the train rocks you.”
“Just as long as you find a man to rock you,” Kim snorted.
Dropping some cash on the table, I hugged each of them goodbye. “Have a good time gossiping about me while I’m away,” I joked. “I expect to hear crazy tales from each of you
this month.”
“And we’ll see you in four weeks or so at ‘Dolls before Balls’,” Kim said brightly.
As I waved and turned for the door, I could hear Kate saying, “Actually, that last one isn’t
quite so bad.”
CHAPTER ONE
* Joanna *
For a girl who was pretty nervous about new things, this had been a very stressful day. It
was the first time I’d ever gone on a trip on my own. Maybe that was strange, considering
that I was twenty-one years old and had traveled a bit. But I’d always had friends with me.
Taking off on my own out to the country for a ten-day retreat was one of the boldest things
I’d ever planned. Although my stomach had been tied up in knots for the past several days
while I packed and prepared, I knew that this would be an important learning experience for
me.
Not to mention, it would force me to complete my poetry book. Although this was a
vacation, it was also a personal writer’s retreat. I’d been writing a collection of poetry for two years now, but it was only two-thirds of the way done. This dedicated time would force
me to finish the missing sections, and edit everything at once with a clear eye. No
distractions.
As soon as I got the book done and began sending it out to publishers, I was going to focus
on applying for copywriting jobs and pitching articles to various media. My small portfolio of published pieces on various websites was highlighted by a feature in a popular magazine.
Well, it was popular among real estate agents. But I still got paid a lot more for a few hours work than I did working at my neighborhood cafe.
Staring out the train window as the buildings grew smaller and farther apart, I was soon
staring at trees and fields. The sky was so much bigger out here. As a city girl, I hadn’t
spent much time in the country except for occasional camping trips when I was little. Now I
was going to live on a working farm for almost two weeks.
When I first heard about Harmer’s Farm, I instantly thought it was a brilliant idea. They
provided free room and board for artists, writers, and musicians to have some quiet
working time. The only catch was that guests had to work in the fields for the morning, and