Page 29 of Falling For You

Noneya

He wrote back a question mark.

And I gleefully typed back,

Noneya business.

He wrote back a smiley face and another text.

Would you mind if I picked you up for dinner this evening?

I glanced around the barn and twisted my lips into a contemplative pout. My head knew not to continue whatever this was, but my traitor of a heart had a different idea. Apparently, the heart controlled my fingers.

I would love that. I’ll be done in the kitchen and back at my house around seven.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw his message pop up.

I’ll be there.

“What am I doing?” I muttered to myself.

I zipped up my coat and walked out of the barn. Liam and Sienna were walking with the zebra, and I waved. I didn’t want to rush over there and cause any commotion since everything looked pretty calm at the moment. It didn’t take much to upset the balance when introducing new rescues.

Walking around the petting zoo and through the woods to my cabin, I thought about Owen.

He was absolutely gorgeous with his green eyes and dark blond hair. He might almost fit in if he had a bit more dust on his work boots and flannels that didn’t look like they’d been pressed.

But what I didn’t understand about any of this was why me?

Why in the world would he keep coming back for more? I’d told him I wasn’t thrilled with his saltiness and didn’t trust his motives.

Yet, here he was again.

Maybe he was one of those men who just liked a challenge. I’d run across that type more times than I could count in Chicago.

The more likely option was that he needed something to fill his time at Buttercup Lake. I scowled at the notion.

“On that note, I’m going to go check in at Vern’s,” I muttered.

I veered off the path and wound along the country road about a half mile down the way until I reached his long graveldrive. His truck and car were parked in front of the garage, and I trundled up the stairs to his old farmhouse.

Tapping on the screen door wiggled some loose leaves under the screen that dropped to the porch. I glanced around the covered porch where several pumpkins had been propped in the corner, along with aWelcome Fall, Welcome Allwooden sign.

Not hearing any shuffling or voices from Vern or his wife, I knocked again, only harder.

This time, I heard some muffled voices, so I straightened, waiting for one of them to come to the door.

They never did.

My lips pulled into a frown, and I spun around to return home.

Vern didn’t want to open his door, and he probably knew it was me with as many cameras as he had installed around his property.

I didn’t like this at all. Avoiding me definitely had to do with Owen, and none of this added up to anything I wanted to think about.

I thought about all the possibilities as I went down the driveway and back to my cabin. Could Vern be selling his property to one of those big farming corporations? Local people didn’t usually love that idea. Maybe he wanted to keep it secret until he left town.

My frown deepened. Nah. I couldn’t imagine his wanting to ever leave Buttercup Lake.

---