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“They did have a lot of trouble with girls calling the house and begging them to go out. But my boys weren’t into girls until later. Only Talon found a girl young. Then they broke up that summer after high school graduation.” Her finger glossed over the picture of Talon and Holly at their prom. “I always thought they’d last, like me and your father.”
“You never know,” I said, remembering how Talon and Holly were still hung up over their breakup. I sensed there were unresolved issues and big emotions between them.
I couldn’t imagine liking someone for so long and not doing something about it. Especially since they ran into each other more now.
Mom closed the album and stood to put it back on the shelf with the others. “You probably have plans tonight. I don’t want to keep you.”
I stood up, eager to head back to my place and have some privacy. I always loved living so close to my family, but now I could see the drawbacks. I wanted Sarah and Addy to myself.
“Thank you for the refreshments and for showing us his albums. I enjoyed it,” Sarah said.
“I bet you did,” I couldn’t help but mumble.
Mom waved her hand in my direction. “Oh, please. You were an adorable kid.”
It was true. I never went through the awkward teenager phase. I was a little lanky, but I escaped the bad skin that so many of my friends had. The only problem was that girls noticed me early, and I didn’t like the attention until later.
“If you ever need me to watch Addy, I’d be happy to do it. She’s a joy,” Mom said to Sarah when Addy ran for the door. I followed her, not wanting her to run out without an adult.
“That’s kind of you to offer,” Sarah said.
Mom walked with Sarah to join us.
“The carriage ride was magical. You should have a night open for guests. I think it would be a wonderful addition to the farm.”
“The boys are talking about acquiring the inn on the property adjacent to ours. I believe it has stables.”
“That’s what we were thinking about, but we have no idea if the granddaughter is interested in selling.”
“I can’t imagine a woman from California would want to move here and tackle that inn. How long has it been sitting there vacant? Five, ten years?” Mom asked me.
“I can’t remember. Just that it hasn’t been open since I returned home.”
“It would be a nice addition to our farm, but we can’t count on it yet,” Mom said, kissing my cheek. “You three have a good night. Stay overnight if you get too tired to drive home. There’s plenty of room in Knox’s house. When he built it with so many bedrooms, I asked if he planned on having lots of children.”
“What did he say?” Sarah asked her.
“That he had no idea. But this was the house he wanted.”
I shook my head. “You have to stop telling them all my secrets.”
“That’s not a secret. Sarah just wants to get to know you.”
“Night, Mom.” I made a mental note not to spend too much time at the main house. Not unless I wanted all my secrets and embarrassing moments from my childhood to be revealed to the woman I was attracted to.
“I think your mom is sweet,” Sarah said when we reached her car.
“She means well, but she really wants us to be together.”
Her brow furrowed. “Is there anything wrong with that?”
I shook my head. “What I meant was that she wants us to be together, but then she shows you naked pictures of me and reveals all my embarrassing moments.”
Sarah smiled. “It was sweet. I loved learning about you as a child. I feel like I know you so much better now.”
“Then it was worth the embarrassment,” I said to her as Addy shut the back passenger door.
“I think so.”
