The only thing I can do is throw my arms around his shoulders to give him a hard hug of acceptance. I bite down into my lips so I don’t start crying.
Jake’s arms come around me, and he gives me a squeeze in return before releasing me.
We continue our walk toward the barn, Jake lapsing back into questions about the orchard.
As we approach, Linnie and Laken come walking out of the goat pasture. Laken holds the gate open far enough for little MG to slip through and she runs up to Jake, her tail wagging a hundred miles an hour.
I don’t think I’ve ever been as charmed as I was to learn this sweet little goat bonded with Jake shortly after she was born. For weeks, she refused to drink from her mother or from anyone else other than Jake. It’s one of the things that precipitated him spending more time here, which in turn led to him getting to know Laken better.
Therefore, Miss Goatikins is directly responsible for bringing Jake and Laken together. While the little kid has grown up some and is asserting more independence, she still goes crazy anytime she sees Jake. He leans down when she puts her front hooves up on his knee and picks her up. He holds her with one arm supporting underneath her belly, his hand spread wide across her chest. He tucks her in close to his side. Her little tail is visible underneath his armpit, and it’s still wagging mercilessly as she butts her head against his jaw.
Cutest damn thing I’ve ever seen.
“Mom,” Linnie says excitedly with a tiny push of her glasses up her nose. “Laken actually let me do some of the trimming.”
I blink at Linnie in surprise, turning to Laken with a cocked eyebrow.
Laken shrugs. “What can I say? Your kid is a natural when it comes to caring for the goats. I’m glad you decided to keep them.”
I bring my gaze back to Linnie with a soft smile, chuck her under the chin, and tell her, “I’m proud of you, baby. And I’m really glad you’re taking to the goats.”
“I don’t know about you ladies, but I am starting to get really hungry,” Jake says as he scratches MG’s head. “I was thinking about riding over to Milner and picking up some pizza for us. How does that sound?”
The sun is starting to drop fast, and we have spent most of the day outside. We had some bologna sandwiches for lunch, but I could definitely be down with some pizza tonight. “Sounds good to me.”
“Me too,” Laken adds on. “Want me to ride with you, babe?”
Jake shakes his head and grins at Linnie. “Want to go with me, kiddo? You haven’t hung out with your Uncle Jake in a while.”
She rolls her eyes. “I just spent last night with you and Laken when Mom went out to dinner with Colt.”
Jake shakes his head and gives her a stern look. “No, you pretty much spent the entire evening hanging out with Laken. In fact, you both ignored me. So how about riding with me to Milner to go pick up the pizza?”
Linnie gives a dramatic eye roll with a long-suffering sigh. “Fine. I’ll go with you.”
Chuckling, Jake turns to Laken and unloads the tiny goat into her arms. He leans over and gives her a hard peck on her cheek and a swat on her butt. “We’ll be back soon.”
Laken walks back to the pasture and opens the fence to set MG inside. As she comes out, she gives me a pointed look. “I could use a beer. How about you?”
Within moments, we are inside. After we wash our hands and pull cold bottles of beer from the refrigerator, we head back out to the porch and sit on the top step while we wait for Jake and Linnie to return with the pizza. It’s starting to get chilly, but I’m still warm from the long hike we had out to the orchard and back.
We’re both silent as we sip on our beer and stare out at the goat pasture. That doesn’t last long, though, because Laken breaks the silence by asking, “So, how was your date last night?”
I twist my neck to look at her. It’s uncanny how much all the Mancinkus kids look like each other with their dark hair and beautiful hazel eyes. Turning to gaze back out over the goat pasture, I say, “It was really nice.”
“Oh, hell no,” she exclaims and gives me a tiny punch to my arm. “I need more details.”
Chuckling and rubbing my arm, I admit, “Your brother is really great. I like him a lot, and I feel terrible I like him so much.”
Laken pulls back from me in surprise. “Why would you say that?”
