Page 72 of Aiden & Lily

She glanced at Aiden in surprise. “You are?”

“Jasmine can’t keep a secret to save her life, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Lily snorted. “She kept our secret, didn’t she?”

He grimaced. “Touché.”

At that, she laughed. The morning sun warmed the foothills around them, catching on the pale grass and the scattered wildflowers along the trail. Farther up, the mountains rose sharply against the blue sky.

“Anyway, I’m pretty sure Jasmine is planning something,” she said. “She does that.”

“But isn’t it her birthday, too?”

“Yep.” Lily snickered. “And what better way to plan her own birthday than under the guise of planning one for her twin?”

He laughed with her. “I guess that’s a good point. At least that way she gets everything she wants. The right food. The right music. The right…” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Theme?”

Lily nodded. “Now you’re getting it.”

“What about you?”

She shrugged. “What about me?”

“Don’t you care?”

His question caught her off guard. Of course she cared, just not in the way he probably meant.

“I care that Jasmine is happy on our birthday,” she began. “I care that when she looks back on all the parties we’ve shared, she feels special. It’s hard sharing everything with someone—even a sister. We shared clothes, a bedroom, and almost every milestone growing up. I know I’ll still be celebrated, but I want Jasmine to get what she wants, too.”

She could feel Aiden’s eyes on her and turned to study his expression.

He looked thoughtful. Not as though he were judging her or turning her into some kind of hero. If anything, he seemed to be enjoying learning something new about her.

And when he looked at her like that, she feltseen.

“I’ve been thinking about what you said the other day,” she said, changing the subject. “About going into animal medicine.”

“Oh yeah?”

She scrunched her nose and glanced toward the sky. “Yeah. I think you were right.”

“About what?”

She rolled her eyes and gave him a pointed look. “You know what. It’s time for me to step outside my comfort zone. I love working for my family, and helping around the farm is fine, but sometimes I don’t feel like it’s where I belong. Most of the time, I’m not even sure they need me.”

Aiden stayed quiet, letting her continue.

“Rose is Dad’s second, and one day she’ll be running the whole place. Emerson helps her with the things she struggles with—like brute strength.” Lily laughed. “That sounds terrible, but you know what I mean. There are just some jobs that take more muscle than what I have to offer. And the rest of us mostly do what we’re told. If I were interested in mechanics, I could ask River to teach me, but that sounds so…” She made a face. “Boring.”

“And going back to school feels more like you,” Aiden said.

“Yeah.” Her smile returned. “Not only would I enjoy it, but it would be fulfilling. I could make a difference around here.” She tightened her grip on the reins and gave him a sidelong glance. “Do you think it’s too late to go to school for something like that? I’m already twenty-two.”

Aiden stared at her. “Twenty-two is not old.”

“I know, but most people start college right after high school.”

“It’s never too late. Believe me, plenty of people change majors two or three times before they figure out what they actually want. You already know what interests you. That puts you ahead of a lot of them.”