Page 14 of Take Me Now

She smiled. “That’s what I told Shelly you would say.”

Our conversation moved along. When I finally risked a glance at Cooper, he was laughing at something Jonah had said. My mother got up to go to the restroom, and I told her I had to go to work. That was the truth, insofar as I did need to go to work even if I would be arriving early. Mostly, I just wanted to escape the threat of an awkward interaction with Cooper.

I stood from the table, slipping into my jacket and looping my purse strap over my shoulder. “Hey, Farrah,” Wes said as I turned. “I heard you took good care of Humpty. Do you want a cat?”

I laughed. “I swear, Wes, if rescue animals were drugs, I would say you were a dealer.”

Cooper and Jonah laughed at that comment while Wes grinned and shrugged. “I get it. My mom always sends me updates on the new arrivals there. You’re a vet tech, so I know they’ll get the best care.”

“I’ll think about it.” I managed to greet Jonah and Cooper casually like it was no big deal that they might’ve just heard me reveal an ugly truth about my life.

As I walked away, my eyes stung with tears, and a sense of weary anger rolled through me in a slow wave. I was so tired of wishing for a different past.

ChapterNine

COOPER

My gaze tracked Farrah as she walked out of the café. A swirl of cool air blew inside as the door swung shut behind her. When I looked away, I collided with Wes’s gaze. If he thought anything of me watching her, he didn’t comment on it. I took a swallow of my coffee, feeling unsettled by what I’d overheard Farrah say to the woman I presumed to be her mother.

I sensed Wes and Jonah had heard just as much as I had. The tables in here were close together. When Farrah’s voice had risen, I hadn’t wanted to listen, but it had been impossible to tune out. I hated knowing that detail about her childhood.

While I wondered what to say to my friends, a voice came from behind my shoulder. “Well, hey guys,” Remy drawled.

I was relieved for the interruption and glanced up at him when he stopped beside our table. “Hey, man,” I replied. “Here for coffee?”

Remy cracked a grin. “Of course.”

Just then, his wife caught up to him. Rachel was pretty with brown hair, blue eyes, and an outdoorsy, warm vibe. She smiled among us. “Good morning, guys.” Her gaze lingered on me. “Well, it’s been, what? Three months now? How do you like Willow Brook?”

I cocked my head to the side. “I like it. Rumor has it I’m gonna have to make it through a few winters before anyone will believe I’m tough enough to stay.”

Jonah snorted beside me. “It’s true.”

“Are you from here?” I prompted. I was still learning the details of my crew members’ lives here.

Jonah shook his head. “Not really. My dad grew up here, but he moved away. He and my mom moved back just recently. We used to spend summers up here. The people who grew up here don’t think that counts,” he said with an easy shrug.

Wes chuckled. “I grew up here and moved away. Therearedifficult winters in other places.”

Remy nodded. “The Upper Midwest is freaking brutal in the winter. I think it’s colder there than it is here. Technically, we’re in the southern part of Alaska. The winters here are a little colder than average, but it’s not so bad. Winter is definitely darker and longer, though.” He glanced at me, adding, “The winters in the mountains of North Carolina aren’t as cold, but you’ll be able to deal with the weather just fine here. Especially if you like the snow.”

“You know I love snow.” Remy and I used to ski together in the winters in North Carolina. It wasn’t always great snow for skiing because it tended to be wet rather than dry powder, but we loved it anyway. “I’m looking forward to better snow here.”

“Oh, you’ll get plenty of powder here,” Wes chimed in. “There’s a ski resort in Diamond Creek, a few hours south of here.”

“I heard about that. Delilah told me that’s how she met Alex,” I commented.

Rachel smiled. “We gave her some comp tickets we had. She flew out here and skidded off the highway on her drive to Diamond Creek. Alex stopped to help her. He was her high school crush from summer camp.”

“Small fucking world,” Remy said with a grin.

Rachel nudged him with her elbow. “I’m gonna go get in line.”

“Right there with you. See you guys later,” he said as he turned and walked away.

Although Remy had hooked me up with a job here, he was on a different hotshot crew, but I still saw him plenty. We all crossed paths in the small town when we weren’t in the field together.

We filtered out of the café not much later, and I returned to the station to work out. I was in the kitchen area in the back of the station when I saw Maisie walking by with her arms filled with paper boxes. “Need some help?” I called over.

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