July
The world had begun to open up again, and Doc didn’t know whether to be pleased or sad. Finally, they’d be able to stray from the farm. The past few months had flown by for him when he thought about Andie.
When his mind turned to his writing, Doc thought time had crawled at whatever was slower than a snail’s pace. Sloth? Inchworm? Paint drying? He tried to reel his mind back in when a thousand other ideas flew out. If only words on the page could come as quickly as random thoughts in his head.
He had a million words chaotically floating around in his mind until he tried to put pen to paper. And then he conveniently forgot all of them aside from “the,” which he typed and deleted repeatedly. He didn’t believe in purgatory or limbo, but this was definitely an author's version of it.
A bark outside drew his attention from his empty cup of tea and the blank page in front of him. Rupert, which meant Andie. He dragged his fingers roughly through his greying hair, trying to appear like he hadn’t stumbled from the bed to the coffee maker to the desk without a comb or a splash of water on his face.
I’m going to chase her off before we’ve even done more than dip our toes in the water of what this could be between us.
She’d been so patient with him. Doc had gone a little blank when they’d talked about asexuality. It had taken him a while to unravel his thoughts—to pull apart some of the almost painful moments from the past where he’d wondered if he was broken.
He couldn’t rush. No matter how much his heart wanted him to. He’d read everything he could find online about the spectrum of asexuality.
It fit.
It was the only thing that had fit him.
“Rough morning?” Andie grinned at him after taking in his plaid pyjama bottoms, sock-covered feet, and his Pink Floyd T-shirt. “I ventured far from home.”
“Drove into the village?”
“Fine, fine. Take all the adventure away from me. Rups and I went into the village to make sure it still existed. It does. Picked up some dark chocolate and cherry scones at the bakery. Want to share? I’ve already got coffee brewing.” Andie waved the bag in front of him. “How are the words going this morning?”
“Going anywhere but where I want them.”
Andie’s gaze drifted down to his feet and back up again. “Why don’t we have a snack here? I can bring the coffee over. The rain has left the farm a wee bit muddy. Not sure you want to trek around out there in your socks.”
“I have shoes.” Doc gestured to his boots and wellies near the door. “Several pairs, in fact.”
“I like your feet.”
“Weird, but thank you.” Doc never knew how to graciously accept a compliment. No matter what it was about. He pulled on his wellies. “How was the world out there?”
“Odd.” Andie waited patiently until he was ready to go. She glanced down at Rupert, who raced around in the yard. “What are the chances he allows me to wipe his paws?”
“Slim to none?” Doc laughed when the Airedale threw himself down to roll around in the mud. “Not sure it’s the paws you should be worried about.”
“Rupert.” Andie shoved the bag into Doc’s hands and raced after her dog. “No, you bloody mutt, I’m not playing chase. Come back here. Rups.”
Doc laughed so hard that he had to grab onto a nearby post for support. She was so bright and beautiful and cheerful. “Need a hand?”
“Just keep the scones safe.” Andie finally managed to grab hold of her dog. “You’re having a bath, Rups. I’m not letting you drag mud all over the cottage because you had to roll around in it. Honestly.”
“Why don’t you rinse him off outside, and I’ll grab a towel from the cottage for you?” Doc followed her toward the farmhouse. “You have a special one for him?”
“Large, ratty beach towel. It’s on the chair in the bathroom. I’d planned to give him a proper bath later.” Andie tsked while struggling to keep a hold of Rupert. “Honestly. What am I going to do with you? You’ve more mud than fur at the moment, I swear. Were you hoping for a spa day?”
Leaving Andie to lecture her poor dog, Doc made his way into the house. He left the bag of scones in the kitchen and then made his way through to the bathroom. It took a second to wiggle the door open; he found the towel draped over the back of a rickety old wooden chair.
Doc returned to find Andie chasing Rupert around with the garden hose. “Not sure he wants to wash away his mud mask.”
“Give me a hand, will you?” Andie huffed with frustrated laughter. “Don’t frown at me, Rups. I’m not torturing you.”
The frenzied wiggling from Rupert definitely seemed to indicate torment was happening. Doc left the towel by the door and went to help. Andie’s jeans and Nirvana T-shirt were mussed with some of the mud from her dog.
Doc stepped forward and got a face full of water and dirt when Rupert shook his fur. “I left my manuscript for this.”
“Is it a manuscript when it’s blank?”
“You wound me.” Doc sighed dramatically. He went bravely into the breach, grasping at the wiggling Rupert to hold him steady. “The beast is under control.”
“Did you and Rupert come together to be overly dramatic for my benefit?” Andie dragged a hand through her messed-up hair, shoving the wet locks out of her face. She aimed the water at Rupert, who tried to break free. “I promise to give you all the treats if you let me get this mud off you.”
Rupert finally settled down. Doc kept hold of him while Andie rinsed him off. He waited until she’d turned the water off to reach back to grab the towel.
They managed to dry Rupert off and guide him into the house before he could take off for the mud once again. Andie leaned wearily against Doc. They both laughed at the state of their muddy clothing.
“Not sure I want to rinse myself off in the same manner.” Doc helped her wind the garden hose back up. “Why don’t we both get changed? And I’ll meet you back here for… delayed scones and coffee?”
Trudging carefully through the muck, Doc managed to make it to the tiny cottage unscathed. He changed into clean jeans and a shirt. Since the wellies were already muddy, he decided to wear them again.
The path certainly hadn’t improved magically in the five minutes it had taken him to change. Rupert greeted him at the farmhouse door. Doc had to block his escape while squeezing inside.
“Aren’t you too old to be such a menace?” Doc gave Rupert a good scratch and then followed the dog into the kitchen, where a tired Andie was slumped into a chair with a mug clutched in her hands. “Still not a morning person?”
“Nonna keeps conning me into trying these ‘better sleep’ apps on my phone. I’ve had nightmares about joining meditation cults. It’s not helping.” Andie groaned dramatically. “I can’t figure out how to delete the sodding thing off my phone for the life of me. It’s possessed.”
“The app or your phone?”
“Both.” Andie slid her phone across the table to him when he motioned for it. “I’m begging for divine intervention at this point.”
“Not a deity, but I’m a dab hand at removing things from my phone. Amazing what you’ll learn when you’re procrastinating.” Doc found the apps setting on her device and managed to uninstall the meditation one. “There you go. I’ve freed you from the cult.”
“My hero.” Andie shoved the bag of scones toward him. “My thanks in baked goods.”
“Always happy to be of assistance. With muddy mutts and wayward electronics.” Doc relaxed into the chair. He’d forgotten in his travels how easy being around Andie had always been. She was one of the few people who set his mind and anxiety at ease. “I’m glad I came home.”
Andie seemed to struggle for a second before smiling brightly. “So am I.”