Chapter 1
CHAPTER ONE
Sutton
College is where I reinvented myself. I went through a transformation that summer before freshman year began.
I joined a gym and lost a significant amount of weight, improving not only my mental health but my physical health as well.
I burned every article of clothing I owned in my closet and then went on a shopping spree where a department store stylist helped me develop my own style.
I went to an optometrist and dumped my glasses for a set of contacts, then found several pairs of sunglasses to highlight the new me.
Then, I went to Sephora and was taught a new skincare regimen, and how to apply makeup to enhance my natural beauty, as the clerk said.
My braces finally came off and a retainer went on, only it was behind my teeth so nobody saw it but that only stayed on until the summer before my junior year.
I even bit the bullet and accepted a date that later turned into a relationship.
I had all of my firsts with him, much to my younger self's horror. I did things that I swore I’d never do, give myself wholeheartedly to another.
I let him in and tore my mask off. I laughed, I lived, and I fell.
Why it caught me off-guard when he betrayed me is a mystery.
I should’ve expected it and known better as a former ugly duckling.
I should’ve had my guard up and questioned all of his ‘late night’ study sessions.
Especially seeing who his study buddy was.
She had a reputation for being the other woman and had no issues doing so.
It was a challenge for her. Once she accomplished ripping apart couples, she’d move on to her next target and forget the man she just stole was alive.
Hello, Jolene. She was a bitch who took women’s men just because she could.
But I have to give her props, she taught me that even though a man has declared his love for me doesn’t make it truthful.
I think I bought his profession of love hook, line, and sinker because I was desperate to feel that emotion.
It’s hard going through school with few if any friends, being picked on every single day for things that were outside of my control at the time.
I couldn’t help that puberty had me filling out before my peers, or the fact that my skin decided to show everyone what pimples looked like.
What my classmates don’t know is that I took prescription medication to help my skin and reduce the acne, but the birth control I also took to control my periods was somewhat counterproductive.
So, I was the perfect target for bullies.
I was a homely, chunky, teenage girl with shitty skin, glasses, and braces.
Still, the memory of what happened on graduation day haunts me, even though I’ve literally reinvented who I am from the inside out.
I’m still grateful for what Gemini’s family did for me that day; they got me cleaned up, then took me out for dinner to celebrate our accomplishments of making it through high school.
It meant even more knowing that Gemini lost his mom just a few days before we walked across that stage.
They didn’t push me to the side or tell me it was my problem to deal with, no, his aunt pressed charges, which caused an uproar in the town when the sentences that were given resulted in several scholarships being rescinded.
So, not only was I the school punching bag, I became the town pariah as well, which is why when I left for college, I vowed I’d never come back. I’ve managed to keep that promise, even though it’s been dicey a few times when my folks had several health scares.
Now? Well, I’ve been busting my ass building my career as a risk management director.
Working in healthcare is challenging on a good day, and sometimes, I question my choices, especially when shit hits the fan.
However, I just got offered a position at a hospital in Montana.
As a Texas native, it intrigues me that I’d be going to a state where snow is not just a possibility but a reality during the winter months.
Hell, from what I understand, sometimes it starts as early as October.
But… the opportunity to have something of my own, a small home on five acres where I can have a chicken coop, and maybe a few dogs or cats roaming about, has me excited for the change.
After what Bryan did to me, I need the solitude to regroup.
And being honest with myself, I’d rather have a relationship with a four-legged critter than a human because furry pets don’t betray you, they depend on you and give you all the love a person will ever need.
* * *
“Holy shit,” I murmur as my wipers brush the falling snow off my windshield.
“It’s like a snowman and a tornado had a baby with how hard the snow is falling as it swirls through the air in a funnel.
” I snort because I’ve never had great one-liners when it comes to jokes, but I found what I just said humorous.
“Left turn ahead and you’ll reach your destination,” the voice over the GPS tells me. I lean in closer, my chest over my steering wheel as I try to see through the storm.
“Where?” I squeak out. “There’s nothing there!” All I see before me is snow, snow, and snow. There’s no driveway, no mailbox, and most importantly, no freaking house! “The bitch is broken. She has to be.”
“You missed your destination. Rerouting.”
“You can reroute all you want to but I can’t turn around, woman!
There’s nothing but ditches and fields in front of me!
You’re going to get me unalived!” As I slow down so I can hopefully back up and see what it is I supposedly missed, my eyes widen when I look in my rearview mirror and see a cow is suddenly in the road.
