Chapter 8
SARGE
Ford, my other nephew and the closest thing we have to a mechanical genius, stood up and walked toward the barn door. “On it.”
Next up was Jesse. We listened intently when he spoke; land management was his forte.
He was in tune with the soil structure and the specific needs of every acre, rotating crops to balance nutrients in ways the rest of us didn’t fully grasp.
We didn’t need to, though–he had gone to college for this exact profession.
“We’re leaving sections twenty-three and twenty-four fallow this season,” Jesse announced. “I know it wasn’t in the original plan, but the soil tests came back weak. Those areas need some TLC. I’ll keep an eye on them, and if everything goes well, we should be able to plant fall crops there.”
I took a sip of my coffee. “Is that everything for today?”
My brother Tom chimed in. “I’ll be out in the dirt if you guys need me. I’m planting four sections of wildflowers along the south fenceline today, and I’ll take care of the west edge near the road tomorrow.”
“I’ll hook up the spray tank and follow behind you,” Jasper offered.
He was the marketing brain of the operation, but he still worked around the farm most days.
I didn’t pretend to understand the details of his job, but I’d seen him sitting in the shade with his laptop often enough to know he was more productive outside than cooped up in a cubicle.
My brother Jack's sons, including Jasper, were the most studious of the bunch, though they stayed heavily involved in the daily operations.
Jacoby went to law school and handled our legal endeavors, from permits and certifications to the mountain of regulations we had to follow.
Jalen used his business degree to run the family-owned store, restaurant, bar, and café in nearby Leavenworth.
And Jesse used his land management degree to organize crop and grazing rotation so we could make the most of the acreage we used for both crops and livestock.
His planning kept the land healthy and ensured we could keep expanding both areas of the operation for years to come.
“I’ve got the fields mapped out for the maze and touring area, so I’ll plant the sunflower fields this morning. I’ll let you know when I’m ready for water, Paxton,” Frank said. “Jesse found me some hybrid seeds I want to try, so I’ll let you know which rows they’re in once I’m done.”
“Sounds like a full day. Let’s get to it,” I suggested, draining my coffee mug and setting it on the counter.
“You’re just itching to get in that cab so you can finish your audiobook,” Frank teased.
“Maybe. I think I’ve figured out the killer, but I could be wrong.”
“You are,” Frank said with way too much confidence. He grinned. “I thought the same thing, but I was way off.”
Spending so much time alone–either inside heavy equipment or working with our hands–could get boring, so we all had our ways to pass the time.
A few of my brothers and nephews listened to podcasts or music, but most of us preferred audiobooks.
Since we generally liked the same genres, it wasn’t uncommon for us to swap recommendations and talk about plot twists over coffee when we got the chance.
“I predict it’s the FBI agent. Am I right?”
Frank laughed. “I guess you’ll find out soon enough, won’t you?”
“No spoilers!” Tom barked, walking out of the office connected to the barn. “I’m gonna get to that one eventually, and I don’t want y’all to fuck it up for me.”
“Sun’s coming up, boys!” Bill shouted from the doorway. “Work’s never gonna get finished with all of you lazing around wasting time on chit-chat!”
Tom threw a wadded-up napkin at Bill as he walked past. “Go play with the animals, Noah, and leave the real working men alone.”
“I hang around the animals because all of you are assholes,” Bill called back, loud enough for everyone outside to hear. “They produce shit, but they don’t talk it, and I like that about them.”
“How’s the new stock doing?” I asked before I left.
Bill and his wife handled the goats and everything their care entailed–from milk production to hiring them out for land clearing. We’d picked up that side of the business from Ripley when we first started buying stock from him.
“Ripley’s got some great bloodlines, so they’re doing really well. They’re already acclimating to the new surroundings, although we haven’t put them with our herd yet.”
“Let me know if there’s anything I can do,” I said as I walked through the doorway. “And stop yelling at us like that, man. You sound just like Ma.”
“I should. I’ve been listening to her bark those same words at us my entire life, same as you.”
Just like Ma and Pa, my brothers and I–and now all our sons–were content to work the farm and carry our family’s legacy into the future.
Because of everything we’d learned from the patriarch before he died, and everything we were still learning from the matriarch who refused to slow down, we understood the value of a hard day’s work.
