Season of Dreams (9 page)

 

The next morning Eva entered church after her usual sweep of the area looking for Todd before she stepped into the sanctuary. With the coast clear, Eva slipped into their fourth-row pew.

Adam was there with his sister.

“Morning,” she said.

He looked up. “Hey.”

By now Eva was used to seeing Adam in church on Sunday, but this morning's look from him knocked her off kilter. “Where's your dad?”

“He's not much of a churchgoer,” Anne said. “Dad and Heather are packing up the girls to go home.”

“Oh.” Eva sat next to Adam.

“Annie's staying a couple more days,” Adam explained.

His sister smiled. “I want to hit the shops in Leland, and I'm dying to see
Fishtown
. Would you and Beth like to join me? We could do lunch on me.”

Did the Peece family think they could buy everything? Eva didn't need someone picking up her tab. Still, she couldn't remember the last time she'd been shopping for the fun of it and Leland was only a stone's throw away. “Beth spends Sunday afternoons with her mom. But I'll have to check—”

“Please say yes. Adam wants to work on the farm equipment so my afternoon is totally open.”

Eva glanced at Adam. “Anything wrong?”

Adam shook his head. “Ryan's going to show me how to hook up the attachments to the tractors, so that's one less thing to do tomorrow before we fertilize. We might even break out the ATVs.”

It shouldn't irritate her that Ryan had stepped into her role. She might not be a fan of messing with the equipment, but it was her job. And Adam was
her
boss. Why hadn't he asked her? Unless her brother offered, but still… “Do you need my help?”

“I got it. Besides, Sundays are your days off. Go have fun.”

Eva clenched her jaw. She didn't like the feeling that
working with Adam might be more fun than shopping with Anne. Nope, she had to go. She needed a break. It couldn't be good to want to spend every day with one's boss.

Eva's curiosity with Adam had been piqued even more after having dinner with his family last night. She faced his sister. “I could use a girls' day out. I'll go, Anne.”

“Great, we can head out after service.” His sister wore a satisfied smile, and Eva got the distinct feeling that Anne was just as curious about her, too.

The song service started, cutting off further discussion. Once seated for the message, Eva fidgeted more than she listened. She'd gotten out of the habit of bringing her Bible to church because she hardly read it. That stab of shame wasn't something to be proud of. She glanced at God's word lying open flat across Adam's lap.

“You can look on with me.” He scooted closer and his thigh brushed hers.

She twitched but otherwise recovered.

“Too much coffee this morning?” he whispered. “No, why?”

“You're a little jumpy,” he teased.

Pathetic was more like it when it came to the effect Adam's nearness had on her. She couldn't slide away from him without broadcasting that fact, so she did her best to ignore it.

While the minister delivered his sermon and they thumbed through various passages, Eva was blown away by the writing and underlines in Adam's Bible. “Is this yours?”

“What?”

“The Bible. Is it yours?” she whispered.

“Who else's would it be?”

She ran her finger across a page with highlighted pas
sages and notes written along the margin. “What's with the scribbles?”

She felt him shift next to her. “I like to study.”

Wow. Adam's commitment to learning God's Word pricked her spirit. Her dried-up and neglected spirit. She used to tackle the scriptures with vigor, seeking answers to so many questions and jotting down thoughts in her journal.

“Why not use a notebook?”

He shrugged. “I might lose it.”

He wouldn't lose his Bible, though. From the look of the dog-eared corners of several pages, he was a frequent reader. She admired him for that.

“You really have left behind what you used to be.” The comment slipped from her lips before she'd thought it through. Before she realized it gave a little of herself away, too. Where Adam had found faith, Eva had lost hers.

He looked at her closely. “For the first time in a long while there's purpose to my life. I'm finding out what I really want.”

Eva couldn't claim the same satisfaction. Some days she felt far removed from the girl she used to be. Everything she'd ever wanted was gone. Her family scattered except for her and Ryan.

Trust didn't come easily. Not after Todd. She was scared to let herself fall for a guy like Adam. Even more afraid of letting him get too close. She'd had her fill of heartbreak. And everything she knew about Adam screamed a broken heart waiting to happen.

After church, Eva went shopping with Anne, then to lunch. Once seated and served, Eva gathered her courage enough to ask, “What did your father think of the orchard?”

“Very impressed with the land. He thought it was
beautiful and a good investment.” Anne took a quick sip of her water.

Not the answer Eva hoped for. “And the farm. Does he think your brother has what it takes to become a grower?”

