toward independence.
And then she'd gone and won the damned thing. She'd tried to tell J.C, the event's organizer, they'd picked the wrong girl, but he wasn't having any of that. Finally, she'd given in and accepted the hooved crown, figuring she'd find a way out of her bovine obligations afterwards.
Five hours later, Rebecca had called and Meredith had ditched it all—the crown, the sash, and most of all, the damned udders.
"I don't see how you could change overnight," her mother said. She let out a sigh, then switched gears. "If you won't come home, then at least take care of yourself so I don't have to go out there and claim your body from some alley somewhere."
"Momma, that isn't going to happen."
"Take your vitamins. Maybe I should have Dr. Michaels send you a prescription for antibiotics. It is cold season, you know."
"I'm fine. I haven't coughed once since I arrived." She took a sip of margarita. Tequila would kill anything in her anyway.
Her mother let out a frustrated sigh. "Promise me you won't talk to strangers."
She'd already broken that rule. But for a good reason. Hearing about Caleb—and the life that waited for her in Indiana if she didn't find one here first— just reinforced her determination.
She said goodbye to her mother, flipped the phone shut and glanced over at Travis Campbell, who was chatting with his friend.
As she took a step closer to him, years of her mother's neurosis flooded her mind. She didn't know this man at all. She could be wrong about him. Could she even trust her instincts?
The last time she'd done that, she'd been the one girl at day camp who thought the shiny plant with three-leaf clusters was cute and picked some for a bouquet. She'd spent the entire week in the infirmary, covered from head to toe in pink calamine lotion while everyone else canoed and caught fireflies in itch-free comfort.
Travis Campbell wasn't poison ivy. Still, he could be toxic to her in other ways. And she knew a little dab of pink lotion wasn't going to be enough to rid her body of all she'd felt when he kissed her.
She already knew she'd be back for more anyway. Her body still simmered with unanswered desire. Meredith closed the distance between herself and Travis and figured if she didn't take a risk now, she'd never do it.
"Sorry about that," she said, arriving at his side again. "Phone call I had to take."
"The reluctant boyfriend?" He arched a brow.
"No." She ran a hand through her hair. "I'm not exactly on his friends and family list right now."
"Business then?"
"No. I'm not really in the kind of business where my cell phone would be ringing off the hook."
"And what business is that?"
"Well, for a few weeks, I'm working at a gift baskets shop, helping out my cousin."
"A temporary gig? And where will you be after that? At Hallmark, recommending a good thank you card?"
She shook her head. "I'm going back to Indiana."
"Why?"
"Because that's where I live." For a second, it sounded so sad to picture herself going back home. It was the only place she'd ever lived and yet, despite the honking horns and congested streets, she liked Boston. As clichéd as it sounded, she now knew how a bird felt after living in a cage too long. Boston held something Heavendale never had; it felt as if the real Meredith was somewhere here, waiting to be found among the crowded neighborhoods and the slim saplings that peppered the sidewalks, as if Mother Nature was bound and determined to punch through the concrete.
But once she returned to Heavendale, would she be able to go back to the life she'd left? To Petey's? To being Miss Holstein? Or would she find herself displaced and lost in the town where she'd lived all her life?
And be worse off than when she'd left?
Meredith shook off the maudlin thoughts. She was only after one thing right now. Travis. The rest could wait.
Sheryl Crow had segued into the Dave Matthews Band. Across from them, a couple danced in the space between the jukebox and the
And then she'd gone and won the damned thing. She'd tried to tell J.C, the event's organizer, they'd picked the wrong girl, but he wasn't having any of that. Finally, she'd given in and accepted the hooved crown, figuring she'd find a way out of her bovine obligations afterwards.
Five hours later, Rebecca had called and Meredith had ditched it all—the crown, the sash, and most of all, the damned udders.
"I don't see how you could change overnight," her mother said. She let out a sigh, then switched gears. "If you won't come home, then at least take care of yourself so I don't have to go out there and claim your body from some alley somewhere."
"Momma, that isn't going to happen."
"Take your vitamins. Maybe I should have Dr. Michaels send you a prescription for antibiotics. It is cold season, you know."
"I'm fine. I haven't coughed once since I arrived." She took a sip of margarita. Tequila would kill anything in her anyway.
Her mother let out a frustrated sigh. "Promise me you won't talk to strangers."
She'd already broken that rule. But for a good reason. Hearing about Caleb—and the life that waited for her in Indiana if she didn't find one here first— just reinforced her determination.
She said goodbye to her mother, flipped the phone shut and glanced over at Travis Campbell, who was chatting with his friend.
As she took a step closer to him, years of her mother's neurosis flooded her mind. She didn't know this man at all. She could be wrong about him. Could she even trust her instincts?
The last time she'd done that, she'd been the one girl at day camp who thought the shiny plant with three-leaf clusters was cute and picked some for a bouquet. She'd spent the entire week in the infirmary, covered from head to toe in pink calamine lotion while everyone else canoed and caught fireflies in itch-free comfort.
Travis Campbell wasn't poison ivy. Still, he could be toxic to her in other ways. And she knew a little dab of pink lotion wasn't going to be enough to rid her body of all she'd felt when he kissed her.
She already knew she'd be back for more anyway. Her body still simmered with unanswered desire. Meredith closed the distance between herself and Travis and figured if she didn't take a risk now, she'd never do it.
"Sorry about that," she said, arriving at his side again. "Phone call I had to take."
"The reluctant boyfriend?" He arched a brow.
"No." She ran a hand through her hair. "I'm not exactly on his friends and family list right now."
"Business then?"
"No. I'm not really in the kind of business where my cell phone would be ringing off the hook."
"And what business is that?"
"Well, for a few weeks, I'm working at a gift baskets shop, helping out my cousin."
"A temporary gig? And where will you be after that? At Hallmark, recommending a good thank you card?"
She shook her head. "I'm going back to Indiana."
"Why?"
"Because that's where I live." For a second, it sounded so sad to picture herself going back home. It was the only place she'd ever lived and yet, despite the honking horns and congested streets, she liked Boston. As clichéd as it sounded, she now knew how a bird felt after living in a cage too long. Boston held something Heavendale never had; it felt as if the real Meredith was somewhere here, waiting to be found among the crowded neighborhoods and the slim saplings that peppered the sidewalks, as if Mother Nature was bound and determined to punch through the concrete.
But once she returned to Heavendale, would she be able to go back to the life she'd left? To Petey's? To being Miss Holstein? Or would she find herself displaced and lost in the town where she'd lived all her life?
And be worse off than when she'd left?
Meredith shook off the maudlin thoughts. She was only after one thing right now. Travis. The rest could wait.
Sheryl Crow had segued into the Dave Matthews Band. Across from them, a couple danced in the space between the jukebox and the
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