Read Online Last of the Summer Tomatoes by Sherrie Henry - Free Book Online Page A

stranger, and I didn’t know what to say.”
    Walt nodded. “It’s okay. You’ll get used to our craziness sooner or later. It was sure a surprise to see Sam, though.”
    “He’s your only child?”
    Walt cleared his throat. “We have a daughter, Kristina. She doesn’t come around very often.”
    “Oh, um, okay. Sorry.”
    “Nothing to be sorry about. Sometimes parents and children don’t see eye to eye. Glenda holds out hope she’ll come around.”
    “And you?”
    “I try not to think about it. She keeps in contact with Sam. He tells us what she’s doing. Seems she had a child not too long ago. We hope….” Walt took his cap off and rubbed his head. “We hope her having her own child will help heal the rift. Glenda… she’s heartbroken she hasn’t seen her first grandchild.”
    “Well, if she keeps in touch with Sam, that’s a good sign, right?”
    Walt pursed his lips and looked away. “I hope so.”
    The barn door opened; Sam stepped in.
    “’Bout time you woke up, sleepy head.” Walt gave him a big hug.
    “Hey, transitioning from school time to farm time takes time, ya know?” Sam grinned and ran his hand along one of the cows’ back. “They look great, Pops.”
    “I’ve got great help. Kyle here learned real quick. Had him working by himself on the first day.”
    “Really? You been on a farm before?”
    Kyle found himself tongue-tied once again. His heart beat faster, and he hung his head down pretending to check the connections. “Uh, no. First time.”
    “You must have an affinity for the cows, then. They can usually spot a newbie. City folk usually give off a vibe that they don’t know what they’re doing.”
    “I… I like them. They’re peaceful.”
    “Kyle even helped with the expectants. Felt his first in utero calf.”
    “How’s that bunch doing?” Sam moved over next to Kyle, petting the cow as the milking machine ran.
    “Got one ready to drop. We’ll need to check on her every few hours. I went out about 2 a.m. so we should head out there soon.”
    “Guess I made it back just in time.” He looked down at Kyle. “Don’t suppose you’ve ever seen a cow give birth?”
    “Uh, no.”
    “It’s quite a sight. Bloody, yes, but there’s nothing else quite like it. As Pops says, circle of life.”
    “Yeah, he mentioned that last night. We had steak.”
    “And you haven’t turned vegetarian yet?”
    Kyle actually had to grin. He looked up, and stunning green eyes stared back. He wondered, could he be? Then shook it off. Someone like Sam, smart, handsome, and tall with sandy blond hair and very defined muscles, someone like him would have girls hanging all over him. But the stare… the stare made him think…. Then the cow kicked, and he fell over.
    “You all right there?” Sam helped him back up.
    “Yeah, sorry, think I might have pinched some sensitive area on her.”
    “It happens. Pops, you ready to go out?”
    “Give me a moment. Gonna check the weather on the computer first.”
    “Pops loves his new weather program. I swear, before he got that, he was glued to the weather channel.”
    “I guess it pays to know when it’s going to storm, huh?” Kyle did his best to not make eye contact. He felt he could stare at Sam for days, memorizing each laugh line, each bit of stubble he’d missed that morning, hell, even the curves in his ears. His artist’s eye didn’t miss anything, and he wanted to be able to draw him again, this time from a real memory, not a dream. Even if Sam was just a person he worked with… his artwork would become his love.
    “Yeah. We’re not known for tornados or such, but we can get damaging hail, winds, and severe lightning. The cows can panic, causing damage to themselves and the fences. And the pregnant ones can lose their calves if they panic enough.”
    “Wow, I had no idea.”
    Sam stroked one of the cows. “They can be very skittish creatures. So can the horses, but not to the same extent.”
    “I saw two horses when