Page 81 of Sunny Skies Ahead
“It doesn’t make you feel weird?” I said. I fiddled with a stray piece of yarn on the blanket. Bass let out a massive yawn and stretched his paws out on the couch, rolling belly-up so Lucas could pet him. “That all of your friends are in relationships with each other, I mean.”
Lucas quirked an eyebrow in my direction and shook his head. Bass whined when Lucas stopped petting him, and took it upon himself to crawl into Lucas’s lap, pressing his nose into Lucas’s side in an impressive guilt trip. Lucas sighed and resumed petting him.
“If that was the reason you guys felt like you had to sneak around at the farm, I’m sorry to inform you I wouldn’t have cared,” Lucas said. “But watching you two try to hide it from everyone was very entertaining, so thank you for that.”
I laughed. “Thanks. Always so supportive.”
“I love you both,” Lucas said, all hint of playfulness and teasing vanishing from his voice. “Kameron is one of the best men I’ve ever had the honor of working with. And he loves you. He would give you the world on a silver platter if he could. Hell, if you asked him to, he’d probably make it happen.”
I tried to laugh, but it came out as a strangled cry. Lucas patted my leg, and I rolled my eyes. Lucas had always been one of those people who ran for the hills as soon as the tears started flowing.
“I’ve got to head back to Winding Road. I’m sure Kameron is doing some serious brooding, and I live to annoy him.”
“Be nice,” I said. “He’s got a lot going on right now.”
“I know how to handle him,” Lucas quipped.
Twenty minutes and an astronomic meltdown from Bass later, Lucas was rumbling down the gravel driveway, headed towards town. Bass whined at the front door.
“He’ll be back another day,” I said, reaching down to scratch between his ears. Bass inclined his head towards me, pressing his face against my palm. He whined again.
“Let me guess. You’re not mad about Lucas leaving. You’re upset because your Dad isn’t here?”
Bass yipped and wagged his tail. My fingers stilled in Bass’s fur.
“He’ll be here tomorrow,” I said, shaking my head to clear the anxious thoughts before they fully took root in my mind. “He’ll be here tomorrow, and everything will work out how it’s supposed to.”
I’d never envisioned having children, and I’d certainly never seen myself as a particularly maternal individual. But my words seemed to comfort Bass, based on the way he flopped belly side up and demanded more tummy scratches before bolting off in the direction of his toy basket.
Everything will work out how it’s supposed to.
That sentence became my mantra for the rest of the day.
Chapter twenty-seven
Kameron
Iwasn’t accustomed to having so much anger and frustration I didn’t have a place for.
I’d taken to skipping rocks off the dock like a teenager.
I’d spent the better part of my adult life learning about the neuroscience behind anger and trauma. I knew on an anatomical level how anger manifested and why certain experiences were so difficult to move past. I’d taken that knowledge and built a place where people like me could come to learn those things, and use it to change their life.
I knew all of that, but the situation with Jacob had humbled me by reminding me I was still human.
I’d let Imogen have her space yesterday. I’d texted her and then forced myself to mute my notifications, so I didn’t stare at my phone all day. Lucas had texted me early in the day to let me know he was going to attempt a visit with her in the morning, and it had taken everything in me not to blow up his phone with a million questions about how things were going.
I’d taken all the horses for long rides through the forest surrounding the farm, trying like hell to get the image of Imogen’shorrified expression out of my head. The image would haunt me for a long time.
When that didn’t work, I’d grabbed my fishing gear and come down to the docks. I hadn’t caught anything—hadn’t even gotten a bite. It was like the fish could sense the self-hatred and steered clear of me. I’d been out here for over three hours when someone else finally joined me.
Lucas, of all people, came to stand beside me on the dock, letting out a low whistle when I skipped a stone more than twice.
“You’re getting good at that.”
“Don’t be a dick,” I warned. “I’m not in the mood.”
Lucas shrugged. My gaze drifted towards the fold out chair and insulated lunch bag tucked under his arm. He unfolded the chair and sat down, rifling around in the bag and pulling out a sandwich.
