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Ansley
Imeet the girls for an afternoon at Apple Cart Farms. Taeli and Jena bring the kids along, and we send them off into the orchard with their twenty-five-dollar baskets to pick apples for Leona while we grab a hot cider and freshly fried fritter and walk around the farm’s market shop.
While we browse the shelves for jams and jellies, I fill them in on my night.
“Oh my, I think I need to sit down a minute,” Jena says.
“I’m so proud.” Erin beams.
“No, don’t be. I can’t believe I let it happen. I can’t do this. I can’t separate my feelings from the physical connection. I’ve been freaking out all day. I don’t know how!” I bellow, and a few of the older ladies tasting apple butter samples give me a disapproving look. “Sorry,” I mumble.
“This is what I was afraid of,” Taeli muses.
“I should have listened to you,” I whine.
“Okay, so maybe the enemies-with-benefits thing was a bad idea,” Erin admits.
“You think?” I shriek.
“I should have realized you were too fragile to pull it off.”
“Erin,” Jena reprimands.
“What? I thought she could pull up her big-girl panties and seduce the man and then dump his ass. But look at her. I was wrong, obviously.”
“Not completely. I did seduce him. I was the one who initiated things in the boat. I climbed into his lap,” I inform her.
“And did you have fun?” Erin asks.
“I had three orgasms.”
One of the ladies gasps.
“Oh, stop it. Can’t you see our girlfriend is in crisis here? I’m sure you’ve had to deal with an infuriating man or two in your lifetime,” Erin scolds.
I grab her arm and lead her toward the door.
“What? She could use an orgasm, if you ask me,” Erin complains. Then, she looks at me. “Promise me we won’t act like that when we’re gray-headed.”
I smirk.
“No, we’ll definitely be more Leona Tilson than Aunt Bee,” I assure her.
The four of us make our way outside to a private area by a firepit.
We take seats where we can watch the kids as they make their way between the trees. Caleb has to keep helping Jena’s daughter, Annabelle, reach the fruit.
“I think she has a crush on him,” I point out.
“Nah, she’s just eight. She’s still in the I hate icky boys phase,” Jena says.
“Negative. Look at the way she’s gazing up at him,” Erin tells her.
Jena’s eyes follow the kids as Annabelle threads her hand into Caleb’s back pocket and lets him lead her from tree to tree. She beams every time he places an apple into her basket.
“Uh-oh,” Jena mumbles.
“Face it. She’s your mini me. She’s gonna be boy crazy, just like you were,” I inform her.
“No! Trent will end up in jail,” Jena cries.
The three of us laugh at her distress.
“You have a few more years before she begins sneaking out of her window at night. We’ll cross that bridge when we get there. Now, let’s get back to Ansley’s drama,” Erin demands.
I groan.
“I vote you see him again. Fuck him out of your system,” Erin suggests.
Taeli rolls her eyes. “I thought we just established that was a stupid idea.”
“She’s already crossed that line now. Once bread becomes toast, it can never be just bread again,” she says.
“Huh?” Jena asks. “Who’s the bread, and who’s the toast?”
Erin shakes her head. “Never mind.” She focuses back on me. “I have faith in you,” she continues.
“I’m glad someone does,” I mutter.
“How about the next time you see him, Graham and I go with you? We can be your buffers,” Taeli suggests.
That’s not a bad idea. We can’t dig up any deep emotional wounds while on a double date.
“I’d like that,” I say.
“Great. The boys are starting construction at the festival grounds tomorrow. Afterward, Graham and I are going to go on a hike while his dad takes Caleb fishing. Why don’t you come along?”
“Construction at the festival grounds? Is Garrett working for Graham now?” Jena asks.
“No, but Garrett is organizing a benefit to raise money for Jesse, so he can join Lacey and Theo at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. They need all hands on deck to get the stage up and everything ready to go in a couple of weeks,” Taeli explains.
“Garrett is organizing it?” I ask.
She nods. “Well, he’s getting help from his mom and mine, but it was all his idea, and he’s having his band come down to put on a full concert to bring in the crowd.”
“That’s so sweet,” Jena says.
It’s amazing.
Taeli’s questioning eyes come to me. “So, do you want to go with us? It will be after the café closes, and we can grab dinner afterward.”
“I … yeah, I’ll go,” I answer.
