Page 13 of The Texas Hero's Homecoming

She put the key in the ignition, jiggled to the left, jiggled to the right and gave a good solid push in and Gertrude sputtered. Once, twice and finally, the engine kicked in, roared to life and didn’t make a liar out of her. “There, you see. Simple.”

Sam narrowed his eyes and shook his head. She didn’t want to push her luck. Gertrude could just as easily have faltered.

“Well, good,” he said. “Now we can move the pumpkins to the clearing.”

“How long have you been here?” she asked.

“Since about ten. I stopped by Veterans Unite first. Why?”

Because beads of sweat glistened on his brow, his handsome face was flushed, and his arms bulged with muscle. Not that it was a bad thing. Heavens, no. But it showed her how hard he’d worked today. “You’ve done enough. You don’t have to stay any longer.”

“I’ve got to take care of the pumpkins.”

“No, you don’t. I’ll do it.”

“Stop resisting me.” He yanked open the truck door and their eyes met. She was resisting him in more ways than one. And it was getting harder and harder.

“Slide over,” he said. “I’ll drive. Wanna see what this ole girl can do. Besides, you look too pretty in those clothes to get them messed up. And you need to drive your own car home.”

“Fine, fine. When did you become the boss?”

He gave her a killer grin and she hustled herself out of the truck.

You look too pretty in those clothes.

She was wearing a cozy cream sweater, black jeggings, and a pair of tall tan boots. Hardly her Sunday best, but the compliment warmed her up a bit. She didn’t get too many compliments from men. In the workplace, it was a big no, no. And, well, she really didn’t have much of a life outside of school and the farm.

Every once in a while, she and Alicia would go out for dinner and drinks. Alicia was her friend, but also like an older sister to her. She married Seth at a young age and together they built a life working side by side on the farm. She used to run their little Messina Market on the property and sold homemade muffins and rolls as a side business, but when the market went defunct, she’d stayed on with Seth, trying to keep the farm going.

In a heartbeat, Sam took off in the truck and she followed behind. She hoped he’d go home soon, but he had that stubborn look about him, that said, he’d go home when he was good and ready.

*

“You don’t listenvery well.” Sam pulled two pumpkins out of the truck and transferred them to her arms. “Wonder what your students would say about that.”

“They’d say I know what my priorities are,” Autumn punted back and set the pumpkins down.

Tomorrow, with Seth and Alicia helping, they’d have an assembly line, and it wouldn’t take nearly as long to situate the rows of pumpkins. When they were through, the entire clearing would look like columns of round orange soldiers, standing at the ready.

“Would they now?” He made another transfer and their gloved fingers brushed.

The slightest of his touches even through work gloves stymied her thinking. The more she wished he would just go, he stayed. And helped. “They would. My students are extremely bright.”

“I have no doubt,” he said. “They have you for a teacher, don’t they?”

She turned from him, laying down the next two pumpkins. Her eyes squeezed shut. If he was trying to torment her, he was doing a great job of it. Killing her with kindness.

“And what about you? What’s your next plan of action?”

He yanked an extra-large pumpkin out of the truck and handed it to her, making sure she had a firm hold on it before letting go. “Me? Right now, I’ll keep my promise to your father. And there’s Nic’s wedding too.”

They were in a rhythm now, working together in total sync, unloading the truck. He was as regimented as she was in that regard. “I know that. But what about after that?”

“I haven’t decided yet. I have a few ideas bouncing in my head.”

“Care to share?”

“Nothing too concrete, but a buddy of mine up Dallas way owns a restaurant and he’s wanting me to move up there to help run the place.”

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