Forever's Embrace (Forever In Luck Series Book 2) (12 page)

“Um,
are you, ah, hungry?” she asked tentatively. “I, um, could make you something
to eat.”

He
shook his head and she flinched, then nodded as she looked away, chewing on her
bottom lip. She’d interpreted his answer to mean he didn’t want to eat her
cooking. Linnie was going to kill them. He began taking off his winter wear, and
she hightailed it into the kitchen.

Going
up the stairs, he went after her, then stopped and stared. She was on the other
side of the table, arranging and rearranging his mother’s silver and china.
That stuff hadn’t been out since his mother had last used it six Christmases
ago. Things shimmered and shined, and there were napkins on the table folded
all fancy. The table looked stunning, better than when his mother was alive,
and he could tell she’d worked hard to make things special.

She
started wringing her hands, then said in a panic, “Linnie said it’d be okay,
but…” She quickly started gathering things up.

Linnie
was going to kill him. He was around the table in a flash, and she flew the
opposite direction, moving away from him. “Precious, come here.” She looked at
him with pained confusion in her eyes, and he could see she was trembling.

“Please,
don’t call me that. I…I can’t bear it.” Then she looked away, hiding from him.

“Why?
You are precious…to me.”

Her
head fell, and tears ran down her face. Going around the table, he took her in
his arms. “It’s not you, it’s not. It’s me, it’s all of us—”

She
started shaking her head rapidly. “No, Jake, it is me, it is,” she said, trying
to convince him. “It’s always been like this, all my life it’s been like this.
People staring, looking and staring, and then when I say something, they freeze
and stare, looking at me like I’ve grown horns and a tail. I’m an oddity for
people.” She pulled back, looking down at her twisting fingers as she took some
deep breaths.

“It’s
always been like this, and well, Linnie said it would be different here, that
you’d all be protective, take me under your wing, and I thought maybe she was
right, but... It’s just… I don’t know what I’m doing wrong, how to fix it. Nana
said all I needed to do was be kind, and treat others the way I’d want to be
treated, and when I tried, girls became meaner and boys got the wrong
impression. It didn’t change when I became an adult, it only got worse. It’s
why I stay to myself, I’ve always made people uncomfortable.”

He
was so goddamn pissed right now he was about to erupt. Here he thought she was
shy, but oh no, she actually believed there was something wrong with her to the
extent she isolated herself from others. Taking her face in his hands, he
tilted her face up. When she saw him, she immediately diverted her eyes. If he
looked half as angry as he felt, she was probably shaking in her boots. “Look
at me…look at me, now.”

She
did as he demanded and her chin quivered.

“Listen
to me and listen well, because I want you to come back to this moment often
over your lifetime. People don’t stop and stare at you because there’s
something wrong with you. They stop and stare because you’re so undeniably
beautiful. They’re in awe, Precious, total and complete awe. And when you
speak, your voice, it sends shivers across the body, making ones hair stand on
end. And as if that isn’t enough, you don’t have a clue as to your appeal, and
that in and of itself creates an inner beauty so phenomenal it transcends the
rest. Throw in your intelligence, and you’re the total package. The total
package. If there was a star in the sky for every person on this earth, you’d
be the sun. You’re brilliant, beautiful, bright, breathtaking, and without a
doubt beguiling. Trust me, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with you. You’re
perfect. It’s the rest of us who are flawed.”

She
burst into tears, and he pulled her to him, holding her tight. “I’m sorry about
today. There’s more going on than you know, and maybe we can talk about it
later. But for now, know that you’re an amazing cook, and breakfast was nothing
short of spectacular. And Linnie’s right, it is okay to use Mom’s china. If she
were here right now, she’d be ecstatic you were.”

 
She looked up at him, and nodded as she tried
to smile.

Wiping
away her tears, he asked, “Do you need me to help you with anything?”

She
shook her head.

“Alright,
I’m going to go take a shower, then make a few calls. Nik and Kris are going to
take over my chores for the rest of the time you’re here. Is there anything
special you’d like to do?”

