12. Will
12
WILL
It's the day before our date, and as promised, I did message Birdie, and this time she sent a reply straight away.
It hasn't been heavy or anything, just the two of us sharing snippets of our day as we go about our business. It's helped pass the time since our impromptu rooftop break but hasn't done anything to help speed up the clock and make it Wednesday already.
After discovering more problems in the main house that needed fixing or replacing, we decided to focus on one thing and do it well, before moving onto anything else—like the cabins.
That meant calling our soon-to-be ranch hand Wyatt who has been staying at Bull Mountain Ranch with his family. We gave him the option of coming at the end of the month as planned or delaying his arrival to give us more time to get one of the cabins ready for him.
Thankfully, he's more than happy to bunk in the house with us. He even said it would probably make it feel more like home since he's been living on ranches his whole life and is used to being in a full house. That proved to me that my gut instinct was bang on with the kid. He's going to fit in well and hopefully , will be able to guide us with the ranch side of the things.
But until any of that can happen, we've got a barn needing a new roof and stalls and fields with fallen-down fences. That's just to start with. Once that's all done–eventually–we'll have more than enough space to run some stock on the land between the buildings and the mountain.
For the rest of the land from the main house to the main road leading around the mountain, that's where we can have crops, horses, or even plant Christmas trees if we wanted–which is Case's latest proposal.
What has become clear while living here is that the world—or the land at Cooper Ranch—is our oyster. But because we have so many options and ideas, the four of us can't decide on anything other than the fact we need to decide on something .
I'm sanding the wood trim around the closet door when my phone buzzes on the nightstand where I left it.
Birdie: When I say that my father is like a kid I haven't had yet, I mean it!
I snort.
Will: What did he do now? Forget to eat again?
Birdie: No. That would be understandable, or at least forgivable. This time the man forgot her had a trip to Anchorage for the next two days and didn't organize a thing!
Will: Let me guess, now you're trying to do it for him?
Birdie: Well, obviously he can't be trusted to do it on his own.
Will: How did you not know about it?
Birdie: I knew, but he said he'd take care of everything.
Will: Then he didn't?
Birdie: Exactly. I swear this is payback for my wild teenage years.
Will: Do tell me about these wild teenage years of yours…
Birdie: Not on your life, Cooper!
Will: You shouldn't say things you don't mean, honey. That sounds like first date talk.
Birdie: Does it? I thought those were things 'What do you like to do in your free time? Favorite color? Favorite meal? Who is your celebrity crush? That sort of thing…
I lean against the wall, unable to stop myself from smiling.
Will: Should I answer them now or make you wait until tomorrow?
Birdie: But then we'll have nothing to talk about on our date?
Will: For sure, we will. It'll give you more time to tell me about your wild teenage years.
Birdie: I bet you have far better stories than I do. The only things for kids to do in Timber Falls are go to the lookout, drink beers they've snuck out of the house, and/or make out with each other. Or if you're not that way inclined, you'd just go to the diner for a burger, shake, and fries and get home before curfew.
Will: I think you're hiding the juicy stuff. Making out with strangers? That's scandalous, Birdie! Maybe I should swing by the Mayor's office and ask your DAD what he knows about your youth?
Birdie: And here I was thinking you were a nice guy, Will Cooper. Maybe my instincts were off…
Birdie: And for the record, I never said I was the one making out with strangers.
Will: Suuure.
Birdie: I'll tell you, I swear…
Will: Haha OK, honey. I promise. Besides, the only person I want to hear stories from is you. And I'm willing to wait until whenever you're ready to tell me.
Birdie: You're too smooth for your own good, Cooper.
I don’t know why, but every time she tells me I’m a sweet talker, I know I’m doing something right.
Will: I'm not really. Otherwise, we would be on date number two or three already instead of me almost missing my chance.
Birdie: Nah, I came to see you with Dad, remember? I talked him into visiting as the 'mayor'. Did you really think we go out and greet every new resident?
Will: NOW the truth comes out.
Birdie: What can I say? I'm not used to handsome city boys moving to town, asking for my number then not calling.
Will: You have a lot of city boys asking you out?
Birdie: Nope. You're my first.
Will: Bet you say that to all the hopeful city boys…
Birdie: Haha that would be a good ruse if I did, but no. It may surprise you to know that I don't give my number out to strangers.
Will: Why was I so lucky then?
Birdie: There must just be something about you. I mean, you DID traipse around town looking for me. It was one hell of a way to show me just how much you wanted a date with me.
And although I thought it was a crazy idea at the time, I don’t regret doing it now. Now for a second.
Will: Technically you're the one taking ME out. I'm just the driver.
Birdie: And the entertainment. Just wait, I'll have you telling me all your secrets by the end of the tour.
Will: Won't be that hard, I've got nothing to hide.
Birdie: Me either… Well, except the time I took Dad's motorbike on a joyride down our street because my next-door neighbor dared me to.
