Page 33 of One Sweet Day I Found You

“Doing great. How about you?”

Oh, that smile. She was officially in trouble.

* * *

A tall,old-fashioned windmill stood in the center of the large barnyard. Courtney squinted and gazed up at it. The late morning sun was warm, and the sky a cloudless, bright blue.

The barnyard had a wide-open feel so visitors could mill about and interact with the animals, many of which wandered freely about the grounds. Small children chased chickens and lambs while parents, phones at the ready, chased the children.

The barnyard was divided into chicken coops and turkey sheds, another smaller barn, a little silo, a milk house, and another stable. Most of the buildings were a charming cherry red.

Courtney was like a kid in a candy store.

Nick motioned toward the tiny goats. “I’ve never seen anything so cute in my life. Look at them.” He held up the bag of food he’d purchased at the gift shop entrance. He pulled out some feed and scattered a little on the ground. Almost instantly, three baby goats moved in and started to nibble.

Courtney squatted down to pet the white one. “Oh, my gosh: I’m so in love.”

Nick squatted down and called to the goats. “Here you go, kids. Come and get it.”

“Excuse me—did you just call these goats your children?”

“What?” Nick laughed. “Baby goats are called kids. Come on, you knew that?”

“Oh, that’s right. I did know that. Did you know a baby kangaroo is called a joey, by the way?” Courtney stood up and Nick followed.

“I did, actually. Did you know another name for a baby goat is a billy?”

“I didnotknow that one. But now the fairy tale makes more sense. ” She wiggled an eyebrow at him. “You’re like a walking Wikipedia.”

Nick stood up, too. “Hey, I’ll teach you all the words I know for livestock. Just ask.”

Courtney grinned again. “Are there really that many?”

“You’d be surprised.”

“And where did you acquire all this knowledge? I took you for a city boy.”

“Oh, I’ve done my share of country living. Give or take.”

Courtney handed one of the goats some hay and waited for Nick to go on. The goat took it and chewed.

“No, seriously, I’m lying. I grew up in the suburbs and spent a lot of time in Chicago. Almost everything I know about farm animals comes from television and grade school.”

Courtney made a face. “Hey, at least he’s honest.”

Nick laughed.

They went to see the piglets next. Some were nursing while others roamed about small, fenced-in pens inside the barn, grunting and shaking their little behinds and looking altogether adorable. Courtney reached down to pet one, but it was quick and dashed away before she got close.

Outside, Nick grabbed some hay from a bucket. He held it out and clicked his tongue and an enormous, chocolate-brown steer ambled over. It took the hay from him through the rail fence and chewed. Nick patted it on the snout and Courtney snapped a picture.

“You may be a city boy but you look like a natural here. Should I start calling you Farmer Nick?”

“I might answer to that.”

Courtney grinned.

Nick picked up another handful of hay and fed it to the steer.

---