Chapter 26
Finn
Rocks crunch under the tires as we roll down Millie’s childhood driveway and a white two-story farmhouse comes into view. The house is surrounded by a green blanket of grass sprinkled with wildflowers and two massive hemlock trees.
Pepper perks up in the backseat between the girls, tail wagging as she looks out the windows.
“Are we there?” Eloise asks from her booster seat.
Millie’s legs bounce as she takes a deep breath. “Yep. This is it.” She points for me to park next to an old gray truck.
A cheerful greeting from outside the car has her opening the door before I’ve even turned off the car. Millie clings to a young woman in a sun hat, and Pepper leaps through the front door to escape the car.
As I open the back to let the girls out, Mary approaches with a kind smile that’s identical to Millie’s. “Welcome!” She wraps her arms around me in a motherly hug that instantly reminds me of my nonna. It’s been years since I had a hug like this. “I’m so glad you’re here.” We pull back, and her palm lands on my shoulder with a squeeze. “I’ve been wishing to meet you.”
“Thanks for having us. Your property is beautiful.”
“Oh, thank you.” She squats in front of the girls. “I’m Millie’s mom, Mary. I’m so happy you’re here to visit our farm.”
Eloise smiles immediately. “I’m Eloise. Can I pet your goats?”
“Absolutely. They would love that,” she coos. “Is there an animal you want to pet, Avery?”
“Horses,” she says simply.
Mary nods. “That can be arranged. They’re my favorite too.”
Millie brings the young woman over and introduces us to Fable. Her sister is slightly shorter than Millie and looks right at home on the farm in a pair of denim overalls rolled up over her work boots and two honey blonde braids on her shoulders.
When I reach out to shake her hand, she clasps it and then turns our joined hands to look at mine like she’s inspecting it. She narrows her eyes and says, “Good-sized hands.”
That’s the oddest greeting I’ve ever received. “Um... thank you?”
Dropping my hand, she winks before kneeling to speak to the girls. “Know anyone who want to help me collect eggs?”
Avery nods, and Eloise jumps a few times. “Me! Me!”
Fable grabs their hands—not inspecting them at all—and turns to lead them toward the chicken coop.
As Millie and her mom are catching up, a tall, broad man in jeans and a flannel shirt catches my eye. He’s walking out of the barn when Pepper bounds up to him, and he runs a hand over her back before continuing our way.
“Well, Millie finally came back home,” he says, wrapping her in a tight hug and rocking her back and forth.
When she pulls away, she gives him a stern glare. “You’re the one who didn’t come to visit last time Mama did.”
He ruffles her hair like I do with El and Ave.
I offer my hand, and he shakes it firmly. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Oaks. I’m Finn Ashford.”
His face creases all over with the strength of his smile. “Call me Dave.”
Millie grins as she watches us, the apples of her cheeks rosy, like they’re already sun-kissed.
“Okay”—Mary loops her arm through Millie’s—“let’s show Finn around so he feels right at home.”
***
The only thing more excruciating than Millie in a bikini is not being able totouchMillie in a bikini. The forest-green fabric is stretched across her perfect tits, giving enough of a tease to draw my attention constantly. She sits on the edge of a small dock in her jean shorts, feet dangling in the pond as the sunshine dances across her strong shoulders and delicate collarbones.
