Page 99 of Take Me Home

Hattie offers the woman a sad smile. “Good morning, Mother.” She glances at me. “Lincoln, this is my mother, Kimball Townsend. Mother, this is Lincoln.”

The woman sighs, her eyes landing on me, before slowly dropping to my legs and lingering on my dusty work boots.

She purses her lips in judgement. “Really, Harriet?” She tuts. “Giving up your career to be with a man is one thing, but throwing everything away for a country boy is something else entirely.”

Hattie comes to stand beside me, easing her hand into mine. “I wish you could see what’s right in front of you, Mother.” Hattie shakes her head. “If you allowed yourself to look past your prejudices, you’d see a hardworking, caring man who supports my dreams. A man who loves me and has no desire to control me. And you’d see a woman who’s finally content…happy when she thinks about the future.”

Mrs. Townsend raises her chin stubbornly. “Where do you think you’re taking Oakley?”

I move to step in between them, but Hattie tightens her grip on my hand to stop me. She pulls her paperwork out of her vest pocket and holds it up for her mother to see. “Legally, Oakley belongs to me. I have all her papers.”

Mrs. Townsend’s eyes flash with something I can’t decipher—anger, maybe, or pride?

“Fine,” she relents. “But Harriet?”

“Yes?”

The woman’s dark eyes move from her daughter to me, then back again. “The quaint country life might seem fun for a time, and the rugged masculinity of a rancher, too…but that’s not the life you’re accustomed to. You’ll grow tired of it.”

Hattie’s shoulders move up and down as she takes a deep breath. “I’m not searching for an aesthetic, Mother. I’m going where I feel at home, where I have people who support me, where there’s laughter and love.” She pauses. “You have every luxury here…surrounded by your pool, your designer goods, your employees. But I look around, and my overwhelming emotion is pity. Because you’re all alone.”

Mrs. Townsend straightens her shoulders. “Okay, then. I hope you’re happy with your choices.”

“You too, Mother,” Hattie says, with one last soft smile.

Then we walk toward our future, hand in hand.

CHAPTER 39

Hattie

“I can’t believe you’re leaving me here all alone,” Blair pouts as Lincoln loads my suitcase into the back of our rental car.

The last few days have been a whirlwind of packing my belongings, selling my vehicle, and sending Oakley off on her chartered flight to Montana. Moving halfway across the country is a lot of work, but I’m completely at peace with my decision.

I face my best friend, grabbing her shoulders. “Blair, would you finally tell me what the hell is going on between you and Justin? Because you’re lamenting about being all alone, but as far as I know, you’re supposedly happily engaged.”

She puffs her cheeks with air, then blows out a raspberry. “Okay, fine. A few days before I flew out to Montana to see you, I walked in on Justin giving a winery guest a private tasting.” She arches an eyebrow. “Of his penis.”

My jaw drops. “Blair, I’m so sorry.” I pull her into a tight hug.

Lincoln closes the trunk of the car then dusts his hands off on his jeans. “I’d be happy to kick his ass before we head out.”

She squeezes me, then pulls back. Her eyes look teary. “He’s not worth the energy.” Blair shrugs. “I’ve spent years with him, and I just don’t want to think about that jerk for another second, you know?”

“Well, now I feel awful leaving.” My stomach drops at the thought of her being here in California, dealing with heartbreak all on her own. “You should just come with us.” My eyes widen at how brilliant it would be to have her in Montana. “Surely, you don’t want to work at Justin’s family’s winery any longer.”

Blair sighs. “I appreciate the offer, but I need to figure things out here. I love my job, and Justin’s parents sent him on a temporary leave of absence.”

“Okay, but if you change your mind…Montana will be waiting.”

“Thanks, babe,” she says, pulling me into another embrace.

“I really wouldn’t mind roughing this guy up…are you sure I can’t help?” Lincoln asks in his gruff tone.

Blair releases me and moves to stand in front of Lincoln. She playfully punches his arm as she looks up at him. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m good. And just know, if you ever hurt Hattie…I’m tougher than I look.”

His mouth twitches. “Noted.”