I take a slug of my beer and wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “Because I’m not even divorced yet. I just got out of a terrible marriage. The last thing in the world I should be doing is getting involved with a man. I don’t even think I’m being fair to Colt.”
“Colt is a grown man. He doesn’t seem to have any problems with your situation.”
I give Laken an exasperated look. “I know he doesn’t. But I do. It doesn’t seem, well… seemly. I mean, what must Linnie be thinking that I’ve gone out on a date with a man only three months after separating from her father?”
“Well, what does Linnie think about it? She didn’t say anything to Jake and me last night, but she was not bent out of shape at all.”
“She seems fine with it,” I say softly, stubbornly refusing to accept the fact Laken just removed that worry. “But well, what will everyone else think?”
Laken chuckles, and then gives me a friendly nudge with her shoulder. “I can tell you the Mancinkus clan likes it a lot. We all adore you and Linnie, and Colt clearly likes you. Quit thinking about things so much and just go with the flow.”
“Go with the flow? That’s your advice?”
Laken turns slightly so her knees bump into mine and she can look me in the eye. “Darby, I am quite confident you would not intentionally hurt my brother. I think you’re sweet and funny and kind and brilliant. I also think you are perfect for someone like Colt and he’s perfect for someone like you. Take your time with it if you want. Stick to a friendship if it makes you feel better. But don’t get scared and do nothing. You’ve got a fantastic opportunity in front of you, and I’m not saying that just because I think my brother is the cat’s meow.”
I can’t help but laugh over her declaration, and I am completely overwhelmed by the relief I feel by getting this validation from Laken.
More than anything, I am glad to hear her say the things she did, because no matter how weird it may seem given I’ve only been separated for three months, I really want to see where this goes.
CHAPTER 16
Colt
It’s practically a zoo when I pull up to Farrington Farms Monday afternoon. I knew Darby would be elbow deep in the planting of the peach trees. All the holes had been dug in the prior days with a large auger, and she had tractor-trailers bringing in ten-acres worth of two-year-old nursery-raised peach trees today. There was a good chance I would be doing nothing more than getting in her hair with my visit.
Didn’t stop me, though.
The pasture on the opposite side of the gravel driveway that leads up to the main house is filled with several vehicles, mostly trucks. I assume those are the temporary workers Darby hired. There is a large flatbed tractor-trailer taking up the entire eastbound lane of the highway that runs perpendicular to the farm road. It’s completely empty. The workers look to be transferring the last load of trees onto a tractor with a flatbed cart attached to it, which will then transport the trees out to the orchard.
I see Darby immediately, looking as fetching as ever. She’s got on a heavy flannel shirt, jeans, and work boots. She’s got her strawberry-blonde hair in a ponytail with a baseball cap on her head. Pointing to some of the workers, she seems to be giving them instructions regarding the trees.
I’m not sure what it is about a woman in charge and running her own farm that makes her singularly attractive to me, but Darby McCulhane pushes every one of my buttons. I grab the bunch of wildflowers off the passenger seat of my truck and hop out. Making my way toward her, I watch as she effortlessly directs people to do different things. When I get just a few feet from her, it’s as if she can sense my presence, and she turns
toward me with a smile already in place.
Her eyes cut to the flowers in my hand and then back to my face.
“What are you doing here?” she chirps as she walks my way, that ponytail bouncing back and forth because of the pep in her step.
“Well, seeing as how my entire vineyard has been planted and there’s nothing left to do but some minor irrigation modifications, I thought I would come hang out with you this afternoon and watch how a peach orchard gets started.” I hold the flowers out to her, and she takes them. “And here are some wildflowers I stopped to pick from the side of the road.”
It’s so cute when Darby lifts the loose bouquet to her nose and breathes them in deeply. I don’t think they smell all that spectacular, but they were so pretty on the side of the road I couldn’t resist. She gives a dreamy sigh and opens her eyes to stare at me. “Now that’s romantic.”
I give a careless shrug as if I do romantic stuff all the time. I don’t, but I think I will be starting based on her reaction. “So how’s it going today?”
