Mia Ross - Rescued By The Farmer

“I hope so. Seeing as I don’t have much choice but to keep going forward.”

She wasn’t usually so honest with someone she barely knew, and she held her breath waiting for him to ask her to clarify what on earth she was talking about. Instead, he gave her an encouraging smile that warmed her all over.

“That’s a great way to look at it,” he said. “I think that’s a good strategy for all of us.”

Did he really? she wondered, or was he just being nice? As he got back to work in the stalls, she pondered their brief discussion in an attempt to sort through her conflicting feelings about him. She’d grown so accustomed to guys who said what they thought she wanted to hear, she was constantly on her guard around them. Because of that, she wasn’t sure how to read Drew’s wide-open, friendly personality.

Could it be that by some crazy stroke of fortune, she’d stumbled across a truly honest, straightforward man who said what he meant and meant what he said? Stranger things had happened, she supposed. She just couldn’t recall the last time they’d happened to her.

While she was lost in her brooding, the end door swung open, and Sierra came through lugging two old-fashioned milk bottle carriers filled with what looked like large plastic baby bottles topped with oversize nipples. The residents of the baby section went bananas, bleating and calling for their breakfast while Drew hurried forward to lend a hand.

“Those look kinda heavy,” he said as he took them from her.

“They are,” she acknowledged, a bit breathless. “Thanks for the help.”

“Well, you know how that works.”

Narrowing her eyes, she nailed him with a suspicious glare. “I’m not doing your laundry like I had to when my poor Angels lost the World Series to Cincinnati.”

“Nah, nothin’ like that,” he assured her smoothly, setting the formula down on a nearby hay bale.

“Then what?”

“We’ll talk about it later,” he said with a wink. “Who gets fed first?”

“I think he does,” Bekah replied, laughing as the determined pygmy goat climbed on his buddy’s back trying to get at the bottles.

“You can start with him,” Sierra agreed.

When her meaning sank in, Bekah shook her head. “You mean, you want me to do it?”

“Sure. They know how to eat, so you just hold the bottle up for them and wait till they’re done.” Bleating up a storm, the little goat was butting his head against the wall, and she laughed. “Here, let me show you.”

She climbed into the pen and lifted him out. Grabbing a bottle, she set him on his feet and sat down on the sawdust-covered dirt floor beside him. Eager for his breakfast, he latched on to the nipple and sucked down the formula like it was his last meal.

“Wow, he’s really going to town,” Bekah commented, patting his wiry brindle coat while he ate. “Are they all this easy?”

“The trick is to keep them from running over each other or you. They’re not starving or anything, but babies don’t like to wait in line, do they?” Sierra cooed, tapping him on his forehead while he gazed up at her with adoring eyes. Right then and there, Bekah decided she wanted to experience that kind of heroine worship for herself.

Hoping to make a good impression on her prospective new boss, without being told, she clambered into the pen the way Sierra had and cradled another goat in her arms. Drew held out his hands, and while she appreciated his gesture, she firmly shook her head. “I’ve got it.”

“They squirm a lot, y’know,” he cautioned her.

“That’s okay. I’m stronger than I look.”

Approval flashed across Sierra’s face, and she met Bekah’s eyes with a quick nod. Feeling as though she’d made some progress, Bekah carefully brought out the hornless goat and set her down, settling beside her the way Sierra had done. Really, all she had to do was hold up the bottle, and the little goat did the rest.

Apparently satisfied, Sierra stood and brushed off her jeans with her hands. “Well, it looks like you’re good to go. I’ll have a chat with Drew and come back in a few. Just remember—one at a time. Otherwise, they’ll stampede all over the place, and we’ll have a horrible time catching them.”

Bekah noticed the woman had implied that if she made a mistake, Sierra would help her corral the escapees. Used to fending for herself, she found it comforting to know someone would have her back if she needed them.

Rubbing the back of the slurping goat, she replied, “Oh, we’ll be fine, won’t we, little one?”

“Keep telling yourself that, and it’ll be true,” Drew told her with a smile. “I’ve gotta get going. Thanks to Rosie, I’m later for work than usual.”

“I don’t know the first thing about horses,” she confided. “It must be a fun job.”

“Some days yes, some days no. Today we’ve gotta move a dozen or so of our boarders so we can do some maintenance in their barn.”

“That sounds dangerous.”

“Nah. We’ve got a real steady Belgian draft horse named Gideon who’s seen it all, so he never gets rattled by anything, no matter how bad the others think it is. My brother Mike just marches him out first, and the rest of them trail after him like puppies.”

She couldn’t help laughing at the picture he painted. “Those are some seriously large puppies.”

“Most of ’em aren’t a problem when you know how to handle ’em. Mike’s some kind of horse whisperer, so the rest of us just follow his lead.”

Although his delivery was upbeat, she picked up on something below the surface that didn’t sound right to her. Inspiration struck, and she asked, “Do you ever get to be in charge when it comes to the horses?”

He looked surprised, then shook his head with a grin. “Man, you’ve got me pegged. The horses are his territory, and I’m more like a foot soldier.”

“What about the rescue center? You seem to know where everything is, so I’m guessing you put in a lot of time over here.”

“I like animals in general,” he said, scratching the head of a nosy miniature alpaca, “so I enjoy working here when I have the time. But Sierra’s in charge.”

“If you could be your own boss, what kind of business would you have?”

“Something outside,” he replied immediately, as if he’d thought about it often enough that the answer came easily to him. “Maybe a wilderness guide out west or something. I visited Mike in New Mexico once, and I couldn’t believe how incredible the desert and the mountains are. Totally different from what I’m used to, but really beautiful.”

His tone had shifted ever so slightly, the gold in his eyes warming as he stared down at her. At first, Bekah couldn’t define what had changed, then she replayed his words in her mind and wondered if he was referring to something other than the Western scenery.

“Anyway,” he went on as if nothing unusual had happened, “Sierra usually comes down to the house for lunch around noon. You’re welcome to join us if you want, meet the rest of our nutty crew.”

Out of necessity, she’d learned not to depend on anyone for anything. But he’d been so kind to her, she decided it was okay to bend that rule just this one time. “Thanks. That sounds good.”

“I’ll see you then.”

Giving her another encouraging smile, he followed Sierra from the shed, leaving Bekah in charge of feeding the babies. Glancing around, she counted heads and came up with twelve. Two down, ten to go. Surrounded by endless noise and questionable smells, she knew that some people might consider this the worst job in the world.

But to Bekah, this little barn tucked into the backwoods of Kentucky was like paradise, protected from the outside world and bursting with promising new lives. She couldn’t imagine any place she’d rather be.