Page 12 of Cole's Joy
“I believe, but don’t quote me, but I believe that I might be in charge of the community garden that Ann mentioned. Also, the community pantry. I used to can and I’ve talked briefly with Ducky about his wife’s supplies. Mine are already packed.”
“I have a question,” Ryan said, then reminded her who he was. “I’m Ryan, and I’m dating Pru. I love that woman and would do everything to protect her. However, Pru suffers from TBI and sometimes she goes off on a tangent. Just like I just did.” He laughed at himself and sobered quickly. “Anyway, Pru has eggs, she gives all of the others at least a dozen or two aday, and she even sells them to the local B&B in town. She will probably bring some over to you. What I’m trying to say is that just recently Pru mentioned that her chickens could benefit from eating herbs. Before I go purchase them, I want to know if that’s true?”
“It is, my goal is as soon as I get the greenhouses cleaned out and set up the way I want them, I’m going to start herbs. If all goes well, they will grow all winter, and come spring, I can pass out the different pots of them to everyone. Just like Pru shared the eggs, I can share the herbs. I can even put in a patch of them that she can pick from to feed to the chickens.”
“Can we do something different?”
“What did you have in mind?”
“I’m not saying this to be mean, but sometimes if Pru has a bad day, she forgets more than she remembers. Is there a way to somehow come up with a mix of herbs that all she has to do is shake over their food?”
“Yes, there is,” Lois said with a smile and saw the relief come over his face. “Most of it is packed now, but over the years, I’ve taken some herbs, dried them, and then crushed them for my own use. You know the jars of spices you get in the store?” At their confused look, she laughed. “Parsley, basil, rosemary, oregano, thyme?”
“Yes, oh my god, are you saying you make your own?”
“I do, and those herbs I just mentioned happen to be good for the chickens. Once I get to Colorado and unpacked, I can put a mixture together for you and Pru.”
“I don’t want you to use up your supply,” Ryan said, then scowled when she started laughing. She rose to her feet and walked to a stack of boxes and pointed to six of them. “What is that?”
“My spices. All dried, and all crushed up. I went out and purchased the same size bottles so they were easy to store,and perfect for packing.” She opened the top unsealed box and brought out two large jars. “You see six boxes here, but these are three deep, so there are eighteen boxes here. Each box holds two dozen jars, and each box is one herb.”
“Why do you have so many jars?”
“My own plants were over grown and instead of letting it go to seed, I trimmed them down, dehydrated the herbs, then crushed them. The plants themselves are in another box, and they will continue to grow once I get them to Colorado.” She looked at the shock on their faces. “Trust me.”
“Wow,” Ryan said and continued toeat. After breakfast, Lois shooed them out of the kitchen, and led them to a room full of boxes. She told them that they had to be packed in the truck, and as she cleaned up, Cole took them out to the sheds. It turned out they wanted to load the equipment first, then pack the boxes around the tools. As they worked, Lois cleaned the kitchen and finished packing what Cole had started. By the time Laurie and Duane made it over there late afternoon, everything was pretty much packed and the only thing left were the two beds, the bedding, the towels, and the food in the refrigerator. Laurie said she’d bring her coolers over the next day, and instead of unpacking the dishes, they opted to order pizza for the night. When Lois went to bed that night, it didn’t take her long to fall asleep, unlike the night before when all she would picture was what Cole would look like without a shirt on, and if he slept naked, in his underwear, or in pajamas.
The next day, they finished packing the entire house, and the last items loaded on the back of the truck was the refrigerator, along with the washer and dryer. Lois had a small overnight bag in the front of the truck, and the men did some moving around and were able to hook up her car to the dolly. By noon, she and Cole pulled out of her driveway and headed west. They got the call that the others were only two hours behind themwith Lorissa and her things. It turned out that because of all the farrier equipment she had, they ended up renting a small truck for her household items and what wouldn’t fit in her truck. By the time they caught up with everyone somewhere in Ohio, it was good that the three men had come along. Two that were passengers would take turns helping driving. They only spent the night for one night, and were able to make the entire trip in two days.
Exhausted, but excited at the same time, Lois laughed when Cole drove the rental truck onto the property and she didn’t know whether she was shocked, excited, or expected everyone to be there waiting for them. It didn’t take long for everything to be unloaded and the men set up the washer and dryer, the refrigerator, and left the boxes where they had been labeled to go. When Cole pulled out, he was with the other men when they drove into Colorado Springs to return the trucks. The day after unpacking the trucks, Lois sat in her messy house feeling giddy and like a schoolgirl for the first time in decades. She called out at the knock on the door, expecting it to be Lorissa, but was shocked to see Cole enter her home.
“Aren’t you supposed to be at work?”
“Probably, but I went in, viewed the schedule, passed out assignments, then came here to help you.” He shook his head and held up his hand. “I have never taken a vacation since starting to work for Naomi’s grandparents forty years ago. The only time I took off was when I came out to help you move here. I’m here to help you. I think if I do what I did this morning, I can help you during the day. I’m not saying this next part to anger you, or to upset you, but New Double needs help. The others are filling in, and we’re making do. With that said, they can get through the day without me being there. Hell, most of the day I’m in my office or standing around and watching the construction going on. I’m the manager, and I manage.” Hegrinned at her laugh and welcomed the cup of coffee she handed him.
For the next week, he was there every day and after three days, everything was unpacked and put away to both their satisfaction.
CHAPTER 6
Cole lookedup at the knock on his office door and didn’t know whether he wanted to talk to the man standing there or not. “Come in, Clem,” he said as he tossed his pen on the papers and leaned back in his chair. He waited until the other man filled his own cup of coffee and settled down in the chair across from him. “What’s up?”
“Nothing much, I haven’t seen you around here lately, and I was wondering what was up with you?”
Cole shrugged, then shook his head. “Just working here and helping a lady out.”
“Are you dating Lois Gibson?”
“Is that really any of your business, Clem?”
“No, but I don’t want to see you hurt.”
“Really, is that really what you’re going to discuss with me? After everything we’ve been through, you’re worried about me being hurt by a wonderful woman?” When Clem looked away, Cole chuckled, and asked the question he thought would get to the root of Clem’s concern. “Or are you jealous that I saw her first.”
“Fine, yes, that’s it. I can tell you right now that you don’t have anything to worry about when it comes to Lois.”
“What does that mean?” Cole sat forward to demand. “What did you do?”
“Nothing bad, but I went over to talk to her. She was inside her home, but when I started asking questions, instead of inviting me in, she came out and talked to me outside. I thought it was strange, but when I called her on it, she told me she didn’t invite strangers into her home. I also asked what about you, and she said you weren’t a stranger. I know it sounds bad, but I wanted to make sure she liked you for you, and not for your money.”
