Burton looked out over the horse field in the northern meadow. It was peaceful here. Peanut Butter and Pickles grazed contentedly under a blue sky, their silky tails flicking away the occasional fly.

If not for the morning with Tansy, it could have been a perfect day.

Burton was grateful that Arden had given him a task that allowed him some time alone. Mending the split rail fence was a one-person job and it required enough physical effort to provide a little relief from the stress he felt.

As he wrested another rotted rail from the posts, he thought back to the morning and what he had done wrong.

He had needed Tansy to know that he would be happy with a life off the farm. And he had tried to show her in a positive manner, as Drago suggested. He had not said bad things about the farm, a level of deception he was sure he couldn’t master, and more importantly, something he thought would upset her. Instead, he had expressed admiration of all the things he could offer her if they left.

But she had reacted with dismay anyway.

Drago had said that he suspected the women of holding onto the farm only in order to hide them.

But when Burton searched his feelings, he couldn’t agree that this was Tansy’s only motivation. If her reactions to his words today told him what he thought they did, then she wanted to stay on the farm because she truly loved it, because it made her happy to be here.

And Burton could relate to that.

Being here made him happy too.

A lot of that had to do with Tansy. But he loved the place on its own merits too. He adored the animals. The fresh food tasted better than anything he had ever eaten. The physical labor felt good and allowed him to sleep hard and wake up early, ready for more interesting chores.

Peanut Butter whickered and tossed his mane.

“I agree, boy,” Burton told the animal. “This is a happy place.”

But Peanut Butter was trotting away from him, toward the southern end of the paddock.

Burton didn’t need to share the creature’s mind to see what the pony was seeing.

Tansy was heading up from the berry fields, her dark hair shining in the sunlight.

Burton’s heart leapt.

She was coming to find him. She was thinking about him too. He could talk with her, fix everything somehow.

He dropped his tools and headed down to meet her.

As he got closer, he could see she was wearing a serious expression. Her blue eyes were determined.

“Tansy,” he called to her. “I’m so glad you’re here. I’ve been thinking about this morning. I’m very sorry that I upset you.”

“It’s fine,” Tansy said in a way that made him think it wasn’t fine. “I wanted to talk to you too.”

“I’m glad,” he told her. “I don’t ever want you to run away from me when you are angry. Please tell me how you feel. Tell me how I can make things better.”

She closed her blue eyes and looked down at her hands for a moment.

“Burton, I’ve been thinking,” she said. “A relationship between us isn’t going to work.”

“Tansy…” he said, trying to think of what to say next. He had expected her to be angry, or hurt.

He had not expected this.

“I’ve really enjoyed spending time with you,” she said, still looking down at her hands.

He looked at her hands too. They were beautiful - tanned and calloused - the hands of someone who worked hard at a job she loved.

“But this farm means everything to me,” she continued. “And I only have this one chance to hold on to it. So that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to hold on and I can’t have distractions. Do you understand?”

A thousand arguments filled his head, like a flock of birds, crying out to be heard.

But Burton was too heartbroken to give them voice.

“I want you to be happy, Tansy,” he told her. “Please tell me how I can help you.”

“Let me go,” she said.

“Look into my eyes,” he said.

She bit her lip.

“Please, if you mean that, look into my eyes to say it,” he said.

She raised her beautiful eyes to his. The tears made them sparkle like the rings of the planet Alterrax.

“Let me go,” she said softly. “Please.”

Pain slammed into his chest as if he had been hit with an ax.

But he nodded and took a step backward.

He had promised to do what was best for her, to put her happiness before his own.

As he watched her turn and dash down the meadow and back toward the berry fields, he wondered if his fragile human form could sustain the agony he felt.