Chapter 16

I grabbed one of the wicker baskets and wandered. I chose potatoes and carrots. A couple onions bigger than baseballs. Mushrooms. A butternut squash. When I got to the fresh herbs, I couldn’t help smiling. I snagged a bundle of thyme and buried my nose in it, shivering at the lovely smell. I also picked up flat-leaf parsley and oregano. Every time I shopped for fresh herbs at the farmer’s market, or here on the farm, I wanted to start growing my own. Maybe that was a project for spring?

I was in heaven. I couldn’t resist the blue-tinted eggs or the smoked bacon, made from their own pigs. The apples were big and bright red and called out to me. I even asked Mrs. Smithers—Robbie’s mom—for permission to pick some leaves from their trees to decorate my table.

I drove away with way more stuff than I needed for dinner—enough to feed Liam’s entire band of brothers, if they’d been invited—and with a sense of happy satisfaction deep in my stomach.

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