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“Maybe this’ll be Jane’s farm.”
Hunter laughed, as did Mike and Tucker, so they all knew it wouldn’t be Jane’s farm. No, if she and Cord bought a farm, it would be Cord’s farm.
“We’re already twenty minutes north of here,” Cord said. “At the shop. Sounds like it wouldn’t be a bad commute from the farm to the shop, at least.”
“Something to look into,” Hunter said.
“I’m going to ask him about it too,” Mike said. “For Opal.”
“Opal?” Hunter, Cord, and Tuck asked at the same time. Hunter chuckled again. “That’s even more surprising than Jane, Mikey.”
“She’s looking for somewhere,” he said. “And if she and Tag….” He didn’t finish, but Tag was a cowboy through and through, and perhaps he wanted his own farm too.
Hunter got off the chair, the streamers done. “All right,” he said. “Let’s go see what else my wife needs done.”
More people had arrived while he’d been out front hanging streamers, and the farmhouse held light, warmth, and chatter as he walked down the hallway to the overly large great room in the back. It housed the kitchen, dining area, and living room—and now at least twenty people. With more coming.
Hunter loved entertaining friends and family, so it didn’t bother him one bit to find Tarr standing with Bobbie Jo and Hattie, and Boone laughing loudly with his brother, and Cord joining Mission and Gerty over by the sidebar.
Ryder had come in, and he loitered in the living room with Matt’s and Boone’s teens. The doorbell rang, and both him and Lisa shouted, “I’ll get it!”
So it would be their friends. Hunter let them battle it out as they ran for the door, and instead, he took a folding chair over by the back door. This way, he could see whoever entered from the front door or the back, and he grinned at Ryder’s friends as they came into the great room.
Tag and Opal arrived next, and she stopped just inside the room and scanned left and right. She held Tag’s hand, and he seemed like he’d been hit with a wall of icy water too. They sure looked good together, and about then, Molly held up both hands and yelled for everyone to quiet down.
Opal quickly moved over to the island and put down the brown grocery sack. She extracted bottles of caramel and chocolate topping while everyone quieted. Then she fell back to Tag’s side, and he pressed a kiss to her cheek.
Cute. They obviously liked one another, and they’d been dating for about a month is all.
“All right,” Molly called into the house. “It’s a taco bar and an ice cream sundae bar. We have plenty of chairs and seats for everyone, and we’re going to eat first, and then we’ve got some games in the basement. The pool table is down there too, and Lisa—” She cut off as the doorbell rang again.
Lisa squawked and headed that way. Molly continued as if she hadn’t been interrupted. “Lisa has a balloon to pop every hour, on the hour, and we’ll do whatever activity is written on the slip of paper inside.”
“Can I pop the balloons, Mama?” Clay asked.
She bent down and picked him up, and Hunter’s heart swelled with love at the sight of his wife holding their six-year-old. “Lisa is in charge of the balloons, buddy.” She looked around, her soft gaze sharpening. “That goes for everyone. Ryder? Mason? Lisa gets to decide who pops the balloons every hour.”
“Yeah, sure, Mama,” Ryder said, but the boy did need to be told, and Hunter would not be surprised at all if he had to get after his son later that evening for tormenting his sister.
“Come and go,” Molly said. “We’re going to have a prayer first, and I’ve asked my husband to say it.”
She hadn’t, but Hunter got to his feet anyway. He grinned at everyone as he moved to Molly’s side and took Clay from her. “Welcome, everyone,” he said just as Britt and Lars slipped into the room. Britt brightened when she saw Opal, and she hugged her tightly.
“Thanks so much for coming to celebrate the New Year with us.” He glanced to the back door as it opened and Travis walked in with Poppy and their two kids. Steele had left the Hammond Family Farm, and he worked at Gerty’s place now. Hunter hadn’t heard anything negative, and he hoped the young man was doing okay there.
“Hunter,” Molly prompted.
“Right.” He shifted Clay in his arms. “I’ll say grace, and then the fun can begin.” He met Tucker’s eyes, noting that he stood clear across the room with Mike, Mission, and Cord instead of over by Tarr and the girls.
His heart hurt for his brother, and he said a silent prayer as he bowed his head and then started to pray vocally.
sixteen
Opal set West in his highchair and strapped him in before sliding the tray into place. The little boy immediately started slapping it with his palms and yelling something in Baby only he understood.
“I’m getting it,” she told him as she turned back to the kitchen to get his lunch. He’d be one year old soon, and Opal often fed him some of whatever she was eating, but he needed far more fruits and vegetables than what Opal had in her diet.
“You’ll be a one-year-old soon,” she told him as she picked up the mixture of sweet potatoes and creamy peanut butter. She spread a little on a half a wheat cracker and put it on his tray. West drooled as he went after it, and he got it in his fingers easily enough.
