CHAPTER ONE
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Pale streams of sunshine slanted through the windows and angled over the metal worktables. Outside several birds chirped, trilling a merry duet. It was as perfect a spring day as could be had in southern Virginia but Bennett Alexander didn’t notice any of it. All of his attention was directed to the microscope in front of him.
“Perfect. Absolutely perfect,” he mumbled and scribbled his observations on the pad of paper next to his hand.
There could have been an earthquake going on outside and he wouldn’t have noticed. Not when he was in his favorite spot doing his favorite thing.
Learning.
A high-pitched shriek finally pulled his attention from his research. Stretching his arms overhead, he rolled his shoulders to release several hours’ worth of accumulated tension as he moved closer to the window.
His brothers were engaged in a spirited game of football along with their women. Although after watching for just a few seconds it was clear the game was less about competition and more about giving his brothers ample opportunity to tackle the girls.
A strange sensation rose in his chest as he watched his younger brother Nick grab his wife around the waist and lift her off her feet. Raina squealed but laughed heartily as they both fell to the ground. The football tumbled to the side, forgotten, as she threw her arms around his brother’s shoulders and kissed him. A second later, his brother Elliott appeared and grabbed the football off the ground and ran to the other side of the yard, holding his arms above his head in victory. His fiancée Kaylee cheered while his youngest brother Jackson and his wife, Ridley, watched them indulgently.
Bennett turned from the window, swallowing down the tickle of longing he felt. For years he’d accepted the fact that while he was extraordinarily gifted in many areas, there was one subject where he would never excel.
Flirting.
The strange rituals of courtship between men and women were the one subject that he had never been able to master. He was awkward and always had been. He’d long accepted that he was one of the people that functioned better solo and it was illogical to focus on an area he had no aptitude for. If he hadn’t figured it out after thirty-two years, then it wasn’t going to happen. It was better to spend his time on the things that he understood, like his research.
He walked back over to his worktable. The gloriously perfect soil sample on the slide was the culmination of months of experimentation and testing. His family’s farming co-op was constantly looking for ways to increase yield without sacrificing the quality of their crops. His parents had given him complete leeway to develop soil, fertilizer and innovative farming techniques to make it happen.
Some people hated the tedium of testing but he found it soothing. Everything about science was calm. Logical. Why couldn’t life be like a hypothesis? Things would be so much easier. If you do this, then you will get a certain result. Observe and note the results and adjust how you proceed accordingly. No one expected to have perfect results in the lab.
His gaze fell to the square piece of paper on the center island. It was heavy cardstock with that curly, metallic lettering that was really hard to read. But even his terrible eyesight couldn’t miss it. He’d been nominated for an award. Which meant he would have to attend the awards ceremony.
He sighed.
Since he’d been ignoring his mail for the past month, his mother must have put it there so he’d see it. Ignoring things that he found uncomfortable was his usual way of navigating a world that was often baffling and many times humiliating. But his mother had already seen the invitation and if he knew anything about Julia Alexander it was that she wanted her children to be happy. She couldn’t understand that he was happy here, just as he was. Alone with his work. Alone with his thoughts.
Alone.
It was how he’d always been, even in the midst of a large extended family. But she wouldn’t understand that. His eyes strayed over to the window again where he could still hear the faint sounds of shrieking and laughter.
He was starting to understand it less and less himself.
Frustrated, his hand shot out and knocked the invitation to the floor. It made him feel ridiculous to have this sense of dissatisfaction with his life when he had achieved so much. He had a PhD in Molecular Biology, spoke several languages fluently and was in the process of filing for his tenth patent.
He didn’t need anything else.
Bennett turned back to his work, ignoring the sun shining through the windows and the noise outside. He took note of where he was stopping so he could pick things back up after getting something to eat. He’d e
xceeded the recommended time between meals on too many occasions lately and was starting to lose weight. For optimal health it was important to maintain a certain muscle-to-fat ratio. Anyone who worked as many hours as he did, inside the lab and around the farm, couldn’t afford to lose valuable time to sickness.
Maybe he would even go to the main house and have dinner with his parents. He hadn’t done that in a while and it would make his mother happy. Over the years, his parents had done the best they could with him, despite the fact that they’d never really understood him. Although he often felt like an octagonal peg in a family of circles and squares, they’d always loved and encouraged him. He honestly couldn’t ask for better.
Satisfied with his decision, Bennett started packing away the samples. He’d just clean up and then get going. Maybe he wouldn’t even tell them he was coming. His brothers always teased him about being buried in his work. He’d show up for dinner as a surprise and for once prove them wrong.
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It was time to face the facts.
She’d been ignoring it for months but as she looked down at the various bills scattered over her dining room table, Katie Mason had to finally admit that she was in way over her head.
“Are you even listening?”
“Yeah, Mari. I’m still here.”
Katie adjusted her phone between her shoulder and her ear. Her sister Marilyn was complaining yet again about their mother. She smiled. It was probably petty but it was nice to know she wasn’t the only one her mother criticized. The only one who escaped their mother’s eagle eye was their older brother Nelson, who could do no wrong.
“Then she asked if I needed help cleaning since my windows were dirty. I mean, who has time to clean windows every season?”
“Sheila White does,” Katie replied.
They both laughed. Their mother loved to tell them all about how she’d managed to keep their father happy and their house clean with no problem. Katie had long ago given up trying to meet her mother’s high standards. It was one of the few perks of divorce. She’d already failed so completely in her mother’s eyes that she didn’t bother to nitpick so much anymore. Katie figured she was probably already considered past redemption.
“Whatever,” Mari grumbled. “Did you sign up for that dating app I told you about? I heard it’s really good.”
Katie didn’t bother asking who her sister had heard that from. Her sister was an incurable romantic. Mari thought all her problems would be solved by finding a new boyfriend. Katie couldn’t get too annoyed at her persistence, after all romance had always come easily for Mari. Her sister was happily married to her high school sweetheart, Dennis. They didn’t have children yet but were enjoying practicing, as Mari liked to say.
Katie thought it was good that they were taking their time. Her sister was three years younger at twenty-four and Katie felt she could use the time to mature before becoming a mother. Instead Mari used the time to hound her siblings about their dating lives. She had been telling Katie to “get back out there” ever since the divorce was final. Both of her siblings were worried about her being alone, not that her brother would ever say it, but Katie doubted that going on a date with some random guy was the answer.
“Um… sure I did.”
“No, you didn’t. I don’t know why you won’t at least try it. You deserve a hot guy that makes you lose your good sense. Don’t you want a guy with a sexy ass? I want that for you, Katie.”
Katie picked up one of the bills on the table. PAST DUE was stamped on the front. Just like the one beneath it and the ones beneath that one.
She was drowning in bills and had no idea what to do.