“Myauntisruthlesswhen it comes to setting people up,” Matt says as we bounce around in his truck, making our way through the various fields my dad planted the week before his death. “You’re lucky you’re with Izzy—I mean, for a lot of reasons—but if you weren’t, I’m sure my aunt would consider it her personal mission to get the town celebrity set up with a local.”
A spark of jealousy flares to life at his words. I am lucky I’m with Izzy. I know that. And everyone else should know it too. She’s amazing. On the other hand, I’d prefer other men not comment on how lucky I am.
Izzy is mine, damn it. Mine.
“I thought the town hated me,” I reply.
Matt glances at me from the corner of his eye before shrugging. “Izzy forgave you. Have you not noticed how many of the restaurants and stores play your music now?”
“Yeah. I heard it wasn’t that way before.”
Shaking his head, he lets out a low chuckle. “Um, no. There was an unspoken ban on your music. It might’ve come on a station every once in a while, but everyone went out of their way to avoid stations that played your music regularly.”
It doesn’t surprise me that the town backed Izzy when she decided to be done with me. Even if I also grew up here, Izzy was always the one people loved. The fact that I also left my dad likely didn’t play in my favor either.
Though, I’m impressed at the lengths the town went to protect Izzy from anything that would remind her of me. There would’ve been years when that took a significant level of effort.
“I’m not glad she felt that way, but it really makes me see Wild Bluffs differently knowing how everyone rallied around Izzy.”
“We know how special she is,” Matt says.
I’m forced to tamp down my jealousy again, reminding myself that he doesn’t like Izzy. That he isn’t trying to take her from me. I’ve never been this possessive of someone, and it’s making it hard to focus.
Needing to change the topic to anything that won’t require me to hear Matt say Izzy’s name again, I say, “So, what do you need to know about the farm? I know your dad’s land is nearby, and you and your brother have both been helping him for the last few years, but I’d be happy to try to answer any questions you might have.”
Matt gives me a bit of a puzzled look. “When was the last time you had anything to do with the farm?”
I laugh. “Harvest during my senior year. So, yeah, I probably don’t know anything about the land itself.”
He runs his hand through his hair before giving me an embarrassed smile. “My brother and I have been the ones tending the fields since your dad passed.”
He takes in my gaping mouth and chuckles.
“Don’t looked so shocked, Jaxon. Do you think this is what a farm looks like when no one has taken care of it for three months?”
Scanning the field around me, I realize he’s right. Someone has been maintaining these fields.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I ask, at a loss for words to both explain how embarrassed I am that I didn’t think of the fact that I would need someone to look after it and how grateful I am that they did. “I could’ve paid you or something.”
Matt shrugs. “We had the time. It might get a little tight at harvest to get your fields and ours done, but like I was telling you about earlier, with Chris and me both back, both trying to work with my dad on the same land that my dad previously took care of by himself, well, there are too many hands and not enough work sometimes.”
“I really appreciate it.”
Iamgrateful they didn’t let the fields fall into disrepair. My dad and I may not have seen eye to eye on almost anything, but I know how much the farm meant to him, and I can’t believe I never even considered that someone needed to manage them. Only in small towns like this do you have neighbors helping each other out just because it’s the right thing to do. Not asking for anything in return. It also makes me even more sure that this plan is a good one—the right one.
“And you and Chris…you both wanted to come back?” I ask, curious as to what that would be like.
I couldn’t get away from here fast enough. It’s hard to imagine a world where not only did I want to return, but I had a sibling who also wanted to. My problem had always been too much land and too few options for my dad to pass it down to.
“Yeah. I like Wild Bluffs. I loved growing up here. So did Chris. This is where we want to grow our families. Raise kids.”
“Wait, are you married?” I ask.
Matt shakes his head, a sad set to his mouth. “No.”
“And Aunt Janice hasn’t found your perfect match yet?” I ask, referencing his previous warning.
“She’s sure given it her best try. Unfortunately, I had my perfect match, but I lost her, so now I settle for a few dates every now and then just to appease my aunt, with no real hope of finding something real. Or at least as real as what I had before.”
