Page 6 of Pick Me
“I’m not convincing anyone of anything, because you’re wrong. If he was interested in me,reallyinterested, I’d know.” Wouldn’t I?
I thought back to that first moment we’d met, and I wondered.
“Uh-huh. Then forget about Mr. Sexually Frustrated. Tell me about your job search,” Toby demanded. “Do you have any interviews lined up?”
“Nope.” I sighed and launched into an explanation of all the letters of interest I’d sent and how I still hadn’t heard back from any of them. “That’s why I needthisjob at the orchard,” I concluded. “I need experience.”
“Or you could start your own company,” Toby suggested. “It’s not like you lack startup capital.”
“No, but I lack contacts,” I said impatiently, since we’d had this exact conversation before, more than once. “I lack a real understanding of the market. I don’t want a vanity project. I’m capable of doing things the right way, even if it’s hard.”
“Easy, killer. I hear you,” Toby soothed.
But I wasn’t sure he did. Not really. I wasn’t sure anyone did.
“Don’t take things too seriously, Gagelet,” he continued. “Your time in Vermont was supposed to be partly a vacation. A chance to get all kinds of experience, not just stuff that goes on your resume. Have you done anything fun at all?”
“Uh. Does binging Scandinavian dramas on Netflix count?”
“I’m gonna let you answer that on your own, sweetness. Get out and do something, for heaven’s sake! Find a hot guy. Take some scenic pictures for the ’gram. Tip a cow. Whatever counts for fun up there.”
I shuddered. The very idea of getting close enough to a cow to tip it was horrifying.
But I was pretty sure Toby was right about the rest.
“Thanks, Toby. Love you. Love to everyone, okay?”
“Check in soon, honeybunch.”
Once we disconnected, I took a deep breath and logged in to Grindr, which I probably should have done the second I reached the Vermont border.
No wonder I was so out of sorts. I needed sunshine and loud music. I needed to stop trying to impress the unimpressible Knox with my work ethic and remember all the reasons I was here.
I’d just started scrolling when a shuffling noise behind me in the empty yard startled the hell out of me. I whirled around and threw my phone like a projectile at the shadowy figure looming in the half darkness.
“Jesus Christ, Goodman!” Knox easily batted the phone away, and it landed on the ground with a bounce. “It’s bad enough Emma sent me out here like your personal servant to fetch you in to dinner. Now you’re attacking me?”
“Youloomedat me!” I cried. “You crept up behind me andloomed.”
“I didn’t creep. I was specifically trying not to interrupt your conversation, if you were still on the phone. That’s what we call politeness.” He rolled his eyes. “Now get your damn phone and come eat before all the burgers are gone.”
I looked from the farmhouse—where the food was—to my phone, lying face-up and still shining on the far side of the fence—where the cows were—and bit my lip.
Knox folded his arms over his chest. “Are you trying to call it back to you with the power of your mind?”
“No! I’m… I’m strategizing.”
“Strategizing. M’kay. I’ll let the others know your plate is up for grabs.” He turned on his heel and walked two paces, but when I didn’t follow, he groaned and walked back to me like it was literally costing him two arms and a leg to do it. “Fine, then. What are you strategizing?”
“We don’t have cows where I’m from. I mean, we do. Obviously, there are cows in Florida. But I’ve never had to meet one. So I’m trying to think about the best way to get the phone back… but, like, respectfully.”
“Respectfully?” He tilted his head and looked at me fully.
“You know.” I swallowed. “Being respectful of the animal’s territory. Not provoking the predators to aggression.”
Knox rubbed his palm over his mouth. “You… are aware that cows are vegetarians?”
I blinked. “Obviously, yes.” No. I’d had no idea. “But they could still gore me.” I made horns on the top of my head in demonstration.
