Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 68594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 68594 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 343(@200wpm)___ 274(@250wpm)___ 229(@300wpm)
I nodded, knowing this was the incident she’d been thinking about the other day. The thought of him hurting her made me furious, but I tamped down my anger so she would keep talking.
“When he left for work on Monday, I went to a lawyer and she helped me. The next week, I was gone. He found me fast, but I had people on my side now. For almost a year, he badgered me. I sold the car he’d given me. The fancy phone. The jewelry. Even most of the expensive clothes he’d insisted I had to wear went to a consignment shop. He was furious, but he’d put things in my name for tax purposes. I lived off that tiny nest egg I accumulated. We stayed in a small place. Took the bus and walked. I had a cheap, throwaway cell. I worked at the local diner. And I hadn’t been that happy in a long time. No one was constantly telling me what I was doing wrong. How much I’d let them down, time after time. I had my own thoughts and feelings. Abby could laugh. Scatter her toys. She was happy. I became Quinn again.” She tugged on her overall straps. “I wore what I liked, ate what I liked, and lived how I wanted. I rediscovered myself.”
I nodded encouragingly. “I like this rediscovered Quinn,” I murmured.
She smiled. “I like her too.”
“What happened?”
“He met the perfect woman, who was exactly like him. Then he couldn’t divorce me fast enough. He signed away his rights and gave me money to get me out of his life.” She sighed, her body suddenly slumping. I pulled her into my arms. “We moved here,” she murmured, her head resting on my chest.
“Jesus, I regret the way I acted with you,” I muttered, holding her tight. “I’ll regret that the rest of my life.”
“No, you were just you.” I felt her smile. “A grump. But I could see you were using it to keep people away, not because you were unkind.”
“I will never be a grump with you again.”
She tilted her head back, her eyes warm. “I think you’re kinda cute when you’re being a grump. But I do like the Farmer John Abby knows.”
“You know him too. Or at least, you’re beginning to.”
“I am.” She smiled. “I like him.”
I bent down, taking her mouth. “He likes you. Very much.”
We kissed sweetly. Softly. I drew back. I looked around the kitchen, wanting, needing to explain something to her. “I knew this place well,” I began.
“Oh?”
“Thelma Hopkins was a second mother to me even before I lost mine. I ate here a lot. She always helped me make up meals in the spring I could eat during the busy planting season. She’d drop off food from here all the time. Check on me. I could talk to her about everything. When she died, it was as if I lost my mom all over again.”
“Oh, John.”
“Meatloaf Monday was my favorite. She always made extra for me. I loved it cold on sandwiches.” I shrugged ruefully. “The thought of a newcomer arriving and taking over her place didn’t sit well with me. I took it out on you, and I’m sorry.”
“Yet you supported me at the city council meeting.”
“I realized Thelma would kick my ass for being a grump. She would want this diner to be brought back to life. By being an ass, I was dishonoring her.”
“So you didn’t object about my silly name.”
“I love the name. It’s exactly right. And I want to kick my own ass for being anything but nice to you.”
She cupped my face. “You are forgiven.”
“Just like that?”
“I forgave you when you supported my request. And since then, I’ve grown quite fond of you,” she said with a wink.
Unable to resist, I kissed her again.
“Can I help you with something so you can go home?”
“I just have to put the roast in the slow cooker. It’ll cook low and slow all night.”
“May I come over once I finish for the day? Spend some time with you and Abby?”
“Oh, she would love that!”
“And her momma?”
She linked her arms around my neck. “She’d love that too.”
“Good.”
After my chores were done, I stopped by the farmhouse, had a shower, and then grabbed a tote I had found when I was looking for clean towels in the hall closet. I put it in the back seat, glancing at the sky. It was beginning to cloud over, and they were calling for rain soon. If it stormed, I would be there with Abby and Quinn. Maybe that would help calm their fears.
I swung by the pizza place, ordering a large pie. I didn’t want Quinn to cook, and I had a feeling pizza would be a treat for them. I added some pop and ice cream, putting it in the tote.