He grabbed me at the resort we were staying at for my other best friend’s, Faith’s, wedding. It was the first time he’d put his hands on me, and Luca had witnessed it. It was a shit show. I finally gained the courage I needed to leave him, but he snapped. He beat the hell out of me, and Faith took me to the hospital.
He ended up being arrested and serving a year in jail. The restraining order I was granted lasted for two years, so I had a year left before I had to renew it. I didn’t know when he was supposed to get out, but I knew it would be soon.
My chest tightened at the thought, and I swallowed the lump that began to form. “Oh, Randal. Dating isn’t for me.”
“I know the last one was an abominable monster, but it doesn’t mean you should close yourself off completely.”
I shrugged, gathering my supplies and placed them in the alcohol to sanitize. “I know they aren’t all bad.” Flynn’s perfect face flashed in my head, but I shook the vision away. “But, every time I try, I end up burned.”
His eyes softened, and he went to say something else but the ding of a bell interrupted him as one of his clients walked in the door. He gave me a look that said the conversation wasn’t over before he started gushing over the client.
It wasn't that I didn’t believe in love. I loved my high school sweetheart with everything I had, but I didn't like love. Any encounter with that emotion on a romantic front had been a bad one. My body learned to reject the feeling, like a foreign germ. I still had love in my heart for Flynn, the teenage dirtbag that up and left me without a word, but I had suffered from the heartbreak of losing him. The one time I tried to get over him had ended worse than I thought possible.
I wasn’t open to finding love again, and that was okay.
It was fucked up, being here again after swearing I’d never come back. It didn’t matter how long I'd been gone, I remembered every fucking detail about the hellhole of Violet Ridge. The small town where everyone knew everyone’s business. But what was more ingrained into my memory was Rockwell Farms, the farm I’d grown up on.
The decrepit farmhouse set amid the wheat, golden ears moved with the unseen wind. It had walls like a prison, painted white with window frames of mahogany. The old hay barn to the left of the house had stables in the front with half-doors. Fallen leaves scattered the dirt path, covering it in reds and oranges. They crunched under my boots as I made my way to the door, the uneven path making it difficult for me to walk with my damn prosthetic leg as I dragged my luggage behind me. I raised my fist and pounded on the door.
A flower pot to the right of the door was filled with pink and yellow chrysanthemums, the soft tinkling of the wind chimes reminded me of summer afternoons I spent with the girl who claimed my heart in high school. Being back here slammed me with bittersweet memories of her.
The door opened slowly, and Ma's round face peeked out. Her misty gray eyes welled up as she embraced me in a tight hug. My shoulders tensed, and I took a step back.
She hesitated before grabbing the suitcase and ushering me inside. “I’m glad you’re home. It’s been far too long.”
“Not long enough,” I muttered.
The living room had always been small and stuffy. Dusty roller-blinds hung in the windows with a red brick wood-burning fireplace in the center of the room. It was dimly lit with the vintage wall sconces that hung on the nicotine-stained walls like earrings. Thick velvet blue curtains were pulled to the sides, showing a glimpse of the pastures. An antique loveseat stood on the opposite side of a different antique couch from the hand-woven rug in front of the fireplace, accompanied by rich velvet armchairs that matched the curtains. The faded tapestry panels on the walls seemed to blink at me like they wondered why the fuck I was back.
My mother placed the suitcase beside the stairs before she sunk into one of the couches. Her once vibrant blonde hair had streaks of gray, her skin had withered by time, leaving wrinkles on her forehead and in the corners of her mouth. She’d always been full-figured but was smaller now, dainty even.
She glanced at me with a wary smile. “I know coming back wasn’t something you wanted. But I’m so happy to have you home.”
My eyes darted out the window to the pasture. “How have you been handling the farm?”
“I’ve hired a few youngins’. They’ve been doing all the heavy work.” She hesitated. “Since your father passed, it’s been lonely. Thank you for coming back.”
“Taking over the farm is my only choice.” I motioned to the prosthetic. “They won’t let me serve now.”
Her eyes flash with worry as she hoisted herself up and made her way over to me. “Does it hurt?”
I let out a humorless chuckle. “From knee down is gone. I’m in a constant state of pain.”
She pressed her hand to her mouth as she stared. “Oh, Flynn. I’m so sorry honey. Let me help you.”
I grabbed my suitcase. “You can help by giving me space. I’ll need those guys that you hired to help tomorrow. I’d like to start working as soon as possible.” I trudged up the stairs to my old room without waiting for a reply.
I swung the door open and
