Jewel
Nothing had prepared Jewel for the parental scolding she’d just received from her mother. She and Cooper had been at the farm only three days, and already her mother was lecturing her on how to raise her own child. Although Jewel managed to bite her tongue while her mom told her to “just let Cooper be a child,” she was fuming as she stormed across the pumpkin patch. Not that it mattered since nothing had sprouted there yet. But she suspected her dad would want to tan her hide if he was watching. Not that he could catch her since he walked like an old man of about 104. Oh, why had she come here in the first place?
Wanting to get as far from the house as possible, she found herself walking the fence line and, not unlike her dad, she felt aggravated that the original farm property had been divided like this. What had her parents been thinking, selling it off so easily? Of course, it wasn’t really her business since she did recall denying any interest in farming. She’d laughed it off at the time. Now she had regrets. But it was too late and what was the use getting agitated over it? She kicked a dirt clod.
“Hello there.”
Jewel looked up to see Miguel approaching. Today he had on denim overalls, a faded gray T-shirt, and a beat-up cowboy hat.All he needed was a straw in his teeth and a pitchfork and he could pose for Grant Wood’sAmerican Gothic.
“Hey there,” she said back without enthusiasm.
“I could be wrong, but you look like you might be having a bad day.” Miguel came over to the barbed wire fence, leaned on a post, and studied her.
“As a matter of fact, I am.” She shoved her balled fists into her jeans pockets, suppressing the urge to growl.
“Trouble at home?”
“I guess it’s what you get with three generations under the same roof.” She peered curiously at him. “You wouldn’t know anything about that.” She frowned. “Being that your mother and daughter are perfect.”
Miguel threw back his head and laughed. “What on earth gave you that idea?”
“Well, you told me how wonderful Anna is, and I assume your mother is lovely too.”
“I love Mama and Anna, but just for the record, life isn’t always a bowl of cherries at my house.” He glanced over his shoulder. “I just got bawled out for getting Mama’s clean floor dirty. I didn’t bother to point out that it wasmyclean floor and I can get it dirty if I want.” He gave a crooked smile. “That would just be throwing gasoline on the fire.”
“Well, I guess I feel a tiny bit better.”
“And Anna was just nagging me to take her to town. My mother is busy in her garden, and Anna is determined she needs a new pair of shoes right now.” He put emphasis on the last two words. “When I refused to take her, she gave me the icy treatment.”
“Okay.” Jewel nodded. “I feel even better now.”
“Maybe you just need a break.” He bent down to lift one of the barbed wires higher. “Care to come over? Mama just made sweet tea.”
She glanced over her shoulder, doubting anyone would miss her. And if they did, it might be for the best. “Sure.” She ducked through the opening but caught her shirt on a barb.
“Here, let me help.” Miguel unhooked her, then gave her a hand to stand up straight. “Welcome to my farm.”
“This used to be my farm,” she said a bit sharply.
Miguel looked slightly offended.
“Sorry.” She forced a smile as they walked through an alfalfa field. “I guess my foul mood has affected my manners.”
“Well, I’m used to your dad going after me. Hope it’s not going to become a family thing.”
“Don’t worry. I had my chance to be a farmer years ago and I turned my nose up at it.”
He looked at her from the corner of his eye. “Having second thoughts?”
“I don’t know. I mean, sure. I guess. But not necessarily about farming.”
“What about, then?”
“About moving back home,” she confessed for the first time.
“That’s not surprising. It’s a big change for you. Going from city girl to country girl. That’s a lot.”
She nodded. “Yeah.” As they got closer to his house, she could see all the improvements he’d made to the property. “This is really pretty over here,” she said when they reached the shade of the poplar trees. “So green and cool.”
