“That’s alright. You know now. I’ll write down what kind of oil, coolant, hydraulic and transmission fluid you’ll need, as well as a schedule. See that you stick to it.”
“So, I don’t have to buy a new tractor?”
“No,” he drawls, amusement pulling at the corners of his mouth. “This girl’s old, but she’s still got plenty of life left in her. Just keep her tuned up and take her out now and then.”
“I can do that,” I reply. I feel like an idiot for even thinking I needed a new tractor.
“You’ve also got a clogged radiator,” he says, pointing to... what I’m gathering is the radiator. “All you’ve gotta do is clean it out with a leaf blower or some compressed air.”
See, these are the kinds of things I should do myself. This is what a farmer would do, and I live on a farm! It’s small, and I have no crops, but I have a barn and animals that depend on me.
I am Farmer Jonah.
We hop in the Yukon and head back to the house to grab a leaf blower and search the barn for coolant that we hope the last owners left behind. I park between the barn and garage when movement from the side yard catches my attention.
The curly red hair of Miss Loretta Wilde is unmistakable as she bounds past her mother’s garden, grinning a mile wide. For a second, I catch my breath because... is she going to say something to me? Hope builds in my heart like a volcano, ready to burst.
When she’s only a few feet away, I kneel, and she wraps me in a hug.
I did not start this, and I want that to go on my record.
“Hey Shortcake.”
The hope lava in my body retreats when she doesn’t reply. When she releases me, she puts two hands up, indicating for me to stay right where I am, and takes off for her house, dogs following. I stay kneeling with my hands in my lap like I have nothing better to do today.
Dad chuckles and stands next to me. “Glad to see you can still make friends out here in the country.”
Dad is busy searching the barn for what he needs when Lo comes back with the dogs. She’s brought an equally exuberant older sister, and their foxy mama trails behind them at a leisurely pace.
It’s Delta’s turn to hug me—again, I’m not initiating—but I do hug her back when their mother doesn’t seem off-put.
“What’s going on, ladies?”
“Can I have my birthday party here with all my friends?”
I rear back and stare at Renée. She finally stops in front of me. “What? Here?”
“Girls, you can’t ambush him like that.”
“You said—” Delta whines.
Renée cuts her daughter off. “I saidIwould talk to him.”
I stand up. “Of course she can have her party here.”
“Jonah, you don’t even know what you’re agreeing to.”
“Birthday cake,” I say, counting off on each finger as I go. “Pizza. Funny hats. Balloons. I know what I’m agreeing to.”
“I want to have a petting zoo,” Delta cheers.
“Do you want me to get more animals?”
“Yeah!”
“No,” her mother claps back. “She means she would like to know if she could invite her friends over to pet and play with your animals. We would host the party portion at our house. That is, of course, if you don’t have any plans that day. You’re also absolutely allowed to say no with no reason at all.” She says that last part looking down at Delta, herstare laced with unspoken words. Probably something like,Remember, we talked about this.
I open the calendar on my phone. “When’s the party?”