Although after tossing and turning most of the night thinking about Starla–what happened between us and what it might mean–a little more time near the coffee pot was almost too much to resist. Short of a four-hour nap, a few more cups were probably the only way I’d make it through the day.
Then again, some time alone with my thoughts might help me figure out how I was going to make good on that date I’d promised her. That was going to keep my mind even busier than the audiobook I’d been looking forward to, and I was eager to get started.
◆◆◆
STARLA
The second I finished rinsing the toothpaste out of my mouth, I hit the button to call my closest friend.
I needed to tell her everything about my conversation with Sarge last night.
I needed her input, as cranky and direct as it might be, to keep my head straight.
It was swirling with doubts and fears and far too much hope for me to make a good decision on my own.
“If there’s not some sort of catastrophic emergency happening right now, this is your last chance to hang up so we can pretend this didn’t just happen.”
“So we can pretend what didn’t just happen?” I asked.
“It’s the middle of the goddamn night, Starla.”
“It’s actually just before dawn.”
“Which is the time of day when people who aren’t doing something nefarious are still sleeping.”
“I’m not doing anything except getting ready to put in a full day’s work, which is a lot harder than I remember.”
“You’ve been there one fucking day. Now, what’s your emergency?”
“Moe, aren’t you glad to hear from me?”
“Again, I’ll reiterate that you’ve been there a day, Starla. One day. Which means I saw you less than three fucking days ago. Even if I were going to miss you, which is doubtful, I haven’t even had time to start.”
“Good morning to you, too, grumpy ass.”
“If you’re not calling to tell me you crawled up one side and down the other of that farming biker, I’m hanging up right now.”
“It wasn’t all that, but . . .”
Suddenly, Moe was wide awake. “Details. Now.”
“Why do you need all the details? I’m calling for moral support and direction, not to give you a play-by-play.”
“Honey, if you thought dialing my number at the ass crack of dawn to be your moral compass was a good idea, you need to wake up and quit dreaming. Tell me everything. What’s he look like naked?
I bet when he took his shirt off his chest glowed in the dark compared to those muscular arms. It did, didn’t it? ”
“I haven’t seen him naked, Moe.”
“Quickie, huh? Did you do it in the barn? If straw didn’t make me sneeze, I’d think that was hot.”
“I kissed him.”
“And then?”
“He kissed me back?”
“Is that a question or an answer? You better end that with, ‘And then he ripped my panties off with his teeth.’”
“Would you shut up and be supportive? Jeez!”
“Do I look like a bra? No, I do not. I look like a woman who is quickly approaching her golden years and has to live vicariously through others. That’s what I look like.”
“You’re barely forty fucking years old, Moe. Get a grip, drama queen. Damn.”
“Did you know Rue McClanahan was only fifty-one when she played Blanche Devereaux in The Golden Girls? It was about older single women living together and commiserating about how horrible it was to be single at their age, which is a lot like prison and exactly where I’m living right now.”
“The Flower Patch is nothing like prison!”
“No, it’s not, but I’m surrounded by women who are scraping by, single and lonely, trying to figure out life without a beach house in Florida and an unlimited amount of money.”
“If we were to play the parts from that show, which character do you think would suit your personality?”
“Sophia.”
“Bullshit. You’re Dorothy on a good day, but you’re acting like Rose right now.”
“I’ll take that. Were you trying to insult me?”
“I’ve gotta go downstairs and get started on my day, Moe.” I knew my voice was dripping with sarcasm when I said, “Thank you so much for your sage advice.”
“First, you can only expect so much out of anyone at this time of day. Second, get your head out of your ass and realize that sometimes things happen for a reason, and it’s time for you to see that this is yours.
If it doesn’t work out, then you’ll find another reason some other day.
But right now, there’s a hot guy with a farmer’s tan who wants to give you a ride on his big, green .
. . Okay, maybe that’s not the song I should use in my analogy, but you get what I mean.
I’d like to think that his dick is a great big machine and all, but describing it as green makes me want to gag–and not in a good way. ”
At first, I was uncertain, but by the time she finished, I was laughing so hard I had tears in my eyes. “Okay, I take back the ugly things I was thinking. You’re mostly right. Moving to Kansas did happen for a reason, and I’m glad to have reconnected with Ma, but . . .”