Page 100 of Seven

“You’re not leaving it,” Casey corrected. “You’re taking it with you.”

“Exactly,” Jenna agreed. “And let’s be honest, you’d run yourself ragged if you tried to keep this place going.”

She wasn’t wrong.

Moving in with Holt had changed things. Not just for me but for Ford, too. He was starting a new school and making new friends, and I needed to be there to help out whenever I could. I couldn’t do that and run a pottery shop two hours away. It just didn’t make any sense.

So, I made the decision to do something different.

I’d turn the barn into my new workspace. I would make my pottery there and sell it at the local art gallery. Eventually, I would work toward online sales. I may have been a little sad to let go of a dream, but I knew I’d made the right choice.

Casey nudged my shoulder. “We should have girl’s wine night at the barn. You can show us what you’re making and even teach us a thing or two.”

“Oh, I’d love that!” Jenna gasped. “You could do pottery for kids, too! I know Luna would love that.”

“Toby would, too!” Casey's mouth dropped wide. “That’s a really good idea! I can’t believe I didn’t think of it.”

“Hey, hey. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We still have a lot of packing to do.”

“She’s right.” Jenna gave her a stern but playful look. “Let’s get to it.”

We spent hours boxing everything up and making trip after trip, loading everything into the trailer. We’d been at it for over an hour when I said, “Holt and I had an interesting talk last night.”

“Oh, yeah?” Casey stopped in her tracks. “What about?”

“Everything.” I continued wrapping one of my bowls as I told them, “We’d really never talked about the years we were apart, so we spent a lot of time talking about that. I told him all about my time in Paris and New York, and he told me about his time in the military.”

“That’s good.”

“It was. We both learned a lot about each other.”

“Hmmm.” Casey’s brows furrowed. “Why do I feel like there’s something you’re not telling us?”

“Well, there was a lot of talk about the club and all the rules.” Jenna glanced over at Casey, and they shared a knowing glance. “There’s a lot there, isn’t there?”

“Yes, but it isn’t too bad.” Casey shrugged. “The secrets can be tough at times, but you have to remember it’s for our benefit.”

“Yeah, that’s what he kept saying, but I wasn’t so sure I agreed.”

“It’s one of those things that takes time.”

“What about the hang arounds and all the strippers? Do they take time getting used to?”

“Actually, the girls are pretty cool,” Jenna admitted. “Once one of the guys is claimed, they keep their distance.”

“And they do a lot around the club house and help out any way they can.” Casey picked up a box as she said, “You met Bridgett. She’s a hang around, and she’s awesome.”

“Yeah, she really was.”

“Just give it time. If you still have concerns about something, talk to Seven about it, and he’ll get it sorted.”

“Thanks. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who’s gone through all this.”

“No. We’ve all been there, and I can honestly say, the good outweighs the bad ten-fold.”

“Good to know.”

We kept at it, and when we’d almost gotten everything done, I sent Casey and Jenna home. I wanted to wrap up the last of it myself so I could have a moment alone before I closed this chapter on my life.

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