Will: NOW the truth comes out. You're a rebel, aren't you?
Birdie: Correction… I used to be a little rebellious. Now I'm a responsible, functional adult with a father who wouldn't survive without me. Case in point, me having to book his urgent accommodation and dinner reservations for tomorrow night.
I used to be a little rebellious .
Now doesn't that sound familiar? Maybe Birdie and I have more in common than we realize.
All I know right now is that Birdie is a woman full of surprises, and I'm looking forward to uncovering every single one, starting with our date.
Will: Don't let me keep you. I'm looking forward to tomorrow.
Birdie: I am too. I've even come up with a plan for us with places to go and people to see.
Why does that a) not surprise me and b) seem like even more of a gesture than me stalking her around town?
Will: Aren't I lucky? My own personal tour guide.
Birdie: Yup. Only special people get this level of service. I hope you're grateful, Will Cooper.
Will: Been grateful since you said yes to a date, honey.
She doesn't reply straight away and after a while, I put my phone back down, figuring she's busy at work.
I've almost finished the sanding when the phone vibrates with her reply. When I read it, there's no mistaking the growing anticipation—the undeniable hope—brewing inside me. The smile on my face says it all.
Birdie: See! Smooth talker! You're just like the hero in the book I'm reading. He's a city boy living in a small town and he's set his sights on the town sweetheart. He says and does all the right things, and the heroine thinks he's too good to be true. Little does she know, he thinks the same about her.
There's no way I can let go without a response because right now, I know exactly how the hero in her book feels.
Will: Sounds like a good book. Does the boy get the girl?
Birdie: I'm only up to their first date, but I'll let you know **wink**
Will: Maybe you should tell me the title so I can get some advanced reading in. You never know, I might need some tips…
Birdie: Do you read romance, Will?
Will: Haven't tried it before. That's not to say I won't give it a good ol' Alaskan try.
Birdie: Maybe you should try one of Aster Hollingsworth's books. She writes about finding your soulmate in small Alaskan mountain towns.
Will: Sounds like it might be right up my alley then.
Birdie: If only you knew, City Boy.
"Hey! I think y'all are goin' to want to see this," Sutton calls out from the back room. He's stripping back the old-as-me train-covered wallpaper in the last spare bedroom since that's where we're going to put Wyatt for the time being.
When we were kids, there were two sets of homemade bunk beds that Dad and Gramps built for us boys to sleep in. The oldest ones always got the top bunks–which meant Case and I thought we were the coolest kids around. Funnily enough, sometimes I swear Case still thinks he is.
"Is it another mouse?" Case calls out from somewhere in the house.
One thing we agreed on was that more hands make quick work, so we're all in charge of one room. We want the house to be comfortable, safe, and at least a little bit more like we're all accustomed to. Especially since we're all committed to staying here for the long haul. If that means some hard work before we start thinking about the rest of the ranch, so be it.
"Is it another one of Gramps's booby traps?" I ask with a snort.
"Not a trap. But I wouldn't put it past him to send it our way," Sutton replies puzzlingly.
Jude appears in the doorway of my bedroom. "What do you think he's found?"
I shrug. "No clue, but after the letter and family tree, I'm not sure what to expect."
"More clues the better, don't you think?"
I slide my phone into my back pocket and move his way. "Guess we better go find out then."
We collect Case halfway up the hallway and soon enough, we're gathered inside the end room with Sutton looking out the big back window, staring out at the overgrown grass and melting snow behind the house.
"What have you found, Sutt?" I ask, walking over to stand beside him.
"I swear it was there," he says.
My brows furrow. " What was there?"
"A donkey."
"What donkey?" Jude says, pressing his nose to the glass. "I don't see no donkey."
I look again. "Are you sure it was a donkey?"
"I think I know what a donkey looks like, Will," Sutt replies.
Case shakes his head. "Well, if there was a donkey, where is it now? They don't just sprout wings and fly away."
"Unicorns have wings," I say absentmindedly, still scanning the pasture for Sutton's donkey.
"Firstly, unicorns aren't real and if you're seein' them, then you and me need to talk," Sutton says, turning my way. "And second, it's not a unicorn. It was gray and white with a black mohawk on top of its head."
"Isn't that a mane rather than a mohawk?" Jude muses. "Although a donkey with a mohawk would be cool."
"I think the wallpaper stripper has gone to your head, brother. There ain't no donkey out there," Case says before I grunt, my eyes locked on what is , in fact, a donkey.
"Look again, Case. Sutt ain't seein' things. The damn thing is eatin' grass out there," I say.
Now three heads are pressed to the glass while Sutt stands back. "See, I told you. There ain't nothin' wrong with my head that isn't already diagnosed and being treated for." He chuckles. "Goin' to my head, my ass."
