Boy On A Farm

Part 16

Pain burst through Ruth as the grain cart hit a rough spot in the field. Ruth gritted her teeth against the pain and tried not to cuss as the pain radiated throughout her body. The field that Ruth, Ian, Philip, and Louis were busy harvesting was one of Ruth's least favorite. It was always so rough and kept her in almost constant pain.

All Ruth could do was breath through the pain as she pulled the grain cart even with the combine. Ian was driving the combine today while Philip and Louis drove the grain trucks to the elevator and feedlot. Ruth alternated her attention between the right hand side mirror and the field in front of her. It always fascinated Ruth as she watched the combine as the grain came out of the unloader auger and into the grain cart that Ruth pulled with the tractor.

Ian emptied as much grain as the cart would hold before he shut off the auger. Ian continued on down the field while Ruth drove the tractor over to where Louis and Philip both waited with their trucks. Ruth pulled up next to Louis and began the process of emptying the grain from her grain cart into Louis' truck. Ruth kept close watch so that she didn't overfill the truck. She still had a little bit of grain left which she would put in Philip's truck.

Ruth pulled the tractor over to the side. She left it running as she climbed down from the tractor in order to stretch. Ruth had her arms over her head doing a full body stretch when a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist. Ruth settled into Philip's familiar embrace. She turned her head so that she could press a kiss to Philip's cheek.

"How are you holding up?" Philip asked as he gently nuzzled Ruth's neck.

"I hate this field. It is so rough and I am in pain for the entire day. I doubt that I will sleep much tonight because of how much I hurt."

Philip turned Ruth around so that he could study her. He ran his fingers over the lines of pain that surrounded Ruth's mouth and eyes. "I hate seeing you in such pain."

Ruth gave Philip a sad smile. "I am used to it Philip."

"You shouldn't be." Philip studied Ruth before he spoke. "I have some ligament oil that might help. I can give you a full body massage tonight and see if that helps."

"If I am not too tired," Ruth said as she pulled away from Philip. "I better call Rachel and have her bring us lunch."

"Will Ben and Curtis be with her?"

Ruth looked up at Philip as she pulled her phone out. "Of course. They always come out and run the combine while we eat. I think they like running such big machinery."

Ruth sent a quick text to Rachel. Rachel answered almost immediately that she was on her way with food and the two knuckleheads were with her.

"It looks like Ian is about full again," Philip commented as he studied the distant combine.

Ruth shaded her eyes. "Looks like you're right. I might hate this field, but it gives us the highest yields."

Philip caught Ruth as she went to walk by him. He gave her a sizzling kiss before he let her go. "I cannot wait to get my hands on you tonight."

Ruth blushed scarlet. "You make it sound like we are going to have sex."

The look Philip gave Ruth made her squirm. "I would like nothing more, but the time is not right."

Ruth didn't trust herself to speak so she didn't say anything as she walked back over to the tractor. She scaled the stairs easily and shut the door cutting down on the noise from the tractor. Ruth started across the field to where Ian was waiting for her. Ruth tried not to wince as the tractor bumped over the rough ground. Maybe after this year she would actually think of buying a newer model tractor. They could use a second one and it would keep this tractor around. Ruth still couldn't bear to part with the old thing.

Ruth sucked in a sharp breath as she pulled up next to Ian. The tractor held happy memories of farming with her deceased family. The memories were bittersweet because every time they cropped up, it brought home the fact that they were gone. Ruth swallowed the lump in her throat and pushed the memories aside as she pulled up next to Ian. Now was not the time to wallow in the sorrow that seemed to creep up on Ruth at random times. There would be time later tonight to reflect upon her family.

Ian motioned for Ruth to wait for him once the grain cart was full. Ruth waited until Ian was hanging onto the steps to the tractor. He gave Ruth a thumbs up. Ruth gave him an okay sign before she carefully made her way over to the trucks. Rachel's new jeep was there and Ruth could see Ben and Curtis talking to Philip and Louis. Rachel waved at Ruth and Ian as Ruth parked the tractor and shut it off. Ian opened the door for Ruth before he jumped to the ground.

Rachel was waiting with plates full of fried chicken, baked beans, coleslaw, and pasta salad. Ian kissed Rachel on the cheek as he took his plate from her. Ruth gave Rachel a grateful look as she accepted her plate. Ruth dug into her food as she listened to Ben and Curtis talking about some game that was going to happen next week.

Ruth was grateful for Rachel, Ben, and Curtis. They had been her support system when Ian had been away. Ruth let her eyes roam over those three and then over Ian, Philip, and Louis. Ruth might have lost most of her birth family, but she had her found family and they were here to prop her up when things got too hard.

"Are you okay?"

Ruth gave Philip as happy smile. "I just realized that, for the first time in a long time, I am truly happy. I might have lost my parents and most of my siblings, but I still have family." Ruth motioned to the others. "And I have you."

Philip wrapped an arm around Ruth's waist and gave her a lingering kiss. "You will always have me."

"I don't plan on letting you get away," Ruth murmured before she brushed her lips against Philips.