Anne laughed. “That's hard to tell. Adam's never been one to stay with something or someone for very long. Even at Peece Canning. He says he likes hands-on work, but he spent only a year overseeing the canning plants. Although he sure liked driving those forklifts.”

Eva smiled despite the heaviness that settled in her heart. Adam never stayed with anyone for very long… Eva could only hope for a strong professional relationship with Adam. A friendship was the safest choice. But she could see Adam goofing around on company time. When the company belongs to your family, who wouldn't? “Overseeing a large operation isn't really hands-on.”

Anne looked thoughtful a moment. “Yeah, I guess you're right. He's never stopped fiddling with his motorcycles and Dad's antique Corvette since he was a teenager. He still skis, so I guess he's kept up with those things.”

Encouraged, Eva probed further. “But Adam likes cherry farming so far, right?”

Adam's sister gave her a shrewd look. “You're hoping he'll stay.”

Eva nodded. She didn't like the alternatives that might mean development or a resale. “I think we can help grow each other's businesses in time.”

“Well, I don't know how much time Adam has to decide. He bought your farm by borrowing against his share of Peece Canning. I imagine that note will come due sometime soon and then he'll have to choose.”

Any effort to positively spin Adam's intentions was pointless. Even if he wanted to remain a grower, what if
it was financially not feasible? Where would that leave Eva? Even more determined, Eva knew she had to become Adam's partner for the benefit of her bed-and-breakfast.

Eva prayed Adam would choose Marsh Orchards. That was far more important than a relationship between them. The orchard had to come first.

For now, anyway.

A
couple of days later, Adam watched Eva's expression morph from disbelief to gall mixed with confusion.

“You did what?”

He opened the side door of the pole barn. “I ordered turkey manure. It'll be delivered today.”

“Why?”

He figured his reason was pretty clear, but he'd spell it out if he had to. “For fertilizer.”

“But we have fertilizer. We've been applying it for two days.”

“This is more natural.” And he needed every possible edge he could get.

She shook her head. “That stuff's going to stink. We have neighbors, you know.”

Adam opened the main doors and peeked outside. “Where? Our nearest neighbor is like a mile or more away.”

Eva gave a sardonic laugh. “Don't worry, that smell will travel.”

Adam considered the grim line of her lips. Miss Prickly Prim had him there. “So it'll smell bad for a couple
days, maybe even a week. This
is
farmland. Besides, I checked.”

Her eyes widened. “With who?”

Eva looked incredibly pretty this morning with her hair pulled back into a ponytail that swished every time she made her point. It almost cost him his argument.

“Jim Sanborn. He's been using poultry manure for a few years now and said it makes a huge difference in the health of the trees.”

She couldn't knock Jim's advice and he could tell it galled her. Jim was a seasoned fruit farmer with a solid reputation and a lifetime local. “But we already have the nitrogen fertilizer. Can you cancel yours?”

“I'm not going to. I want to try this.” He glanced back at her, wondering if she'd ever be as sweet on him as her cherries.

Her cheeks turned rosy, and she took a step back. “You're spending double needlessly. And you're taking a big chance of irritating our neighbors.”

“I'm sure they'll get over it. There isn't a smell ordinance in this county, is there?”

“No, but…”

He waited with a cocked eyebrow for her to continue.

Instead she sputtered, “You're impossible.”

Adam understood where she was coming from. Eva was his farm manager, and this was a discussion he should have had with her before ordering. He used to hate it when his father made changes to his presentations without giving him a heads-up. But Adam didn't want to leave anything to chance. Doing something the way it had always been done wasn't the way he'd make it.

Eva stopped what she was doing and asked, “How are you going to apply the manure? We don't have a spreader.”

“Yeah, we do.”

She faced him. “Since when?”

“Since your father sold it to me. It's old, he said he didn't use it anymore, but it works. Ryan showed me how to hook it up.”

She pursed her lips into that stubborn line he was beginning to recognize as Eva struggling for control. He waited, imagining all kinds of words flitting through her brain begging to be born, but none came.

Instead, she agreed. “We'll spread the manure. But next time Ryan helps you with a grand idea, do you think you could let me in on it, too?”

He couldn't blame her for being a little sore. But the way she'd voiced her opinion without pushing for her way only made him admire her more. “Understood. I'm not sure if I ordered enough, so we'll still use the nitrogen. We can donate any unopened fertilizer to the research center.”

She gave him a nod. “And then we'll see if it makes a difference. It's your dime, Peece.”

