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“That’s what I told myself at the time.” She shrugs. “Now…I don’t know. I might have just walked away from everything too soon. No matter which way you look at it, I’m utterly screwed.”
Honey stands up and nuzzles her, sensing her pain. Becca rubs Honey behind her ears.
“That’s really brave, putting yourself out there like that,” I say. “I think it’s admirable.”
Becca lets a beat pass, then nods. “I guess that’s a better way of looking at it.”
“Was it movies you were trying out for?”
“Oh, all kinds of things. Movies, sitcoms, music videos.” She laughs, shaking her head. “I tried to get on one of those talent shows, but I was booted in the first week. I always knew I couldn’t sing.”
“Sing?”
Without hesitation, she sings a few lines of a song—something I’ve never heard before. As the pretty lilt of her voice fills my ears, goosebumps prickle up my arms.
“That was beautiful, Becca.”
She presses her lips together in a restrained smile. “You’re sweet.”
“I’m just honest.”
As we look at each other across the table, my chest swells with unfamiliar feelings. I’ve lived a solitary life for so long that it’s simply become a given. I don’t ever waste my time wishing for things to be different. I’ve never seen the point.
In this moment, though, looking into Becca’s eyes, my mind runs wild. I imagine what it might be like to have her always sitting across from me like this, what it would be like for the house to be filled with her sweet songs.
“You’re not driving through the night, are you?”
She shakes her head. “No. I’ll find a hotel. How far is it into town?”
I want to tell her she can stay here. I have the room, and I’d certainly like to keep spending time with her. But I can’t imagine that she’d feel comfortable staying in the house of a man she just met, and the last thing I want to do right now is scare her off.
If I were to screw this up, I’d never forgive myself.
“It’s about a half hour drive from here,” I tell her. “You can’t miss it.”
Chapter Three
Becca
Leaving the farmhouse is difficult. I tell myself it’s just because I was cooped up in the car for so long before this and that I would have been happy to stop anywhere.
But something tells me it’s not that simple.
Outside, the way the setting sun hits the white planks of the house makes me feel nostalgic, even though I’ve never lived in a farmhouse before. Adrian and Honey walk out with me, Adrian stopping on his porch but the dog following me all the way up to the car. She looks up into my eyes, whining a little.
Guess she doesn’t want me to go.
I look back at Adrian and wave as I get into my car. He leans casually against one of the pillars on his porch, waving back with a slow, single gesture. A whole lot of me wants to go back up to the house and stay with him longer.
But then what?
Sure, he’s handsome and alone. I can’t deny the hopeful excitement I felt when he said he wasn’t married. But that doesn’t mean he’s interested in me.
I turn around in the driveway and get back onto the road. After a few miles, I start to see little signs directing me toward the town. I focus on the road, pushing my foot down a little harder on the pedal. It will be dark soon, and I’d like to get into town before the sun sets.
The road gets wider as houses start to appear. At first, there are more houses like Adrian’s, spaced far apart with big yards. As I get closer to town, the houses get closer together, and look more modern in style.
Driving into the center of town, I see a modern shopping center and a large grocery store and other businesses. I’d been expecting something much more sparse, and I’m pleasantly surprised to see all the modern conveniences. I admonish myself for my assumptions—most of what I know of small country towns I learned from TV.
