. The fact that as a beta, he couldn’t hear the heartbeats also played its part. He wasn’t that good at reading the mood in the room.

And… my concerns were quickly confirmed when, after being enthusiastically greeted by my dogs, he launched into a full-blown interrogation of Day as soon as we sat down for dinner.

He started with, "So, what made you decide to use Fate’s Choice?"

Day didn’t seem too fazed by the question. He replied in a fairly normal tone, "To be honest, it was their advertisement. They promised that anyone who signed up within 24 hours of its release had a chance to get a contract where they guaranteed finding a good pairing within six months."

Frank nodded as he ladled soup from the bowl I had placed on the table.

We were all sitting on the terrace around a cozy table with rattan chairs.

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