I send a photo back of myself rolling my eyes.
I’m playing with him. My skin’s practically buzzing with anticipation. Cody counting the hours until we see one another still feels surreal.
I send a heart emoji in case he misinterprets the eye roll.
I glance into the bakery. Sydney’s watching me. I don’t know what she thinks I’ve been doing out here. Hopefully she didn’t see the goofy smile plastered across my face the whole time I’ve been texting Cody. I wave and she waves back, and then I pluck my pastry off the roof and slide into the driver’s seat to head back to the county offices.
Saturday I wake early. I’m in the barn before my brother or Chet. I check the new litters of piglets and the mothers. Then I start to run the feeders. Jace, Chet and my dad walk in, obviously surprised to see the work underway.
“Well, now,” Dad says. “Look who’s showing off.”
“Proving a point?” Jace asks me.
“That I can work in town and still support the farm?”
He nods.
“I’m not out to prove anything. I feel bad that I can’t do more, so I thought I’d do extra on my day off.”
“You do plenty,” Dad assures me.
One look at Jace and I know Dad’s just being kind. My brother’s overwhelmed. And I used to fill in more of the gaps before I took on the inspector position. But I’m not going to let any of that get me down today. I’ve got a date with my horse and Cody.
We work together for the rest of the morning. I try not to check the time too often.
When there’s a lull in the activity, I say, “I’m going to take Lark out on a ride. Do you need anything else?”
Jace’s head lifts, his focus shifting from the concrete floor he was scraping to me, standing halfway between him and the barn door.
“Go ahead.” His voice is neutral.
I almost offer to stay on. I could text Cody and delay, but I’ve already done more than I usually would.
“Thanks,” I tell Jace. “I’ve got wedding errands for McKenna later this afternoon.”
“You helped a lot, Carli,” he says, his voice weary.
“I wish I could do more.”
“You deserve a day off,” he tells me, resting his forearm on the shovel handle.
“So do you, Jace.”
His smile is only half as bright as it should be.
“I’ll help tomorrow morning too,” I promise.
“Get out of here before I think of something else that needs tending,” he threatens.
I resist the urge to hug him. He’s a lot like Dad in that way. Affection is rarely shown, but always felt, even more deeply when they’re holding back.
The sky is filled with fluffy spring clouds, and the crisp air chills my cheeks when I step out of the barn. I tilt my head up, letting the sun warm my skin. Lark almost seems to know we’re meeting Cody and Jasper. She’s as tightly wound as I am. Or maybe she’s just picking up on my energy. I saddle her up, talking in a soft, soothing tone.
“We’re going for a ride, girl. Just you and me.”
She side-eyes me.
“Okay, just you and me and then …” I lower my voice to a whisper. “We’re meeting some boys.”
