Page 41 of Fern's Date with Destiny
The days blurred, a quiet rhythm of work and trying not to think too hard.
The only thing that broke the monotony was Karen waving him down by the main paddock one morning, her cheeks pink from the cold.
“You got a sec?”she called, voice bright.
“Sure.”He leaned on the railing, tucking the schedule in his hand away in a pocket.“What’s up?”
Her smile was incandescent.He’d never seen Karen look as if she might burst with happiness.“I’m expecting.”
It took him a second to understand, then he blinked, his brows shooting up.“You—really?”
“Finn and I found out a few weeks ago.I wanted to wait until the first ultrasound before telling folks.”She bit her lip.“It’ll mean a lot more for you to pick up when I’m farther along.”
He was still grappling with the surprise, and the pang of envy that surprised him even more.They knew their future,he thought numbly.He didn’t even know if he’d be able to button his damn shirt in a year.
But he forced the bitterness aside and reached across to squeeze her shoulder.“Congratulations, Karen.That’s…honestly, that’s wonderful news.”
Relief crossed her face.“Thank you.You’ll let me know what you can take on?If you’d rather not pick up extra long-term, I completely understand, and we’ll look at hiring.”
“I’ll look at the schedule,” he promised.“Short-term, don’t worry about a thing.I’ll cover it.”
When she left, he took a minute before moving again.Let himself lean into the wind, his breath steaming out ragged and cold.
Late March blurred into April.He did his best to show up.For Karen.For the ranch.For Fern, most of all.It wasn’t easy, but somehow pushing to be there for them meant he found strength he didn’t know he had.
Not every day, but often enough.
The night before Rose and Tansy’s joint birthday party, he lay awake in bed, staring at the plank ceiling of his cabin, listening to the ghosts of his doubts scuffle around in the dark.
He didn’t know how to need someone so intensely.But Fern never stopped offering to catch him when he fell.Accepting that was slowly getting easier.
On the day of the party, he almost didn’t go.He’d been in the barn all morning, fixing a gate hinge he could have replaced twice over on a good day.
Today was not a good day.Not only because of his hand, but because he kept thinking about the inconclusive report.
Somehow, she knew.Fern texted midafternoon.
Fern: Don’t you dare chicken out.
Fern: I’ll meet you at four.It’s not fancy, it’s family.Remember that.
So he showed up.
She stood on the porch, smiling as if he was exactly what she’d been waiting for, and he forgot to be afraid.Forgot to be worried and tired and lost.
He reached for her hand automatically, and she laced her fingers through his without hesitation.That single touch steadied something deep in his chest.
“Hey,” he murmured.
“Hey yourself, cowboy,” she said, her smile soft.“You okay?”
He nodded then ducked to press a kiss to her hair.“Better now.”
Inside, the Fields family was exactly what he needed even though they were everything he feared.So many people, with so many watchful eyes.
But they were also kind, and careful not to prod.They knew he was dealing with medical stuff and somehow stayed supportive without being invasive.
A lot of them still hadn’t clued in that he and Fern were more than friends, which was amusing in an entirely different way.
