Chapter 1

Pamela watched the pick-up truck pull into her drive and wiped her flour-covered hands on her apron; her hired hand was here. Her husband had passed away three years ago and she had milked their prize herd all by herself as well tended the farm's crops. For all her hard work she'd finally managed to make the last payment on the small farm and this year opted to hire a full-time summer employee.

She'd interviewed several young men. Some were obviously looking for an easy summer job, milk a few cows, lift a few hay bales, eat a fine meal and then party time. But that wasn't what Pamela wanted or needed in her employee. Eventually, she'd settled on one applicant. She watched the young man get out of his truck and pull off his baseball cap. No one would have looked at the gentleman and seen "farmer" nor would they have seen "artist." What they would have seen was a city boy wanting to experience life, and that was what he'd told her.

Pamela liked the answer. She'd not taught since she married Will and she saw Trent as her way of recapturing something she enjoyed doing, teaching. She didn't have to be in a classroom. She just enjoyed showing people how to do something new. Her fingers were unknotting her apron when she heard the doorbell ring and she chuckled at her thoughts and how easily she was distracted.

She tossed the floured material across a chair and headed to the door, her fingers picked up a small ring. When she opened her house to the young man, it was with a welcoming smile and a dangling brass key. "No more need to ring the bell," she said.

Trent grinned and took the offered key. "Thanks," he answered back. When she stepped away, he walked in. He took a deep breath and his smile grew wider. "Misses Reins, I am so glad food comes with the job."

She laughed and closed the screen door, opting to let the other stay open. "It's the least I can do, that and offer you a place to sleep. You don't know how much this means to me. I am curious how much easier this could make my summer, perhaps this will determine whether or not I hire a full-time employee."

"Well, we'll agree to use each other. I'll use you to further my experiences in farming, which I have none, and you can use yours to determine if you're better off continuing as you have been, which I am still in awe over."

"Sounds like a plan. You go set yourself up and dinner will be ready by the time you're done. Tomorrow we'll start your lessons," she said and left him so she could attend to dinner.

Trent grabbed the two bags he'd dragged in with him and headed to the back bedroom. She told him when he was being interviewed that if he was hired he'd be sleeping in her and her husband's old room. He knew where to go, having been given a tour of the place when he applied. She'd removed any traces of her husband though, he figured she'd done that some time ago, years probably. Now the room seemed kinda bare, and more like a little hotel room with just the basics.

He tossed his bags to the queen bed and sat down. The blanket was thick and the color, vibrant. The pattern was a deep maroon with paisley print. There were matching night stands on each side. A full length mirror stood in the corner, its frame a dark cherry. A dresser that matched the head and foot board of the bed were also of the same coloring as the rest of the furniture. There were only a couple of paintings in the room. One was of a cabin beside a lake and the other, a waterfall. Both were lovely, but he figured just quick pieces that were stuck up there to cover the empty space where memories had probably been.

Trent walked over to the door of his closet and slid it open. Several empty hangers greeted him, but nothing else. Yes, she'd removed any traces of her Will and Trent was thankful for that. He wasn't keen on sleeping in a dead man's room, but he also knew the other option was kicking the widow out of the bedroom upstairs and that wasn't an option. He left the closet open and then opened the door to the bathroom. It was a nice sized room. The colors were not feminine or masculine, but neutral. Pale green with a warm mix of a darker green around the edges of the room. There was a shower as well as a spacious tub. The sink had a medicine cabinet above it and the counter was large enough to accommodate his morning supplies. Clean linen was stored in a small closet located behind the door.

A knock reached his ears and he turned back toward the door. "Hey," he said with a smile.

"Hi, dinner's ready when you are," Pam answered.

"Great," he looked to his bags, "I'll get to those later. I also have a box of odds and ends I brought, some things to fill my time when I'm not working, though I have a feeling I'll be working hard."

"That's the plan," she added with a laugh.

Pam turned to go and headed back to the kitchen. She hadn't cooked for another in a long time and hoped she had fixed enough for the young man. Her employee followed behind her and she suddenly found herself concerned about how she walked. She rolled her eyes at the thought, telling herself to grow up, though at the age of fifty-three, she was grown up.

Trent followed his landlady/boss into the dining room and heard his stomach growl. He blushed when Pam looked back at him with a raised brow. "Hungry?" she asked.

"Yes," he admitted and pulled a chair out for her.

Pam was shocked by the gentlemanly behavior. Will only pulled her chair out at restaurants, never at their dinner table. She blushed and thanked Trent before sliding her napkin over her lap.

Trent thought nothing of it and sat down beside her. He'd placed her at the head of the table and he sat to her right. He chuckled at the cloth napkins and kept his to the side of his plate. "What's so funny?" she asked as she proceeded to hand him a glass of lemonade she'd poured.

"This. I'm thinking that this is very elaborate for a hired hand."

He looked at the mashed potatoes, gravy, beans, biscuits, chicken, corn and pie. "Do you expect me to move from the table or are you going to roll me to bed?"

She laughed. "Did I over do it?" she asked him.

Trent chuckled. "No, I think I'll eat as much as I can and enjoy it, because there will be times I'm sure I will crawl into bed from exhaustion."

"True."

They ate in silence. Each one enjoyed the company, but neither wanting to force the other to converse either. Trent eventually broke down though and asked if it would be okay to add some pictures to his room. He'd not make a lot of holes in her walls, but he would need to make a few.

"No, I don't mind at all. That room is yours for the next few months, longer if this works out and you decide you want to come down on weekends and work. I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy having the extra hands around here. It was a lot harder than I imagined it was going to be after Will passed, but I did it. Now I want to spoil myself," Pamela answered.

"Then I will do my best to make myself at home. Are you okay still with Jill coming to visit me on weekends?" he asked.

"Trent, I told you over the phone that I wanted you to make this your home, so by all means your girlfriend can come over and before you ask, she can stay the night in your room. I'm older than you by twenty years. I'm smart enough to know you'll want to bring your girlfriend home with you," she stood up and grabbed his empty plate, "Slice us some pie and bring it out to the patio, we'll enjoy it there."

She left him blushing, but she wanted to make sure he knew he could have his life and live it while he was here on her farm, even if it meant she had to wear ear plugs so she didn't hear what may transpire under her bedroom floorboards. When she returned, the young man had done as she requested and she quickly put away the left overs and joined him outside.

Trent watched her take a seat beside him and he found himself studying her as she ate her dessert. She was a nice woman, obviously strong, intelligent and possibly stubborn. She looked ten years younger then the number she spouted out earlier in the evening. Her hair was pulled into a loose ponytail. The color reminded him of wheat waiting to be harvested. Her eyes were green and he thought her skin would be very soft if one were to reach out and timidly caress it. She wore no make-up and he found that refreshing.