Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 57897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57897 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 289(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 193(@300wpm)
Maybe she was hurt or sick. Or something came up with the property and the challenges she was facing with it. If something was wrong, I didn’t want to leave her in a lurch. Whether or not she was interested in keeping anything else going between us, I wanted to at least help her if I could. Maybe it was all a big misunderstanding, and now it was so awkward she didn’t know how to respond.
By Sunday afternoon, the combination of curiosity and worry was enough to get me in my truck. No matter how the amazing night between us ended, the pull toward Beth Ann was undeniable. I couldn’t get her out of my mind, and I wanted to make sure everything was alright. But when I drove up to her trailer, I noticed her car wasn’t there.
I got out and looked around a little, but there was no sign of her car, and all the lights were off in the trailer. As I drove away from the trailer, I glanced over at the big house. Something about it tugged at my chest.
I knew it would be invasive for me to show up at the house as she was going through it, so I resisted the urge to turn toward the house and instead made my way back home. I needed to get her out of my mind. The next day was my first official day at the logging company with Carter, and I wanted to be in a good headspace before I showed up. I just needed to push her out of my thoughts and focus on what I had been so excited about and looking forward to so much before I ever encountered Beth Ann.
That was easier said than done, but by Monday morning, I was back to being excited about my new start and reminding myself why I’d come out here to begin with. This was something I’d wanted to do for a long time. Now no one was stopping me, and I was finally able to do what I thought I would be doing while I was still in school and sneaking e-mails to my cousin so my dad didn’t know I was still in communication with him.
Before heading to bed just after arriving home Sunday night, Carter told me to meet him at the office at nine, that he had to be there early for something, but that he had a surprise for me when I got there. It actually made me excited, and for a brief time, I forgot about the confusion and hurt of Beth Ann taking off, and memories of Charlotte were nonexistent.
When morning came, I nearly jumped out of bed. I had zero intention of being late and hopped in the shower to get clean with lightning speed. I had asked Carter what I should wear, knowing that my job would likely be out in the field, but not knowing if showing up in jeans and a T-shirt would make a good impression on my first day. He had said that I shouldn’t worry so much about it.
Casual and clean. That was how Carter ran his business and how he looked at life. Casual and clean. It stuck in my head, and when I got ready, it was a brand-new pair of jeans and a freshly laundered and hung-up shirt. For the first time in a while, I actually felt pretty good about my appearance. It was refreshing to actually feel like an adult for once and not wear a band T-shirt.
I drove with the windows down and the radio on all the way to the new building that had been built for the business. The trailer he showed me pictures of for years was still there, but now was mostly for record and equipment keeping. The actual office was the building next door, looking more like a traditional business and having a paved parking lot. It was a heck of a step up from what he described when he started the company and the pictures I saw back then, and when I parked the car and opened the door of the building, I was struck by how nice it was.
The cool fresh air was from a central unit and not a window unit like the trailer next door. The main lobby of the office was wide and long, and a receptionist was at the desk. She smiled and told me that Carter would be out in a minute. I sat for a few minutes before Carter and Lauren both came out, Carson on her hip.
“Hey,” Carter said, “come on with me into the back.”
“Sure,” I said, following him as Lauren went to the desk to talk to the girl there. “I thought Lauren was your receptionist?”
“Oh, not anymore. She hasn’t had that job in a while. Now she has the official title of ‘office administrator’ and handles all the supply ordering and any other things around here other than receptionist duties. Gives her a bit more freedom while she goes back to school.”