Page 83 of Sunny Skies Ahead
Lucas was right. I knew he was right, but letting Imogen make that call meant baring myself completely before her, letting her see into my past and into my head in a way I had never let another romantic partner do. It meant admitting my fears were real, tangible weapons to be used against me.
And more importantly, it meant admitting to myself that this was no longer a silly crush.
My feelings for Imogen were as real as my fear of losing her was.
“Which is why I went to talk to her yesterday.”
My head snapped towards him.
“How is she?”
Lucas’s soft smile told me I’d passed some kind of unwritten test.
“She’s okay. She wants you to come to the farmhouse.”
“Today?”
“If you’re okay with that.”
Oh,crap. This was what I wanted, but the weight of the conversation we needed to have was crushing. We’d both have to come to the table willing to lay it all out there. I’d never allowed myself to be that vulnerable with another person. Not when it mattered this much.
Imogen Phillips meant everything to me.
“Life moves fast,” I said, unable to find any other words to describe the feeling of panic clawing its way up my throat. I took the foil-wrapped sandwich and glanced towards the sky. It was already early afternoon. I needed to get a move on if I was getting to Watford before nightfall.
“That it does,” Lucas said. “Sometimes we all need to be told to get our shit together.”
I let out a small laugh. “Yeah, well. . . You and Connor need it more than me.”
Lucas’ smile turned into a smirk as he stood to help me gather the fishing tackle and cooler to bring back to the house.
“Keep telling yourself that, Sarge. Maybe one day you’ll believe it.”
Chapter twenty-eight
Imogen
The morning after Lucas’s visit, I turned my phone on do not disturb, and went for a walk around the homestead.
It had been weeks since I’d taken the time to walk the grounds. I thought back to all of the times I’d run through these fields, back when they were overgrown with wildflowers and native grasses. My Nana had given us full rein of the place as kids, and we’d run wild. I picked wildflowers, climbed trees, scaled the hills, and imagined a world that was kinder; softer.
This place would always have a piece of my heart. My childhood has been beautiful because of this place. All of the crap with my mother aside, I’d remember this place fondly. It was the place where I found my love for reading, and for exploring.
I entered the barn and smiled when I saw Kevin hard at work. He’d just finished mucking out the cow stalls when I approached him.
“Hey,” I said, scratching Betty between the ears. She let out a low moo of approval, and I smiled. “Anything I can do to help?”
“Can you grab the feed buckets?”
I nodded and did so. We filled both of the pails before setting off for the chicken coop.
“Haven’t changed your mind about selling the place, have you?”
I shook my head as we tossed the food out for them.
“No. It’s time to let go.”
Kevin nodded once. We watched the chickens peck at the feed for a few minutes before Kevin grabbed the egg baskets and handed one to me.
