“Terrific.”
Jameson sits, wags his nub tail, and stares at Roxanne with his mouth open, waiting for her to pet him. She tilts her head as if she’s not sure what to do.
“Have you ever had a dog?” I ask. “He wants you to pet him.”
She purses her lips. “Yes, when I was a kid.” Finally, she leans down and scratches Jameson behind the ear. He’s so excited, he throws his full weight into her and knocks her to the ground. I half expect her to shoot to her feet and storm off, but she adjusts, sits, and gives Jameson the attention hedemands.
Damn.
He likes her.
To my surprise, one of our rescue turkeys, Nellie, waddles over to see what the commotion is about.
Topper offers Roxanne a handful of corn. “She loves these.”
Roxanne smiles and extends her hand, but flinches when Nellie’s beak taps her palm. Then she laughs and keeps going, feeding Nellie until her hand is empty. “Where did she come from?”
“We got her from another Colorado sanctuary that burned down in a wildfire,” I say. “She’s usually cautious of newcomers.”
My mouth almost hits the dirt when Nellie stretches her neck a few times and then steps into Roxanne’s lap resting her head on Sunshine’s shoulder.
“Whoa,” Topper says. “Never seen that before.”
Allie gasps and pulls out her phone. “This is unreal. Rox! You’re the turkey whisperer.”
“That turkey only squawked at me,” Leo says, shaking left over corn from his hands.
Everyone forms a circle around Roxanne as she strokes Nellie’s feathers. Her glacial blue eyes meet mine, steady and unbothered. Most people blink and look away when I catch them staring. But she doesn’t blink. Doesn’t flinch.
I should walk away right now. There’s work to do—chores, fences, bills—but my boots feel glued to the dirt. All I can do is stand here, watching a woman with hay in her hair cradle a turkey like it’s the most natural thing in the world. There’s now a thud in my chest that echoes like boots on a wooden floor. Roxanne is smiling back at me, this proud, happy smile, like she’s won the round and proved those damn flip-flops didn’t hold her back after all.
“Where are you going?” Topper calls as I open the gate to the pen.
“Uh, have some work I need to do. Y’all can finish the tour without me. Come on, Jameson. Let’s go.”
Jameson hops into the golf cart, and I drive off straight to the barn.
If I stood there one second longer, I might do something stupid, like smile back.
stuff your sorries in a sack
ROXANNE
When I glanceacross the pen and catch Duke Faraday watching me, something sparks low in my stomach. A flicker I didn’t ask for and definitely don’t want. I don’t fall for men like him anymore.
Not after last time.
It’s probably the sun or the fact that I haven’t eaten much today. Once our animal tour officially ends, I walk a little taller as I head back to the lodge, flip-flops slapping with every step like they’re cheering me on.
Allie and Leo excuse themselves to their rooms to get cleaned up, but vow to bring lunch back to me, before we head to the lodge conference room to sign paperwork and officially get things started.
In other news, I’m covered in hay, goat breath, and at least one questionable substance I can’t quite identify. I strip out of my clothes and seriously consider throwing them on the evening fire. I’m so distracted in the shower, I wash my hair twice. It isn’t even noon and already so much has transpired today, a wisp of anxietyblows through my body thinking about what I might face throughout the summer.
I wrap the waffle bathrobe around me and breathe in the steam wafting around the bathroom. My reflection stares back when I wipe the droplets away from the mirror.
As much as I hate to admit it, Duke Faraday wasn’t wrong about me.
I don’t want to be here, and I’m not taking this assignment seriously. My stubborn ass refused to prepare for the trip, and I didn’t pack the clothes I needed … on purpose. Part of me didn’t want to accept that I was really going back to Colorado. I realize that I need to get my head straight. This is my last chance to save my career. The career I love. This is my last chance to be the woman I was before the accident.
