Chapter 31
Devan
J ustin and I talk throughout the week, but we don’t see one another until Thursday’s softball game.
I spend my week slammed with creating lesson plans and integrating the changes the science department has adopted.
Instead of working at the school, I’ve taken full advantage of Mom’s old craft room—my new office.
I have a beautiful view of the fields and a great breeze if I move out to the back patio.
Being a visual person, I outline the assignment, complete it, create and practice an associated hands-on experiment, and then type my notes in detail. I’m sure not everyone is putting this effort into their lesson plans, but it isn’t their first year of teaching either.
Justin has been busy too. While his fields are all planted, there is constant work with irrigation, fertilization, and fumigation.
He told me a horror story about an infestation of seed-corn maggots not long after he graduated Purdue.
From a science perspective, I’m fascinated with the fortitude of the seed-corn maggot.
There are no treatments to rescue a corn crop after infestation.
Their eggs hatch in two to four days with four to five generations per year.
Their rapid regeneration would be a model if they weren’t so destructive.
From a farming perspective, I remember when the last infestation happened.
Since there’s no treatment, infected corn must be tilled over and replanted.
The adding of beneficial nematodes has shown to be helpful, but this must be done at the time of planting.
I’m impressed with how much Justin knows about the land.
He says he’s not willing to lose another crop to the seed-corn maggots. Knowing that increased moisture can trigger the perfect environment for the devastating insects, and that our area had increased precipitation this past spring, Justin and his dad added the nematodes before planting.
The nematodes are basically worms that help to regulate the populations of other soil organisms. Some of the farms who didn’t add the beneficial worms are seeing the maggots.
Tilling entire fields, adding nematodes, and replanting is not only expensive, it delays the crop’s development, moving harvest to later in the year.
That creates a whole new list of issues.
The good news is that the Sheerses’ corn is healthy.
Justin said Dad and Ricky’s crop is too.
Justin may have taken credit for convincing Ricky to add the nematodes.
It’s not something I plan to ask my brother.
At Thursday’s game, Justin makes the same climb, kissing me before the first pitch. It seems like there are fewer eyes upon us. Unfortunately, for Thursday’s game, the good-luck kisses don’t pay off. Trevor, a nearby town, wins by a score of seven to four.
Now it is Friday, and I’m excited for our weekend away.
All I know about where we’re going is to pack a few dresses for dinner, a bathing suit for the spa and pool, and…
Justin says no other clothing is required.
For the record, I pack more than he requested.
I pack a nightgown that I picked up in a boutique in Indianapolis when Jill and I went to drop off some of her things off at Todd’s apartment one afternoon.
I also pack underwear because of Justin’s fair warning about consequences in announcing I’m not wearing any.
After Justin informed me that we had reservations for a weekend away, I did the adult thing and told my mom the truth.
To my surprise, she took it better than I anticipated.
She said I’ve lived on my own—with Marilyn—for four years.
She accepts that I’m not a child and to please let her know when we arrive safely.
It’s almost five thirty in the afternoon when through the living room windows, I see the dust cloud on our lane coming from Justin’s truck. To be honest, I’ve thought so much about this weekend, I’m about ready to jump out of my own skin.
My packed bags are waiting by the door, and I’m dressed in the same sundress I wore the night we went to the quarry.
“Where are you going?” Ricky asks when he enters the house and sees my bags.
Yeah, I didn’t tell him.
“I don’t know,” I say with a smile.
“You don’t know?”
Ricky turns to see Justin’s truck coming to a stop near the garages. “Wait. You’re going away with Justin?”
“Yes.”
“Does Mom know?”
“She does.”
“Dad?”
“I’d assume so.”
Ricky runs his hand over his hair. “How long will you be gone? Why do you have a suitcase?”
Walking to the door, I grab the handle of my suitcase, put my floppy hat on my head and grin. “I’ll see you Sunday.”
Pushing open the door, I see Justin’s panty-melting smile as he walks toward me.
After nearly a week of being apart with only seeing him briefly at the game, all six-feet-plus of him looking at me the way he is currently is a sight for sore eyes.
As stunningly handsome as ever, Justin’s stare intensifies, warming my skin more than the summer heat.
“Hi,” he says with a kiss.
Dropping the suitcase, I lift my arms to his shoulders, savoring the sensation of my body against his. This kiss is longer and deeper, twisting my core. My heart pounds against his chest. “Hi.”
“Are you ready for our adventure?”
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going?” I ask.
The screen door slams.
We both turn toward the house.
Ricky’s forehead is furrowed, and his hands are buried deep in his pockets.
“Hey,” Justin says.
“I saw you at breakfast.” Removing his hand, Ricky gestures about. “You never mentioned this.”
Justin smiles. “Was I supposed to ask Devan out or you?”
Ricky walks down the steps until he’s close. “Remember how pissed you were when you found out Kandace was pregnant?”
“Whoa,” I say, lifting my hand.
Ricky isn’t looking at me. He’s focused on Justin. “Don’t do that.”
Instead of getting upset, Justin looks at me and grins. “I guess it’s plan B.” He picks up my suitcase with one hand and takes my hand in his other.
“What is plan B?” Ricky calls after us.
I’m laughing as Justin helps me into his truck. Before shutting the door, he leans in and gives me a kiss. “You’re beautiful, and I’ve missed seeing and touching you all week.”
“You’re handsome, and I’ve missed you, too.” My eyebrows quirk. “What is plan B?”
“It’s taken me all week to work out plan A. I’m not turning back now.”
There’s something in his blue orbs that makes my stomach do flip-flops.
Once Justin is seated behind the steering wheel, I ask, “How long to our destination?”
“Less than an hour.”
“You decided on the Bloomington hotel?”
“No.” He laughs. “We’re headed southeast.”
I picture the state. “Are we going to Lexington?” That is out of state, but it’s southeast.
“Nope,” he says, backing his truck up and turning around.
Evansville is southwest.
Indianapolis is northeast.
St. Louis is west.
Before pulling out of our lane, Justin puts his truck in park. “Come closer.”
“I’m kind of stuck in my seat belt.”
He tilts his head. “Get unstuck. Come closer, and I’ll give you a hint.”
“My curiosity is piqued.” I unfasten my seat belt and lean over the console. “What is my hint?”
Cupping my cheek, Justin kisses me—full-out, panty-melting kiss, complete with tongue. Unlike either kiss at my house, this one continues, warming me from the inside and sparking nerves that only he has been able to ignite. A butterfly kiss and a lick of my lips.
“Did you just lick me?”
When Justin pulls back, he has a devilish grin. “Where are we going?” he asks.
“That was my hint?” My mind is too scrambled to make sense. “It was a kiss. It was a great kiss...”
He tilts his head toward my seat belt. “Buckle up, buttercup.”
I’m trying to put the clues together as I fasten my seat belt. And then it hits me.
Kiss with tongue.
French kiss.
A lick.
“We’re going to French Lick,” I squeal. “Oh my God, West Baden?”
Justin nods.
“I’ve never been there.”
He reaches over and takes my hand. “It will be a first for both of us.”