“Neither was I,” Emmy said, walking to Kristen’s side. “But once Lee showed me what this thing could do, I changed my mind pretty fast. This bad girl can even drive herself if you ask. People act like self-driving vehicles are something special, but we’ve had that technology on farms for years.” She placed her foot on the tractor’s bottom step, reached up toward the hand-grips, then frowned at Kristen. “Think you can give me a boost?”
“Oh, no.” Mitch strode over, cupped Emmy’s elbow and eased her back. “I don’t want you straining your knee climbing in and out of that thing.”
Emmy scowled. “I have to. At least for today. Someone’s gotta show Kristen how this thing works, so she can do it herself. Then I can get sta
rted on the other fields in our tractor. We got to have two tractors in the fields in order to get the corn and soybeans planted within the next two weeks.”
“Why two weeks?” Mitch swept his muscular arm out toward the farm’s back lots. “Kristen will start with her field, I’ll help her with the other cornfields, and then we’ll start soybeans around mid-May, like you usually do.”
“I told you before, I got a new plan. I’m shifting gears and going with early production to up my yields. And to pull it off, I have to get that indeterminate seed in the ground by the end of April.”
“That’s not a plan, Emmy. That’s a gamble. There are too many variables and risks with early planting. You’ll be harvesting the soybeans at the same time heavy rains usually tear through here. You’ll have only a ten-day to two-week window to harvest. Plus, you have to worry about stinkbugs, root-knot nematodes, extra monitoring . . .” He issued a sound of frustration. “Why don’t you just stick to the status quo? Do what you’ve always done? Especially since this is the last season you’ll—”
Regret in every line of his expression, he bit his lip and looked away. His eyes met Kristen’s.
“The last season I’ll what?” Emmy’s jaw hardened as she glared at Mitch. “Plant? Harvest? Or own this farm?”
Kristen touched Emmy’s arm. “Emmy, you told me yourself that Mitch has the magic touch out here. He’s giving us the heads-up on things to watch out for, but it’s nothing we can’t handle.” She raised her brows at Mitch. “He’s just trying to help. Right?”
Mitch sighed, then glanced hesitantly at Sadie and Dylan before saying, “I’m sorry, okay, Emmy? But I’m only being honest. You want me to lie to you?”
“Nope. I want you to tell me the plan’s amazing—and my plan is amazing.”
“It’s risky.”
“Amazing,” Emmy repeated. “And thirty years ago, when you were my sweet, handsome little boy, you’d have believed it, too.” A teasing light entered her eyes as she faced Kristen. “Why, when he was just a toddler, he’d stride out to the fields right after me. Chest out, shoulders proud, and diaper swishing. I could tell he was gonna be a heartbreaker even then.”
Mitch tipped his head back, closed his eyes, and groaned. “Good Lord.”
Kristen rolled her lips, stifling a smile.
Snickering, Dylan lifted his head, the second real hint of amusement Kristen had seen shining in his expression. “That right, Uncle Mitch? Diaper and all?”
Mitch opened his eyes, narrowed them at Dylan, then stalked off toward the back of the tractor. “All right. I’ll show Kristen how to work the tractor, while you handle the strawberry stand. When we finish, I’ll start on the rest of the fields with the other tractor.” He pointed at Dylan. “Up and over here. You’re gonna help load the planter.”
Dylan’s smile fell. “Why me?”
“For that crack earlier. And because I’d like your company.” Mitch headed for the shed behind them. “Come on.”
Emmy turned to Kristen and grinned. “Think I ticked him off?”
Kristen studied the tight set of Mitch’s broad shoulders as he walked toward the shed. He glanced back at them, and his handsome face flushed a deeper shade of red.
“Yeah,” she whispered, a laugh escaping her. “Embarrassed him, too, I think.”
“Good.” Emmy nodded, then called out toward his retreating back, “And he can just get happy in the same britches he got mad in, ’cuz this is gonna work.” She patted Kristen’s arm. “Bring him in for lunch. Ready to head back to the house, Sadie?”
Sadie hovered, wide awake now, watching Mitch and Dylan heft large seed bags out of the shed, her big blue eyes following their every move. Her shoulders slumped, and her heart-shaped mouth drooped. “Yes, ma’am.”
Just go about your business, a small voice whispered inside Kristen. No need to get involved.
Maybe. But she could be kind, couldn’t she? Could include the little girl just this once to make up for hurting her the other day. What harm could it do?
“Sadie?” Kristen picked at the hem of her jeans, then licked her lips. “Would you like to help us for a little while before you sell strawberries? The bags are too heavy for you to lift like Dylan, but I’m sure there’s something else you can do.”
Sadie blinked up at her, nibbling at her lips with a guarded expression.
“Of course there is.” Mitch tossed a bulky seed bag on the grass and lifted his chin at Sadie. “We’ll need someone to pull the bags off the hoppers after they’ve emptied. Make sure all the seeds made it in. You’d be perfect for the job.”