As Daisy turned off the faucet, she glanced through the window toward the field. Greg stood at the end of a row of tomatoes. He pointed at one and plucked it from the vine then showed it to Andy. They were too far away to hear what they were saying, but Greg was probably teaching them how to pick ripetomatoes.
“I hope Meadow is feeling better,” Betty said. “The heat can get to you if you’re notcareful.”
“She’s lying down in the shade. I’m sure she’ll be fine,”Daisysaid.
Although she couldn’t prove it, she suspected Meadow was faking heat exhaustion. She’d expected River to pull that, but he hadn’t. In fact, he’d worked just as hard as Andy over the last few days. Both men sported sunburns which were beginning to turn into tans. They’d be golden by the end of the month if they stayed out as much as theyhadbeen.
Greg strolled past several rows before he stopped to shuck his T-shirt. Sweat glistened on rock-hard abs. A thin line of hair pointed down the flat plane of his belly toward the low-slung waist of his jeans. Too bad he didn’t work naked. She’d love to get a good look at allofhim.
Ever since the day they’d played chicken in the lake, she couldn’t stop fantasizing about wrapping her legs around him. But she didn’t want them around his head. She wanted them cinched around his waist. Then she’d be able to ride him like a wild horse. Was he wild in bed? Was heexperienced?
“Bring the flour sifter,”Bettysaid.
Daisy grabbed it and carried it to the kitchen table. She pushed sexy thoughts about Greg out of her mind. She’d have plenty of time to think about what she’d like to do to himlater.
She sat across from Betty. The older woman’s ropy hands worked a paper towel full of Crisco around the edge of the biggest pie pan Daisy had ever seen. But with all the men in the house, no wonder she had suchlargepans.
“How’s everything going so far?” Betty asked as she measured out a cup offlour.
“Good. Greg says we’re right on track with theharvest.”
“Is everyone holding up okay?” She handed the cup to Daisy. “Go ahead and siftthat,dear.”
“We’re doing great,” Daisy said. “I can’t thank you enough for letting usstayhere.”
“I wouldn’t have turned you away. Besides, the timing worked out well. I hate having to hire strange men to help around the farm. It gives me thewillies.”
“I know what you mean,”Daisysaid.
“Greg says you lived in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco for a while,”Bettysaid.
“Yeah, a couple ofyears.”
“He said your parentsdisownedyou.”
Daisy looked up sharply. What had possessed Greg to tellherthat?
“It’s okay,” Betty said. “Joseph doesn’t know. I’m actually surprised he allowed you to stay. He hateshippies.”
“Why?” Daisy asked while shifting in thechair.
“Right after we got married, a group of hippies jumped him outside a bar. Beat him up good and took all of his money. We had to eat beans for a month,”Bettysaid.
“Oh, I’m sosorry.”
“You didn’t doit,dear.”
“I know, but I’m sorry that happened to him,”Daisysaid.
“Me too. I think it changed him more than he’d like to admit. I know it made me worry a lot more when he’d leave for work. When we bought the farm, I was sorelieved.”
“It’s beautiful land,”Daisysaid.
“I love it. I grew up in Helena and always dreamed about living by a lake surrounded bywoods.”
“You gotyourwish.”
“And the man of my dreams,”Bettysaid.
