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“No, ma’am, he’s a really good man. I got lucky.”
“I know he is, baby girl, or you’d not be there with him.”
“Yeah.” I smile as he winks in my direction.
“When would you like us to bring her down?”
Dean smiles, still watching me. “You can bring her anytime. I need to go to Tractor Supply and get some feed for the horses; adding another bag won’t hurt anything.”
“Very well. I’m glad you agreed…”
I listen to the sudden background noises. “You’re already on the way here, aren’t you?”
Dean barks out a laugh as she agrees. “Your mother didn’t tell me you didn’t know,” Dad calls out.
“Mama, really?”
“I knew you would say yes, give your old mama some credit.”
She has a point.
“We can stop and pick up something for dinner, if you’d like?”
Dean nods, so I respond, “Sure, Mama, whatever you and Dad want. We aren’t picky. We’re out in the barn anyway. Watch for Stanley when you pull in. Just circle around to the back barn.”
“Why is that precious boy out in this heat?” She sounds offended on his behalf.
“He’s in time-out for trying to kill me earlier,” Dean calls out, his grimace a real one.
I, being the loving, caring girlfriend, cannot help but burst out laughing. The moment Stanley slid into the kitchen, losing his grip on the tile floor, replayed in my head. If Dean hadn’t been braced against the counter, washing dishes, he would have been wiped out. As it was, Stanley had slid into him, reached out, gripping Dean’s cargo pants. The claw marks on his calves would heal soon enough. Thankfully. It could have been a lot worse. My big boy has needle-sharp claws.
“Oh dear,” Mama huffs out a laugh. “You sure have it out for that poor cat.”
“Mama, he’s got a valid reason; Stanley tore his legs up earlier. It was an accident, but it still hurt.”
Dean shakes his head. “Did you tell them about your—” He lowers his voice as he speaks and waves a hand at the side of his face.
I snort. “Yes, they know I tried to brain myself while escaping the three blind mice. You won’t get blamed for it.”
He looks relieved. If there is one thing he knows for certain, my dad is not a man to play ‘fuck around and find out’ with. He’s always armed. Has a license to carry and does not for one second play with people.
I end the call with the promise of food on its way and go back to work. I am a sweaty mess by the time they get here. The rattling of the trailer behind them makes me smile. What I hadn’t expected was my uncle to be following them in his truck.
I give out big hugs, going limp against my dad’s big chest. He really does give the best freaking hugs in this world.
“Uncle Jake, I didn’t know you were coming.” I hug him, groaning when he squeezes hard enough to crack my back.
“Well, he’s here because we needed his help.” My mama wraps an arm around me and makes sure she is looking between Dean and me as she speaks.
“Your dad, uncle, and I are so proud of you both. You have full time jobs and are getting ready to take on another. I know you want to eventually leave the library and just do farming.”
“Not anytime soon. We’ve only started talking about it.” I hurry to cut in before she gets going.
“I’ve told her many times over the last few weeks, if that is what she really wants, I’ll support her. I make enough money to pay for what we need,” Dean says, smiling down at me.
My heart melts a little at that.
“Well, my boy, her mama and I have been waiting for this day. You can take a girl off the farm, but you can’t take the farm out of the girl.”
