“I’ll be ready. What do I wear or bring?”
He looked her over from head to toe and grinned.
“Wear what you have on and bring a hat if you have one. Otherwise you’ll just have to find shade. I’ll be back in twenty.”
She drank her coffee in record time, eating two pieces of toast with cheese. All she had time for when she heard the truck drive round to the back of the house. She dashed out before Kirk could get out and went around to climb into the passenger seat.
“That was fast,” he commented as he backed out to the road.
“You said twenty.”
“Some people take that to mean more or less—like a half hour more or less.”
She didn’t answer, but looked eagerly around as he drove. She loved the forested road embraced by trees as they drove through. When they suddenly were in an area of cleared farmland, she looked back. The line of trees marched left and right as far as she could see. And ahead, acres and acres of corn.
“That’s an abrupt change,” she said. “From forest to farmland.”
“Cleared several generations ago. It’s a constant chore, to keep the trees from encroaching.”
She saw the farmhouse and framed barn when they turned down a driveway. Cars and trucks were parked every which way in front of the house. There was one large oak tree sheltering the front yard.
“They kept one for shade,” she murmured, watching the activity in the yard.
Kirk drove around the side of the house. A long trestle table had been set up beneath some large umbrellas. A few bowls of food were sitting on the table beneath netting. Plenty of room ready for the rest of the food that was sure to come.
A group of men were talking, two already climbing ladders to start in on roofing.
“Come with me,” Kirk said when he parked.
He introduced her to Carrie Cooper, who with her husband Ben, owned the farm. He took off for the barn while Angelica stayed with Carrie. Her hostess introduced her to everyone as they arrived. By midmorning, there had to be more than fifty people around—men working on the barn, women fussing with food, children laughing as they raced around the yard.
Angelica felt a bit overwhelmed with all the names and faces and at one point stepped away from the crowd a little. She searched the men on the barn, finding Kirk with no trouble. He was on top of the roof, swinging his hammer with precision. She caught her breath for a moment, wondering what kept him anchored on the steep pitch. It looked as if he could slide off with no trouble.
Carrie joined her, looking in the same direction.
“We’re lucky to have him, you know,” she said.
“Oh?”
Angelica didn’t move her gaze. He looked amazing, all muscles and broad shoulders and tanned skin. She swallowed.
“He knows so much about construction. We’d have had to hire a contractor if Kirk didn’t donate his time and expertise. Our old barn burned, you know.”
Carrie studied Kirk for a moment.
“Actually, we’re all lucky he survived the mortar attack.”
“Where he lost his hearing?”
“Yes. And then I didn’t think he’d come back to Smoky Hollow. I mean, what is there here for a single guy? Not a lot of women, not a lot of business around, you know? Farming’s our biggest industry. His granddaddy farms, but Kirk never took to it like old man Devon wanted.”
“You’ve known him a long time,” Angelica said, looking at her hostess.
Here was someone who could tell her more about the man who so intrigued her.
“We went to school together. He was a grade ahead of me and one behind Ben. Wild and fun, that was Kirk.”
She smiled in remembrance.
