His smile was devious then. “Good, because we’re far from done.”
Chapter twenty-five
Sydney
Once we were showered,dressed, and checked out, we drove separately down the mountain back to the main farmhouse, where we were sure Matilda would be by now. Brooks opened my car door and held his hand out to me, and I couldn’t help but kiss him.
When we entered, it was quiet. There were no kids running around; just Brooks’s mom on the couch, watching daytime television, and Matilda and his grandfather at the table playing mahjong.
“I was wonderin’ where you kids got off to,” his grandfather said.
“Sorry I’m late,” I said to Matilda. “We got a bit… distracted. But everything’s sorted, and we should be able to head back today if you want. I can drive you there and come—”
Matilda let out a hearty laugh. “Oh, dear, I’m not going back.”
Brooks and I looked at each other with matching confusion. “What?”
“I’m only six months away from retirement, and I think I’ve found where I belong. From what I can see—and what I’ve been told—I think I can say the same for you, hm?”
I blushed. “I suppose, but don’t you have to work those months?”
She shrugged. “No money is worth giving Richard up.” She gave Brooks’s grandfather a loving smile that he returned.
Her words sat heavily with me as I drove back to Brooks’s house, one I’d become so acquainted with over the past couple of weeks. One that had begun to feel a bit like mine as well.
When we got inside, I climbed up on the couch, Brooks following close behind. He snuggled up behind me, his hand trailing through my hair. I had washed it, so it wasn’t as silky smooth as it had been earlier, but for the first time in a long time, I wasn’t bothered.
“So… What do you want to do now?” Brooks asked.
I blew out a long breath. The thought of going back to the city gave me the same dread it had before, but I couldn’t avoid it forever.
“I do have a few vacation days saved up,” I said.
“Really?”
I nodded. “And I think I need to take some time to see what I really want. I mean, I know I can’t just quit my job—”
“Why not?”
I turned to face him. “What do you mean,why not? How would I live?”
Brooks looked a little sheepish. “Well, you’re definitely good enough at photography to live off that.”
“I don’t think so. But even if I were, my camera is busted, and it takes money to start a photography business.”
“Listen.” He shifted so we were now face-to-face. “I love you, and though we’re not Preston-fuckhead rich, I have some money. We can get a new camera and all the things you need. I want to support you and your dreams. And with this new certification, I’m sure the farm will be more profitable than ever.”
I could feel the pressure of tears at the back of my eyes. “I couldn’t ask that of you.”
The idea of being a financial burden for him weighed heavily on me.
“You aren’t asking; I’m giving. And you can say no. If you want to keep your job, we will make it work. I know you’re the one, and no matter what, we’ll figure it out.”
I grabbed him by the cheeks and pulled him in, planting a kiss to his lips. One I hoped conveyed everything I felt, all the things I could never begin to express with words.
“Thank you. I would love to figure it out with you. But for now, I can email them, take two weeks of vacation, and we can do whatever we please.”
He hummed happily. “I think I like the sound of that.”
