Rustic Hearts

I get about five feet from Braxton’s steps when Daddy and Emmett emerge from the barn.

“Sophie?” Daddy calls, and it sounds like a question.

I squeeze my eyes tightly closed and pray that I will just disappear.

No such luck.

I slowly turn to face them.

“Good morning,” I mumble.

“Ain’t it though?” Emmett replies as he places a calming hand on Daddy’s arm.

Daddy looks from me to Braxton’s steps and back again.

“Well, got to go. Lots of work to do today. I’m teaching Aunt Doreen how to run payroll later. You guys have a good day out, doing whatever it is ranchers do all day,” I spew and then awkwardly salute them before I turn and jog toward the house.

My heart is racing as I make it to the porch where Aunt Ria is rocking as she reads.

I calmly walk up the steps, and as I pass, she says, “I cleaned the pie and whipped cream from the porch this morning before anyone else was up.”

I stop and turn to her. “I’m sorry I left a mess.”

“That’s all right. We just don’t want to attract ants. Next time, you take it on up to Braxton’s and put it in his fridge, and then you’ll have breakfast for the morning,” she says casually without looking up from her pages.

“Yes, ma’am.”

I text Braxton to let him know about my run-in with Daddy and Emmett as I left his apartment. He didn’t respond for a couple of hours, and then all I got was a thumbs-up emoji. I’ve been freaking out all day, and that’s all he has to say?

I spend the majority of the afternoon in the office with Aunt Doreen, going over the computer one more time. She gets flustered, and we finally have to call it a day.

“I think I can do it well enough,” she says as I close everything down.

I don’t have much confidence in her “well enough,” but there is nothing I can do about it.

“I’ll just have to call you if I get stuck.”

I imagine her calling me a couple of times a day, every single day.

I ride into town with Elle, who is meeting her friends for lunch at the diner. Dallas is working, so I wait till her shift is over, and she and I pick Beau up and go shopping for Halloween supplies.

“Sophie, I’m telling you, they all already knew,” she says when I finish telling her about my morning.

“No, they didn’t. Aunt Ria figured it out when she found our mess on the porch, and you should have seen Daddy’s face.”

“Okay, so maybe Jefferson didn’t know, but the rest of them knew. Nothing happens in that house without the aunts knowing.”

“I’m so embarrassed,” I groan.

“Why? If it were me having all the hot, sweaty sex with Braxton Young, I wouldn’t be embarrassed.”

“Because … I don’t know why. I just am.”

“Whatever. At least the cat’s out of the bag, and you can spend your final nights with him.”

That is a plus.

Beau picks out his Halloween costume from a selection at the general store. It’s the cutest little Batman suit and mask.

“Momma is going to be Robin. Miss Sophie, will you be Batgirl and go trick-or-treating with us?” Beau asks as we make our way to the register.

“I’m sorry, Beau, but I don’t think I’m going to be here for Halloween.”

“But you have to stay. You want to see me dressed up, don’t you?” he asks as his face falls.

“You can try it on for me tonight,” I offer as I kneel, so I’m face-to-face with him.

“I can’t put it on before trick-or-treating.”

“Why not?”

“’Cause then it won’t be special.”

“Trunk-or-Treat is Saturday night at the church. They do it the weekend before Halloween. That’s the trick-or-treating he’s talking about,” Dallas informs me as she joins us with their purchase in hand.

“In that case,” I turn back to Beau and whisper excitedly, “I’ll still be here. Let’s go pick out my Batgirl costume!”

His face lights up. “Yay!”

He grabs me by the hand and leads me back to the racks. They don’t have a Batgirl costume, so I purchase the exact same mask and cape as he did. I’ll wear it with the black dress I brought from home.

I’m getting all kinds of firsts in before I leave.