Page 71 of Ember Meadow
“Place looks great.”
“We did a good job,” I smile.
“Youdid a good job. I just helped fix some things that should have already been done.” He takes a drink from a water bottle. “This place is better than I could have ever imagined, much less done myself. It needed you.”
His body heat seeps into mine and I feel myself flush at his words. “Thanks, Miles. That means a lot to me.” My voice comes out barely over a whisper, emotion clogging my throat. But he smiles at my words anyway.
“He’s right, you know. We’re all gonna miss you.”
“I know,” I nod. Idoknow. I’ve never felt so accepted by a group of people in my life, besides Hazel and my Aunt Millie. And that includes my own family. “I’ll miss everyone too. And this place.”
I’ve never felt like I’m leaving a piece of my heart somewhere like I do now. I get into town, I do my job, and I leave. Hazel is the one that gets attached to people and places, not me. I’m the jokester. The outgoing one. The one that dates around and travels with nothing holding me down.
But would it be so bad to be held down somewhere? Have a place I can call home, with people who love me? I didn’t know it was possible until I stepped foot onto Lone Pine Ranch. I hope I can find that again. That feeling of belonging.
I was excited to get back home and away from all of the intense feelings at this place. But now, I’m not so sure. I can’t imagine staying in Juniper Ridge anymore. Especially not without having Aunt Millie around. Sure, I want to see Hazel when I can, but we don’t need to be right next to each other to be close.
Maybe I’ll ask MacPherson for a transfer somewhere. Stop dating all together. Focus on figuring out what I really want in life.
That is, if my parents allow it. It feels so childish to still be under my parents’ rule somehow, but they do own the company I work for. If they don’t want me to leave Idaho, it’ll make it really hard for me to figure out a way to move and keep my job.
I love this job. Even though it’s at MacPherson Enterprises, I feel like I make a real difference in the company. I have more creative freedom than I would working for someone else, and I’ve got a great groove in my role.
Leaving would be tough.
Almost impossible, if I want to still have any sort of relationship with my parents. We may not be best friends right now, but what we have going is still better than no relationship at all.
My relationship with my parents is just another reason I shouldn’t be with Miles. I’ve never been in a committed relationship in my life, and the only examples I have are my dysfunctional parents and my chronically single aunt. Not exactly the best grounds for a stable relationship.
Yes, it’s a good thing that everything broke down so quickly between us. It would have happened at some point anyway, better to do it now while it hurts less.
Because if this is how much it hurts before we even gave it a real chance, I can’t imagine how much it’d hurt afterwards.
Chapter 28
Quite the View
By the time thesun sets, Hazel, Codie and I have migrated to the front of the wraparound porch, sitting with our legs swinging off the edge. August haze adds an orange hue to the already warm sky. The gray, jagged peaks of the Tetons jut up out of the ground, rays of the setting sun cutting up through the sky around them like a halo.
Everything about the environment surrounding the ranch is all harsh angles and unforgiving terrain. The contrast of the soft alfalfa fields and rolling hills of Lone Pine feel like a hug. A warm blanket in the midst of a cold winter’s day.
“So, what’s left to do, Kate? When are you heading home?” Hazel asks, taking a sip of her drink.
“I was going to stay until the listing for the cabin is up, but honestly, I’m thinking about just driving home after I drop you at the airport tomorrow.” Hazel flew here from an event in Texas she went to for new ideas for her family’s dude ranch, so she’ll be taking the short flight from Jackson Hole to Salt Lake City to meet up with her parents before heading back to her ranch.
“Are you sure? You can come stay at my place for a few days before you leave if you’d like to,” Codie pleads.
“I’m sure,” I say. “If I don’t leave now I won’t ever want to go. I need some time to myself to think.”
Hazel hums, looking out towards the mountains. “I can see why you’d have a hard time leaving. You’ve got quite the view.” She nods towards the window into the living room, instead of the picturesque sunset surrounding us. My gaze instinctively snaps around to look inside.
Miles is sitting on the hearth of the fireplace, swirling an amber liquid around in a glass. His forearms flex as he moves the cup around, focusing on the movement of the whiskey. Tiny fireworks go off in my chest at the sight of him. I just want to go over there and tackle him onto the ground. The guys from the ranch all stand around him talking to each other, but he looks lost in thought. And a little sad.
“Ha. Very funny,” I deadpan, looking back at Hazel.
She smirks. “All I’m saying is if a big, handsome cowboy was looking that sad over me, I wouldn’t be out on the porch with y’all.”
Codie and I both descend into a fit of giggles as Hazel bounces her eyebrows up and down. When I look back over at Miles through the window pane, this time he’s already staring back at me.