"Well, he is an ass, just not our ass," I say with a smirk, giving Sutton a gentle shoulder bump. "He must've wandered off from his home somehow."
Jude cocks his head and shoots me a skeptical look. "And just trekked up the damn mountain?"
I shrug. "It's not like I know anythin' about donkeys. Never had one, never wanted one, never–"
"Sounds like there are a few too many nevers in that sentence, brother. 'Cause I'm thinkin' we've just scored ourselves a donkey ," Case says, his eyes dancing with excitement.
"It's not ours. We can't just keep him," I explain. "He must belong to someone . Just means we're goin' to have to find out who."
"Who are you supposed to call about a lost donkey?" Sutton says.
Case smirks. "You know who would know what to do?"
"Mom and Dad?" Jude says.
"Nope," he replies, staring straight at me with a smirk. "The Mayor's daughter. Bet she knows everythin' about this town and who's in it. She'll know who's lost a donkey, for sure."
"OK. I'll send her a text and ask," I say, pulling out my phone.
"Been textin' a lot, have we?" Sutton says, waggling his brows.
"Just a little. Just…" I don't even know why I'm feeling protective over whatever this is between Birdie and me. It's just… mine . And it's been a long time since I've let myself have anything that was just mine and mine alone, not belonging to business partners or my family or anyone else. Right now, Birdie is my little piece of Timber Falls—well, kind of—and I don't want to do anything to risk the connection we have.
Maybe because I've never felt anything like it before and I don't know why.
Will: Hey, so random question. Have you heard anything about a lost donkey?
Birdie: A donkey? Are you punking me right now? Is this even Will?
Will: Haha yes, it's me. We seem to have a stray donkey grazing on our land behind the house.
Birdie: OK… the thing is, I don't think there are that many donkeys in Timber Falls.
Will: Well, there is one here right now…
Birdie: Hmm. Leave it with me. I'll talk to Dad, and we'll put a call out to all the ranches in the area. Might take a little while. Are you OK with keeping it there until we hear anything?
I glance out the window to find the animal staring at us and braying like an animal possessed. He's puffing out his belly in huge heaves as he squeaks and heehaws like his life depends on it.
Will: Might need a set of earplugs because of the racket he's making. But we can keep him for a while. He's not hurting anyone.
Birdie: Except for your hearing, of course. I'll let you know if I find out anything.
Will: Thank you, honey. Much appreciated.
Birdie: It's crazy how much I like that word now.
Will: Aww… does it help to know that I've never called anyone else that name before?
Birdie: Why me then?
Will: Curious thing, aren't you?
Birdie: That surprises you?
Will: Not at all. But maybe I'll tell you tomorrow on our date.
Birdie: Now who's teasing?
Will: Not teasing, honey. It's called anticipation.
Birdie: Hmm…
Will: My dad–Cap–always says life is ninety-five percent anticipation.
Birdie: And the rest?
Will: Is whatever you make of it.
"Look at that smile," Jude says. "I think our Willy-Will has a crush."
My head jerks up from my phone. "With the donkey ?" I say, my voice cracking with the ridiculousness of the idea.
Jude drapes his arm around my shoulders. "No, big brother. With the girl. You're hooked."
"I–"
"It's not a bad thing, Will." Sutt smiles while the damn imposter donkey starts swishing its tail back and forth while munching away on another patch of grass.
"Birdie or the donkey? Cause those two things are so far apart right now," I chuckle.
"I was talkin' about the girl. But hey, a pet donkey wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, right?" Sutt says, shooting me a hopeful gaze. Little does he know that my brothers could ask me for a rocket ship and I'd bust my butt to make it happen. Been that way since I first laid eyes on the twins in the hospital. More so when Jude and then our sister came along.
"Let's see what Birdie says about the donkey. Until then, he's stayin'."
"Looks like we've got our first animal resident of Cooper Ranch," Case says, looking between all of us. "That deserves a celebration."
Jude laughs, Sutt rolls his eyes and I groan.
"We're nowhere near ready to call it a day yet," I say, waving at the half-stripped room we're standing in.
"I mean my shout for dinner. Figure we need to get out and about and see this town. Meet the people. Immerse ourselves in the Timber Falls society."
"It's a small town with a population of about two thousand at last count. Not sure there is a society, Case," I answer.
"Whatever there is, we're goin' to get in amongst it. I'm thinkin' the diner. Burgers and fries are on me!" he announces.
"Once we're done," I add. "And that donkey is contained. Then you can buy us all the burgers and fries. Root beer too since you're payin'."
"Of course, big brother. Work first, fun later, that's your motto, right?" Case says with a playful roll of his eyes.
I flip him the bird but do it with a smile before we all leave the manky donkey outside eating whatever his little heart desires. At least until later when we'll have to wrangle him into a barn stall or something.
But that can be future me's problem. For now, I've got a door to sand and stain, and a date tomorrow to anticipate .