Chapter NineteenJosieGroaning, I reach over and blindly feel for my phone. Or, at least, I try to. My arms are so tired from carrying box after box up from the basement. Since there’s no rain in the forecast for the next few days, we put everything on the porch for the time being. Mom was right to call most of the stuff trash, but it should be broken down and recycled if it can’t be donated.Everly and I started out strong, separating the plastics into one section, glass into another, with paper going in a large cardboard box on the porch. But by ten PM, I was ready to just throw everything in the dumpster once it arrives.Which is sometime today.“Shush,” I tell my phone, stretching out. Riley is in bed with me, squishing me on this twin mattress. I finally hit snooze and lay back down, dreading the alarm going off again. Which it does, and I hit snooze again. And then again.“Mom!” Everly throws my door open and the wonderful smell of coffee wafts up the stairs and into the tiny r
Chapter TwentyJacobI feel eyes on me the second I step into Silver Cafe. I’m meeting my parents for dinner and, like usual, I’m running late. Looking up, I see Josie fucking Walker standing next to Poppy Randolph. Poppy was the first to scoff at Kim’s natural horsemanship approach and, for a split second, I think I might have to come to Josie’s rescue too. But the two are standing close together, and they’re both smiling. The fuck?“Why, hello there, Dr. Harris,” Poppy croons, lips curving into a smile. “Pleasure running into you like this.” She laughs, reaching out and putting her hand on my chest. Josie gives her a what the hell look that I silently approve.“Ms. Rudolph,” the hostess calls, holding up a to-go bag.“My order is ready,” she says, fingers sliding down my chest as I step back to avoid her touch. “I’m looking forward to seeing you next weekend,” poppy says with a wide smile. I am actually looking forward to next weekend--Just not going with her. Poppy's father contrib
Chapter Twenty-oneJosieI pull out of the parking spot annoyed. Jacob did nothing to set me off, yet seeing him instantly pushes my buttons. Technically, he's been nothing but polite and accommodating in his actions. Which isn't out of the question, considering he's a vet that takes care of my animals. But it's his attitude, it’s the smugness in his eyes when he looks at me, like he just knows I'm one step away from tripping and falling and failing completely.I'm not the kind of person who gives up without a fight and if Jacob thinks I'm going to go running to him, he's got another thing coming. My phone rings as I'm pulling out of the parking lot. It’s not a number I know but has a local area code.“Hello?” I answer.“Hi, this is Thomas Martin from Martin Funeral Services. Is Ms. Walker available?”“This is her,” I reply.“Hello, Ms. Walker. I have the remains of Mrs. Kimberly Walker available for pickup.”“Oh, um, okay. I’m actually in town. Could I swing by now?”“Certainly, ma’a
Chapter Twenty-twoJosie The chair scrapes against the tiled floor as I stand, eyes locked on the drawer where the phone is. It was Aunt Kim's wishes not to have a funeral or any sort of death announcement in the local paper. Her exact words were not too “waste money” on anything of the sort. But the lack of announcements means that there are a handful of people who have no idea she's dead. Slowly, I make my way over to the drawer. The phone has stopped ringing at this point, and my heart is in my throat as I pick it up. I'm not sure why I'm nervous, but the thought of having to answer the phone and tell whoever is calling that Kim is dead makes my stomach bubble with anxiety. I pick up the phone and see there is a missed call from someone named Shirley. My fingers slightly shake as I enter the password, and right as I'm about to call Shirley back, a voicemail from her pops up. I press play and bring the phone to my ear. “Hi, Kim,” the woman named Shirley says ,voice
Chapter Twenty-threeJacob“Is the scheduling system glitching again?” I ask Darla, walking up to the reception area with an iPad in my hand. “There's nothing scheduled for me this weekend.” Darla spins around in her chair, glasses down on the bridge of her nose. “Don't tell me you forgot.” “Forgot what?” I ask with a slight wince. “You're giving a presentation at the Michigan Horse Fair this weekend.” Oh, shit. I knew I had a charity gala coming up but completely forgot about this weekend’s horse fair presentation. “That's this weekend?” “Yep. You did already write up your presentation, didn't you?” “I did.” I let out an exasperated sigh. It's Thursday evening and we're about ready to close the clinic for the night. I've worked endlessly all day to catch up on my small animal appointments that I rescheduled over the last week. My two new hires are starting next week, so it should be smoother sailing from here on out. Though, I'm p
Chapter Twenty-fourJosie“Goodnight,” I tell the horses as I close the barn doors for the night. Using the flashlight on my phone, I go around and double-check that the chicken coop is locked and that the gates are latched closed. Bowser, the cow, and the llamas are finishing the last bit of hay in the threshold to their run-in shelter.Stars twinkle above me, and a chorus of crickets and katydids fill the night. “Riley,” I call looking out at the dark pasture. “Come on, buddy. It's time for bed.” I make a kissing noise and wait for a beat listening for the jingling of his collar. I never had a dog that I could trust enough to let loose like this, and anytime I don't see Riley, I immediately assume he's wandered off and is lost. Only a few seconds later, I hear him. I narrow my eyes as I look through the dark. He comes bounding out of the pasture, ducking under the fence and running towards me at full speed. I cast my flashlight beam down and pet him, smiling as he wags his
