Mia Ross - Rescued By The Farmer

“I got it, Mom,” Drew answered, opening the fridge to take out a humongous pitcher. “What would you say to some lemonade, Bekah?”

In reply, she held out an empty glass, and he laughed. “Yes, ma’am.”

While he filled it and added ice, it struck her that she’d actually done something he thought was funny. After spending months skulking from one town to the next, doing everything in her power to keep from drawing attention to herself, she was pleased to discover she hadn’t completely lost her sense of humor.

This bright, comfortable feeling might not last, she acknowledged, but for now it felt good. And that was enough for her.

* * *

In a stroke of rare genius, Drew took the end seat, leaving Bekah next to his bubbly sister-in-law. They talked easily enough, and his worry about her ebbed a bit. As a kindergarten teacher, Lily was used to dealing with all kinds of personalities in her students, and she was as accepting a person as he’d ever met. She’d have to be, he mused with a wry grin. Mike was a good guy, but he wasn’t exactly Mr. Congeniality.

“So, Drew, are we gonna see you here on the farm sometime today?” the ogre in question asked from the other end of the table.

Drew recognized that he’d been pushing it all morning, even though he believed he’d been doing something more important than whatever Mike had planned for him. But he didn’t want to start one of their notorious arguments in front of their skittish guest, so he brushed away his annoyance. “I got a few more things to finish at the clinic, but they can wait till tomorrow. So I’m all yours.”

“We’re almost done with the hay,” Josh informed him around a mouthful of salad. “Then we’ll be out fixing the line of fencing those crazy ponies took down during yesterday’s thunderstorm.”

“We should replace that wire with board fences,” Drew commented to no one in particular.

“If we could afford it, we would,” Mike reminded him with a scowl. “Since we can’t, we can’t.”

Bold, blatant logic, and an everyday fact of life at Gallimore Stables. Someday, Drew hoped they could manage the farm the right way, instead of barely holding things together with their bare hands.

When Dad had been alive and training racehorses, they’d never worried about money or how they were going to keep the place going. Now, it seemed like they never quit worrying about it. As much as he loved the farm, sometimes he got tired of the constant pressure they were all under to keep the numbers from sliding too far into the red.

Those were the times he couldn’t help wondering if there might be a better life for him somewhere else. Then his innate loyalty kicked in, and he plastered on a smile while he kept trudging along, waiting for things to improve enough for him to strike out on his own.

“Then I’ll meet you and Josh out in the back pasture,” he said matter-of-factly. Stringing a mile of fence was the last thing he wanted to do, but he was confident that his brothers weren’t thrilled about it, either. Since there was no point grumbling about what had to be done, he switched topics. “On the radio this morning, I heard Tennessee’s favored against Dallas this Sunday. I’m not sure about that one.”

“Dallas is using a backup quarterback who’s never started a pro game, so they might be right.”

The comment came from—of all people—Bekah. She sounded like she knew what she was talking about, and he eyed her with new respect. “You speak football?”

“I’m from Chicago,” she informed him with a smirk. “Speaking football is a requirement.”

“Is that right?” Fascinated, he folded his arms on the table and grinned at her. “Any thoughts on the San Fran game Monday night?”

“They’ll lose. They’re playing in Seattle, which has the loudest home fans in the country. Opponents can never hear a thing in that stadium, and the San Fran front line is full of rookies who won’t be able to communicate well enough to coordinate their moves. They don’t stand a chance.”

They kept chatting back and forth while they ate, and he was amazed by how much she knew about his favorite sport. At one point, he teased, “It’s too bad you weren’t a boy. You would’ve made a great quarterback.”

“Which Drew would know,” Maggie added, ruffling his hair in a proud mom gesture. “He was an All-State quarterback all four years in high school.”

“Really?” Bekah commented, lifting a curious eyebrow. “That’s impressive.”

Normally, he’d take that kind of praise and run with it, but today something stopped him. He didn’t want her to think he was conceited, so he deflected her comment with a grin. “I had a great offensive line, and my senior year we got some sure-handed receivers. Like Josh,” he added, nodding at his younger brother.

“Won the state championship that season,” Josh chimed in right on cue. “Drew was MVP.”

“Wow,” was all Bekah said, but he picked up on something in her eyes he hadn’t seen before. It reminded him of the way Lily had looked at Mike when they were first getting to know each other, a combination of interest and amusement. Even though he knew that kind of realization should make him nervous, Drew was surprised to find it didn’t.

In fact, it was doing the exact opposite. He knew next to nothing about Bekah Holloway or why she was affecting him this way. Then and there, he promised himself that somehow he’d solve that little mystery so it wouldn’t keep on bugging him.

And then, he’d put it past him, and his life would go back to the way it was before he met her. As someone who’d made a habit of effortlessly moving from one girl to the next, that very pragmatic strategy for handling her should have comforted him.

But it didn’t. And for the life of him, he didn’t know why.

His rambling thoughts were put on hold when his mother caught his eye and gave him a questioning look. He came back with a slight nod, and very casually she said, “Bekah, I think we need to figure out where you’re going to sleep tonight.”

“It’s warm enough,” she replied in a bright tone that sounded forced to him. “My car will work until I get my first paycheck.”

Lily frowned in disapproval, and she added a shake of her head for effect. “Not for me, it won’t. Abby?” The way his niece perked up, Drew guessed her stepmother had primed her for what was coming next. “How would you like to bunk with your dad and me for a few nights?”

“You mean, like camping? That sounds like fun.”

Oh, she was good, Drew thought, barely smothering a grin. He’d have to take her for ice cream later as a reward for being such a great sport.

“I can’t let you do that,” Bekah protested, obviously uncomfortable with the idea. “Abby needs her sleep for school tomorrow.”

“And you need yours for work,” Lily reminded her in the gentle but firm tone Drew had heard her use with the students in Gallimore’s riding school. “It’s only temporary, until you can find a place of your own.”

From the concern in Bekah’s eyes, Drew knew his suspicions about her dire financial straits had been spot-on. Even with the job at the clinic, she might not be able to afford rent, much less the repairs her car needed to be driveable. Tonight when he was done at the farm, he’d go back to the rescue center and pick up where he left off.

Bekah had endured enough temporary situations to last her a while. It was high time someone stepped up and gave her something she could count on.

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