The Stable Boy (12 page)

“Hold her tail up,” Josh said. I did what he asked. He plunged both hands into Beatrice. He found the calf and turned it a little at a time. Turning it too fast could hurt the mother and the calf. Beatrice let out another cry.

“It’s okay, girl,” I said, stroking her stomach. “It will all be okay.”

He turned the calf around. Josh pulled his hands out of her. His arms were covered in blood and mucus. Beatrice gave one push and the calf hit the ground back end first. The calf laid there at Josh’s feet for a minute. Beatrice turned around and began cleaning it. Josh stepped to the side. I went into the barn and grabbed some towels. Soaking them down with the hose by the barn, I washed one of Josh’s arms off.

“Thank you,” he said.

“You’re welcome,” I said. “You completely reminded me of John when you did that. He would have known just what to do, too.”

“It is the life of a farmer. We all know what to do when it comes to the animals. People on the other hand, we are pretty clueless,” he said with a smile. I wiped off his other arm as the calf tried to stand for the first time. “They are always so cute when they first try to stand.”

“I know, their little wobbly legs trying to figure out what to do,” I said as the calf fell. “Poor little thing.”

“Come on,” said Josh. “Try again. I know you can do it.”

The little calf got up with its legs splayed too far apart. Slowly, it brought its legs inward one at a time. It was finally upright. Beatrice gave it a lick as a form of congratulations. The calf wobbled, but remained upright. It took one hesitant step toward Josh, then another. It nudged Josh’s hand with its head. Josh petted the calf.

“I think it is thanking you,” I said. “You get to choose a name.”

“Really,” he said.

“Yes, you helped Beatrice out, you can name her calf.”

“First, we need to figure out if it is a girl or a bull.”

“That would help in the name department.”

“Yes, it would,” he said. We watched the calf walk around. “This may take me a couple of days, but it will have a name.”

“Okay,” I said. “You let me know when you have it and I will register it with the Department of Agriculture.”

“Okay,” he said. We watched it walk along with Beatrice. The other cows came over to it and sniffed it. The two other calves came over to it. They wanted to play. The newest member of the farm was a little hesitant, much like the horses are when they are first born. It stuck close to Beatrice’s side. This was a typical behavior for at least 24 hours. They were unsure of the world around them. Once they became used to the smells, sights and sounds of the farm, then they became a little more comfortable and would explore their area.

“You may want to come in and really wash your arms off,” I said.

“Yeah,” he said. “That is a great idea.”

“I will get you the soap John used to use when he helped birth an animal.”

“Okay,” he said as we began walking back to the house. He went to the kitchen sink. I went to the hall closet to get the soap.  We always kept it there so it would be close by. I returned to the kitchen to see he has stripped off his shirt. A shiver ran down my spine. He had the water running in the sink when I got there.  He put his arms under the faucet, wetting them down. I handed him the soap. He vigorously scrubbed his hands and arms. “My grandfather had this same soap. He said it was good for everything that needed a good cleaning.”

“John used to say the same thing. He swore by this soap. He even made sure we had the powder form to go into the laundry for his clothes,” I said, leaning up against the counter.

“Grandpa was the same way. It was more expensive than the average detergent, but it got the job done.”

“I am going to need to start buying it again. I stopped once John passed away. There was no need for it, but with you here it will be a necessity,” I said smiling at him. He smiled, drying off his arms. Placing his arms on either side of me, he moved his hard, half naked body up against mine. I stared into his eyes seeing the love or lust he was feeling at that moment.  I kissed him tenderly. He returned the kiss, wrapping his arms around me. He pulled away.

“I need to get back out there. There is a lot of work to be done,” he said, not moving.

“Yes, there is,” I said, not letting go of him. He leaned in and kissed me again, slowly pulling away.

“I really do need to go,” he said, grabbing his shirt from the counter. He put back on. Turning away, he headed for the door. Looking back at me, he shyly smiled. “I’ll be on the tractor if you need me.”

“Okay,” I said, still standing there. I watched him through the window. He was running toward the tractor. The baby calf was following him as fast as its little legs could carry it. I laughed. It seemed taken with him. ‘You’re not the only one, little one,’ I thought. I went back upstairs to finish my work for the day. Looking out the office window, I could see Josh on the tractor. Watching him made me think of John. He loved being out on the tractor. I smiled at the happy memory instead of tears forming. That was the first time remembering John did not make me sad. I sat back in my chair, relaxing a little. ‘Having Josh around may be a good thing after all,’ I thought.

I went back to typing. I knew this work needed to be done by Wednesday, but I had barely put a dent in it. I was able to get four of the ten files completed before it was time to make dinner. Going down stairs, I saw Josh getting things from the refrigerator. He was pulling out what I was planning on making.

“Hey,” I said.

“Hey,” he said. “I’ll make dinner tonight. I know that you are behind on your work and that is my fault for distracting you. So, why don’t you go up stairs and get as much as you can done before dinner is done. I will call you when it is ready.”

“Okay,” I said. “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes,” he said. “Now, go before I don’t let you walk away.”

“Okay,” I said, heading toward the stairs. As I started up the stairs
. I looked at him. He was already busy. As I made it to the office door, I heard the radio turn on. I smiled, wondering if he was dancing around the kitchen. I left the office door open so I could hear the music as I worked. It made the work go faster as I finished three files within an hour. I was going to need to play music as I worked for now on. I snuck down the stairs to fourth step. I sat down and watched him cook. He was not dancing, but he did sing. He was singing along with Darius Rucker’s “Southern State of Mind.” I had to keep from singing it myself as I watch him.