Another challenge. It might be his money, but her pride was on the line. He had no intention of squandering either one, even if he knew he was right. He had to be.

 

After a week spent applying two different fertilizers a few feet from the base of the trees, the weather cooperated perfectly by giving them a couple days of soft spring rain to soak up the sharp smell of poultry manure. The days that followed were filled with sunny warmth, giving Eva hope that the cherry buds would soon start to pop.

Staring out of the barn while Adam prepped the tractors for a day of spraying the field, Eva hoped all this work wouldn't go to waste. What if Adam chose to return to Peece Canning?

Adam waved his hand in front of her face. “You in there, Eva?”

“Yeah.” She blinked, returning her focus to the early-morning fog that had settled in the valley. The barn doors were open to the view she'd grown up loving. She didn't want to see it changed. Or lost.

“You were miles away just now.”

Eva shook off her thoughts. “Did you know that your sister sent me a note thanking me for shopping with her? I should be the one sending her a thank-you for picking up lunch.”

Adam chuckled. “She's proper that way. She had a great time with you. Not surprising since you're the kind of girl she needs to hang around.”

Eva cocked her head. “Why's that?”

“You're not prissy like a lot of her friends. Anne could use some earthy influence.”

“I'm earthy?” Eva had never been described that way.

He lifted both of her hands and flipped them palm up. “You've got dirt on your fingers and turkey poo on your boots. Yeah, I'd say you are.”

“A girl doesn't grow up hoping to be called
earthy,
you know.” Eva knew she wasn't polished or cultured. Not like Anne, who was the director of marketing for Peece Canning Corporation. She had an MBA and had been all over the world like her brother.

Adam kneaded her palms with his thumbs. “What if I think
earthy
is beautiful?”

Eva didn't have an answer for him because her heart had just leaped into her throat, making speech impossible. Dragging her attention from their clasped hands, she looked into his eyes and got sucked in. The soft pressure of his massaging touch kept her from looking away, let alone pulling her hands back.

“You smell good.” His voice was low and richer than cream.

She had to put a stop to this before she melted into a puddle at his feet. Letting out a bark of laughter, Eva pulled free. “I can't believe you can smell anything over your
natural
fertilizer.”

Adam watched her climb into the cockpit of the smaller tractor. The stench in parts of the field was strong but not in the barn. Not when he stood close to her.

He rubbed the back of his neck. He had no business doing that, but it was getting difficult to keep his distance. Adam was definitely infatuated with his farm manager.

Not unexpected, considering that he fell into attraction pretty easily. Remaining interested after getting involved proved the tough part. Falling in love might as well be a foreign language. He didn't understand it, but maybe it was time to learn. Eva might make the perfect teacher for him. Hauling himself up into the larger John Deere, Adam put away thoughts of romancing Miss Prickly Prim. He had a job to do first.

After hours spent in the field, rain clouds rolled in and the wind picked up, making the raindrops hit the tractor cockpit like kicked-up pebbles. His cell phone rang. It was Eva.

“Yeah?”

“We might as well call it a day and finish up tomorrow. Spraying's not going to work in this wind.”

“Meet you back at the barn.” Adam ended the call and slipped his phone in his pocket.

The afternoon was shot, but Adam didn't want to go home. He'd organize the farm files that Bob Marsh had left behind and call him with any questions.

He'd like to ask Eva out but knew better. Dating her was
risky until after July when the harvest was in and success was certain. Could he hold out that long?

Once back in the barn, Eva leaped from her tractor and bounded toward him with a broad grin. “Did you see those buds?”

Blinded by the brightness of her expression and the sweetness of her smile, he couldn't recall. He was lucky to remember to cut the engine on his tractor. “Ah, yeah.”

Eva laughed. “Okay, I know they're small, but they're there. We'll have blossoms the first week of May at this rate.”

Her excitement was contagious. The fire in her eyes confirmed her passion for the orchard. Each year she'd seen the turning of nature and yet it still inspired her. She inspired him.

He slid out of the tractor's cockpit. “May's when you bring in the bees, right?”

She laughed again. “Uh-huh. I love bee time. Uncle Larry delivers the hives. We place them in the orchard and the bees do their thing for about a week or so. We get sweet cherries and honey. God knew what He was doing, didn't He?”

“Definitely,” Adam said, enraptured.

Her eyes narrowed as if she'd suddenly realized he wasn't quite keeping up. Or maybe he was staring at her like an idiot. “Ah, yeah. I have an appointment with my bank at four. Do you mind if I get a head start and leave now?”

