Page 25 of The Road Back to Us

“If there’s anything we can do to help you,” Cole said softly, letting his words trail.

I nodded and smiled, but it was the look Kara gave me that made me pause.

“What was your original idea?” Kara asked.

I pulled in a deep breath and slowly released it, trying to keep the stress and frustration out of my voice. This design had been eating at me for weeks, and every time I thought I was getting close to bringing it together, everything would fall apart.

“Well,” I said slowly. “I was playing with the idea of something retro, but for younger demographics.”

I felt the blush creep up my neck as I waited for her to tell me how stupid it was and that no one her age would care about anything retro. Instead, her eyes lit up as she nodded her head.

“How retro were you thinking?”

“I was playing around with the idea of going back to the nineties. Crop tops and low-rise baggy jeans paired with belly chains and chokers.”

“I would have thought overalls and worn-out graphic tees,” Cole said, a smile lifting the corners of his lips. “That’s what you used to wear all the time.”

“Very true,” I agreed. “I did consider those as well.”

“Do you have sketches done yet?” Kara asked, the wheels in her head turning.

“I do, but I don’t know if I love them. I also don’t know how I’m going to get a physical prototype. In New York, we had several people on our team who would do this for us, but even if they created it for me, I’m not there. I would have to try to find someone local, and I don’t know how easy that’s going to be.”

“Nana knows how to sew,” Kara replied, her eyes full of excitement. “I bet if you showed her the sketches, she could make them for you.”

“We don’t have a ton of options for fabric stores like they do in New York,” Cole said, coming to stand beside me. “But we have a few. I can even drive you a few towns over if you don’t find what you need here.”

I chewed my lip as I looked between them. It was sweet how helpful they were trying to be, but I also knew better than to get my hopes up. Even if I finished my sketches and we found the right fabric, it didn’t mean it would be an easy project for Sherry—or that she would want to do it. Not only that, but I didn’t have anyone to model it for the meeting where I would present everything.

“You’re overthinking all of this,” Cole said with a laugh. “One step at a time. You work on finishing the sketches and getting them to my mom, we’ll take care of the rest.”

I scrunched my face because I didn’t trust that it was really as easy as he made it sound. The conversation stopped as Kara nodded enthusiastically before getting up and clearing her plate. Ben helped Chloe down, then they were off to get ready for school, while I had to figure out how to make all of this happen without being too optimistic.

Twenty-Four

Cole

I was out tending to the goats when I heard footsteps approaching. I looked over my shoulder to find Ben heading my way, his face taut with anger while his fists clenched at his side.

“Hey, what’s up?” I asked, putting the bucket down and wiping my hands on my jeans as I turned to face him.

“I got sent home from school early, and you’re going to get a call from the principal,” he said tensely. “Unless she already called Aunt Lyric.”

My eyes flitted from him to the house where Lyric was inside making a snack for Chloe.

“What happened?”

“Nothing. It was stupid.”

“Obviously, it wasn’t nothing, or you wouldn’t be out here warning me that the principal is going to call.”

I leaned against the fence post and watched him as he clenched his jaw, looking so much like his dad that it made my heart ache with how much I missed Clay.

“I got into a fight.”

My eyebrows lifted in surprise as I took him in, looking for any sign that he’d gotten hurt.

“I’m fine,” he replied, waving me off with his hand. “But I broke the other kid’s nose, according to the nurse.”