FIFTEEN

Harper

As if things weren’t weird enough between us already as we navigated this no man’s land between being friends and casual acquaintances, now this.

I closed the door and turned away as my cheeks burned. 

What had that been anyway? Was he going in for a full-blown kiss on my lips and I messed it up? Or was he going for my cheek? In which case I really messed that up.

At thirty years old I’d kissed plenty of men. Not a lot but enough. Enough I shouldn’t have somehow managed to embarrass myself during what was either going to be a peck on the cheek or a kiss to remember.

My shame followed me as I finished cleaning up the kitchen. And as I locked and checked all the many doors. And as I got ready for bed.

Reading couldn’t hold my attention. Nothing on Agnes’s cable channels looked worth watching. Finally I turned off the TV and the light and decided to try and go to sleep.

I was still reliving my humiliation, over and over and over, when a screech from the back yard had me sitting bolt upright in bed.

The one screech was followed by more and I realized what it was. The chickens!

Holy shit, I’d forgotten to close up the coop for the night. Judging by the horrific sounds coming from the backyard, some kind of animal had gotten in.

They were probably being murdered right at this very moment. I jumped out of bed and ran, barefoot in my pajama bottoms and tank top, down the staircase.

I was already out the kitchen door when I realized how dark it was outside. Thankfully, I’d remembered to grab my cell from the nightstand. I turned on the flashlight app and let the beam guide me toward the coop.

Holding my breath I swept the light around the coop’s yard. No chickens. I ran to the side and held the light up to the window, pressing my face against the wire to peek into the coop.

No birds on the roost and none in the nesting boxes.

“Oh, my God.” I looked around.

No one and nothing was there to help me or the chickens.

“Ohmygodohmygodohmygod.”

Panic set in. I’d killed Agnes’s chickens. Worse, I’d really gotten attached to those darn birds. They’d been my work companions ever since I’d bought the wicker lounge and started working outside a few hours a day.

Tears pricked at the back of my eyes as the full weight of this hit me.

The cell was still in my hand. Stone’s number was right there where he’d entered it under S for Steak Master.

Fighting tears I hit to call and waited through the ringing.

“Hello?” 

“I killed the chickens.”

“Excuse me?” He sounded confused.

Of course he was. I had his number. He didn’t have mine.

“It’s Harper. Agnes’s chickens are dead and it’s all my fault.”

“Give me five minutes. I’ll be right there.” He disconnected before I had a chance to say anything.

Not that I knew what to say. No, don’t come was an option. But I wanted him here. I didn’t want to be alone right now with my guilt.

I could have called Red, but she didn’t have chickens. She wouldn’t understand the full weight of what I was going through knowing some animal came and feasted on all six of the girls I’d come to know and love.

Stone might. Besides, maybe he could identify what kind of animal had done it so I could fully direct my hatred somewhere other than at myself.

He was there in what felt like under five minutes, pulling his truck around back and leaving the lights on to shine on the coop and me, standing there barefooted and in my PJs.

Still shocked. Still sad. More than sad. Devastated. 

And the more I thought about those poor birds being torn apart and eaten alive, the sicker I felt about it.

He stalked toward me, a flashlight in his hand which he shone inside the coop, just like I had with my cell phone. He needn’t have bothered.

Nothing had changed since I’d looked. It was still empty. Though maybe he’d see some clue I’d missed.

He came back to me, concern etched in his features lit by the truck lights. “Tell me what happened.”

“I was in bed and I heard them screaming.”

“Who?”

“The chickens.” Fighting tears, I admitted, “I forgot to close the coop door for the night.”

“And that’s it?”

Wasn’t that enough? “By the time I got out here everything was silent and they were gone.” My voice broke on the last word.

He moved back toward the coop, shining his flashlight in a larger area around us.

“They’re all dead, aren’t they? Eaten by . . . whatever.”

“No, I don’t think so.” Stone shook his head. “There was definitely something in here. The food trough is overturned. The shavings are pulled out of the nesting boxes. But if they were dead we’d see evidence of it. More feathers than just these few.”

I’d moved closer, shining my own little cell phone light around as he talked.

“So you don’t think they’re dead?” I asked, feeling hope for the first time since stepping outside and finding the coop abandoned. “They could be alive?”

“Yeah, definitely. It was probably something small, scavenging for feed or eggs. Nothing short of a pack of animals could take all six birds on one go. And even if this thing managed to get one of the chickens, we’d see evidence of it.”

“Evidence?”

“Blood . . . parts.” His gaze met mine.

His answer was less comforting than I’d hope but still, that aside, there was no blood. There were no . . . parts.

I blew out a breath and nodded, my heart pounding. “Okay. So if they’re still alive, where are they? They must have flown away.”

They could be just as gone as if they were dead. And what could I do? Drive around the neighborhood shaking my bag of cracked corn and mealworms and calling, Here, chickie-chickie?

“They don’t fly that well. You’ve seen them. They run most places. They can only fly short distances.” He was looking up in the trees as he spoke, sweeping the lower branches with his flashlight. He broke into a smile. “There they are.”

I followed the beam of his light and let out my breath in a whoosh. “Oh my God. They’re right there.”

A quick count, that took me twice because I was so upset, finally yielded all six. Meanwhile, seeing them there, lined up on the lower branch of the big old Maple tree nearest the coop, told me one thing. I was the only one traumatized by this experience. The six girls blinked at me as if we were disturbing their rest.

“Go get some feed or treats. They’ll come down and then we can lock them up, safe for the night.”

He was right. They’d follow me anywhere for treats.