“What the ever-loving fuck? You’re not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy.
” I hang my head and place it on my steering wheel, beating my forehead against the grip. “Why me?”
The cow doesn’t move, no, it starts lumbering forward, straight for the back of my SUV.
I have no clue what to do right now; the snowstorm came out of nowhere according to the news alert that came over the radio and of course, I’m not familiar with the town I chose.
When I realized how bad it was getting, I should have just gotten a hotel room and hunkered down.
But noooooo… Sutton Alexander no longer hides away, she pushes forward no matter what.
Which leads me to now, lost as hell with a bovine companion who has joined my convoy into the land of the lost. At this point, I’m about to forge ahead and see if I can find someplace to stop and get directions.
I mean, the realtor wasn’t especially helpful when I called earlier because he is snowed in, but he said it wasn’t hard to find.
Why there’s no mailbox is beyond me; maybe I have to install one myself, but that’s a problem for Future Sutton.
Current me just wants to find a place to settle in so I can eat, get the road grime off me, and catch a few hours of shut-eye.
Pushing the button to activate my hands-free phone, I say, “Call Roger Jones.”
“Calling Roger Jones,” my helpful robot says.
The phone rings twice before I hear, “Hello?”
“Mr. Jones? This is Sutton Alexander. I followed the GPS directions from the pin drop you sent me, but can’t find the driveway or the house, any suggestions?” I ask.
“Okay, so the house is white and it’s probable that with the snow it’s unseeable because it blends into the background. Look for two huge trees that lean in toward each other. They appear to be a heart. Will that help?” he questions.
“Maybe. If I can get the cow to move.”
“Cow? What cow?” His voice sounds panicked, which has my heart rate accelerating.
“Angus Bergstrom has livestock and he’s got a cow, Butterball, who is able to escape from any enclosure.
It sounds like she’s gotten loose again.
I’m going to give him a call and I’ll let him know, and he can help you find your driveway.
You’ll have to put up a mailbox; it was taken down when the last owners moved because the kids kept knocking it over. I would suggest a brick one.”
I can’t help it, the whole situation is beyond hysterical at this point, so I start laughing so hard that soon there are tears streaming down my face. “Thank you. I’ll wait for Mr. Bergstrom and keep an eye on Butterball.”
* * *
Mr. Bergstrom was apologetic as he came up to my window.
“I’m so sorry, Miss Alexander. I’ve tried to keep her from roaming, but Butterball has a mind of her own and she’s got a curious nature.
I’ll get her moved and get your driveway plowed so you can find it easier.
The missus made you a thermos of hot chocolate since it could take me a bit to get our old girl moved.
Is your car warm enough? Do you have plenty of gas? ”
“I have half a tank left,” I muse. “How long do you think this will take?” I ask, petrified of the answer since he asked how much fuel I have left in the tank.
“Depends on how ornery she is feeling,” he teases, giving me a full toothed smile.
“She’s the first cow I’ve ever had who likes the snow.
Everyone else went into the warm barns, but not Butterball.
She’s always had a mind of her own, even when she was a calf.
The older she gets, the more set in her ways she is, but at this point, everyone around knows who she is.
I bet she was just trying to welcome you to the neighborhood. ”
Normally, I’d laugh about that statement, but right now, all of my humor is buried in the mountain of snow.
Reaching out, I take the thermos from his outstretched hand and bring it back through the window, rolling it up.
I’m not trying to be rude, but my nose is a finger width away from getting frostbite.
I stopped being able to feel my fingers three moo’s ago.
I’m done with this day and ready to call it a night.
All of my politeness is gone.
Snarky Sutton has arrived.
Mr. Bergstrom, bless his heart, nods his head, gives me another blinding smile, and starts waving his hands through the air as he closes in on Butterball.
“If he starts waving a red flag, I’m hoofing it from here,” I tell myself. “I don’t care if I end up as a human popsicle, there’s only so much I can handle at this point.”
Thirty minutes later, Butterball has been returned to her pasture, my driveway has been plowed, and Mr. Bergstrom has checked to make sure my propane is going and the furnace is running while I get the bare essentials into my new home.
“Thank you so much for your help,” I say, ready to be by myself so I can decompress from this less-than-perfect trip.
“Again, my apologies about Butterball. I’ll be by tomorrow since the snow is supposed to stop and get you plowed out again, Miss Alexander,” he says.
“Please, call me Sutton,” I reply. “And thank your wife for the hot chocolate, it really did help while I waited.”