Page 34 of Love Off-Limits
Why was I doing this again?
Samson—or was it Sergeant?—rubbed his side against my hip, his tail thumping against me.
“I think Samson likes you,” Kelly said. “He must recognize you’re in the same category size-wise.”
I wasn’t so sure. In my mind, a person sized to fit Samson was a little closer to Incredible Hulk than average tall man.
I hadn’t known what to expect when I’d fled Charleston and driven to Stonebrook Farm. And I hadn’t thought much beyond just wanting to discover if there was work for me or not. I’d assumed, if Olivia would hire me, that I’d find a hotel to crash in until I could find a place to rent. Why I didn’t do the same thingwithoutthe job was a mystery. I had plenty in savings. I didn’t need the fifteen an hour this job was going to pay me. I could find a little place to rent, set up shop, and get to work figuring out what I wanted to do. I’d helped Isaac buildRandom Ifrom the ground up. It wasn’t like I didn’t have a little bit of know-how when it came to start-ups.
But this felt different. I’d never felt so out of my depth when Olivia had asked me about prices and discounts, websites and portfolios. What would I even show a potential client to get them to hire me? An episode ofRandom I? I needed to shoot. To see things. To figure out how to tell a story through my lens.
Iwantedto do it. I believed I probably could. But I was still terrified.
Maybe that’s why I’d agreed to take the job. Because it was easier than, well,that.
Plus, I was quickly growing to appreciate the backdrop Stonebrook provided. With so many people living and working on the farm, there might be good opportunity to start shooting, to catch some video I could play around with. If I wanted to tell stories, Stonebrook was full of them.
Of course, seeing Olivia on a daily basis was an added perk, though she’d worked hard to squelch that potential as quickly as I’d suggested it.
Still, she hadn’t completely hidden the fire in her eyes when I’d touched her hand. Or stopped herself from staring at my lips. She remembered our kisses as well as I did.
But this was her territory, which meant I had to play by her rules.
It didn’t mean I had to like them.
“That should be about all you need to know for now,” Kelly said. She whistled and brought both dogs to her side. “Dinner’s at five. That gives you a couple hours to settle in, and head over to Feed ’n Seed if you want before you eat. Any questions?”
Only one.
How in the everlovin’ hell did I wind up here?
“I don’t think so. Everything sounds great.”
She nodded. “Feel free to call me, but only if you really need to, though I probably don’t need to tell you that as much as I do the college kids. They like to treat me like I’m their second-grade teacher, texting me questions about where to buy toothbrushes and other nonsense. They’re adults. You’d think they’d have figured out the basics by now.”
“Sometimes it takes a while,” I said, suddenly dreading meeting my apparently much younger roommates. It occurred to me that some of them might know who I was. I wasn’t frequently on camera withRandom I,but Isaac’s most loyal fans still recognized me.
I said goodbye to Kelly and made my way back to the farmhouse so I could move my Jeep to the employee parking lot closer to the bunkhouse. When I arrived, Olivia was leaving the farmhouse.
I tried not to stare. She looked as good as I’d imagined she would, but also...a little different. Her deep auburn hair was pulled back into a low ponytail, and she wore black pants and a matching jacket. She looked polished and professional and...boring.Still beautiful. But boring. Not that I had a lot to go on; we’d only been together a couple of days, during one of which she’d been wearing a bridesmaid’s dress. But the vibe she’d given off at the wedding had been playful and adventurous. She’d struck me as bold and daring. That vibe was missing here at Stonebrook.
She pulled out her keys and aimed them at the sedan parked next to my Wrangler. It was a newer model Acura—nothing too fancy—but it was fire engine red.
Maybe I hadn’t completely misread her boldness.
I lifted my head in acknowledgment as she approached.
“Kelly didn’t scare you off?” she asked, lifting her hand to shade her eyes from the afternoon sun.
“Almost, but she said I’d get sugar cookies if I go to Feed ’n Seed, and I’m a sucker for a good cookie.”
She nodded gravely. “Ann’s cookies are the best. Don’t tell Lennox I said so.”
“The chef, right?” We’d talked about our families extensively the night of the wedding. I remembered being slightly intimidated by the idea of her four very successful brothers.
“You’ve got a good memory.”
I shrugged. “I don’t remember everything.” I leaned against the back of my Jeep. “Just the stuff that means something.”
