“That’s usually dangerous,” he replies.
I smirk faintly but don’t answer. Truth is, my mind keeps drifting back to Violet. To the way she looked asleep beside me this morning. To the way she smiled when she was teasing me. The way she kissed me was like she had been waiting to do it just as long as I had.
It had been a long time since something in my life had felt this simple.
Henry finishes securing the board and steps back, wiping his hands on his jeans.
“That should hold,” he says.
I nod, pulling my phone out of my pocket to check the time.
The screen lights up immediately.
Sydney.
Henry tosses the hammer in the bed of his truck. “You heading back to town?”
“In a bit,” I say.
He nods and climbs into his truck, leaving me standing there alone near the fence line. The wind moves softly across the pasture, bending the tall grass.
Clicking on Violet’s name, I read the message she sent me back this morning.
Violet:
Good morning! Thank you for a great night last night. Dinner was delicious, and I loved hanging out with you. I hope you have a good day. Talk later :)
Leaning against the fence post, my mind goes back to the missed calls and texts from Sydney. The uncertainty of what she wants is eating away at me.
Sydney had been the love of my life once. Or at least I thought she was. She was smart, ambitious, and funny. For a while, it felt like we were building something together. Then one day she told me she wasn’t ready for the life I wanted.
She didn’t want marriage.
She didn’t want kids.
She didn’t want to be tied down, for anyone to hold her back.
So, she left. Just like that. No calls, no texts. No explanation beyond that. Until now.
I exhale slowly and press call. She answers almost immediately.
“Everett,” she says, sounding surprised that I called.
“What do you want, Sydney?” I ask.
I don’t bother pretending to be friendly.
There was a pause.
“I’m glad you called.”
I sigh. “You said it was important.”
“It is,” she says quietly.
My patience is already thin. “Then tell me,” I say.
She hesitates again. “I didn’t think you would actually call,” she says.
