Page 44 of Love Songs

After a few more CCFD visits to the property, I’d started picturing myself living there with a partner who made me smileall day and shout in ecstasy all night. We’d have a couple of dogs running around. Big goofy dogs that would make us laugh and leave muddy paw prints on the floor. I’d never seen kids in the picture, mostly because I felt like I was still too much of a kid myself, but I’d also never felt that calling to be a father. Thanks to my older sisters starting their own families, I’d never had the added pressure of parents demanding grandkids.

But now, after meeting Dallas, the partner I imagined wore his face, laughed with his deep raspy voice, smiled at me with his shiver-inducing electric blue eyes. Thanks to Dallas, the dream expanded to include his teenage daughter, and not just two dogs, but a horse as well.

Except none of that was going to happen now.

Now, there was a hole in my life where Dallas had been so briefly but so fully. Now some faceless stranger had taken my dream house, taken my dream future.

A horn honked, and I damn near jumped out of my skin.

Heart racing a mile a minute and skin crawling from the sudden flood of adrenaline, I turned to see Adam Leeters, a retired railwayman who was always out cruising around in his old Studebaker, leaning out the window of said vehicle.

“Hey, Conor,” he called with his gruff voice. “Can’t believe they finally sold that place.”

“Yeah.” I glanced back at the SOLD sticker and my shoulders felt like I had a couple hundred pounds draped over them. “Wonder who bought it.”

“Sure we’ll find out soon enough,” Adam said with a sage nod. Then he pointed at me with a wrinkly finger. “Looks like you had a little trouble keeping the rubber side down.”

“Nothing broken.” I flashed a grin I wasn’t feeling. “It’s all good.”

“Well, take care of yourself,” he said, and with a wave, he drove off.

I took one more look down the overgrown driveway before climbing back on my bike. At least I’d never see the house again to be reminded of a lost dream, because once the new owners moved in, we wouldn’t be getting trespassing and nuisance calls there anymore.

I turned around and pedaled halfway around the lake to Sam’s family maple farm. Maybe he could help me make sense of all these damn unwanted emotions twisting up my insides.

“What happened to you?” Sam said when I found him in the sugar shack, his brows raised and eyes wide. He fluttered his hand at me, as if he couldn’t decide where to point first.

“What?” I looked down at myself. I had dirt stains all down my front, scuffed knees, and something crusty on my chin. I shrugged. “A boulder jumped out of the ground and attacked me.”

“Of course it did.” Sam rolled his eyes. “Can’t trust those rocks to stay off the trails where they belong.”

When I didn’t smile back, Sam frowned. “What’s going on?”

“I think I’m in trouble,” I confessed, running a hand through my sweaty hair, dislodging dirt and a leaf.

He stared at me for what felt like forever, his eyes searching for truths I wasn’t sure I wanted to share, but knew I had to. Just as I was about to tell him, never mind, I was good—ha!—he held up a finger as he pulled his phone from his back pocket.

“I’m calling in the guys,” he said.

I bit back a wince, but I didn’t argue. We all pitched in whenever one of us needed help. Today was a rare turn for me.

While waiting for Ryan and Haider to show up, I went into the bathroom to clean up a bit and startled at my reflection in the mirror.

Shit.What a sight.

No wonder Sam had looked shocked when I’d arrived. There was a tear in the shoulder of my T-shirt that I hadn’t noticed.The dirt on my clothes was going to need a heavy-duty wash, and dried blood on my chin from my spontaneous dirt surfing. There was no fixing my clothes now, but I rinsed the dirt and blood from my face, then ran wet fingers through my hair to tame it back into place.

Haider and Ryan were there with Sam when I returned, and the three of them wore matching expressions of concern and curiosity.

“No one’s dying,” I joked, but I didn’t get a single chuckle. Tough crowd.

“Come on,” Sam said, tipping his chin over his shoulder. “Let’s walk.”

We followed the narrow trail from Sam’s farm to the covered bridge, not speaking until we crossed the bridge and turned onto Parker Trail, where the path opened wide enough for us to walk side-by-side—Sam on my right, Haider on my left, and Ryan beside him.

“Okay,” Sam said, sliding a glance at me. “Spill.”

“Ugh.” I dragged my hands down my face and groaned. “I hate feelings.”

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