And yet, I found myself wandering through social media and searching for his name. He didn’t have a personal account, but his business had one. He appeared in every few posts, whether candidly or posed. I scrolled through month after month, absorbing each picture of Maverick along the way. Him dressed up as Santa at some community event with a smile too big for his face. Him trick-or-treating with Roxy and his nephew—I stared a little longer at that one as I tried to get a feel for the kid my daughter had adopted as her new best friend. Him and Duke on the beach. Him working on a car with a woman named Nyla.
The list went on and on. I scrolled back years, just trying to get a sense of who he’d become. The longer I looked, the more I came to the conclusion that healing looked good on him. And with every post, that smile of his dug its hooks a little deeper in my heart.
A knock on my office door startled me out of my contemplation.
“Come in,” I called out as I set my phone aside. The door cracked slightly, and Holly popped her head in. I smiled and asked, “You good?”
“Oh, yeah,” she replied. “I rocked my orientation, which is really to say I read all the required documents and cried a little when I logged in to look at my tuition bill.”
“You do realize I’m not letting you pay for that, right?”
“I’m not asking you to do that.” She pushed the door open wider and leaned against the frame. “You’ve been more than generous, Harley.”
“I know you’re not,” I said, “but you’re family, Holly.”
What I didn’t say was that I had more money than I knew what to do with. When I sold my family’s company, the buyout was more than I could fathom. With smart financial decisions, my great-great-great-grandkids would still be set for life. There was no reason for Holly to stress about a college bill, especially not after everything she’d done to help me.
“Just send me an email with what you need to cover everything,” I continued. “And I do mean everything, Holly. Books, backpack, whatever.”
“I haven’t used a backpack in forever!” She laughed. “Well, thank you.”
“Any time.”
“Do you need anything from me today? If not, I was thinking of driving to the city for the weekend,” Holly said. “But if you need me, I can stay.”
“Could you stay until I have to get Aria from school?” I asked. “I’d like to have you come with me. They need your information and license on file for you to be approved to pick her up. You can leave right after.”
“I can do that,” she replied with an easy smile. “Do you need anything else?”
“No, I’m good. When do you start classes?”
“Next week, but I’m only taking a few classes.”
“Okay.” I drummed my fingers on the desk as I glanced at my calendar. “Let me get you my schedule for the next two weeks. I don’t have too much going on, but we can come up with a plan for when I need you and when I’ll make sure Aria leaves you alone.”
“Oh, you don’t want her learning economics this young?” she teased.
“Who knows? Maybe that’s what will help her learn to read,” I murmured. Reading was our biggest issue. She was a little young—I knew that—but while all kids had their own learning curve, she was struggling more than expected. “I’ll get everything to you shortly.”
“Okay. Did the repair guy come out?”
“Yeah,” I nodded slowly. “He’s starting on the barn tomorrow. And eventually he’ll fix the fence. I have to get down to the courthouse for a property survey.”
Honestly, I was grateful he was coming on a Saturday when I’d be busy with Aria because I wouldn’t overthink the fact that Maverick was right there. I wasn’t ready to deal with the weird, convoluted feelings unfolding inside me.
CHAPTER 86
maverick
Bright and early, I drove out to Harley’s farm. I talked myself out of making it awkward and getting him a coffee on the way. He was my boss; I was his contractor. I didn’t need to bring him coffee. Besides, he probably had better coffee at his house anyway.
As agreed upon, I didn’t bother checking in with him. I just drove straight to the barn and got to work. I started with measurements for new boards, making notes on the little pad ofpaper I kept shoving back into my pocket. Time passed easily as I built a list of exactly what I needed, left markers around the barn for places to work, and made a plan to run by Harley to go over what to do and where.
I was standing on a small ladder inspecting a board when I was interrupted.
“Did you ever find a doctor for your personality?”
I paused, recognizing the tiny voice throwing shade like she had no care. I glanced down to see the little girl fromSparrow & Sagestanding there in a new poofy dress, this one all purple to match the creepy bear she hugged.
