Page 12 of Take Me Home

And that’s how I ended up playing Uno with Darcy for two hours and sleeping over at the farmhouse for the first time.

6

DARCY

Morning broke. I stared up at the ceiling, the first peeks of sunshine streaming through the curtains. I scanned slowly through my brain to orient myself to what was happening. I was not alone in the house. Jake had been scared by coyotes and stayed over. I mean, notstayed overstayed over. Not in my bed. But in the house. I’d made sure he had clean sheets and gave him a spare toothbrush. I had no idea what he did for pajamas. Boys slept in their underwear all the time. That’s probably what he did.

Why was I thinking about his underwear? Stop thinking about the underwear. About Jake, possibly shirtless, possibly in that soft grey t-shirt that had brushed my arms when we got too close in the trailer.

I pulled the covers up to my shoulders, grateful for the crispy bedding and big puffy comforter I’d brought with me to the farm. If I couldn’t bring my whole beloved bed, I could at least have my favorite sheets. No, all of my worldly possessions sat in a storage unit just off the highway.

I smiled in spite of myself and hid my face under the sheets, embarrassed but elated. My mind flashed to Jake’s hand on my back when we looked out the window. How I’d grabbed his arm when Barkley spooked us. How firm that bicep was and how soft that sensitive skin under his arm had felt under my fingers. How fucking good he smelled, some kind of clean cedary spicy scent. How some sort of electricity had passed between our hands when we’d both held the flashlight. How I got a peek of the trail of muscle and hair that let into the waistband of his jeans when he’d put the air horn back on the shelf. How his maple syrup eyes had burned into mine when we clinked whiskey glasses. How he’d laughed until his head was on the table when he drew my evil “Draw 25” card in Uno, the dimple in his right cheek so deep I wanted to stick my finger in it.

It was fun to think of liking someone again, but I wished he wasn’t the one I liked. There was nothing wrong with Jake, nothing at all, really. He was smart enough to be a robotics engineer on a full ride, extremely kind, and of course extremely easy on the eyes. He made me feel young and giddy. He made things burn inside me in a way that I hadn’t felt for a long time.

But that was just it, wasn’t it?Hewas young. He had to be. All of this work was under the table, so there were no employment forms to snoop. He was surely south of 30 if not 25. And the bigger problem: he was my employee. Well, mine and not mine. He was the farm’s employee, but I was the representative for the farm. I had a firm policy not to shit where I slept, aka not to fuck dudes from work.

And as the cherry on top, I was three months out from a broken engagement. I’d almost walked down the aisle with Mr. Wrong. I couldn’t quite trust myself. I should just be Darcy for a while. Maybe have fun with someone, but I had a feeling those lines might blur with Jake. He might be looking for something more than a casual summer hookup.

My life was such a mess, too. I didn’t know where I’d be living after the summer’s farm work. Was I going back to Raleigh? I had a few friends, but no one too close. Plus, Rob was still there. And what was I going to do for work? Was I going back to writing, or would I go back to school for something entirely different?

Long story short, I wasn’t great dating material at the moment, and I didn’t need a messy ambiguous situationship gumming up the works. I needed to work out my life without a boy complicating things.

Having worked myself into an unfun mental pretzel, I groaned and slid out of bed. There were dogs to feed, and coffee to make. Farm jeans, a t-shirt, a baseball hat, and some SPF later, I headed downstairs. Showering would happen at the end of the workday.

As I hit the top of the stairs, I already smelled coffee. Was I dreaming and smelling yesterday’s old grounds? Descending the stairs, I found a half-full pot waiting for me, one mug set out next to it. I opened the dishwasher, which was empty except for a used coffee mug.

Holy shit. Jake had already gotten up, made coffee, and emptied the dishwasher. What was he trying to prove? Was he a huge kiss-ass, or had his mom just raised him really well? It felt an awful lot like we were playing house.

A whirlwind of emotions blew through me. I was impressed, while also a little embarrassed that a guest had done so much while I was laying in bed. I was touched and maybe a little alarmed. As I poured a cup of coffee and brought it to my lips, I had a wide smile on my face that I couldn’t stop. How could I not have a huge crush on this guy, off-limits or not?

One thing was for sure: I’d be the first to get out there and feed the dogs.

Thankfully, the dogs seemed unfed judging by how closely they followed me to the barn. I carried the cup of coffee open, not in a travel mug. I always felt like that was a baller move, walking around with an open cup. Something a rebel would do.

The creek babbled quietly as I passed over it. I stopped to note whether some of the brush lining it needed to be trimmed. It was early, but already sweltering. I longed to sit on the bridge and dangle my feet in the cool water as it rushed off the mountain.

I set the steaming coffee mug aside in the barn to scoop the dogs’ food into their bowls, lined up in a row at the edge of the barn. The gobbling noises they made were voracious and comical. I took a moment to lean against the wall to watch them.

“Morning!” came the call behind me. I turned to find Jake squinting into the morning sun with a boyish grin that made my stomach jump. He’d changed into the red ringer tee he wore the first day, white stripes at the sleeves and neck. He could wear just about anything and it would suit him.

I raised my cup to him. “Thanks for the coffee,” I called as he closed the space between us.

“Least I could do,” he started, “Since you saved me from killer coyotes.”

“Ah, yes. Forgot to tell you they call me the Coyote Slayer.”

The dogs finished their scrounging and promptly took off for the woods, not slowing as they splashed through the creek bed.

“Geez, they must have somewhere to be,” Jake mused.

“Yeah, they go hunting together every morning. Hope we don’t find their catch anytime soon,” I grimaced.

“So wait, they hunt during the day but can’t fight two little coyotes at night? Some protectors, huh?”

I shrugged. “Everything is scarier at night.”

“I guess. Should we get started on anything?”

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