A Walk in the Rain

Chapter 6

As the sun rose, I arrived in front of Adam's house, ready to start my first day. I hope he shows me how to care for the chickens today. After walking up to his front door, I wring my hands, hoping to shed some of my anxiety. Before I could even knock, Adam opened the door.

"Good morning, April. We have a few things to do today." As if he had reread my mind, he said, "We can start with the easiest animal to care for, the chickens. Let me pull up the ATV quickly, and we can start. Here is this." He handed me a cup of coffee in an insulated mug. "Thank you. I love coffee," I replied as I took the mug gratefully.

As I wait for him to pull up with the ATV, I sip eagerly on my cup of coffee. I can feel the warm, magical brew warming my soul.

He pulls up in a black golf cart with a flatbed in the back with bags of feed. "Come hop on up," he said while patting the worn leather seats. We start to drive around the farmland and make it to what I assume to be the chicken coops. Three large chicken coops are painted red with white trim. "These are the primary chicken coops I use to collect eggs and raise chickens for meat. He reminded me that the barn we went to the other day was used as a baby barn, as he called it.

We get off the ATV and walk to the coops. I can't help but notice the many chickens of all different colors surrounding the place, pecking the ground and walking around. He points to a few other chickens that look bigger than the rest, with a lot of red surrounding their face. He explained how those were the roosters, and the red around their face was called a comb. As he approached a few of the chickens, I was amazed at how they began to walk up to him and follow him.

He takes me to the side of the coop and opens a latch. Inside, there were dividers with eggs between them. "This is their nesting box where we collect all the eggs. I will give you a basket to place the eggs into," he explained. Then we walk back to the front, where he shows me where the waterers and feeders are. "I'll feed and water the chickens because the feed bags and water buckets can be quite heavy." He then walks back to the ATV, hands me a large woven basket, and walks back to the ATV. I watch him as he picks up the heavy bags of feed. The muscles in his arms begin to flex as he walks towards me. He winks at me, letting me know he noticed me checking him out. My face reddens as I let out a breath of air. I didn't even realize I was holding in. He knows exactly what he is doing to me.

While he refills the feed and water, I collect all the eggs through the three identical coops. The chickens are getting used to me because a few approach me.

We hop back in, and he tells me he wants to take me on a tour through the rest of the farm. The first place we arrived at was the goats. "These are dwarf goats and fainting goats. They are friendly but will try to eat your shirt off you if you aren't careful." I watch the goats hop on top of a few different-sized stumps. "After today, I will show you how to brush them. They need brushing often as it is good for their coats. Go ahead and pet them." I get out of the ATV to pet the cute goats as I feel Adam's stare on my backside. I feel the coarse hair of a little black goat that seems to enjoy the affection.

Adam asked me if I was hungry as the day reached lunchtime, and my stomach grumbled. "Let's head back to the house so I can make us some food.

I started to get nervous again being alone in the house with Adam. It is just for lunch anyway. I don't want to be pressured into anything. As we return to the farmhouse, Adam walks towards me and grabs my hand to help me out of the ATV. He doesn't let go of my hand as we walk inside up the porch. We step inside the entryway and walk straight to the living room. There is a large TV and a grey sectional couch. On the left and right sides of the TV are large bookshelves filled with fictional and informative books on farmkeeping. "Make yourself comfortable while I make us some sandwiches," he welcomed. He heads through the right into the kitchen while I look through the books. I see a book that is about chicken health, as well as other books that talk about barrel racing. I noticed he has a few mystery books and horror books. I never took Adam as a reader.

I head back into the large entryway, go to the left, and freshen up in the guest bathroom. I walk back into the living room and sit on the soft grey couch. Adam appears and opens the large glass sliding door that leads to the back porch. I walk through the door and notice the enormous rear patio with a beautiful pasture view. He places our sandwiches on the picnic table and gestures for me to come over. I noticed that the sandwich was a deviled egg sandwich. "I used a few eggs from the ones you collected to make the sandwich. I hope you like it. Nothing tastes better than farm-fresh eggs.

He made his way back into the house and came back with two cold glasses of sweet tea. He sits across the table from me. Without saying anything, we stare deeply into each other's eyes. His face begins to redden as he starts to act shy again around me. To stop the silence, I asked him what his favorite animal is and why he likes them. "I love taking care of chickens. They are effortless to handle and care for. My chickens are friendly and enjoy my company as well. They are excellent starter farm animals for beginners as well." He begins to carry on a conversation about other animals on the farm that he enjoys being around. As he opens up, I see him relax a little more.

Adam is so cute in how shy he is. Most men that I have met are not like him at all. Not only does he love taking care of his animals, but he is also compassionate about them.

After lunch, he takes me on a tour to see the rest of the animals while he shows me how to feed and care for them. Then he drops me off back at my parents' house. Before I exit his truck, he opens the door for me. He gives me his hand to help me step out. When he releases my hand, I crave the warmth it gave me. He walked me to the door and softly kissed my forehead, which was not what I expected. He is gentle with me and doesn't seem to mind the sweat and dirt on my skin, which I am a little self-conscious about, from a hard day's work on his farm.