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“Not yet.” Eli put the truck into neutral and turned the engine off. She jumped out and went to the bed of the truck.

Bridget sighed and got out more slowly. Instead of helping to fix the fence, she grabbed a spot on the tailgate and hung her legs over the side. Karen had been right. Being out in the fields would help her soul that day. She needed the sun and the air to clear her head—and perhaps some time with her best friend.

“Are you going to help or not?” Eli came back, her hands on her hips as she gave Bridget a mock glare.

“I can help by being a construction supervisor.” Bridget cocked her head. “You know, all talk, no doing anything.”

Eli bust out laughing. “I guess you can’t really drag quick set over here, can you?”

“Uh…no. You’re lucky I can manage to walk on this rough terrain and not fall on my face.”

“Guess you’re getting pretty proficient with those things, aren’t you?”

“I am, thank you.”

“Maybe you should go home.” Eli raised an eyebrow, but the look and tone didn’t tell Bridget she was pushing to get rid of her, rather giving her the option. The thought of going home and staying by herself was, for the first time since she’d been there, absolutely unappealing. She liked being surrounded by them all.

“Maybe I should,” Bridget muttered. “Maybe I should give it until I’m cleared by the doc.”

“Wiser choice on that one.” Eli grabbed the wire she’d need to replace. “I don’t mind you being here. You know that, right?”

“I do.” Bridget smiled, for the first time really feeling settled as though she belonged somewhere. She’d missed that feeling growing up, and even though she lived in the same place she’d been born, she’d never felt at home until now.

CHAPTER17

Bridget satat the kitchen table, waiting on Eli. She’d already agreed to drive her to town under the guise of getting some things and she was just going to leave her at Jerica’s for a few days. Bridget fucking hated not being able to drive. That was probably the worst part of the entire experience. Well, that and the nightmares she seemed to be having almost every night lately.

They were only getting worse, not better, but at least when she woke up in the middle of them, she’d been able to get herself under control—though she never quite fell back asleep. Rolling her shoulders, she sipped her coffee and waited. Eli had to finish her morning chores, and then they could be off.

It took another hour, and Karen had insisted on making breakfast, and then insisted Bridget eat it. Just as Eli was finishing hers as rapidly as possible, Bridget grabbed the small bag she’d packed and started toward the front door.

“Umm…excuse me.” Karen’s voice was firm and loud. “Where are you going with that?”

“Uh…” Bridget paled. What the fuck was she supposed to say to that? She was thirty years old, and she’d never told a parental figure she was going to spend the night with her girlfriend so they could essentially have sex, sex, and more sex.

“Relax, Mom. She’s going to Jerica’s. She’ll be fine. Jerica is a nurse, remember?”

Karen narrowed her gaze and folded her hands together. Bridget swallowed hard, pretty sure she was about to get a lecture. “You know the dos and don’ts of safe sex.”

“Mom!”

Cold washed through Bridget as embarrassment hit her hard.

“Trust me, Bridget understands how to have safe sex.” Eli put a hand on Bridget’s shoulders and prompted her to move forward and toward the door. “And she definitely doesn’t needthattalk fromyou.”

As soon as they were outside, Eli shuddered.

“That was…unexpected.”

“Sure, somewhat. She thinks you’re her kid now, so you get all the shit I had to deal with.”

“She gave you a safe sex talk?”

“No, I lied and told her Azalea did that when I came out to her, and that we’d talked about it so I could get out of that conversation with my mom, but I was also like seventeen, not thirty.” Shuddering again, Eli grabbed Bridget’s bag and headed for the truck.

As they pulled onto the highway, Bridget stared at the fields and the muscles in her chest tightened. She had been thinking about it a lot lately, and Eli had promised at one point, but never made good on that promise as of yet. It took until they were a mile out from town before Bridget got up the courage to ask.

“Will you take me to my cruiser?”