Page 13 of As It Was (Strawberry Springs #1)

MOLLIE

Strawberry Springs Neighborhood Watch

Atticus Thompson

Anyone know why the power flickered last night?

Comments:

Kerry Winsor : Probably was Cain blowing a fuse lol

Tammy Jane : This is a place for REAL info.

Henrietta Brown : Probably a squirrel in the transformer again.

Kerry Winsor : @SherriffMike Finch , info?

SherriffMike Finch : Do I look like an electrician to you?

As much as I wanted to pretend I could learn to do everything Cain did, I’d only taken in about twenty-five percent of everything I’d observed.

It seemed pointless to follow him around. He was a natural with animals. Even the evil chicken loved him. As well as every cow we’d seen. And he seemed to like them too. He almost smiled at them.

Until he had been reminded that I was there.

I liked animals, but I knew that there was no way I could be as efficient as he was, and I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to. My passion was the berries. My passion was Papa Bennie’s legacy.

Which laid to the front of the farm.

I didn’t want to fire him in the first place.

Firing him meant kicking him out of the home he’d lived in for a long time.

And possibly the one that Eric had known for most of his life.

I just wanted him to respect me, to know that I was serious about this.

While coming out here might have been a last-second decision, working on the farm wasn’t.

Cain left to get Eric at three, and I managed to check my laptop for the day. I hadn’t planned on taking the day off, but I also didn’t realize how much work went into washing and storing hundreds of eggs and getting milk ready to be shipped off for pasteurization.

Of course, Dad didn’t understand that, and I’d already gotten multiple messages from him asking why I wasn’t working. I messaged back that I was online now and would get everything done.

I got a few minutes of focusing in before I received a text.

Wren

Checking in. How is farm life? How is the town? HOW IS HOT FARMER?

The town is great. Farm life is also great. As for the hot farmer ... He hates me. I hate him.

Enemies to lovers?

Enemies to enemies, really. How is hot costar?

I see your deflection. And I accept it. He is hotter in person. And flirtier.

YESSS! CLIMB HIM LIKE A TREE.

Working on my arm strength as we SPEAK.

I laughed and put down my phone, only to see a car pull into the driveway.

It was a fancy one I hadn’t seen before. I was pretty sure Cain didn’t take too kindly to guests, but I also didn’t know him well enough to know who he had coming to the farmhouse.

There was a loud knock on the door. In the city, I’d avoided all door interactions if I could.

Did the same go for out here?

The knock sounded again, and I knew I couldn’t delay it any longer.

“Hi,” I said as I opened the door. “Can I help you?”

The man in front of me was older, with a graying mustache and a round belly shoved into a three-piece suit. He looked me up and down. “So, you’re the wife, right?”

I nearly choked on air. “Wife of who ?”

“Cain Smith. The man I’m looking for.”

“Uh, no. I’m not his wife at all. I’m his ... boss, technically. What can I do for you? Are you trying to place an order for eggs or something?”

“No,” he said, but was interrupted by the sound of a vehicle coming down the driveway. This one I knew. It was Cain’s white truck.

He pulled in behind my car and got out in seconds. “Who the hell are you?” he asked.

The man turned, but his eyes weren’t on Cain. They were on the small child in the back of the truck. “There he is! Eric! Come here! ”

Eric’s eyes went wide, and he ducked in the back seat.

“I’m gonna ask again,” Cain said dangerously. “Who are you, and how the hell do you know the kid’s name?”

“I’m Waldren. Have you heard of me?”

“No.”

He frowned. “I knew your sister.”

“You probably knew her more than I did. We were separated when we were young.”

“So then, how did you come to be the guardian of her son?”

“I was the only family member around.”

“Wrong.” The man crossed his arms. “I am. He’s my son.”

Cain’s entire body went rigid. I probably shouldn’t have been witnessing this, but it was like drama on reality TV. I couldn’t look away.

“Then where were you when Olivia died?”

“None of your business.”

“And I’m supposed to just take your word for it?”

Waldren laughed. “Come on. He looks just like me.”

“Do you have functioning eyes?” I asked.

Both men turned to me. “Stay out of this, honey.”

“Don’t call me that,” I snapped. “And I can get into whatever the hell I want to.”

“You’re not on his birth certificate,” Cain said slowly. “Which I have.”

“Yeah, it’s one last slight from that whore .”

“Watch it,” Cain said. “That’s my sister you’re talking about.”

