Page 138 of Return Policy
“Damn it, Sophia. I have every intention of showing you around the farm but if you keep talking like that, we’re gonna end up stuck in this room the entire trip.”
The corners of my lips curve upwards, and I’m enjoying the lightness I feel again. A familiar emotion surrounds me that I’m not quite ready to acknowledge.
We leave the house and walk towards a pasture, where a gorgeous brown and white horse is trotting around.
“Meet Penelope,” Elijah says, gesturing towards her as we stop at a white wooden fence.
“She’s gorgeous.”
Elijah places two fingers between his lips, whistling loudly, and calls her name. She gallops over to us, and Elijah extends his arm, hugging her neck.
“Hey, girl,” he says gently, running a hand along her mane. “How’ve you been?”
If I thought he was sexy as a football playing jock,woof. I’m about to let Cowboy Elijah fuck me in this pasture.Yeehaw, baby.
“You want to pet her?”
I clasp my hands together, buzzing with excitement. “Can I?”
“Since she’s not familiar with you yet, just pet her here on the neck.” I pat Penelope’s coarse hair, and she neighs, causing me to jump slightly.
“It’s okay,” Elijah says, placing a hand on my back and petting her with the other. “That means she likes it.”
I continue petting Penelope while breathing in the crisp country air. The earthy scent reminds me of the vacation to the mountains in North Carolina.
“She was my dad’s,” Elijah says quietly, with a wistful look in his eyes.
My head snaps toward him. “What? Mark’s?”
“No… My actual dad. Technically, he was my stepdad, but he never once made me feel that way… He raised me from birth.”
Blinking my eyes, I struggle to process the words. “You never mentioned him before.”
“I know.”
My hand falls from Penelope as I turn to face him. “Why not?”
“He died in April.”
His admission hits me with the force of an atomic bomb. All his words about love and loss finally make sense. He wasn’t just giving advice, he was speaking from experience.
“Elijah…” I tilt my head, rubbing a hand along his arm. “I’m sure he loved you very much.”
“He did… Mark might not have been around, but Dino made sure I never felt like I was missing a father figure in my life. He’s the one who got me into archery and taught me to play football.”
Stepping forward, I hug him tightly. “How did he…”
“He had prostate cancer.” A humorless laugh escapes his lips. “It wasn’t even bad. He was stage two when they found it.” His face twists in pain. “But… I don’t know. The treatments didn’t work, and neither did surgery. His last chance was a clinical trial from a big pharmaceutical company.” Elijah wipes a tear off his face. “But the miracle cure ended up being a lethal injection, and the company knew it.”
“Elijah,” I whisper, placing my palm against his face. “That’s awful.”
“Yep… We’re suing them, but nothing’s gonna come of it. They’re a billion-dollar company with the best lawyers on retainer.” He clears his throat. “And it won’t bring my dad back.” Silence hangs in the air between us. “I just want to move on.”
“I get that.” I place my palm on Elijah’s face, and he frowns down at me. His phone goes off, and he pulls it out, stopping an alarm.
“I wanna show you something before we get ready for dinner,” he tells me, grabbing my hand and leading me back towards the house. The sun is setting, casting the farm in a beautiful golden glow. Elijah stops in the middle of the field with the houses and a large barn in the distance.
“What are we—”
