What We've Become (My Kind Of Country Book 2) by M. Lynne Cunning Page A

activities for their day on the farm. She should have been eager to climb into that bed and rest her exhausted body.
    Instead, she was no more prepared for sleep than she was for the deafening silence and loneliness that welcomed her home. The animals and birds had made more noise, and offered more companionship than she had realized. She wandered around the barnyard, peeking into the vacant chicken coop, and running her hands along the old barn beams that made up the horse stalls as she passed. Sporadic flakes of snow began to drift slowly from the darkening sky above her, only adding to the cold and forgotten feel of her surroundings.
    It all seemed so void of feeling somehow. Such a lack of attachment and purpose.
    Maybe I could walk away from here for good , she thought, staring grimly at the outbuildings and fencing, as the snowflakes began to land on them and remain visible. The moment she dragged herself back onto the porch and into the warmth of the house’s interior, Katie was reminded almost immediately of exactly why she couldn’t do such a thing. Seeing the cedar planks adorning the walls of the cozy kitchen brought reminiscent tears to her eyes, and she could once again visualize the time she and her father had spent remodeling the old farmhouse to suit his rustic sense of decor. She may not be able to see him anymore, or hold his frail hands, but she could sense her Dad’s presence when she was within these walls, and she’d be damned if she would give that up to suit someone else’s needs.
    Instead of attempting to achieve the sleep she knew wouldn’t yet come, Katie grabbed the only bottle of cheap wine she had left in the house, snatched the radio from the kitchen window, and ran a bath. She let the water turn as hot as she could physically handle before pushing the plug in and letting the old claw foot bathtub fill. She inhaled the steam as it wafted into the air, quickly creating a film of condensation across the oval shaped mirror above the sink.
    She may have gasped as she inched herself into the scalding water, cursing herself for letting it get so hot, but within minutes her head was rested comfortably along the bathtub rim and her muscles and joints were growing less tense.
    Tomorrow, she would visit the farmer down the road and hopefully arrange a deal with him to check on the house and property while she was in Nashville over Christmas, but tonight she had little else to occupy her time except over-thinking everything, and eventually—hopefully—sleeping. Therefore, drinking wine from the bottle and listening to the radio while she waited for the water to cool seemed like the only logical option.
    The chill from within her bones slowly dissipated as her mind floated over thoughts of all that had happened in the past few days.
    And thoughts of Chad.
    It was all supposed to be over with him, and yet Katie felt as though this was just the beginning. Even now, being back at Rustic Acres—the place she and Chad had sparked their friendship and bloomed their quiet affections for one another—she was sure she was closer to him somehow, despite being hundreds of miles away. Months ago, Katie had been convinced she would be able to turn her back on his kind of love, even if just for the sake of her son to have his father in his daily life—to have a normal life. But then she’d seen Chad, in all his glory, up on that stage, his husky voice crooning so beautifully with the music his band played. Then, he’d talked to her as though no time had passed between them at all. He missed her just as much as she missed him, and she liked the thought of having someone miss her like that.
    She had been away from Mason less than a day, yet she yearned to see his face and hear his uplifting chatter. She had yet to give Jay a second thought, however, save for fleeting moments when she questioned herself as to why she ever thought trying to build a relationship with him again would ever work out. It was