She jerks her chin over her shoulder toward the tractor-trailer. “That’s the last load. All the trees have been laid out near the holes, and the crew will come back tomorrow morning to start the planting.”
My eyes cut out to the highway before coming back to Darby. “Is Linnie home from school yet?”
Darby shakes her head and glances down at her watch. “Not yet but she should be soon.”
I reach out and take Darby’s free hand. She blinks in surprise but doesn’t hesitate in giving it to me. I give her a devilish smile and say, “Before she gets here, I wanted to see if I could secure another date with you. Didn’t get much of a chance yesterday during all that cake making you were doing and dinner with Larkin and Linnie watching.”
Darby laughs. “What did you have in mind?”
“I thought I would take you and Linnie to the North Carolina State fair in Raleigh this weekend,” I tell her.
Darby’s mouth falls slightly open for a moment. She shakes her head and gives me a wry smile. “Thought you were asking me out on a date?”
“Then let me clarify. This is sort of a date with you and your daughter. I remember you telling me at dinner the other night that you hated amusement park rides while I, on the other hand, love them. I also know your little girl is a daredevil so I would like to bring her with us so she can ride all the rides with me. But I promise I’ll win you a big stuffed animal. I’m actually really good with the balloons and darts.”
Darby laughs and shakes her head with amusement. “You are just too much, Colt Mancinkus. How could a woman ever say no to that offer?”
My heart leaps, and I’m filled with giddiness at the thought of spending a full day with Darby. Even with her daughter along, I know I’m going to have an awesome time. How could I not when both Darby and Linnie are simply two awesome people?
I pull her hand up to my mouth and give it a kiss just the way I did when I walked her to her door after our first date. Walking backward toward my truck, I say, “I’ll pick both of you up Saturday morning about nine.”
She grins back at me. “I can’t wait.”
At that moment, the grinding gears and squeaky brakes of a school bus have both Darby and me turning to look toward the highway. It’s almost like deja vu as Linnie gets off the bus and trudges up the lane toward us with her head lowered, staring at the ground. I can tell by the hunch to her shoulders that she didn’t have a particularly good day.
I’m not sure whether Linnie sees us, but she tries to walk by without even raising her head.
Darby takes a step toward her and calls, “Hey Linnie… How was school today?”
Linnie mutters what I think was the word “good” but doesn’t look up and continues to walk by us.
Darby moves fast. She jogs just a couple of paces and takes Linnie’s arm in her hand, gently turning her around. Linnie still won’t look up, so Darby puts her fingers under her daughter’s chin to lift her face.
Darby gasps just as my blood heats to boiling as we both take in the dark purple bruising underneath Linnie’s right eye.
“Oh my God,” Darby exclaims. She drops to her knees, which I know had to have hurt given that the lane is made of gravel. When she cups Linnie’s face in her hands, she turns her from side to side so she can examine her. “What happened to you?”
I walk up to stand behind Darby, looking down at a little girl sporting a shiner I can tell will probably only be worse come tomorrow.
Linnie’s blue eyes fill with tears, and she gives a tiny push of her glasses up her nose. “I got in a fight.”
“A fight?” Darby asks softly, her tone attempting to coax the necessary information from her daughter.
Linnie pushes her glasses up again as she mutters, “I got in the way of Caleb’s fist.”
“That boy you said was bullying you?” Darby snarls in outrage.
I can feel my blood pressure start to rise as I think about that little brat punching Linnie. He’s way bigger than she is, and boys don’t punch girls.
“If you ladies will excuse me,” I grit through my teeth. I turn on my heel and start toward my truck. “I’m going to handle this.”
“Colt,” Darby cries out in worry. I stop and turn to look at her. “Are you going over to that kid’s house or something?”
“You’re darn right I am,” I tell her. My blood continues to boil at a nuclear level. “I’ll be back in a little bit.”
“But you can’t,” Darby says, but she doesn’t sound quite so sure I can’t really do this. “I mean… this is my responsibility.”
