Page 3 of Made For You
“I know. I’ll miss having you there, but your grandma needs you. Plus, I need someone to watch Draco.” Draco was my black cat with green eyes and was named after my favorite fictional character.
“Your cat only likesyou, Rory. He only tolerates the rest of us.”
We used Alex’s vintage truck when we worked the farm stand. It helped draw in the customers. Hefting one of the crates of traded-for goodies into the back, I added, “He’ll like you when you feed him.”
“Right. Then he’ll claw my face off.”
Shaking my head, I continued to load the empty crates until the stand was bare, then I rallied Franny to help me take down the extra canopy cover. Summer in Ashfield, Tennessee was no joking matter, and the sun made sure it stuck with you for weeks later if you didn’t stay covered. Franny darted off once I stored everything into the truck bed, with plans for me to call her when I landed in Miami, Florida tomorrow.
A haze settled over the marketplace as it emptied out. I’d been coming here since I was in diapers, and I always loved the thought of the community coming together. The farmers market had gotten so popular it was slowly becoming a tourist attraction of its own. Not to mention the dozens of people who flocked to our small town in the hopes of catching a glimpse of our local celebrities, Colton and Nate.
Just beyond the market stood the Smoky Mountains. They were a towering force that cradled our town and had a knack for making me feel so much smaller in the world.
“Everything okay, Miss Rory?” Mr. Gravely, the grocery store owner, asked as he finished packing up his booth of homemade soaps he helped his granddaughter sell.
“Yep. Just fine,” I lied. Nothing in my life was fine, and I felt like the world was weighing me down. There seemed to be a curse set on me, and I had no way of ridding it. Ever since that day in Miami a year ago….
Waving in his direction, I hopped into the truck and started the ignition. It wasn’t long before I was headed down Main Street toward my family’s farm. I had a small bungalow a bit closer to the downtown area, but I needed to drop off Alex’s truck and the crates. This was one of the lucky weeks where we offloaded all the produce. Otherwise, I would’ve been making a detour at the church.
The truck swept down the road, taking the winding curves with ease as we crested one particular turn that separated the townies from the tourists.
High on the hill sat Autumn and Colton’s bed-and-breakfast. The house was once a rundown, centuries-old farmhouse that belonged to our Easterly ancestors, then Colton splurged on it as an investment property. It was a devastating blow to my sister, but luckily it all worked out in the end, as she and Colton were now happily married, and I hoped they’d consider adding to their family soon. I couldn’t wait to be an aunt again.
Alex and Nate’s home with Molly and Eloise was out of view of the road, but it wasn’t far from the bed-and-breakfast. Nate built a beautiful house that mixed both craftsman style with that of a rustic cabin. It was gorgeous. I may have been a little envious, but I did love my little bungalow. It was just me and Draco, after all.
After one last tickle bump, as I liked to call the short, steep hills in the road that took your stomach, the metal and stone sign for Sunny Brook Farms came into view. I always marveled at the structure as a kid, and as an adult, I had the same reaction. The stonework gave way beautifully to the wooden fencing around the wheat fields that swayed in the breeze. It wasn’t until you drove down the dirt-and-gravel road a good ways that the corn and soybean fields came into view.
A tractor driven by one of the ranch hands lumbered through the path in the corn, as my father was prepping for harvest next month. September was always a little chaotic at the farm, and it was all hands on deck for our family. My older sisters missed a few harvests over the years—especially Autumn, when she went out of state for college. But my younger sister,Aspen, and I always made it a point to make ourselves available, even when I had college classes of my own.
The large farmhouse finally came into view, starting as a small dot in the distance and growing with every yard I crossed.
My excitement quickly dwindled when I saw my mother wasn’t alone on the front porch. Mrs. Mitchell, my ex-boyfriend’s mom and wife of the town’s previous mayor, joined her. It had been a handful of months since Jeremy and I ended our relationship, but it wasn’t on the best of terms. His entire family moved to Nashville, Tennessee when Jeremy’s father decided to make larger political aspirations. Even though she had been good friends with my mom, it was surprising to find her on my family’s doorstep. Especially after the falling out with her son.
Any chance I had of sneaking into the house was squashed when the old truck backfired as I got closer.
“Shit,” I murmured as both sets of eyes turned toward me.
My morning started off so well, but it seemed to head downhill fast as my trio of sisters and my older half-brother joined my mother on the porch. Thankfully, Mrs. Mitchell was heading down the steps and toward a very-expensive-looking car. One I definitely didn’t remember them having when they lived here. I supposed she had to keep up with the Joneses now.
Luckily, by the time I parked the truck in front of the garage, Mrs. Mitchell was already settled inside her flashy car. As I stepped free of the confines of the truck, I noted the weary faces of my siblings. It was strange enough that all of them were at our parents’ house on a Saturday, but with Mrs. Mitchell’s visit, I knew it couldn’t have been good. She was a few hours away from her new residence. And they obviously excluded mefor a reason, and not just because I had market duty that morning.
As a teacher, most people thought I was the soft-spoken one in the family, and most of the time, I was. But I didn’t care for lies nor secrets, and I made sure everyone knew how I felt about any given matter. My mom used to say I had no filter.
I didn’t bother grabbing the empty crates out of the bed of the truck. Instead, I dusted off my denim shorts, grabbed the only one loaded with trades, and made my way to the front porch. The keys made a jingling sound as they swung on my finger, then smacked against the wood of the crate with each step.
I gazed at my family with a mix of trepidation and irritation.
“So, who wants to tell me why my ex's mom was just leaving the farm?” There was no point in asking my mom, knowing she used to be close with the woman currently leaving a trail of dust down the driveway. She’d simply brush it off as a friend visiting a friend, despite the three-hour driving distance.
I felt like I was shooting laser beams as I focused my gaze on each of my siblings. My younger sister, Aspen, mimicked my stare as Autumn cowered slightly. She was the one I expected would cave first. Unfortunately, she was saved as our dad pulled up on his UTV.
He joined me in front of the porch and wrapped me in his powerful arms. I’d always been a daddy’s girl. “Well, now. To what do I owe the pleasure of having my entire family here this afternoon?”
“That’s a great question, Dad,” I replied dramatically.
“Marisol, do we have the fixings for some sandwiches?”
In her delicate voice that held just a hint of twang, Mom said, “You know we do.”
