Whiskey and Country

“All the furniture for the nursery arrived this morning.” Barb pushed her hands together, glee radiating from her. “But the rocking chair we got them—it’s the finest thing you can get on the market, I’m tellin’ ya—doesn’t fit through the door opening. I can’t fathom how much work would be required with widening the doorway. It would mean drywall, paint, a new frame. And most importantly, the time we lack. Maureen could go into labor any day now. Little Romy is ready.”

In one swift jump, I hoisted myself over the pen. “Show me the way. Let’s see if we can brainstorm something. I’m sure I can help.”

Barb patted my hand. “Thank you, Nicholas.”

In the kitchen of what would be Rupert and Maureen’s family nest, I spread a piece of paper on the counter and drew a freehand plan of the nursery.

“Whatever we do, except sewing it in two, this chair won’t go in. The opening is two inches too small.” A loud gasp left Barb’s mouth, a horrified expression taking over her face. “But what we could do is enlarge the opening.” Before she could object, I raised my hands. “I know, I know. That’s what I wanna show you right here,” I said, tapping the paper with the tip of my pen. “Some verifications are required, but if there’s no electrical wiring too close, we could widen the doorway. Now, instead of a regular hinged door, since two additional inches in width will prevent the door from clearing completely and would push into the crib when opened, we’ll be creative.” I drew a layout just to prove my point. “The drywall and paint jobs will be minimal once I reframe the door opening. Also, I saw old wooden barn doors in the garage when I grabbed the tools earlier. What if we sanded, trimmed, and stained them the same shade as the flooring and hang them to a rail system—which I’m sure we can find at the local hardware store? There are only three rooms on this floor, so we change all three doors. What do you say?”

I stepped back as Barb studied my drawing, her attention riveted to the paper as she bobbed her head, no doubt working the gears of her brain.

On my phone, I searched the web until I found a picture of the design I was going for. With the screen flipped toward her, I saw the woman’s lips curling up slowly as joy blossomed her face.

“Beautiful. How long will it take? We can afford to delay the surprise another week. Are you sure it’s not too much work?”

“No, it’s really not a big deal. And I’m almost done with the piglet pen. If you give me the go, I can do almost all the work tonight. And the paint touchups will be done tomorrow to give the wall putty enough time to dry. It will all be ready by tomorrow noon at the most. And you won’t have to worry about anything. I’ll make sure of it. And I can also finish installing the banister while I’m at it.”

Barb’s eyes flared. “Nicholas, you’d do that?”

“It would be my pleasure.”

The woman squeezed me tight in her arms. “Whoever put you on our road, Nicholas, should be blessed.” She let go of me. “I like the idea. Make me a list, and I’ll get everything ready while you finish with the pen.”

The next afternoon, I presented an enthused Barb with the finished nursery. I had put the chair in the spot she had shown me the day before and even hung the paper birds she mentioned over the crib. The new door looked great, even better than what they had before.

Tears brimmed in her eyes as she cupped her heart, sniffling, her cheeks rosy.

I grinned. Because her happiness and gratitude bled on to me.

* * *

I shoved my bag into the backseat of my truck with a heavy heart.

My stay here had come to an end.

Leaving the ranch felt like leaving a family behind. People I grew to admire and respect over the three weeks we worked together.

“I’ve prepared you a lunch basket. And this,” Barb said, offering me a pale yellow knitted blanket next.

“For me? You made this?” I asked, emotions swirling inside me.

“Yes,” she added with a proud smile, pulling me into a warm hug. “For you. It’ll keep you warm.” She paused, leaning back to watch me. “You’ll be missed, Nicholas Peterson. It was fun to have you around. And our next ranch hand, who’s starting in a few days, will have big shoes to fill.”

Her words made a beeline straight into my heart.

“I’ll miss you guys,” I said, extending a hand to shake Harold’s. The man inched closer and drew me into a hug too.

“You take care of yourself, son.”

I nodded.

I grabbed the basket—she wasn’t kidding, it was a real basket, not a plastic container—Barb handed me and her gift and dropped them onto the passenger seat.

“If you ever come back to Beddingford, please stop by. You’ll always be welcome here. And if that job of yours doesn’t work out, I’m sure we can find you a permanent position here. The head of maintenance or something. You did a great job. We’re proud of you, Nicholas.”

Wow. Those words, right there. They reverberated inside me.

“Thank you. For the opportunity. And everything.”

Barb hugged me one last time before I climbed behind the wheel.

With my heart lurching in my throat, I waved at the people who had not only been my friends but also my family over the last few weeks.

“Thank you, bro.” I kissed two fingers and saluted the vast sky I was leaving behind. “What’s next?” I asked nobody but me as I watched the ranch sign getting smaller and smaller through the rearview mirror.

Derek’s Bucket List –13.Nick: Work on a ranch (why not?)