Page 18 of Sunny Skies Ahead
“He wouldn’t do that,” Connor said, zipping his bag shut and pinning Lucas with a glare. “You haven’t known him for as long as I have. Kameron’s the most honest of the three of us. He wears his heart on his sleeve. He wouldn’t lead Imogen on like that.”
I didn’t need Connor to defend me, but it was nice to have someone step in on my behalf sometimes. Lucas set his jaw forward.
“You’re right. I shouldn’t have dug at you like that. Imogen has been a really good friend to me these last few months. We’ve shared a lot with each other. I don’t want her to get hurt. That’s all.”
Something about Lucas’s tone got under my skin. I didn’t know if it was the insinuation that I would somehow intentionally hurt Imogen, or Lucas’s clear perception of something worth exploring.
I’d really screwed myself.
On the one hand, this new proximity would give Imogen and I more of a chance to get to know one another, instead of doing this weird back-and-forth text message exchange where we somehow talked about everyone else but never ourselves.
“Ready to head out?” I said, standing to my full height as opposed to slouching in the door frame.
That smitten glint returned to Connor’s eyes as he grabbed the duffle bag and slung it over his shoulder.
“Hell yes,” he said.
I felt that odd, familiar feeling twist in my gut when I saw how excited Connor was to see Abbie again. Connor had beenparted from Abbie for less than two hours, and he was already tripping over himself to get back to her.
I shook my head, unable to reconcile the thoughts swirling in my mind.
I had seen the ways love could destroy people. I had seen my mom become a shell of the woman she’d been when I was growing up. When my dad died, a light in her went out forever.
Things were better now. Strained, but not broken.
But I’d never forget the dark years I spent trying to find a way to bring that spark back to life. They’d made a mark on my soul. Those years were what drove me to swear love and connection off in the first place.
Yet deep down, I was realizing that I still wanted it for myself.
I wanted to experience that kind of all-encompassing love.
Even if it broke me the way it had broken my mother.
Chapter seven
Imogen
Dropping Abbie off at the airport for her honeymoon was a full circle moment.
When I’d handed her the tickets for Amsterdam, alongside a folder full of information about what farms and tulip fields to visit for the best view this time of year, she burst into tears.
The moment I’d realized that early May was one of the best times of year to see the sprawling tulip fields in the Netherlands, I’d known it was the ideal vacation destination for Abbie.
Couple that with how Amsterdam wasn’t a bustling city in the way New York or Paris was, and I figured it was the perfect honeymoon. Their rental was nestled in a quieter part of the city, close to beautiful waterscapes and historic sites. There was something for both Abbie and Connor there.
Abbie’s blubbering ‘thank you’s’ and Connor’s misty expression told me my instincts had been right on the money.
After our excursion to the airport, I’d come back to the homestead, eager to hand the reins of every day operations over to Kevin. He met me in the driveway of my farmhouse, hands in his pockets as he leaned against the side of his truck.
“How was the send off?” Kevin asked as I approached him.
“It was perfect.”
“Of course it was. I’m guessing you picked the right destination?”
I puffed my chest out with mock pride.
“Of course I did. You should have seen the two of them. Abbie was completely beside herself with excitement. I thought Connor was going to sink to his knees with utter relief that I wasn’t sending them to a huge city.”