Thinking
about it for a few moments, she said, “Will you give me a tour of the whole
farm, and explain to me what’s going on? I only saw a little bit of it the day
I arrived, and I didn’t know what was what, and I’ve never fished before.
Linnie says I need to catch a fish, and that there’s great fun to be had in an
ice house, but somehow I don’t think she was talking about fishing.”

He
started laughing. “Anything else?”

She
shrugged. “See a movie maybe, and tomorrow night, Hottie Havlat’s on the ice,
and then Sunday, the Bears are going to trounce the Slackers, so I definitely
want to see those two events.”

He
started beaming. Oh yeah, he did too, with her. Giving her a quick peck on the
lips, he said, “You just wait, you’re going to regret those words, bebis. I
promise.”

CHAPTER 7

Jake
woke when he heard his watch beep. It was five in the morning. Turning on the
bedside lamp, he looked down and stared at Jules snuggled into the crook of his
arm. Brushing some of her hair back, he placed a kiss on her head. She
responded by wiggling closer. She was lovely. Looking beyond her, he saw her
sketch pad lying on a suitcase. Last night they’d rented a movie, and she’d
drawn in that book the whole time. Hating to leave her, he slid out of bed and
tucked the covers around her.

Stepping
over to the book, he thumbed through it. Page after page of charcoal drawings,
of things she’d seen and captured in her mind from the dinner table last night.
Images of all of them. Then he happened upon a beautiful rendering of the sun
surrounded by stars. He thought back to that little episode yesterday, and then
looked back to the drawing. Good, he thought, this meant she’d never forget.

Closing
the book, he took notice of a piece of lace hanging out of her suitcase.
Opening the case, his eyes popped open. Stunned, he lifted out some of the
items. Lingerie. Tons of it. He turned and looked at her. Well, well, the
little vixen had a naughty streak. Who would’ve ever guessed? He sure the hell
wouldn’t have. Turning back, he picked through the assortment. Hmmmm, he’d like
to see that one on, and this one, why this one too. Hell, all of it looked
sumptuous, and he was vastly interested in this little revelation.

Picking
up what looked like a pair of bottoms, he sure hoped she hadn’t paid full price
for them, because they were missing a whole lot of fabric in the back, and then
this pair, picking up another, was little more than a patchwork of ribbons, and
it appeared there’d been a ration on ribbons that day. Oh well, he sure the
hell wasn’t about to complain, her loss was his gain.

Pleased
with this happy little discovery, he headed up the stairs two at a time.
Nearing the top, he stopped. The kitchen light was on. He sure hoped it was
Nate, but he had a sinking feeling it wasn’t. If it was who he thought it was,
he was in for it.

His
dad was going through a stack of papers, when he walked in. Pouring a cup of
coffee, he went to sit at the table, bracing himself for what he knew was
coming.

“That
little girl is alone in the world, and she’d best not turn up pregnant. You
know better than to behave like this.”

“I
haven’t slept with her.”

His
dad looked at him over the top of his reading glasses, then raised an eyebrow.

“Okay,
okay, we’ve been in the same bed together, so I guess I’ve slept with her, but
we haven’t had sex.”

Now
his dad’s chin dropped to his chest, and he looked back at him in total
disbelief.

“I’m
serious,” he defended, holding his hand up, stopping his dad. “I haven’t. I
want to, boy do I want to, but I haven’t. I can’t. Well, I can, but I…” He
rubbed his face. “Hell, I don’t know. I shouldn’t I guess, or I won’t maybe. I
don’t know. I’m so damn confused right now. If she’d throw me a bone, I might
be able to figure it out.” His dad started chuckling, and Jake looked up to see
him smiling.

“It’s
different with this one, is it?”

“I
want her, Dad. She’s the one. I just don’t know what to do. I don’t want to
screw this up. I know, it doesn’t make sense, but…”

“Sure
it does,” his father said.

Jake
perked up, looking for answers. “It does?”

“Yeah,
it does. You respect her. It’s been different with other women because you simply
appreciated them, but this one, you respect, and that makes all the difference
in the world.”

Jake
blew out a big breath, as he ran a hand over his head and down his neck. “I
worry about her, think of her all the time.”