He didn't like the pinch of disappointment he felt at her leaving. “Go ahead. I'll take care of cleanup.”

“Thanks, Peece. See you tomorrow.” Eva practically ran from the barn.

She was awfully animated for a trip to the bank. Her meeting had to be about the financing for her bed-and-
breakfast. Their recent conversations had been filled with the various spray applications needed before the leaves unfurled. If she got her loan and business up and running, how long could she stay on as his farm manager? Their contract covered only this season.

After going through the farm files and giving Bob Marsh an update over the phone, Adam locked the pole barn for the night. He climbed into his Jeep and headed home. He couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have someone waiting for him. Someone he could share his dreams with and build something that might last.

Was that even possible anymore?

Was it possible for him?

 

True to Eva's word, less than two weeks later the month of May brought blossoms and bees. Adam watched her uncle Larry gingerly douse the stacked beehives with smoke to keep them inside their wooden homes. Larry checked every box hive loaded on the flatbed truck with loving care after the five-mile trek from their place.

Adam slipped his hands into the canvas gloves Eva gave him, but he continued to watch her uncle. Bees buzzed around the man as if they knew him. No threat, no swarm. Would the colony accept a stranger like him as gently? Adam had been brought up to stay far away from bees and yet tonight he'd move a bunch of live beehives all over his sweet orchard.

“Here's a windbreaker and net hat. I suggest you wear both.” Eva's aunt Jamee nudged his shoulder.

Larry had explained when he signed the bee rental contract that they moved the hives at night, when the bees were settled in and quiet. Tonight promised to be cool with a sky sprinkled with stars, while a half moon made its appearance against the darkening horizon. Adam had dressed as
Eva directed—two pairs of socks, long-sleeved shirt and jeans. “I brought a sweatshirt.”

“Trust me, you'll want elastic around your wrists and waist. Bees can crawl under sweatshirts.”

Adam held out his hand for the gear. He didn't want to test Jamee's do-it-or-you'll-be-sorry grin any more than he wanted a run-in with a bee under his shirt.

“Nervous?” Eva gave him a cheeky grin. She wore a wide-brimmed hat covered with netting that made her look as if she was headed for a garden tea party.

“Should I be?”

“Don't bump or drop a hive. They get upset if jostled.” Larry slapped him on the back.

Great.
“I'll be gentle.”

Eva's uncle winked. “Adam, let me tell you something about bees. In some ways, they're a lot like women. Show respect for their ability, give them love and security, and they'll make sweet honey for you. Skip any of the three, and you'll get stung.”

Adam laughed. “I'll remember that.”

“See that you do.”

Adam caught the warning in Larry's words. Obviously, he didn't want to see his niece getting hurt. Adam didn't either, but good intentions didn't make the warm feelings flooding his heart any easier to ignore.

They began the slow trek into the orchard. Eva's aunt Jamee drove the flatbed at a walking pace while Larry handed down the square beehives for Adam and Eva to place.

The scents of the orchard at night filled Adam's nostrils, a heady mix of cherry blossoms and damp grass. Eva's soft scent mixed in whenever she got close. There were plenty of opportunities for Eva's shoulder to rub against his because
they positioned the hives atop wooden pallets right next to each other.

Lifting a hive from the flatbed, Adam caught sight of a bee making its merry way up his arm, and he froze. “Hey, hey, what's he going to do?”

“Careful, Adam. Don't tip the hive,” Larry said.

At that moment Adam concentrated on the bee's journey toward his face. They were lucky he didn't dump the hive, let alone care about tipping it.

“Hold still.” Eva pressed her gloved hand against Adam's shoulder until the bee walked onto her finger. “They won't hurt you. See?”

Adam watched as she gently coaxed the bee back into the hive's opening. “What if they all come out?”

She took the hive from him, her eyes shining with amusement. “That's the goal. But not tonight.”

Larry doused the remaining hives on the truck with smoke to calm them down. Adam had to admit the novelty of tonight's work had worn off. He was tired and not in the mood to get stung. Still, he couldn't help but enjoy watching Eva, who acted like a kid placing presents under a Christmas tree.

“She really loves this, doesn't she?” Adam said to her uncle.

Larry agreed. “Bee time has always been her favorite. Eva's not short on determination, that's for sure. Growing up with two older brothers has a lot to do with it.”

Adam suspected her drive grew from something else. Something that also made Eva vulnerable. He'd catch glimpses of that vulnerability every now and then. It made him work that much harder, hoping to protect her from his potential loss.