Farm Girl Has Bad Boy (#3)

Chapter Seventeen

“What are you doing?” I barely look away from the window as I gaze out across the field. It’s all I’ve been doing this morning since I woke up. Depression consumed me sometime during the night and I feel if not exactly the same, than very familiar to the way I felt the day after Ocean died.

“Nothing,” I mumble distractedly. My eyes scan the fields but I don’t see anything. Instead, I’m trapped inside my own head.

“River.” Emery sighs as he sits down on the window seat beside me. He brushes my hair behind my ear and tries to meet my eyes. “It’s going to be okay.”

Finally, I turn to him, my face expressionless. “You don’t know that.”

“Well, I know that Patch is going to be okay.” He gives me a sad smile but I don’t return it. “Aren’t you happy about that?” I nod, not wanting to respond. “Then what’s wrong?”

I stare down at my hands sitting in my lap. Emery wouldn’t understand; only my parents would. They both had gotten over Ocean over time but instead of moving on, I had just refused to think about her whatsoever.

“River,” he murmurs, reaching out and resting his hand over mine. “All you need to do is give Patch some time and get him used to you. Things will be back to normal in no time.”

I raise my eyes to meet his and bite my tongue so I don’t start yelling at him. Nothing can possibly be normal ever again. With a baby on the way and no plans for the future, things are going to be the farthest from familiar.

As much as I want to bring up the fact that we need to talk about names, going shopping and what we’re going to do when the baby arrives, I know now isn’t the time. After what happened last night and the way I’m feeling this morning, the last thing I want to do is fight with Emery.

“I guess if you’re not doing anything,” Emery says, a clever smirk playing on his lips. “I can show you my birthday present from Alana.” The mention of her name makes me clench my teeth together. Alana hadn’t even apologized to me last night and as angry about that as I am, I’d rather just not see her at all. But as much as I don’t even want to hear about her, I’m still curious about her birthday present for Emery.

With a sigh, I stand to my feet. “What is it?” I ask, with raised eyebrows. Emery holds up a finger to say one minute as he gets up. After he opens his backpack, he pulls out a book. “I’ve been freaking out about a book?” I mutter under my breath.

“It’s not a book,” Emery laughs and my cheeks instantly flush. I didn’t think he would hear me. “Come here.” He sits on the edge of my bed, his feet resting on the rarely used mattress. He pats the space to his left and slowly, I sink into the bed. “It’s a photo album.”

The cover is navy with vertical light blue stripes covering it. On the left, three small black ribbons are tied in bows to hold the whole thing together. Emery flips to the first page and on the left is Alana’s handwriting, wishing Emery a happy birthday. On the right page is a single picture of two toddlers playing in sandbox together.

Emery sits holding an upside down red bucket. A smile instantly covers my lips when I see his pouting face and shaggy black hair. He looks almost exactly the same except he’s not covered in black clothing like he almost always wears now. Blue overalls cover a light greens striped shirt and tiny blue shoes cover his small feet.

“Your laughing at what I’m wearing, aren’t you?” Emery asks with a smirk. He quickly changes the page, looking slightly embarrassed. I can’t help but notice that I didn’t even bother looking at Alana however I guess right now, seeing her in pictures is almost as bad as being face to face with her in real life.