“And gross. You could have said so many other things,” I added.

“It doesn’t matter. It’s not like she’s here to say anything back.”

“No, but I am,” Cain replied. “And you’re not welcome here. ”

“I’m getting my kid.”

“And I’m saying no ,” he said through clenched teeth.

“I have a DNA test from when she was pregnant.” He waved a piece of paper around. “But I’ll do as many as I need to. And when he comes back as mine, I’ll be taking him.”

“You do know Cain is his guardian, right?” I asked. “You can’t just snatch him out of the home he knows.”

He turned to me and got into my space. “I do what I want, honey .”

This man was like Trevor, and I held a lot of anger for people like that. I felt like I was back in my apartment, getting trampled by the man I thought I would marry.

“She said not to call her that.” Cain grabbed Waldren and dragged him down the stairs. “And stay the fuck away from her.”

My heart pounded in my ears. I was used to him using that tone on me. Not for me.

“Get out of here,” I said.

“I’m owed my child.”

“You’re owed nothing. Come back with a fucking lawsuit. Then I’ll listen to you.”

“Oh, I will.” He sneered. “And I’ll make you fucking pay.” Waldren spun on his heel and stomped to his car.

When his car peeled out of the driveway, tires throwing rocks everywhere, I turned to Cain.

“Is he really Eric’s dad?”

“No. There’s no way he could come from a man like that.”

“Maybe you should find a lawyer.”

“He was just here to get a rise out of me.”

“But—”

“Mollie, leave it.”

“Seriously, Cain, this is?— ”

Eric poked his head out of the truck, eyes wide and shiny. “Is it safe now?”

Cain rushed over to Eric, his voice soft and kind as he told him things were safe, and he would be fine. I watched the sight with an achy heart. I hoped they would be fine, but something in my gut told me this wasn’t over.

I gave Cain a wide berth for the night. I had a lot of work to do, and I knew he had a lot to do with Eric. I may have wanted to learn everything I could from him, but there were some things that he deserved privacy for.

As the day turned to night, my eyes burned, and I desperately needed a break. The house seemed quiet, so I snuck out the door and went outside.

In the city, I was used to seeing only the brightest stars in the sky. But I had remembered what it was like being on the farm and looking up. One of my favorite things to do as a child had been to sneak out past my bedtime and try to count all the stars.

I’d always thought I was sneaky, up until Papa Bennie brought me a glass of sweet tea and sat next to me.

The cicadas sang a tune, though quieter than they would in the height of summer. I sat on the front porch steps and looked up, getting lost in all the stars.

I didn’t have any constellations memorized, but I made my own. It was easy to get lost in how many white dots were visible in the darkened sky.

My stargazing was interrupted by the screen door opening.

I turned to see Cain in a T-shirt and sweatpants.

“Need to go to your truck?” I asked. “I can move.”

“No,” he said, and he did the last thing I expected. He sat next to me and let out a sigh. “Thank you for sticking up for me with Waldren. I didn’t deserve that.”

“Probably not,” I replied. “But Eric does. You raised a good kid, which must mean that somewhere deep down , you’re not so bad.”

“I guess deep down , that’s a compliment.” His eyes looked up at the stars and we lapsed into silence.

“You must be really out of sorts if you’re out here with me.”

“You could say that,” he muttered. “I mostly came out here to thank you.”

“I appreciate it, but we’re even. You got him out of my space.”

“Do you really think I need a lawyer?”

“Depends on how serious he is. He knew your address.”

“It’s not that hard to find me. I made a website with my name on it for orders for the farm.”

“Smart, but still. This may turn into nothing, but it can’t hurt to have backup.”

He slowly nodded. He didn’t even look at me as he spoke. “I’ve lost a lot of people in my life. I won’t let Eric be one of them.”

I wasn’t sure if he was talking to me or himself.

“My dad knows a lot of lawyers,” I said. “Big ones. I could see who he knows.”

“I’m not asking you for help.”

“I know. I’m offering.”

“I’ve been nothing but an ass to you since you got here.”

“Yeah, you have. But you’ve not been an ass to Eric. And I think that matters more.”

He looked over at me, and I wondered if we were having a moment. Everyone I’d talked to had said that Cain was impossible to get through to, but were they right? Or had I managed it ?

But he must not have liked what he saw, because his gaze cut from me and he stood, going inside without another word.

I let out a sigh and dropped my elbows to my knees as I looked up at the sky again.

So much for that.