“Nah, you don’t need one. Besides, if you ever do, we have a couple you can borrow. You can drive up in your car to the main house, where you arrived,” he added for clarification. “I’ve just been dying to use this. Plus, it’s great when you want to drive out further to the unpaved parts of the land…like the meadow, river, and such. Oooh, we’ll totally have to go swimming.”
I laughed. “Of course you have,” I said. “Wait, hold on. How many acres do you guys own?”
“Hmm, well, this part is about six hundred acres. Originally, the property was two thousand, but my great-grandpa developed houses on the eastern part of the land. It’s got its own entrance, and it’s kind of cut off from our parts now, but only kind of. We like to let den—I mean, the town needed the houses, so we donated part of our land. That was also about the time when we stopped raising cattle.”
“I was going to ask if you did,” I said.
“Nope, not anymore. Pop-pop focused on the factory. His brother, my uncles and cousins who live a few towns over, they still do, though.”
We finally got moving, far enough for Rhys to point out the important landmarks of the tour. “All right, so enough town history. Let’s introduce you to your neighbors,” Rhys said. “Next to us on the left is Graham, my immediate older brother.”
“I remember Graham,” I said. He’d visited Rhys more than once while we were at college.
“Yeah, so he’s on the left of me, and on the right is Hunter. You’ve not met him yet. He’s the sheriff in town. As you can see, they stuck me right in the middle to keep an eye on me.”
I snorted at how petulant he sounded but took in the houses he pointed out. They were beautiful, and I couldn’t help wondering what it would be like to live right next door to your siblings. Family in general, to be honest. I’d been an only child of only children, so it was just me now.
Looking around at all this, I found I was a little jealous of how close Rhys and his family were.
I shook off that feeling; jealousy was a wasted emotion, my papa would say. Besides, it’s not like it would do me any good.
Instead, I focused on my surroundings. Unlike the main building I’d pulled up at, these homes weren’t made of logs and brick. It’d looked more like I’d wound up in one of those fancy gated estates. Studying the house, it seemed they were all versions of modern farmhouses, ranch-style and craftsman homes mishmashed together. The brothers seemed to have taken what they liked from each one. But even though they all looked similar, they actually weren’t. It was subtle, but each brother seemed to personalize their home with something unique. I really liked the white with grey trim Rhys had gone for. It was peaceful, modern but homey. Then there was one that was white with a beautiful light wood trim. But my favorite had to the one with the raised front porch framed with white columns and a stone stoop.
The houses were close enough together that a short walk to borrow a cup of sugar would be simple, but they weren’t so close you could hear everything happening next door.
“The ones opposite ours act as guest houses for when family comes to visit, you know. We also have a lodge further out for huge gatherings, not that we’ve had one in a while.” Rhys continued his narration as we drove forward. “This is Austin’s, my second-oldest brother and the mayor.”
I heard the pride in Rhys’s voice. In fact, I heard it each time he mentioned one of his brothers.
“And opposite him is Gabe, my grouchy oldest brother. Of course, Papa and Dad are first on the street. Pops and Grandma have a cottage by the river, but at the moment, they’re visiting family in Europe, or maybe they’re on a cruise in Alaska. I can’t keep up with them.”
“Wow, it’s amazing how you basically have three generations living together here,” I said. “Must be nice having family around all the time.”
“Yeah, it is, even when they’re overbearing. I couldn’t imagine not having them around.”
Rhys’s head whipped towards me, and he braked hard. Thankfully, the seatbelts held. Not that we were going fast enough to cause any damage. “Oh, my gosh. I’m so sorry, Kee. I didn’t mean—”
“I know you didn’t.” I managed a smile. “I’m fine, honestly.”
“I’m sorry,” Rhys said again. He looked like a kicked puppy.
I smiled and pointed forward. “Drive.”
Rhys nudged me one last time, and I shook my head, smiling.
He got moving, and in a low voice, he said, “You know you can talk about them anytime, right?”
My heart caught, but I nodded. “I know, but not now, okay?”
Rhys didn’t reply. Instead, we left the family estate, and he pointed out bunkhouses, stables, and a number of animals, including cows, despite them not raising cows anymore. I would stay away from those. I’d read somewhere not to get cornered by a cow. Apparently, they could squish you… Although, maybe that was a dream… Either way, me and animals didn’t mix. Even dogs scared me.
Even with the undesirable wildlife, I had to admit that the land was stunning, and I was pretty sure I’d never seen this much green up close—ever. Maybe once on a school trip to Central Park. Even then, the air certainly hadn’t been as fresh as it was here.
I knew with certainty that my parents would be proud of me for this decision. Sure, it’d been spur of the moment. But it was the right thing for me.
Some of the stress I’d been carrying since Papa took his final breath seeped away. The memory of holding his hand by his bedside gradually began to plague me less.
I was definitely glad to be out of Philly. By the time we pulled up in front of Rhys’s parents’ home, I said, “I totally get why we couldn’t walk.”