I sweep my hand toward my truck. “Would you like to go with me?”
“Mom… please don’t,” Linnie says as she takes her mom’s hand. “I really don’t feel good, and I just want to go inside.”
And just like that, I’m forgotten, as is Caleb Rochelle. Darby bends down and scoops Linnie up. Little arms go around Darby’s neck and her legs wrap around her mom’s waist. She lays her head on Darby’s shoulder. I didn’t think it was possible for me to get more mad, but the little sob that comes out of Linnie’s mouth has me stomping toward my truck with purpose.
It only takes me about fifteen minutes to drive back to Whynot, through town past Jason’s gas station where Caleb’s mom Missy works part time. Her car is parked on the side of the building, but I hit the gas. She’s not the one I want to talk to anyway. I keep going for another five miles before I turn left onto a dirt road with a sign out front proclaiming it to be Goddard Farms. Last I heard, Jimmy Rochelle was working here. If he’s not, I’ll try his house next, which is only about another mile down the road.
Goddard Farms is one of the few still left in our area that hasn’t leased out any of their land to bigger companies. I’m not sure how they’ve maintained, but I think it has something to do with the fact they are a small farm and can work it with minimal help. This keeps their overhead down and probably lets them turn a decent profit on the soybeans and field corn they mainly grow.
There’s not a typical barn so to speak but rather Mr. Goddard keeps all of his equipment under a massive freestanding structure made of aluminum with no walls. It’s basically to keep the rain off. I see Jimmy’s little blue Toyota truck with the muffler hanging down parked there. I pull in right behind it and shut off my engine.
Just as I’m slamming my truck door shut, Mr. Goddard himself walks out from behind an old John Deere tractor wiping his hands off with a grease rag. His face lights up when he sees me, and he calls out, “What can I do you for, Colt?”
I give him as pleasant a smile as I can muster, but I can tell by the look on his face he knows I’m not a happy camper. “Is Jimmy Rochelle around?”
“Why?” he asks suspiciously. “You plan on kicking his butt or killing him on my property?”
I give a shake of my head. “No, sir. But I do need to have some words with him.”
Mr. Goddard jerks his thumb over his shoulder to a small work shed with the
doors propped open. “He’s in there cleaning some tools.”
I turn to walk that way, but Mr. Goddard calls out to me again, “How’s Pap doing? I haven’t had a chance to see him since his surgery.”
I take in a breath and let it out slowly, forcing myself to put on a pleasant smile as I face Mr. Goddard. He’s a nice old man and he’s worried about Pap, so I can take a few minutes to assure him. “He’s doing really good. Bounced back from that surgery better than any one of us kids ever would have. You should go down and have a drink with him.”
Mr. Goddard shakes his head. “Had to give that stuff up. My liver’s been acting up.”
I give him a nod of understanding, but I think more than anything Mrs. Goddard has probably put her foot down and said no more late nights at Chesty’s.
I wave to Mr. Goddard and take off toward the work shed.
When I step in, I’m relieved to know there’s no one else in there but Jimmy. He turns to look at me, a smile starting to bloom on his face, but it doesn’t go anywhere when he sees the thunderous look on mine. His lips press into a grim expression. “Colt.”
“You son punched a little girl in the eye today at school,” I growl.
Because Jimmy is a bully himself and I have long suspected he probably knocks Missy around, I’m not surprised when I don’t get any reaction from him. Granted, he doesn’t look happy his son was beating up on a little girl, but he doesn’t look put out of place either. He doesn’t say anything, and that infuriates me.
“I want to know what you’re going to do about it?” I ask him pointedly.
“Ain’t going to do a damn thing,” Jimmy says as he turns his back on me.
Yeah, that’s not going to work. My hand claps down on his shoulder, and I turn him back forcefully to look at me.
“Try again,” I instruct him. “Assure me what you’re going to do to make sure your bully of a son doesn’t hit that little girl again.”
Jimmy puffs his chest out and lifts his chin. I’ve got about six inches of height on him, so this is a little comical.
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