“Hey,” he said, turning around. “I thought you were going to work?”

“I did,” I said. “I only have three files to do tomorrow, and then I am done for the week.”

“Good,” he said. “At least
, you don’t have too much to do tomorrow. Dinner is ready.”

“Great,” I said. “I am starving.”

“Me too,” he said. “I am never as hungry as I am tonight.”

“Well, we did not exactly eat lunch.”

“No, we didn’t, did we?” he said with a laugh.

“No, we were a little busy.”

“Yes, we were. The calf has been following me around all day.”

“Have you decided on a name?”

“Not yet,” he said. “It is a girl, though.”

“Well that will make it a bit easier.”

“Yeah, I am thinking of two different names. I am just not sure which one I prefer yet.”

“Which names,” I said, taking a fork full of macaroni and cheese.

“Cassie or Delilah,” he said.

“Hmm,” I said. “I am not sure what would better suit her.”

“Me either,” he said. “I’ll wait until tomorrow, maybe her actions will let me decide on the best name for her.”

“Maybe, it is too early to tell what name will fit her best. Within the next day or two she will be more rambunctious.”

“Yeah, I always like when they are just beginning to get the lay of the land. They are so curious about everything.”

“Yes, they are.”

“I don’t think they are much different than human babies in that aspect.”

“No, I don’t think they are. I remember being there when my sister gave birth to my nephew. He was so curious about everything. Always looking around and trying to tou
ch things.”

“Have you called your sister or brother, yet?”

“Not yet,” I said. “I will. I promise. I will do it before the end of the week.”

“Okay,” he said, clearing his plate from the table. “I’m going to take a shower. Do you want to watch a movie later?”

“Sure, you find something to watch and I will make the popcorn.”

“Sounds like a plan,” he said, leaning down to kiss me before he went down the hallway. I cleared dishes from the table, rinsing them off and placing them in the dishwasher. I went to reach for the phone and realized that the receiver was still in my office. I ran up the stairs to retrieve it. Picking it up, I dialed my sister’s number.

“Hello?” said the young voice on the other end.

“Hey there, my little green eyed wonder,” I said smiling.

“Auntie Claire?” said Nathan.

“Yes, honey, it is me.”

“I miss you, Auntie Claire. When are you going to come to see me?”

“I will come and visit soon,” I said.

“Promise?” he asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“What about Christmas? Will you come then?”

“We will see
. Is your mom home?”

“Yes,” he said. “Hang on; I will take the phone to her.”

“Okay,” I said.

“Mom, it is for you,” he said.

“Who is it?” I heard Jane ask.

“Aunt Claire,” he said.

“Hello?” Jane said into the receiver.

“Hi, Janie,” I said. “How are you?”

“I am fine,” she said, a little hesitant. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, I am great. I am sorry for never returning your phone calls after John passed away. I just did not know what to say to anyone or how to go on living my life.”

“I would have helped you through that you know. It is what big sisters are for.”

“I know, but you had your own life to live. I could not take you away from it.”

“I was worried about you, Claire.”

“I know you were. I am doing well, now, though. I just recently started to feel like myself.”

“That is great to hear. We all miss you.”

“I miss you guys, too. Nathan asked me when I was coming to visit him.”

“Well, when are you?”

“Not you, too,” I said with a laugh.

“Yes, me too,” she said. “We would all like to see you.”

“Nathan asked about Christmas. I told him I would have to see about that.”

“What is there to see? You are family and you should be with us for Christmas.”

“Like I told him, I will have to see.”

“Alright, alright, I will stop pressuring you about it. How are things on the farm?”

“Good, Beatrice, one of my cows
, had her calf this morning. It was breached. Josh had to turn it.”

“Josh? Who is Josh? I thought your farmhand’s name was David?”

“Oh, well it was, but he fell madly in love and left a few months ago. I have been trying to run the farm on my own, but it was not working out that well. I have an unruly colt who likes to break my fences and take off. Josh was working for Bob and Alison. He brought the colt back to me and seeing the state of the farm offered his services to me.”

“I know you were struggling with money or at least trying to conserve as much as possible without John there. Are you making enough to pay him?”

“I pay him with food. He only asked for a hot meal and a place to sleep.”

“I don’t like the sounds of that, Claire.”

“It’s okay. He is a very nice person. Remember those pickles you had when you came for a visit while you were pregnant with Nathan. The ones after you went home, you craved so bad that I had to send you some?”

“Oh my yes, I still think about them,” she said with a laugh.

“That was Josh’s grandfather. Both his grandparents passed away and the bank took the house for taxes, which Josh did not know a thing about. He was working for the Everett’s and they swear by him. He has already planted the winter crop, fixed the fences, tamed my unruly colt, and helped Beatrice out. He has only been here for a little over a week.”

“It sounds like he is a lot like John.”

“He is. There are certain things he does that remind me of John.”

“Really, that has to be hard?”

“It was, but it is getting easier. I found myself thinking of John today and smiling instead of crying. I still miss him, terribly, but it is getting easier to smile at his memories.”

“You sound like you are doing better, Claire. That makes me happy. I am sure that Michael will be happy to hear from you, too. You should call him.”

“I plan on it. I love you, Janie. I promise to call you at least once a week from now on.”

“Okay, that is a great idea.”