Page 66 of Out of Place

“Rhett is training to take over for Dad in a few years. I’ve done the farm life and much prefer my life in the city. And no, there are no distant cousins, at least not ones Dottie would trust.”

“And she trusts me?” I ask in disbelief.

She nods. “She does.”

I think back to when I overheard Camden talking about how there was no way I could take over the farm. He and I have come a long way since then, but I know I’m not his favorite person. I wonder if he thinks differently now.

Does anyone think I could actually run this place? Would they help me or wait for me to fail?

It doesn’t really matter. I can’t run a farm. I don’t know anything about farming. I don’t know half the stuff Dottie does. It’d be too much. I don’t want that.

“No. No, I don’t want to do that,” I tell her, although that answer doesn’t sit right with me.

“Alright. Well, you can always change your mind.”

We walk a little longer before heading back to the house. She catches me up on everything that’s been going on at home, but nothing she says is important. All I can think about is how my life will be uprooted for the second time in less than a year, except this time feels a lot more jarring than the last.

“Dottie says she thinks you’ve changed for the better since you’ve been here. Your dad and I agree you can come home. You’ll get your credit cards back and get access to your trust fund come January.”

“Ok.” The relief I expected to feel isn’t there. The money is the last thing on my mind right now.

“Pack your bags, then. We leave in the morning.”

CHAPTER 26

Landon

Olivia shows up at my door with a sad smile on her face. A sense of dread settles in the pit of my stomach. We didn’t have plans to see each other today.

“Hey,” I say, looking past her to the street. “How’d you get here?”

“Dottie dropped me off.”

I step aside to let her in. She’s been here several times now and is constantly telling me how I should decorate the place. I have some generic pictures hanging on the wall, but she was talking plants and painting and even knocking down walls. If she was going to live here with me, I’d do everything she suggested in a heartbeat. Since it’s just me, I’ll live with the blandness. I’m not here enough to care all that much. It’s just a place to sleep and eat.

She walks in slowly, her hands clasped in front of her, making my nerves worse. She’s quiet. Subdued. Which is unlike her.

“Are you alright?” I ask, pulling her into me, but I think I already know the answer.

She swallows before looking up at me, her eyes glassy with tears. “I’m leaving in the morning.”

Fuck, I wasn’t expecting that. At least not this soon. My heart drops, and my throat goes dry. “Leaving,” I repeat.

She nods. “Leaving.”

I exhale a deep breath. “So, I take it your mom was happy with your progress?”

“Yeah. She said I’m getting my credit cards back, and I’ll get my trust fund in January.”

I really want to be happy for her. This is what she was working toward. But it’s really fucking hard when I feel like my heart is shattering in my chest.

“Congratulations, sweetheart. You earned it. I’m really proud of you.” It’s the truth, but I wish it didn’t have to mean that she’s leaving.

“Landon, I—” She chokes on her words as she tries to hold back tears.

“Hey, it’s alright. Come on. Let’s enjoy our last night together. We can get to the sad shit later.”

She attempts to laugh but fails. I pull her over to the couch and bring her down to straddle my lap.