“With Sara at my side, we will complete it promptly.”
“Thanks.” Scott forced a smile. “Let me show you what I was thinking...”
I stayed where I was, enjoying the faint murmur of the river behind me. I didn’t have to hear Scott’s instructions. Grant would get them right, and I would just be in the way.
When the guys wandered back into hearing range again, Scott sounded more hopeful. “I think you’ve got this.”
“I’m confident that when you return, all will be as you wish.”
Scott turned to me. “I’ll be back around lunch time. Will you be fine?”
“Yes. I have work gloves, and I’m coated with bug spray and sun screen.”
He laughed. “Do you mind taking orders from Grant?”
I hadn’t considered that part. “No problem.” Probably.
“Okay, then. See you.” Scott hurried down the track, the crunch of his boots merging with the noises of the forest.
I faced Grant with my best imitation of a “you’re in charge” expression. “So what’re we doing?”
“This area will become a new lawn of sorts. We will start today by eliminating the weeds and saplings.”
“General cleanup?”
“Precisely. Left alone, I could complete the assignment in an hour or less, but the owners appear to be annoyingly curious, so I shall proceed at the pace of an advanced human.”
“The task doesn’t seem very hard.”
“It is an appropriate project for laborers with our presumed skill level. Scott is wisely assessing our abilities before assigning us to more visible areas.”
“Diplomatically said. Will the new lawn be flat?”
“In sustainable landscaping, it is best to avoid re-contouring land. Scott and I agree that leveling the ground can be kept to a minimum. I shall also chop down some of the smaller trees along the perimeter. Scott will upgrade those spots to natural areas, but that feature isn’t required for August first.”
I didn’t argue over my lack of real contribution when it came to chopping down the trees. Grant felled them more quickly with an axe than humans could with a chainsaw. But when he assigned me dinky tasks around the clearing, I was ready to fight.
“No,” I said, hands on hips. “I really want to help.”
“I can proceed more effectively without your ‘help.’”
“Scott expects this to take us most of the day. It might be good to have me slow you down.”
“The project will indeed slow down if I have to follow behind you, repairing what you do.”
“Perfect. There’s a way we can both win.”
Grant stopped himself, just barely, from rolling his eyes, and offered me a small section to clear of debris, although he couldn’t resist checking on my progress a couple of times. We took a break, intentionally not completing things in anticipation of Scott’s return.
As the sun climbed, I got sweaty in a way I couldn’t remember happening in a long time. Pants and shirt, dripping wet. Hair sticking uncomfortably to my neck. I hadn’t brought a hair tie with me. In front of me, a long orange ribbon dangled from a tree—signifying I didn’t know what. So I ripped off about half of it and tied my hair into a messy knot on top of my head.
“Sara, freeze.”
I did as Grant commanded, not moving, arms still raised. “Why?”Please don’t say snake.
He wove through the trees to my side. “You’ve positioned yourself in the midst of a patch of poison ivy.”
I relaxed and dropped my arms. “I’m pretty well covered.”