Chapter Twenty-fiveJacobGo fucking figure that the very first person I see when I step into the bar is Josie fucking Walker. She's sitting at a table on the completely opposite side of the room and yet our eyes still meet. I don't care if the annoyance is visible on my face.It's off-hours. I'm not her vet at the moment. “Dr. Harris!” a woman croons no sooner than the doors shut behind us. I take my eyes off Josie and see Lauren Wallace standing next to her sister, who takes her animals to the clinic to be treated. I only recently realized how much Lauren made Chloe’s life hell back when we were all in high school. Chloe has always felt like a sister to me and, now that she will soon be my sister-in-law, I feel all the more protective of her. “Hello,” I say flatly, side-eyeing Mason. He also shares the same protective nature over Chloe as I do. “And agent Harris,” Lauren adds, looking at Mason. “Come on, Lauren,” her sister says, giving her arm a
Chapter Twenty-sixJosie“Of course not,” I say through gritted teeth. I saw a random night out with Poppy going a million different ways, yet this is not an outcome I ever would’ve expected. Sitting here, watching Poppy shamelessly flirt with anyone is awkward enough, but it’s made ten times worse when said person is Jacob fucking Harris’s brother.And then let’s add the fact that Jacob is sitting right next to me. To be fair, he looks just as uncomfortable and annoyed with his brother as I do right now.Really, neither Poppy nor Mason are doing anything wrong. They’re both single and we’re at a bar on a Thursday night. That’s what normal adults do, right? I wouldn’t know. I haven’t attempted to date anyone since my last relationship ended in a restraining order. “You guys are welcome to stay,” I go on, trying to sound a little more convincing this time. “I feel bad eating in front of you, though.”“Don’t,” Mason tells me. “We were going to order food anyway.” “Great.” I force a sm
EpilogueJacobNew Year’s Eve…“Do you have it?” Rory asks, eyes wide.“I regret telling you anything,” I hiss, kicking her under the table.“You needed to tell me so I could help,” my sister counters and eyes Everly, who’s about to burst with excitement. “Do you have it?”“Yes,” I whisper-yell back. “I didn’t set this whole thing up only to forget the ring.” We’re at Josie’s house, and a glistening blanket of fresh snow fell overnight, giving me a perfect excuse to go on a trail ride through the woods.Where I’m going to propose to Josie.I’ve known she’s the only one for me since the moment I first kissed her and not long after that everything became clear to me. We tried taking things slow, figuring out our lives together, but being apart is painful and any night I lay down to go to sleep and Josie isn’t next to me fills me with a sense of emptiness.I love the nights when Josie, Everly, and I sit around the living room, playing a game or watching a movie together. And getting up a
Chapter Forty-fiveJosie“Am I doing it right?” I take a few quick steps forward, moving my hands above my head.“No.” Everly shakes her head. “That’s not even close. Watch and follow me.” She shows me the dance move again and I can’t for the life of me follow along. I’m not very coordinated when it comes to any sort of dancing.Everly and I both laugh when I trip and almost fall, catching myself at the last minute on the pasture fence. We’ve been out here for the last half-hour or so filming videos for social media. Phoenix Horse Rescue and Rehab is official now, though we’re still waiting for our tax exemption paperwork to come back from the IRS. Louisa helped me file everything before she left two weeks ago, and while I read online that some charities got their paperwork back within weeks, it’s most likely going to take at least three months before we see anything.“Just watch, by the end of summer. I’m going to be a TikTok dancing sensation.”Everly laughs a little too hard and th
Chapter Forty-fourJacob“Is everything okay with the horses?” Crystal walks swiftly back to the desk in the barn. “I saw Josie leave in a hurry and she looked like she was holding back tears. Did we get blood work back already and it wasn’t good news?”Fuck.I didn’t want to lie to her. I didn’t want to start something with anything less than total honesty. But now…now I think I ruined things before they had a chance to even blossom.Swallowing hard, I keep my face neutral. “Nothing has changed since this morning with the horses.”“Oh, good. That scared me. Did Josie just get emotional?”“Yeah. She got upset,” I say and I’m telling the truth. I need to focus on my job, but my mind is blanking. It takes me a few seconds to get my brain working again, forcing myself to think about anything but Josie. “Pongo can go for a walk and the thoroughbred can go in an outside run next to the gray mare. Put her out first and bring her in last. He was very buddy-sour at the auction and got upset w
