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)
One of the women inside handed me out a cup of cocoa and some cookies. It wasn’t exactly the breakfast of champions, but I thought it was wonderful.
A few hours later, I’d helped several families pick out their trees and watched as they were put through the machine that shook off the loose needles and then shot through netting to hold them secure on the way home. Now I was walking around another section of the farm talking about our plans for the pumpkin patch opening the next year and other features we were looking forward to offering in the years to come.
I loved hearing Jason talk about the future and the years we’d spend together. It reminded me of the amazing relationship we’d discovered and how I’d found something so completely unexpected because I was willing to take the chance.
I was making my way back toward the Christmas tree fields when I saw a familiar face coming toward me. Mr. Warren smiled warmly and reached out to shake my hand as he got close.
“Mr. Warren,” I said, smiling and shaking his hand. “It’s great to see you.”
“It’s great to see you too,” he said. “Especially out here.”
I smiled and looked around. “It’s pretty wonderful.”
“Yes, it is. I’m so glad you decided to come out and see it,” he said.
“So am I. Come meet Jason.”
He turned and walked with me toward the trees, listening as I told him about everything we’d been doing. When we got there, I introduced the men, then sent Mr. Warren off to choose his tree. I stood and watched, knowing deep in my heart this was exactly the life I should be living. Now all I had to do was look forward to the future.
30
JASON
“Your tie is messed up again,” Carter said, crossing the room over to me and reaching out to fix it. “I don’t know how you keep doing that. Is your neck put together wrong?”
I laughed.
“Maybe,” I said. “I’ve always had this problem. Ties never stay on right. It’s why I hate ties.”
“Yeah, well, me too,” Carter said. “Hating ties, that is. Hence the whole military and lumber business deal. No ties.”
“Smart man. One of the many reasons I looked up to you.”
A soft smile crossed Carter’s face, followed by a sad darkness. He patted my shoulder and spoke softly.
“Look, I just want you to know, I am extremely proud to stand up for you today,” he said.
He was saying it without saying it, and I appreciated it. The weight of my father not being there was heavy on my shoulders, and I tried not to let it get to me. Not saying his name or addressing him directly was purposeful on his part, but there was no real way around it. My father wanted nothing to do with me, nor I with him anymore.
I had reached out, in good faith, trying to see if I could bridge that divide. It only took one phone call and roughly a half hour before I knew it wasn’t going to happen. Dad asked who would be there, and I knew what he was asking. When I told him Carter was going to be my best man, it seemed like he was on the precipice of hanging up right then.
At least he told me he was happy for me and hoped I had a good marriage. But at the end of the call, I got the impression that aside from holidays, I likely would never hear from him again. Our relationship was over, and I just had to accept it.
Thankfully, Carter stepped right up. From the second I asked him to be my best man, he was right there at my side, doing anything I needed and making me feel like I had someone who genuinely cared about me and my happiness on a day that usually revolved solely around the bride. Between Carter and the rest of the guys at the lumber company, I had a cadre of supporters who made sure to celebrate the day with me and make up for my dad not being involved at all.
Carter and I had grown so much closer in the last few months, and Everett and Deacon had taken the places of my best friends. A group chat with the four of us and Gerard was a constant source of entertainment and a place where I could get advice from a group of guys who wouldn’t lie to me and had my best interests in mind.
The door opened, and Everett’s grinning face popped in.
“Pardon the interruption,” he said, “but we thought a drink was in order.”
Deacon and Gerard followed him in, and I laughed in surprise when Everett pulled out a thirty-year-old scotch from under his jacket.
“You have to be kidding me,” I said. “That stuff is stupid expensive.”