Total pages in book: 52
Estimated words: 49178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 246(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 49178 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 246(@200wpm)___ 197(@250wpm)___ 164(@300wpm)
“Collab?” Beau asked as if I were speaking a foreign language.
“Collaboration. Maybe a horse feed brand? Or another nearby ranch that wants to team up and help sponsor the event?”
“I can reach out to the Walters. They have the poultry farm down the road and are friendly folks. Terry, he owns the hardware store in town, and he mentioned wanting to help the ranch out. Maybe he can be a sponsor.”
“Perfect.” I jotted down the names on a bright pink sticky note next to the iPad. “You know, I may suck ass at line dancing, but at least this way I can contribute something.”
“First, you’ve been getting much better. You only trip a couple of times a lesson now. And second, you’ve contributed more than enough. Benny has been finishing all his chores hours early, that’s how energized he’s been.”
That got a laugh out of me. “I’m glad I can get that lazy butt off the couch,” I joked, the two of us knowing damn well Benny was one of the hardest workers around.
My phone buzzed across the table, surprising me that a call got through the shitty cell service out here. I flipped it over and looked at the screen. “It’s my mom.”
Beau raised an eyebrow. “Does Ms. Fisher want to join in on the planning?”
I snorted at that. “Absolutely not, she hates this kind of stuff. I’ll take it outside just in case she gets chatty.”
He chuckled and nodded and turned back to the iPad as I stood and slipped through the sliding door, out onto the porch and down the side steps. The air had cooled, that late spring kind of breeze that always carried just a whisper of wildflower and dirt. The sun was finishing up her descent behind the hills, casting everything in burnt gold. The landscape of Rainbow Ranch was at its best during this hour. Like a painting that belonged in some museum, framed with gold and admired by thousands.
I answered the call. “Hey, Mom.”
“Sammy,” she said brightly. “You busy?”
“Just finishing up dinner. We were going over some ideas for an event at the ranch.”
“Oh, fun! You always were good at planning things.” There was a smile in her voice, but it softened. “Listen, I just wanted to catch up. Things have been busy on this end. We had a big prayer service on Sunday. Real beautiful. You should’ve seen the choir—gave me goosebumps. And Pastor Rob did a whole sermon about loving people where they are, even if you don’t always understand them.”
I felt my chest tighten… not quite in pain, but it wasn’t comfortable either.
Really? Of all of the things to talk about? Now?
“That’s nice,” I said, trying to keep my tone even.
“Yeah… and well, something happened that made me think of you.”
I froze, my heart skipping a bit. My mom often had things happen in her life that made her think of me. It was a running joke at this point. “What do you mean?”
She sighed. “One of the families at church, their son came out. As gay. Poor thing, only seventeen. I can’t imagine how scared he must’ve been.”
There was a pause. My stomach twisted. What the absolute fuck? Really? This had to be happening now?
And then she added, “It’s been hard for his family. Not because he’s gay, but because his dad just got laid off. Everything hit at once.”
I didn’t breathe. It was as if an invisible hand smacked itself over my nose and mouth, clamping my airways shut.
“Oh,” I said, voice thin. “That’s… a lot.”
“It is. It’s just—these kids today, they go through so much. I told your father, ‘Thank goodness Sammy never gave us any of that kind of stress.’ It made me so grateful to have you as a son. The love of my life.”
And there it was.
The sentence landed like a punch in the sternum, cracking the tough bone into a hundred different pieces. I didn’t even know what to say. The air felt colder all of a sudden, like the sun had taken warmth with her on the way out. Suddenly winter had come months ahead of schedule.
“Right,” I said. “Of course.”
“I just… can’t imagine how hard it must be for those parents, trying to adjust to something like that. And with everything else going on.” Then static burst through the phone before my mom’s voice cut back in. “—Gay, of course.”
“Right, of course,” I said. I stared out toward the pasture, where a familiar silhouette moved near the far side of the fence.
Benny.
He was helping Pris carry a bag of fertilizer toward the barn, laughing about something, his voice carrying faintly in the stillness. He looked so comfortable. Like he belonged here. Like he was building a life full of things that mattered. Free to be free, not to feel like a burden.