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Luke thought his heart had already been broken, but it shattered anew as he walked into the farmhouse and felt Kaylee’s presence all around him. Her sweater was draped over the arm of the sofa and one of her notebooks and silly purple pens was on the coffee table. The scent of her perfume mixed with chocolate cake hung in the air.
He heard a thump from her bedroom as Gladys jumped off the bed then her toenails tapped on the hardwood as she came running out to greet him. It hadn’t been that long, but he’d already fallen in love with the silly mutt and was used to having her around. He swallowed as it hit him again that she and Kaylee were really going to be gone.
Cooper had been asleep on the sofa, and he stretched and yawned before getting off the couch and coming toward him.
Luke bent down and gave them each a scratch before heading down the hallway and into Kaylee’s room. The scent of her was even stronger in here. Her suitcase was on the bed, and his flannel shirt was folded and lay across the side of it, as if she couldn’t decide if she could take it or not. He picked it up and held it to his cheek. He could smell her shampoo and that plumeria-scented lotion she used.
Her laptop was on the desk and another notebook was open in here, just waiting for her to come back and fill it with her words and ideas.
How could she have been pretending with him this whole time? It didn’t make sense.
He didn’t know what to believe or what was real anymore. Except for the sharp, aching pain in his chest. That was real. He’d thought his heart had been so broken after Beth died that he’d never feel anything in it again, but he was wrong.
He pushed the suitcase aside and sank down on the bed. Gladys and Cooper jumped up on the other side and barreled into him, their tails wagging into each other’s as they crowded around him. He turned and hugged the corgi’s neck. The dogs must have sensed his sadness, because Gladys licked his cheek and Cooper leaned into him, trying to nudge his nose in between Luke’s chest and the corgi.
“I can’t do this,” he muttered into the dog’s fur. “I’m not strong enough. It’s gonna kill me to watch you two drive away.”
He needed to get out of here. If she wanted to leave and walk away, he wouldn’t stop her, but he dang sure wasn’t going to be here when she left.
“Goodbye girl. Take care of Kaylee for me,” he told the corgi as he gave her one more hug then patted his leg for Cooper to follow. “Come on boy. We’re going for a ride.”
Kaylee felt numb as she followed Dean out to his truck. He opened the passenger door and helped her inside. He’d been nothing but kind and patient as he waited for her to be discharged. He’d even helped her get cleaned up at the sink and wash some of the blood out of her hair.
“I hate being such a bother,” she told him. “I know you have a sick cow to take care of.”
“You’re not a bother. This is what friends do. And my cow is doing better. She was bloated, but the vet checked her out, and he thinks she just ate something bad. We gave her some baking soda, and now we just have to wait.”
“Baking soda?”
“Yeah, it sounds like a weird remedy, but it works. And my farm hand finally showed up, so he’s keeping an eye on her.” He pushed the door shut and hurried around to the other side.
“I wish baking soda would remedy my problems,” she muttered as she laid her head back on the seat.
“Hey, you okay?” Dean asked as he slid into the driver’s seat.
She shook her head, the movement making her brain hurt. “No, I’m not okay. Not at all.”
“What hurts? Do you want me to take you back in?” He passed her an empty fast-food bag from the floor of the truck. “Are you gonna throw up?”
“No, I’m not gonna throw up. And I don’t need to go back in. The ibuprofen they gave me is managing the pain—or at least the pain from the fall.” She offered him a weak smile as she folded the paper bag and set it in the seat. “I’ll bet you’re a really great dad.”
“I try. It hasn’t been easy on my own. I’ve had to learn to accept help from my friends too.”
“I’ve never been to a place like Bartlett where the whole community is like a big family. I’ve really had the best time here and loved meeting all of you.”
“Then why are you leaving so soon? Luke told me he was going to ask you to stay.”
“He did. And I was going to, but I can’t now.”
“I don’t get it. Things seemed to be going so well for you two. I haven’t seen him so happy since before Beth died.”
“That’s just it. I’m not Beth. I’m not the life of the party or the fun one everyone wants to be around.”
He raised an eyebrow. “First of all, no one’s asking you to be Beth or the life of the party. You have your own great things that we all like about you. And you didn’t see Luke the way he was before you got here. It’s like he’s been a different man since you showed up. Honestly, I think he might already be in love with you.”
His words were like a stab to her heart. “That’s what makes this so awful. Because he doesn’t even know me. He fell for the person I was pretending to be.”
“Pretending?”
