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Theo
Was that a compliment? Ruby is really good for you.
I was talking about Hilary.
Theo
Can’t even let me bask in your praise for one minute, can you? Fine. I love you anyway. Have fun. And take your time. Maybe a vacation will get your head out of your ass.
Love you too, man.
I give my brothers shit, but I’m not stingy with telling them I love them. Scarlett has me wrapped around her little finger. I’m pretty sure she knows it too. She certainly has no doubt that I love her. And Grinny. That woman is a saint for raising all of us when she should’ve been living a peaceful life as a grandma.
But I’ve never been in love before. Ever.
There’s nothing like the exhilaration that comes with this feeling, but maybe because we moved into this so quickly, there’s also a lot of uncertainty.
The real world came along and popped the little bubble we were living in, and now it’s as if I’m walking on a tightrope with nothing to catch me when I fall.
Dolly finally gets done and I take the garbage bag and scoop it up, dumping it in the trash.
“It’s a good thing you’re so cute because that is not great,” I tell her.
She makes that drumming sound and I make a clicking sound that I’ve heard Ruby do with her. It seems to calm her as we walk back to her trailer.
“Just a little bit longer, sweet girl,” I tell her. “You’ve been so good. We’re almost there.”
When she’s in place, I secure the door and get in the RV, glancing at my phone one more time.
Still nothing from Ruby.
I get back on the road and it’s torture to not speed all the way there, but I’ve got precious cargo in the back. I’ll get there. I told Ruby I trusted her to handle Junior and I meant it.
Now, to get my heart to believe it.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
THE UGLY TRUTH
RUBY
I’ve never dreaded being at our farm before. In all my twenty-three years here, I have only loved this place. I worked hard to preserve it, and I thought I’d spend the rest of my life here, taking care of the emus and running our family business.
I tried to call my parents before I got here, but they didn’t answer, and it’s just as well. I don’t know what I’d sayright now.
When I pull into the driveway, there’s a pit in my stomach. I drive slowly past the house and back to the barn, parking in my normal spot and looking around when I step outside. There’s no sign of Junior, which makes me relax a little bit.
It’s warmer than the weather I left in Colorado, and there’s no snow on the ground, which surprises me, but it will make this easier.
Diva and Rue, two of the younger emus, poke their heads out and bob excitedly toward the fence, and it hits me how much I’ve missed them. I rush toward them and open the gate, careful to not let them out.
“Hello, loves.” They duck their heads and let me pet them. Diva bobs her head on my shoulder, and Rue crowds me from the back, trying to get as close as she possibly can.
“Oh, I’m so happy to see you too. Yes, I am.”
Others start piling out of the barn, until I’m surrounded. I start crying, hugging them, as I check their feathers, their ears, eyes, beaks, wings, and the feet of a few who let me.
“I’ve missed you so much,” I tell them over and over.
