Once that was done - and the cup left conspicuously in the sink - I headed outside. The heat was like a wave, slamming into me as soon as I opened the front door. I honestly had no idea how Luke could deal with it, but from the clanking in the barn, he was. By the time I made it across the drive and into the shade again, I was already sweating!
Inside the barn, Luke wasn't alone. I heard Cy's voice talking in a low rumble, and when I rounded the corner, I found Luke with his shirt off. Cy's was damp and clinging to his chest. The pair of them were standing a little too close and Cy's hand was resting casually on Luke's back. Both men turned at the sound of my feet, and yes, they both smiled.
"Working hard or hardly working?" I asked.
"Rearranging for the new supplies Ash ordered," Luke explained, letting his eyes roam across me. "What made you leave the comforts of home?"
"Um..." I moved to a hay bale and sat. "We have a plan to help Faith. Bribery, if I'm honest, so I wanted to run it past you both."
"Ok?" Cy asked. "How do I fit into this?"
"Because I care what you think too," Luke told him.
"And because it means a dog." I chuckled. "We want a reward for her lasting a month. Well, until the custody hearing. If she can hold it together that long, we think she should get a puppy. Something from the pound, at any rate. It'll mean a little work, but if she sees us doing it, assuming she'll meet all the criteria, that will help. It will also give her a tangible goal to work toward, and a date she can count down to."
Luke nodded. "I figured this was a no pet household."
I shook my head. "No, it's just that Gran was allergic to pet dander, and I lived on the road. Hard to have a pet when you're in a different country every day."
"You?" Luke asked Cy.
He shrugged. "Kindle had a rat terrier. Loved that thing. Emilio wore sweaters."
I groaned. "That's about the most gay-man thing that's ever come out of your mouth, Cy."
"What? It was cute!"
"Farm dog," Luke said, sounding like he was deciding. "Something big enough the horses won't make it into a pancake, so no chihuahuas. Can't go too big, either. Pit bulls, mastiffs, Rottweilers will all cause problems with insurance and regulations. Something more like a lab or a border collie?"
"I could do both," I said. "We'll make her take it to puppy classes, Darnell said he'll help build a side yard for it, and so you know, it was Ash's idea."
Luke seemed a little surprised by that. "I figured he'd be the no dog hair type of man."
"No," I assured him. "Ash knows how to be pretty, but he also knows how to get dirty."
"You should talk to her about it," Luke told me, stepping away from Cy to come closer. "I think it's because she knows you were bullied too, but when you tell her something, she actually listens. I'm just her dad. You're her mentor, and I think that if you tell her she can earn a dog, then she'll believe it'll happen."
"You haven't let her down yet," Cy added.
"I feel like I am," I told them both. "I had lunch with her today. She asked what I was eating and I lied. When we were done, I had yogurt to make sure it wasn't completely untrue, but still. I feel like I should be helping her more, or be a better example, and I'm worried about what will happen when she realizes that I can't fix everything."
"But you can," Luke said, kneeling down before me. "You can also show her that even someone as perfect as you makes mistakes. I think you should tell her you lied because you were embarrassed, but you ate to make up for it. Show her that it's ok to fess up." And he caught my hand between his. "Faith doesn't need to think she's not good enough. She needs to see that even the best make mistakes and have problems."
"I don't want her to think that not eating is cool, though," I reminded him.
Luke just shrugged. "It's not. That's why she's worried about you. You're also showing her that some habits are very hard to break." His thumb played across the back of my hand. "How's she doing, though?"
"She's a tough little kid," I assured him. "The boys are probably realizing that she's kinda cute. The girls are seeing that she's not a pushover. At least, I hope that's how it's going. But she's bummed, not depressed. She even likes a few of her classes."
"My daughter's a nerd," Luke laughed. "No idea where she got that."
"Her father," Cy told him. "I have a feeling you didn't do too bad in school when you tried."
"That last bit is the kicker, though," Luke admitted. "Soon as I hit high school, all I thought about were sports and girls. That order, if I'm honest." Then he glanced back at Cy. "I just have one question."
"Shoot," Cy told him.
"Is Southwind being put on hold for all of this? Because that's what it feels like."
