Page 92 of While the Sun Shines

“I like—ah, that’s nice—hearing that.”

“Yeah?”

“Mm, yeah.” She tips her head back, letting out a long sigh. Then, she grins at him. “Not gonna get used to it, either, so you better—oh—better keep it up.”

“I can do that.”

“For, like, always.”

“Anything,” he says. “Pen, for you, I’ve got all the time in the world.”

EPILOGUE

The sheep are out in the field, Whit texts. An emoji of a sheep, a blade of grass, and a check mark appear next, followed by This is Cooper.

Good. Now scram, Drew writes back as he straps his seatbelt over his chest.

“Shut up,” Penny says.

“I didn’t say anything.”

“Take that off. I can do it.”

“I know you can.”

“Wearing a goddamn seatbelt,” Penny mutters and shifts the truck into gear.

It lurches and the engine stalls.

Drew makes a show of bracing his hand on the truck’s dashboard. “That’s third. You want first.”

She yanks the gearshift back and jams it into the correct position. “You’re going to get kicked off this date, and I’m going to replace you with Sadie.”

“I hope you two have a lovely time,” he says. “And I also hope you’re prepared to open your own wine because Sadie might be a great date, but she doesn’t have thumbs.”

“Aw, you brought me wine?”

“Sure did. I’m expanding my bartending knowledge.”

Penny pats his cheek. “Don’t strain yourself with all that hard work, hon.”

He snorts a soft laugh. Leans across the cab and kisses her. Slowly, drawn out and lingering until she’s responding with her fingers stroking his cheek and her tongue sliding over his lower lip.

And then he reaches past her, grabs her seatbelt, and clicks it in place.

“Drew!”

“Safety first,” he says, holding up his arms as she tries to smack at him.

She turns the engine over again and coaxes the truck into a slow, jerky start down the farm road, rutted and pockmarked. As they turn in to the far pastures, she shifts into second, heading toward where Whit’s truck sits, the trailer hitched behind it.

Penny parks at the edge of the field, her lips pursed as she reverses, pulls forward, and reverses again until the tailgate is pointed toward the herd of sheep.

She drums her hands on the wheel and happily says, “Ta-da!”

“Perfectly done.”

“You’re biased.”