The Growing Season by Jane Lorenzini
Author:Jane Lorenzini
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nest Press
Published: 2024-07-15T00:00:00+00:00
⢠⢠â¢
Belle was out in the field trying hard to stay focused on the maturing plants, but she was failing. Her thoughts kept drifting back to her horrible discovery on Booneâs boat. Angrily, she dragged a hoe across weeds, cutting their leaves and stems away from the root. Thank goodness sheâd kept the news of Booneâs proposal to herself! Theyâd agreed to stay quiet about it until he returned from Kissimmee so they could share the good news together. But now there was only bad news. No marriage, no baby, no more believing that a long-lasting love was within reach for her.
She stopped working briefly and looked over at the club members, a half-hearted attempt to be grateful. Yes, she was blessed with people who loved her, and she them. And Merle and Abigail were angels in her life. But a relationship with a partner, a secret keeper, a protector . . . all of that was over.
âStupid me,â she whispered.
She stopped trying to be positive and allowed herself to fume. She imagined Despair wrestling Gratitude to the ground and shoving its stupid tranquil face into the dirt. Deflated, she let the hoe drop to the ground and sat next to it, hugging her knees. Betrayal was such a devious magician. As if with the poof of a wand, all her insecurities had reappeared. She was an outsider again. A smelly orphan with no voice, invisible to those with the power to protect her. How had she ever come to finally believe that she deservedâ âor could sustainâ âa romantic relationship? So much had been stolen from her before she could choose it.
Last year, dreadful Juliusâ âin town from Tampaâ âhad tracked her down in the cottage and assaulted her in bed. In pain and a state of delirium, sheâd stabbed him repeatedly, every jab to his neck a failed attempt to undo both what heâd just done to her and their twisted past. Sheâd managed to kill him, but heâd lived on in the form of a baby inside her.
Desperate after realizing her agonizing situation, sheâd drunk countless cups of herbal tea, hoping to stop the pregnancy. By her actionsâ âor by the grace of Godâ âsheâd had a miscarriage, another terrifying and painful experience. Broken and vulnerable, Belle had turned to Boone for support after both ordeals. Theyâd been there for each other as they healed from tragedies, and theyâd fallen deeply in love. But now the man sheâd believed was her warrior had betrayed and deceived her. Once again, she was damaged and abandoned. Poof.
Belle reached for weeds growing near where she sat, ripping them from the soil and tossing them into a messy pile. As her mind churned, she grabbed handfuls of chickweed and dandelions, tugging at the invaders. Then she crawled on her hands and knees through several rows, attacking quack grass and yanking on stubborn pigweed until its roots gave way.
âBelle . . . ,â a voice said. A hand touched her back, startling her. âTake a break, dear.â
Belle turned and sat upright.
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