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chicken. The meat was tender, and the flavors burst over her tongue, spicy

and sweet. She wasn’t much of a cook. She never had been. Chicken like

this was firmly beyond her skill set, though she was tempted to ask Adriana

for the recipe. She’d probably dry it out, but maybe with a few tries she’d

succeed.

She didn’t like that so far, that also seemed to be her philosophy for

finding a job. She

’d moved to Austin two months ago. She’d been lucky to

get a tiny apartment. She’d saved like crazy before deciding she was going

to make the move, and her parents had given her enough money to pay the

first months’ rent and the security deposit. She’d come to Austin without a

job, without knowing for certain what school she was going to send Chloe

to. She’d been absolutely terrified of leaving the small town she’d called

home for the first twenty-six years of her life, but she knew it was the right

move.

Glancing around the table at Adriana, Juliana, and Joseph, Taylor

knew that this was what she wanted. She’d had her parents back home, but

she hardly had any friends after she’d come out. People were openly hostile

at first, and even after that settled down, she knew that she’d never find

someone to share her life with there. Austin was close. Less than an hour

away from the farm. It seemed like the logical place to go. After living her

whole life in a small town where everyone was always on the up and up

when it came to everyone else’s business, Taylor had craved the anonymity

of a big city.

The first few weeks were the hardest. She’d done some research and

got Chloe settled in a good school right as the beginning of September

rolled around. It was a relief, getting Chloe into kindergarten, because it

meant that she could find a job. She’d only ever been able to work part time

at the gas station back home, while her mom watched Chloe a few nights a

week.