Finishing
a drink of his coffee, his dad went on, “Woke up thinking about them Swedish
meatballs, and that Pepparkaks cheesecake thing she made. Mighty fine cook, she
is. Glad I got some more before it’s gone. The gingersnap crust tastes pretty
damn good with a cup of strong coffee. There’s one piece left.”

Jake
got up, grabbed a fork, and headed for the fridge. “It was a chart topper for
excellence, wasn’t it?”

“Yep.
Got behind on paperwork over the holidays. Mail’s been piling up. You want to
tell me what this is all about? It’s from the admissions office at the
University of Wisconsin.”

Setting
down the dessert, Jake took the envelope and opened it. Yes! They’d accepted it
all! He wanted to shout from the housetop, he was so pumped. Unable to keep
from smiling, he handed the papers to his dad and sat.

Looking
things over, his dad’s eyebrows went up, then he looked over at him. “A major
in Animal Science and a minor in Veterinary Technology, huh? I thought dairy
science was your interest. Doesn’t look like it’d take much to finish up your
major, it says twenty-four credits, but the vet tech thing would tack on an
additional three semesters. What are you thinking?”

“Dairy
science will always be my first and greatest interest, but with Mom gone, and
the specialty end of the business shut down, I’ve had to shift my focus to my
next best interest, the health and management of our animals. I’d like to see
about increasing the quality and overall size of the herd, maybe get into
artificial insemination and seed stock.”

His
dad nodded as he listened. “Are you thinking of leaving the farm to work with a
vet, maybe start a business.”

“No,
I meant it when I said I didn’t want to leave the farm,” Jake answered, shaking
his head adamantly. “My interests lie here, making what we have better. Kris likes
the agricultural piece of the business, so it was good to put him there, and
Nik’s good at seeing the big picture, so farm ops fits. Not to mention he has
the people skills to see his way through conversations with those we deal with,
but my focus lies specifically with the animal, our animals. Over time, as I
learn and become proficient, I could offer services to others, but only as time
allowed.”

Taking
a drink of his coffee, his dad asked, “Might Jules have something to do with
what you’re thinking?”

“No,”
Jake answered quickly, while focusing on the last of his cheesecake.

His
dad started chuckling again. “I’ve been doing this a long time son, have stood
in the shoes you’re standing in right now, heard all the jokes about dumb old
farmers and country folk, and I’ve had my share of worries on how I’d provide
for my family when times were lean. With the way you’re feeling towards Jules,
and given her background, I can’t help but think your thoughts may be along
those lines too.”

He
looked at his dad. “Maybe.”

His
dad dropped his chin again, and looked over his reading glasses. “Just maybe?”

“Alright,
why would she want me? She’s financially solvent, makes more money in a year
than I make in five. She speaks five languages fluently, another four well enough
to communicate. She draws so well that her sketches are museum worthy, and she
paints. I can only imagine how good she is at that. She obviously knows how to
cook. Hell, she’s more like a chef than a cook. Her intelligence is off the
charts, and you’ve got eyes, you know how beautiful she is. Me, I’m nothing. I
milk cows, shovel shit, and play hockey. That’s it.”

Picking
up the admission papers, his dad looked them over again. “You’re no dummy. Good
for you. I think it’s time for you to get your degree. From the looks of this,
if you want to start right away, you’d need to go to Madison, or wait till
summer for a spot in Minneapolis. What are you going to do?”

Jake
shrugged. “I’m not sure what to do. When I spoke with them, they said I could
start in Madison, and then transfer to one of their schools closer to home when
a spot opens. What do you think I should do?”

“Well,
as I once told Linnie, everything happens for a reason. Maybe, for whatever
reason, you’re meant to be in Madison for a few months. It just so happens to
be about two hours from Chicago. I think you should go. We can spare you for a
semester.”

Jake
sat back in relief. “Thank you, Dad. Thank you so much.”

His
dad nodded. “When I talk to the accountant, I’ll see if your tuition can be
written off as a business expense under the farm, so save all receipts
including mileage and gas.”

“Will
do.”

“So
does this change anything? Will it make a difference where Jules is concerned?”

