Right Move (Clean Slate Ranch #6) - A.M. Arthur Page 0,49
rest of the world.”
“I know the feeling. I remember thinking the same thing the first time I came here on vacation. Like nothing in my past mattered. I could just exist for a while and be me.”
“Yeah, except I’m still figuring out who me is.” He glanced across the picnic table at Miles, whose compassionate smile spoke a thousand words in his silence. No one else at the table seemed to be listening to them, thank God, so he risked adding, “Nature seems like a great place for people to find themselves.”
“It is. I can’t imagine what my life would be like right now if I hadn’t come on vacation with Wes that week. All I know is that it would a lot more dreary. Less filled with life, color and love.”
I want those things.
“Do you think you’d ever leave the city?” Miles asked when George didn’t speak.
“I don’t know. My brother and grandparents are there. I can take my job wherever I go but I can’t imagine leaving my brother. We’ve been so close for so long, especially after our parents...it wasn’t pretty.”
“I kind of envy you your brother. I’m an only child and I haven’t spoken to my parents in years. I was always a prop for them, a way to boost their social status and careers.”
Long ago speeches about George’s skating abilities, the need to practice over all else, and the drive to be the best filtered through his memory like a bad smell. “I can empathize with those kinds of parents, believe me. Nothing I did was ever good enough. No title, no medal. It was always about the Olympics.”
George’s gut churned as he realized what he’d said. Miles didn’t press, though, simply looked thoughtful.
“It’s funny how so many of us have a similar story,” Miles eventually said. “Disappointed parents, I mean. But we all found family here at the ranch. And I have a feeling you’ve been adopted into it, George, whether you want to be or not.”
“Guess I’ll have to get used to it, then.” George loved the idea of having friends and family here. More people who gave a damn about him and Orry than just their grandparents and neighbors.
Arthur chose that moment to stand on a chair and say, “While y’all continue to eat, and please do continue because we’ve got plenty, I want to tell y’all a story.”
Everyone at the table except for Levi and George began to chuckle. They obviously knew what Arthur was about to say and it was likely another semirehearsed speech to intrigue the guests. He spoke about thieves being chased by Pinkertons and how they possibly left a treasure trove of gold out in the wild lands surrounding Garrett, but the family never found it because of the ghost protecting its location.
Arthur spoke with such earnestness that George believed the old man believed his own ghost story, and it was incredibly charming. Arthur ended the story with an admonishment to explore the land but to stay on the marked trails for their own safety. No issue there. The closest things to wild animals George had seen in his life were pigeons and squirrels. He did not want to risk running across a skunk. Or worse.
Once Arthur’s speech ended, Ernie brought out a guitar and began playing the old-time song “Oh Susannah!” A few folks clapped along. Others went for more food. George was full and a little peopled out at this point but he wasn’t sure how to excuse himself when the atmosphere was so bright and joyful.
Levi’s elbow pressed into his ribs. “You want to take a walk? Enjoy the quiet night?”
“Please,” George replied.
“Come on.”
They left their plates on the table—George didn’t see a bus bin and assumed someone would come around later to clean up—and followed Levi toward the rear of the house. Toward the row of cabins where the hands lived. They didn’t stop there, though, just kept walking past the last cabin, away from the light of the torches and into nature and her dimmer skies.
“When I first came here to visit,” Levi said, “I stayed in Robin’s cabin, because he was pretty much living in Shawn’s. I got up every morning to run around the land. I know where we’ll be safe.”
A tiny fist of worry loosened around George’s heart. “Cool. I just...today has been so fun, but...”
“It’s okay. You’re not used to bein’ around this many people for so long, I get it. How about we come up with a