“Right.” I spun and ran for the basement door where I kept the treats.

I realized it was too hard to get into the basement door with all the locks engaged so I pivoted and took the back stairs to the kitchen instead.

All while still barefoot I crossed the kitchen, undid the two locks on the door between the basement and the kitchen and flipped on the light.

I hadn’t been in the basement after dark yet. The words embalming room had scarred my brain. But I ran down the stairs now without barely a second thought. 

After wrestling with the lock on the basement door, I grabbed my nearly empty bag of treats and ran out the door into the driveway toward the coop, shaking the bag the whole way.

Of course they couldn’t get out of the tree fast enough the moment they heard the telltale sound and I saw Stone was right. They flew like shit, their plump bodies hitting the ground heavily even as they beat their wings hard. Then they ran, straight for me, wings out like rudders to make the tight turns.

I laughed at the sight even while my eyes filled with tears as the adrenaline started to leave me. I realized how close I’d come to losing them. And how grateful I was I hadn’t. It was overwhelming.

“Here you go.” I dumped a bunch on the ground at my feet. “I’ll order a dozen more bags from Amazon tomorrow. I promise.”

Stone came closer, watching them swarm the ground at my feet. “So the idea was to get them into the coop. Not feed them in the driveway.”

“Oh. Right.” I cringed and glanced up at him.

He smiled. “It’s okay. Come on. Walk with me. They’ll follow you.”

I nodded, clutching the bag and my remaining treats as I moved toward the coop. He was right, again. Of course.

They followed me, and a few decided to get in front of me to make sure they didn’t miss anything, I guess.

It was nearly impossible to put one foot in front of the other with them underfoot but I shuffled my way to the coop, took a handful of the treats and tossed them inside the screened-in yard.

All six ran in, fighting for who got to get through the doorway first. Stone was there and prepared, closing the door and securing the latch. Then he went and moved around the coop, checking the other door and the hatch to the nesting box. Something I’d never done before but was now realizing I should have.

“All nice and tight,” he said.

By the time he came back to me, I was back to feeling dejected. I had no business taking care of all these animals. I knew nothing about this stuff and apparently I was too distracted or self-centered or both to even make sure they were safe for the night before I went to bed.

I looked up at him, the tears filling my eyes. “I forgot all about them.”

“It happens.” He shrugged.

“I never forgot before but tonight you were here and my usual routine was disrupted.” 

His brows shot high. “So it’s my fault?” he asked.

I couldn’t tell if he was mad or amused at what I hadn’t meant to sound like an accusation. I wasn’t blaming him even though yes, it was his fault because if he wasn’t here tonight and wasn’t so damn distracting I would have remembered.

That weird kiss between us had sapped all rational thought right out of my brain.

I wanted to say, yes. I didn’t.

“No,” I said. “It’s my fault. I just, I don’t belong here.”

“Don’t say that. You’re doing great for your first week.”

“Shalene wouldn’t have forgotten. Agnes wouldn’t have forgotten.” I shook my head and brushed away a tear as it rolled down my cheek. 

“Jesus, don’t cry.” He took a step closer. Flipping off his light, he shoved it in the back pocket of his jeans and then gripped my forearms in each of his big, strong farmer hands. “Harper. Stop. It’s all fine.”

“It almost wasn’t.” I shook my head, barely seeing him through the blur of the waterworks I couldn’t seem to control.

“Come here.” He pulled me tight against him.

It worked. I stopped crying as my brain short-circuited from the sheer number of sensations and thoughts assaulting me all at once.

I’d done research for a book once. It said our inner chatter could spew between two hundred and a thousand words through our minds in a minute. I swear I heard every one of those words now.

I noticed how hard his pecs felt beneath my cheek. How soft the cotton of his T-shirt was against my skin. I worried my tears were making his shirt wet, even as I worried that I was standing outside in no bra . . . or shoes.

And most of all, I was wondering if we’d repeat that kiss and preparing myself to make it better this time as I rehearsed the moves in my mind.

Meanwhile, Stone palmed the back of my head as he held me close against him. I felt the weight of his head against the top of mine.

He was comforting me. That’s all this was. It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t sexual. It was a man reacting in the face of a woman’s tears.

I could keep telling myself that, but it didn’t change the fact I wanted it to be more. I was poised and ready for this embrace to be more. For whatever had been building between us since our first contentious meeting at the farm stand to be more.

Then he started to move his left hand up and down my back. Lightly. Gently. He angled his head over mine and I felt him press a kiss to the top of my head as he still cradled me against his chest.

This felt like more to me.

“Stone?” I said.

He pulled back to look down at me, waiting.

I wanted to invite him in. Hell, I wanted to invite him to my bed, but that wasn’t going to happen. I didn’t have that kind of self-confidence.

The fear that we weren’t on the same page paralyzed me. I bit my lip, choosing my words.

Stone blew out a curse beneath his breath before he said, “Harper . . .”

I raised my gaze to his. “Yeah?”

He cussed again and then his mouth was on mine. He leaned lower as his hands cupped my face. Stone angled his head and the kiss grew deeper, more passionate as he backed me toward the house.

“Your truck lights are on,” I gasped when I managed to break away for a second.

“They’ll go off automatically.” Then his lips were back, covering mine.

We’d reached the basement door. With my back against the door and Stone’s body in front of me, I was pinned. But I didn’t feel trapped. I felt wanted. Needed.

His hands braced on the doorframe, Stone pulled away from the kiss.

Breathing heavy he said, “Invite me in.”

It wasn’t really a question. More like a plea than a demand. I answered it anyway. “Yes.”

A thousand times yes.