Jake
shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s hard to say. I mean, when you look at it, we’ve
only spent a total of eight days in each other’s company. Yeah, I met her years
ago, and knew I had a thing for her then, but I can’t really go and ask her to
marry me after eight days, and she’s leaving on Tuesday. Plus she’s up for that
promotion, so who knows what’ll happen then. It’ll help being in Madison
though.”

“Word
of advice, son, don’t give up. Things worth having are worth fighting for.”

*****

“So
the cows just go up there on their own, and it turns while they’re being milked?”
Jules asked, as she stood watching from a platform in the milking parlor.

“Yep,”
Jake answered. “It’s a milking carousel. It takes about ten to twelve minutes
to go around, with about nine of them for the actual milking, the rest for
udder care before and after. The cows don’t mind at all, you’ll see, they push
and shove a little to get to the head of the line, and they’re rewarded with
some high end nutrients as the carousel goes around.”

“Oh,
look, there’s one getting on now!”

Jake
smiled, loving her enthusiasm.

“How
many can it hold?” she asked.

“A
hundred.”

“Wow!
Really? How many cows do you have?”

“We
milk about eight hundred twice a day,” he answered. He could see her doing the
math in her head.

“Around
two hours, morning and night,” she answered in an instant, observing the
process with scrutiny. “Can I get closer? See what Nik’s doing down there?”

“Sure,
you can even try it yourself,” he answered.

“I
can!” She grabbed his hand and started pulling him along, “Come on then, I want
to milk a cow!”

He
couldn’t help laughing. “Alright, alright, I’m coming.”

Fifteen
minutes later, she started jumping up and down, and then threw her arms around
his neck and gave him a big kiss. “Jake, I milked a cow! Did you see? I did it!
What’s her name? What’s my cow’s name?”

Damn,
she was cute. “Ah, that was Annabelle.”

She
let him go, then turned and stuck her head through the ramp rails and yelled
“Thanks, Annabelle. You did good!” Turning back to him, she positively beamed.
“Where’d it all go? Show me where the milk goes.”

Talking
as they walked, he explained, “It goes to the milk house where it’s cooled and
stored till the milk trucks come to pick it up.”

“Trucks?”

“Each
cow produces about four gallons of milk with each milking, so on average
thirty-two hundred gallons morning and night, for a total of sixty-four hundred
gallons a day, give or take. The trucks the dairy co-op sends, hold anywhere
from four to five thousand gallons.”

She
pulled him to a stop, her eyes as big as saucers. “At a gallon, that’s six thousand,
four hundred families a day! For an average family of four,
that’s…that’s…twenty-five thousand, six hundred people you’re feeding in a day!
Jake, that’s amazing!” Then she threw her arms about his waist and gave him a
tight squeeze. Looking up at him with adoring eyes and a wide smile, she said,
“I’m so proud of you guys.”

Well
hell, he was starting to like math. The benefits were sure worth the effort.
Now if she were to get excited over the amount of manure they had, he’d be a
new man. “Here’s the milk house and holding tanks,” he said, watching as she
began to study things over, entertained by her inquisitive mind peering and
peeking, looking at everything.

Coming
back to stand by him, she said, “Where do the cows live?”

“In
the barn.”

Turning,
she stared at him, thinking over what he’d said. “You have eight hundred cows
in a barn?” she asked, sounding skeptical.

“We
have around nine hundred fifty cows, with about eight hundred in milk.”
Shuffling her out one door, and then across the way to another, they stepped
into one of the wings of the barn. “We have four main wings set up for two
hundred cows in each, a hundred to each side in fifty stall increments, and a
corresponding alleyway where the cows move in and out, in what’s called a free
stall barn system. The very center of each wing is fenced off for us to move
our equipment in and out, and to keep the hay and feed separate and clean.
While dad and Nik are milking one group, Kris is cleaning that wing and getting
it ready for when they come back.”

She
stepped out into one of the long corridors and looked left, then right. “What
kinds of things do you have to do here?”

“Clean
up cow poo, fluff and level their beds, clean up poo, feed them, clean up poo,
strip and refresh their beds, clean up poo, monitor cow behaviors, clean up
poo, assess for illness, clean up more poo.” She looked back at him, and after
a few moments, he smiled and wiggled his eyebrows up and down. “Exciting, huh?”