Chapter Forty-threeJosie“Time for bed,” I tell Everly, plucking the TV remote from her hands. “It’s late and you should have showered and packed your backpack for the morning already.”Everly goes to protest but yawns instead. Both Louisa and I see it, so she knows there’s no point in arguing.“Can I borrow something from your closet?” Ev asks as she starts up the stairs. “I’ve worn everything I brought a million times already.”“You haven’t been in school for a million days,” I counter and turn my head as I sit on the couch. I’m exhausted and ready to crash into bed myself. “But yes, you can borrow something.”“Thanks, Mom.” Everly hurries up the stairs and I take a mini break on the couch. I lean back, letting my eyes fall shut. I can hear Louisa in the kitchen, struggling to get the cork out of a wine bottle. I only have an old-fashioned corkscrew here, not a fancy electronic one like she has at home.“Hey, Mom,” Everly calls from the top of the stairs.“Yeah?”“Why do you have D
Chapter Forty-twoJacobMy ringing phone stirs me from my sleep. Blinking my eyes open, I reach for it on my nightstand and then realize it’s not there, but in the pocket of my pants which I discarded on the floor. It hurts to pull myself away from Josie, who’s still sound asleep. Not wanting to wake her, I practically fall out of bed to grab my pants, dragging them over so I can get my phone from the pocket. It’s an unknown number, and I send the call to voicemail. If it’s an emergency, they’ll be directed to a call center who will then, in turn, call me back. That number is one I do know, and I’ll answer.But it’s a holiday, for fuck’s sake. All I want to do is sleep next to Josie, feeling her small body against mine. The second before I flop back down, I look her over. She looks so fucking good in my bed. I want to wake up to this every damn morning. Her hair is messy, and she has pillow creases on one side of her face. Wanting to remember this moment, I scan my eyes over her again
Chapter Forty-oneJosieI glance in the rearview mirror, gripping the steering wheel tightly. The roads are still wet from last night’s storm, and there are branches and leaves scattered on the pavement. But, despite my nerves, my hopes are soaring high right now.I’m on my way home with my first official personal rescues—and my new thoroughbred is related to my childhood dream horse. If that’s not fate, then I don’t know what is. I decided to name him Loki, continuing with Aunt Kim’s Norse God theme, and Everly wants to run an online contest for the rescue’s social media followers to name the gray mare.We’re taking them, along with the three ponies Jacob is hauling, right to the clinic. He already talked to Crystal, who set up stalls. They’ll stay there until we can be sure they’re healthy and not contagious; though, Jacob told me not to be surprised if the mare needs to stay longer. She’s in rough shape and lacks the light in her eyes Pongo has, looking like she’s completely given
Chapter FortyJacobA loud crack of thunder rattles the window, waking me up. Josie is still asleep in my arms, and it feels so fucking good to have her here with me like this. It’s more than just that…it feels so fucking right and I can’t explain it.The wind presses against the side of the motel, shaking the door. The worst of the storm was supposed to get here around midnight, and it seems like it’s right on schedule. We fell asleep with the bathroom light on, and it flicks off along with the rest of the power when another gust of wind blows. This time, Josie startles awake, sitting up a bit with a gasp.“It’s okay,” I tell her. “The power went out.”“Oh. Right. It’s storming.” Her voice is thick with sleep, and she lays back down, resting her head on my chest. I tighten my grip on her and she hooks one leg over mine. I kiss her forehead, listening to the storm. Josie slides one hand across my chest, running her fingers up and down my arm until she falls asleep again.I’m tired and
Chapter Thirty-nineJosieJacob holds my hands above my head, pinned against the door behind me. His lips press against mine and I stand there, too shocked to move, too stunned to react. In the back of my mind, a voice tells me to push him away, to tell him to stop.Because he still vexes me and I’m not done being mad at him yet.But my willpower is gone, resolve chipping and crumbling at our feet. Why would I want him to stop when it feels this good, and each fleeting second that passes by makes it harder to forget just what I was so angry about in the first place.My eyes fall shut and I part my lips, kissing him back. Jacob lets go of my wrists, sliding his hands down my arms as he moves his mouth from my lips to my neck. I gasp, feeling heat flood my veins and my heart pounds in my chest.“Josie,” he breathes, stepping in closer. His hands land on my waist and he grabs the hem of the scrub top in both fists, balling it up. “Tell me to stop and I will.” He brings his face back to m
Chapter Thirty-eightJosieWell, shit.I step inside the room, wanting out of the rain. Jacob steps in right behind me, and we’re both thinking the same thing. Because there is only one full-size bed in this room, not two.“Maybe that’s a pull-out couch.” Jacob strides in, going right to the little sofa next to the bed. “Nope. You take the bed, I’ll take the couch.”Shivering, I take my coat off and hang it on the back of the door. My torso is dry, but the rest of me is soaking wet and I’m freezing. “I’m smaller. I can sleep on the couch.”“It’s fine,” Jacob presses. “I’ve spent many nights on hay bales using horse sheets as blankets.”“In comparison, the couch isn’t so bad.” I set my purse and the little bag of supplies I bought from the motel office down on the small table, and then lean over to unzip my boots. I stepped in a puddle on my way into the office and just one sock is soaked, which annoys me more than having them both being wet. “Do you mind if I turn the heat up?”“No, g