A Rancher for their Mom. Leann Harris

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      “Mr. Joel.”

      Joel’s heart melted at the munchkin’s twinkling eyes. When he looked up, a frown wrinkled April’s brow. Was her expression from him holding Cora or the advice he’d given?

      “Sunflowers are a good cash crop. Several of the farms and ranches around my family’s ranch started growing them. The crop requires little work and when harvested, there are multiple places to sell them.”

      The clerk’s stare bored into Joel.

      “I’m Joel Kaye.” He stuck out his hand.

      “He’s with the rodeo, Mr. Sully,” Todd helpfully announced. “He knows how to throw a lariat and has a birthday in March and is a cowboy.”

      Sully shook Joel’s hand.

      “Jack sent me here for the feed he ordered.”

      The man’s attitude changed. “It’s ready, but let me finish with Mrs. Landers first.”

      “That’s okay, Sully. I need to think about your suggestions on what to plant.”

      Sully nodded. “Drive around back and we’ll load the order.” He disappeared into the back.

      “I didn’t mean to butt in.” Joel stepped closer to the counter. April’s hair fell around her face, tempting him to reach out and touch the shiny rich brown strands.

      “No, I appreciate it. I’ve been wondering what to do with the fields my father-in-law normally cultivated. Sunflowers. I hadn’t thought of that.”

      “I wouldn’t have, either, but as I told you several of my neighbors planted them as a cash crop and they liked the results.”

      Sully appeared again. “It’s ready.”

      Joel didn’t know whether to laugh or scowl at Sully’s impatience. When Joel tried to put Cora down, she protested. April took her daughter from his arms and hushed the girl. Joel nodded and walked outside to his truck.

      He drove around the building and backed his truck up to the loading dock. Sully helped Joel transfer the bags of feed from the wooden pallet into the truck. Halfway through, the boys appeared on the dock.

      Sully looked at the pair. “Y’all here to help?”

      “We’re too small,” Todd answered. They carefully watched and whispered to each other.

      Once they finished loading, Sully drove the small forklift back into the warehouse.

      Joel opened the truck door.

      “Mr. Joel,” Wes began.

      Joel stopped and turned toward the boys.

      After a couple of intense whispers, Wes walked forward. “After you left this morning, Mr. Moore, the man who helps Mom with the ranch, got hurt. She called the ambulance for him. He can’t work for a while. We heard Mom crying after the ambulance left.”

      “And praying,” Todd added.

      Wes’s solemn gaze locked with Joel’s. “Mom’s real worried about the ranch.”

      Todd’s head nodded in agreement.

      Like a shot to his gut, the boys’ words hit Joel hard. The worry in their eyes would’ve touched the hardest of hearts.

      Wes took a deep breath. “We want to hire you to help Mom plant her fields.”

      Todd’s head bobbed. “Yeah, we want to hire you.”

      Joel hadn’t seen that one coming. “I’m still with the rodeo, boys.”

      Todd’s shoulders straightened. “But are you working this week? You’re having spring break like we are. Don’t the animals have spring break, too? Won’t you have time?”

      Spring break? Joel’s eyes widened. Well, he’d just complained to Hank about all the downtime he had on his hands this week with nothing to do.

      They waited.

      Todd reached into his pocket and pulled out some change. Wes followed by taking out of his front pocket a crumpled dollar and three pennies. “We have a dollar and thirty-seven cents between Todd and me that we can pay you.”

      “Is that enough?” Todd’s face filled with longing and uncertainty.

      Talk about being caught off guard. But how could he ignore such an honest plea? Joel swallowed hard. “I still would have to help feed the animals at the rodeo in the morning—”

      The boys nodded.

      “—but if that’s okay with you, I’d be proud to work for two such upstanding cowboys.”

      “And our mom.”

      “Most certainly.”

      They beamed and Todd started to jump up and down.

      “Okay. Let me take the feed back to the rodeo, then I’ll drive out to your place and talk with your mom to make sure it’s all right with her.”

      “Okay.”

      The boys stepped forward and dumped their money into Joel’s hand. Looking at the crumpled bill and coins, he felt the most unusual emotions—hope and satisfaction. When he glanced up, he saw two excited faces.

      “I’ll see you in a bit.”

      Driving away, Joel shook his head and chuckled. Who would’ve thought those two young boys would come up with such an ingenious plan? He hadn’t. But what mattered most was how their mother felt. And oddly enough, he wasn’t sure April would accept his help. He wondered if those boys could work their charm on their mother as well as him. That he wanted to see.

       Chapter Two

      April kicked the front tire of the cantankerous tractor. What was wrong with this miserable piece of equipment? How could she plow the west field for hay or the north field for sunflowers if the tractor wouldn’t start?

      “Is there a problem?”

      April jerked around, coming face-to-face with Joel. He grinned, making her knees weak. Stop it. Ignoring her crazy feelings, she said, “I’ve got an uncooperative piece of machinery. I’ve watched my father-in-law coax this ancient thing into starting several times. Of course, Vernon did most of the plowing.” But at this point, she didn’t have an option. A noise at the barn doors drew her attention. The boys stood there, watching.

      “Do you mind if I try?”

      Stepping to the side, she motioned for Joel to go ahead. “No. It might cooperate with you better than me.”

      The boys snickered, and Joel laughed. The wonderful, rich sound eased her heart.

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