Chapter 24

CHAPTER 24

SLATE

A fter a long day setting up equipment and getting everything prepped with the crew, I was happy to be back in the cozy farmhouse. It'd been two weeks since I'd first come to Firefly Grove and I was already growing to appreciate it more than I'd ever expected.

When I'd first pulled up, I'd been certain I'd arrived in some fresh hell, but now, I saw things that I'd overlooked at the time. Like the way the breeze rustled the tall grass in the fields the cows hadn't grazed, and how it pulled the scent of the surrounding trees into the air.

Alone in the living room, I was surprised when I realized that I'd grown fond of the sound of dirt under my boots instead of the pavement in the city. I'd even started appreciating the quiet. Sure, there were always cow and chicken sounds and the occasional rumble of an old truck at the end of the road, but it was so peaceful out here.

Jeanie and Doug were upstairs in their bedroom and the house was quiet. We'd had dinner two hours ago, but despite being exhausted after the day, I didn't feel sleepy just yet.

Instead, I couldn't stop thinking about how much I'd started appreciating the simple life in Firefly Grove. Surprised by the direction my thoughts had taken, I shook my head at myself when the screen door to the porch suddenly opened and Jess came inside.

She'd been out all day, and strangely, I'd found I missed having her around. As she walked in, she paused in the door when she saw me, then gave me a small smile and came to sit with me. "Can we talk?"

"Sure," I said, frowning when I realized how serious her expression was. Her lips were pressed together, her brow slightly furrowed and her eyes downturned. "Jess? What's wrong?"

She leaned back in the armchair beside mine, not turning to face me as she chewed the inside of her cheek. Silent for a moment, she had my stomach tied up in knots before she finally spoke, but when she did, it was like a dam broke.

She unloaded and I didn't interrupt, a little taken aback at some of what she said but understanding where she was coming from. "Nothing's really wrong. I'm just nervous about your crew, Slate. They've come in here and taken over. They don't seem to take my family seriously, and what could happen now that the oil isn't just ours anymore?"

Her cheeks seemed ghostly pale in the low light of only the lamp in the corner of the room and the TV being on. She closed her eyes, swiping her tongue across her lips. "It feels shared. I know it's not, but it just feels like this thing has taken on a life of its own and we're not part of it. I'm starting to wonder if we ever should've told anyone about it at all and now it's too late. We can't take it back, but maybe it would've been better to just have kept quiet about it."

"I understand what you mean," I said. "I'm not just trying to appease you by saying that either. This has spiraled into a much bigger production than it was when I first showed up, but you need to know that I wouldn't bring anyone onto your farm that would take advantage of your family."

She finally turned her head on the cushion to look at me, a rare vulnerability shining in those eyes. "You're sure we can trust them?"

"I'm sure," I promised. "I'm sorry your first impression of them was so poor. That was never my intention, but I'm going to do everything in my power to make it right."

"You don't have to?—"

She cut herself off when I shook my head at her, and when she gave me a questioning look, I explained. "This is what I should've done in the first place, but today got away from me a little bit. I'm sorry it did. With the crew arriving and all the equipment needing to be put in place, I think I was so focused on the logistics that I lost sight of the human element."

"It's okay," she murmured, even managing another of those too small smiles. "I trust you. It's not that I need to be running the show or anything. I just felt a bit steamrolled today, I think."

"Tomorrow morning, I'll formally introduce you to the crew," I assured her. "I'll make it clear to them that they have to answer to you, because I do as well. They shouldn't have made you feel the way they did, but especially not on your own property."

I saw the relief in her eyes when I said it. Slowly leaning closer to me, she reached out to put her hand on mine. "Thank you, Slate. This farm is everything to us. I know it's hard to understand, but it's not just our home. It's our livelihood. Our history and hopefully also our future."

"I understand." I turned my hand over and wrapped my fingers around her much smaller, thinner ones. Her hand was so soft and warm, yet her grip was firm.

Jess Merrick was a lot stronger than she looked—both physically and emotionally. This must really have been bothering her for it to have torn her up the way it seemed to have done today.

"You have my word that they will respect your family and your property," I said quietly, my eyes firm on hers. "I know that it must be a daunting sight, suddenly seeing all these massive vehicles and a horde of strangers on your land, but I promise you that no harm will come to this farm because of them. They're here to help, Jess. As difficult as that might be to believe after today."

"I know." She drew in a deep breath, just staring back into my eyes for a moment before she flashed me a much more relaxed smile. "Thanks for hearing me out. I know I'm in no place to make demands. You and Mira pulled a lot of strings to even get these guys out here at a price we could afford, so thank you for that too. It's just…"

I squeezed her fingers. "I know. I really am sorry that today went down the way it did. I think it's just the force of habit, you know? Once a job is ready to get started, that's all we concentrate on. Anything else is just noise, but it shouldn't be. Not in this case."

"So what happens now?" she asked, her voice soft. "How long will it take before we've got any answers?"

"We should start getting some within the next few days, but we won't know for sure until their assessment of the site is complete. That could take a few weeks. The longer, the better, though. As long as they're still here, it means there's more oil to be found."

She chuckled. "That seems like a fair assessment of the situation. I suppose it won't be good news if they suddenly start packing up before the end of the week."

"They won't," I said confidently. "Don't quote me on this, but I agree with your dad. I have a good feeling about what they're going to find, Jess. If I'm wrong, I'm wrong, so don't get your hopes up, but if I were you, I'd settle in to have them here for a couple of weeks at least."

She nodded at me. "Well, I suppose as long as they don't make me feel like a gnat they'd rather step on than talk to, I should survive a couple of weeks."

I laughed. "Good to know. How was your day? I couldn't help but notice you cleared out of here pretty early."

"Oh, you couldn't help it, huh?" she teased, her hand still in mine and her thumb now absently starting to stroke mine. "That's a surprise. I thought you'd be busy with your new friends all day."

"You're my new friend," I pointed out. "I've known some of those guys for a long time, but no. It's not that I wasn't busy with them. I was, but you disappeared pretty quickly. I may even have started to worry a bit when you didn't come home for dinner."

"I'm not sure if I should be flattered or insulted," she joked. "To answer your question though, I was with Sophie. We went to lunch and then I helped her run a few errands for her business. In the end, I got roped into checking inventory before the next market."

"She's talented," I said after pausing for a beat, remembering the garments she'd made that I'd seen last Saturday. "I know a few people in the city that would kill to get their hands on some of those designs."

"Yeah, well, then they're going to have to come out here to get them." She grinned. "Sophie isn't interested in going wide, so to speak. All she wants is to create a brand for the town."

"You guys sure do seem to be proud of it." I grimaced and squeezed my eyes shut as I added a confession of my own. "I'm starting to understand why. It's okay out here after all."

"Slate, I don't know your middle name, Spieres." She released my hand, and when I opened my eyes, I saw that she'd brought both of hers to her chest. "I can't believe what I'm hearing. Are you really saying that Mr. Big City is starting to like our humble little town?"

"I am, yeah." I faked a wince. "I can't believe it either."

Smiling as her gaze moved away from mine, she seemed completely at ease again, apparently having put all her earlier worries behind her. She looked at the window for a beat before she suddenly looked at me again.

"Come with me. I want to show you something."

"What?"

"You'll see."

She got up and started to the door, and even though I was exhausted, my curiosity got the better of me. Standing up, I followed her, wondering just what the hell my pretty farmgirl was up to this time.