I left him standing there and went to grab the water bottle.
“There’s a first aid box under the seat,” Cole told me.
Five minutes later, with his hand washed and bandaged, we were both staring at the half-finished trough. We couldn’t leave it like this. It was empty for a start and animals relied on it.
“I’ll call Zane,” Cole resigned, pulling his phone from his pocket.
“Wait!” I cut him off, putting my hand over his screen.
“What’s wrong?”
“I can do it,” I declared.
“Grace, it’s fine. I don’t expect you to …”
“I know you don’t. But if you can tell me what to do, I’ll do it.”
Cole didn’t look convinced, but I was stubborn. If I was going to be here, I wanted to contribute something more substantial than fetching a hammer and running away from the cows.
I watched as a wicked smirk crossed Cole’s face. I wanted to ask him what it was about but held back. “Okay then.”
I grabbed the wrench and kneeled beside the trough. I wasn’t as tall as Cole and it was awkward leaning over. My boob was squashed against the side of the trough, but I was doing this.
“First thing you need to do is loosen that nut,” Cole instructed.
It took forever.
They were so tight. My arms ached but I bit my tongue and kept my complaints to myself. Somehow, I did it.
I pushed to my feet, my knees feeling like Jell-O under me. When I wobbled, Cole grabbed my elbow, steadying me.
“You okay?”
“Yeah,” I answered vaguely, not really sure what that was.
“Come on, pretty girl. Let’s get you cleaned up and fed,” Cole suggested, and I snorted. “What’s so funny?”
“Look at me,” I told him as I spun in a slow circle. “I’m caked in cow shit, and you’re calling me pretty girl.”
“What can I say, I like you dirty,” Cole shrugged with a mischievous smile.
“You’re incorrigible!”
“You’re beautiful,” Cole reaffirmed as he prowled toward me.
I backed up.
We kept up our dance until my back pressed against the truck with Cole’s arms caging me in.
“Nowhere to run now, Grace.”
“Who said I was running?”
“You’re full of surprises, you know that?”
“How?” I asked. My whole life I’d been told that I was an open book.
“In a million years I would never have thought you’d have a smile on your face while you were doing farmer things,” Cole taunted.
