Once Bitten, Twice Shy

The days grew warmer, and work on the house on the hill drew to a standstill. The new owner must have run out of money. The dry weather was perfect for building. She hacked at the dry earth with her hoe. It was terrible weather for growing things. Even so, she had managed to can thirty pints of green beans and twenty pints of tomatoes so far. Not bad.

She dropped the hoe and mopped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her hand. She glanced around the farm. The goats were staying close to the house today. Were the dogs out there someplace again? Josh, Bill and Alex had gone hunting for them the day after the attack, but they lost the trail in some rocks on her back 40 acres. It was rugged country back there - full of wild plumbs, too. This year she had been afraid to harvest them because of the dogs. Josh was certain it was a pack, not simply a gathering of neighbor dogs. She was inclined to agree. That put everyone at risk, but her goats were the easiest targets.

A gray truck stopped at the gate and she waved at Josh. Now what? She walked up to the road while he waited in the truck.

She lifted a hand to shield her eyes from the evening sun while she talked to him.

“What’s going on? I haven’t seen you in a while.”

He nodded, obviously perturbed about something.

“I’ve been busy.” He tapped the roof of his truck with his fingernails. “Your stud is back, and the first place he went was to see Lori. They didn’t know I was around and I saw them. Him hugging her like they were old friends.”

She smiled up at him. “Oh, Josh. You’re such a worrier. Alex is a hugger. He hugs all the girls. It doesn’t mean anything.”

He shook his head in disgust. “What does it take to open your eyes about him? He’s been globe trotting for the last three weeks. Don’t you wonder what he’s been doing?”

She shrugged. “He’s been on a business trip. I trust him. What good would it do to get suspicious, anyway? It wouldn’t change anything if he wanted to cheat. If you’d make an honest woman out of Lori, you wouldn’t have to worry about all this.”