“I’ll tell you as we pack up.” I sighed.
“You didn’t have to be mean to the poor man,” my friend said.
I did feel slightly bad, even though Carter was still the enemy. He had no idea I had been trashing his company online, and I had no plans to stop soon. One of my posts had even gone viral, calling them bad bunny bastards for shutting down the egg farm on Easter. I figured a bad bunny bastard was basically the opposite of the Easter Bunny, and I rolled with it, not putting a ton of thought into it. I never expected anyone to pay attention to my post. Whatever, Allory deserved it.
It would take a lot more than strong arms and a sexy smile to earn my forgiveness.
“Lila,” I said, looking at her. “There is nothing poor about that man. Believe me. He doesn’t deserve our sympathy. He’s the new CEO of Allory Enterprises, and I want nothing to do with him.”
I picked up the yellow beanie on the table, wondering if I should throw it away.
CHAPTER 6
CARTER
After Sunday’s less than successful trip to the Halston farmers’ market, I was back to visiting some of the local farmers in the area, feeling them out and seeing who might be a good candidate for the social media campaign. At the moment, I was on Ronnie Miller’s dairy farm.
If we were going to rehabilitate our image and counter the bad online press, I needed at least one local to publicly show their support. Obviously, Shelby would be the best person to use, as someone directly related to the poultry farm my father had purchased and shuttered.
Not only had she been personally affected, but she would also look great in a commercial. With her shining blonde hair and sky-blue eyes, Shelby had a raw, natural beauty I found captivating. Like a wildflower growing free, she didn’t need anything fake to stop my heart and make my breath catch every time I laid eyes on her.
Maybe the smart choice was to leave her alone and let her live her life, but my thoughts kept wandering to her whenever I wasn’t busy. She was a challenge, which I loved, but she was also a chance at redemption.
Shelby had been hurt by my company, through no fault of mine, yes, but she had every right not to trust me or my motivations. I wanted to find some way to make it up to her. Getting her onboard for the social media campaign would be great, but I also wanted to right an old wrong.
But that woman hated me like kids hated broccoli. She also seemed immune to my charm, which could usually win anyone over. Anyone who my company hadn’t screwed over in the recent past, at least. Allory had burned a lot of bridges in Ferris, and I needed to figure out how to rebuild them.
I wasn’t ready to give up on Shelby, but in the meantime, I had other little local farms to check out, either to invest in or to recruit for the PR campaign. Which was why I was trudging through a muddy field, looking at cows. At least I had gotten myself some sturdy boots to keep my feet dry out in the wilds of Kentucky.
A curious cow ambled up to me in the field, nuzzling at me curiously. Its nose was wet and it left something sticky on my shirt, but the cow’s owner was watching us fondly.
“She likes you,” Ronnie said. “She’s for sale if you want to take her home. Cows make great pets. Most people don’t know that, but it’s true.”
I didn’t know if he was serious, but I would never find out. “Thanks for the offer, but unless you can housetrain a heifer, I think I’ll have to pass.”
The weathered old farmer nodded. “I reckon the cow patties would be a problem in your backyard. Great fertilizer though. Amazing kindling for a campfire.”
“I’ll take your word for it, Ronnie.”
“I can show you!”
I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. Ronnie was a nice guy. He wasn’t the problem. Mostly, I was questioning thisentire plan. Coming out to Ferris hadn’t accomplished anything so far. There had to be a better way to approach this.
“You okay, Carter?” Ronnie asked.
“Yeah,” I said, waving him off. “Just a bit of a headache.”
“I have just the thing for that,” he said, the smile back on his face. “You need some fresh milk. It’ll clear any headache right up.”
I didn’t believe that for a second. “Thanks, Ronnie, but?—”
“You need to drink it straight from the teat, though. That’s the secret.”
It should have remained a secret, too. But I didn’t say that to him. “That can’t be sanitary, can it?”
He shrugged. “Probably not. I suppose it depends on the cleanliness of the teat.”
“I suppose it does,” I said dryly. “Is there anywhere we can sit and talk? Maybe with air-conditioning?”
