Growing Pains
I need to go debrief with Lex about the LA trip, but he can wait one damn day while I rest and
reacclimatize to the humidity.
Or he could call and wheedle me into inviting him over for a semi-working dinner. Since that
means he has to hike halfway across the city and I don't, I let him win this round. A flurry of text
messages with Jess gives her the day off if she'll be on the hook for the few hours or less that Lex
will be here. Frankly, I need her memory for the boring minutiae. Ask me to cure cancer -and I
need to get back to that project someday- and I can make a dent. Ask me about the finicky details
of endless meetings? That's where Jess' brilliant abilities save my ass.
So that leaves me with a day off and Sam's enigmatic smile that has me dragging her off to the
bedroom for a romp and a nap. Due to the nature of our shared business, we're more nocturnal, and
I look forward to getting back on schedule. It makes weekends with the girls home a bit of a
challenge, but we've managed for years now.
Relaxed and soothed by my lover's touch, I wallow in the bed against the lanky warmth of her for
some time. We're an odd pair, Sam and I. It's love, but never said, we're dedicated to one another
and our daughters, but still randomly seduce other women. Admittedly, the vast majority of the
time, it's a pleasurable tag team that gets rid of the itch for something new, and we remain side by
side. We're best friends and business partners with skills like water that flows to fill the cracks of
weakness in one another.
Yet… I have never shaken that feeling that Sam still shies away from being anchored down, no
matter that she would never go. It's a direct result of a cold mother and being thrown out, sixteen
and pregnant, to fend for herself. There are things I know about my Sam she has never shared with
anyone else, things that make me ache for her, and I can see the dark corners she will most likely
never give voice to.
At least those shadows are far from her now, boneless and sound asleep in our familiar bed.
Kissing her forehead, I squirm away and resist the small noise of want she makes and curls around
my pillow. Seductive thing!
Cleaning up and dressing casually, I slip out of the bedroom and sit down with my carry-on bag
and phone to get myself sorted out. It doesn't take long -after all, I have the world's best assistant-
and I find myself with some time to kill.
Somewhat guiltily, my eye immediately strays to the little icon for my internet browser.
I know I promised Ruby that I'd wait for whatever this 'dinosaur' nonsense is, but when exactly did
it take place? That's as good an excuse as I'm going to get and sends me scrambling for my new
obsession. Scrolling over the rows of playlists, I see that there is indeed one marked, 'I Think We
Have Dinosaurs'. Well, at least they weren't messing with me, the adorable brats. Luckily for me,
there are still videos before that.
Should I do it?
Can I resist?
Watch a half dozen of the videos for Rainbow Haven Acres and one thing becomes crystal clear.
Alex is tough as nails, but has the heart of a Disney paladin.
It shows in how she both encourages and coddles Kara, in how she clocks the often volatile Lucy's
moods, adopts shy Nia as her new little sister, and banters with the introverted Brainy. She works
like a draft horse with no complaint, picks up skills as fast as she can switch out tools for a task and
somehow still looks sexy even when filthy and exhausted.
You show me any woman who is attracted to other women in whole or in part, and I'll bet my
family empire that 99% find that combination of tough and sweet a panty-dropper. That crooked
smile and the brown eyes that look like they could grow your soul in that dark loamy color and,
yeah, it's probably a good thing she's a continent away.
Really, this silly internet crush is getting out of control…
But I click on the next video anyway.
Lucy strikes again… and we suffer some growing pains. April 2.
12949 views
Rainbow Haven Acres
Published on April 8, 2017
After an exhausting April Fool's Day where Lucy had gotten on Alex's last nerve, she
was hardly surprised how tentatively Brainy stuck his head into her makeshift shop.
"Umm, Alex?"
Despite his being a bit of an oddball, Alex liked the lad well enough and gentled her
natural intensity as she turned to smile faintly. "Yeah?"
"Ummm, I have received a phone call from Lucy. She's insistent that we bring the
truck and trailer to an address provided. She was very excited about it."
Torn between curiosity and wanting to throw a circular saw in frustration, Alex rubbed
at the bridge of her nose for a moment. For all of her best friend's foibles, she was
careful in her demands. So Alex breathed deep and set aside her tools.
"Lead the way."
Warmly dressed and ready for anything, the four of them gathered their things and
piled into the king cab. Driving the big workhorse of a truck had not at all lost its
appeal and Alex always thrilled at having control over such a powerful machine. The
address provided was only about five miles away, but it was a winding route past town
and to the next valley over. Winter's grip was tighter where there were no strong
updrafts from the plains below to mitigate the cold just a bit. Luckily for Alex's
nerves, their destination was close by, a large cleared area speckled with farm
infrastructure far more industrial than their homestead.
"Okay, Lane, what have you done now?"
As though conjured by Alex's mutter, Lucy trotted out of a dumpy little office trailer
and waved them over. A heavily bundled-up figure stuck his head out of the trailer,
shook it, and vanished inside again. Lucy was literally bouncing with nervous energy,
barely waiting for the others to pile out of the truck before she was babbling away.
"This is a defunct farming venture I found out about and rushed over here. Luckily, I
caught the bank officer in charge of the repossession and made him an offer. Behold
our new tractor!"
It was a bigger, beefier version of the unit they had already, only bright red-orange and
marked 'Kubota' instead of 'John Deere'. Alex raised a brow and the younger three
were stereo confusion. It deflated Lucy just a bit, but she shook it off.
"Look, this model of tractor runs forty K brand new, and this thing is in near-new
condition. I offered the guy full price for it in exchange for permission to ransack the
property for whatever is left. And for us? There's plenty. There's three wooden
buildings and a couple of sheds in decent shape I want to strip to their foundations, and
enough chicken gear to satisfy any scale operation we'll ever want to aim for. There's
also quite a lot of cattle panels and that sort of shit that could be valuable if we can get
to it. And!"
Moving to the side, Lucy gestured grandly to a quartet of large hoop houses, industrial
plastic stretched taut over curved metal supports to create warm environments in a
cold land.
"Your greenhouses slash coops. The bank repossesses the land on the nineteenth,
which leaves us sixteen days to make my money count."
"Forty K," Alex deadpanned. "You must be about tapped out, huh?"
Sheepish and nervous, Lucy yanked off her beanie to ruffle her shaggy hair before
pulling it back on. "Yeah, I am officially broke. Sorry. I don't mean to make things
hard or weird, but it was a deal I couldn't pass up."
The younger three remained quiet as mice as Alex looked over the mentioned
buildings and hoop houses and the big orange tractor. It was quite a haul, even if they
were going to have to start leaning more heavily on her own savings now.
"Too bad this didn't come along before the sheds and saloon, eh?"
Relieved to not get yelled at, Lucy relaxed with a shuddering breath and nodded. She
didn't resist being pulled into a big bear hug that Kara, Nia and Brainy dogpiled onto.
"You still network like a lawyer," Alex teased fondly.
"What can I say, old habits die hard."
"Still, for fuck sake, Luce, no more surprises. You've clearly set us up for life here."
"Deal."
The flatbed trailer that came with the tractor was far too big and heavy for Lucy's
SUV, so they swapped out trailers. There wasn't a lot of wiggle room as the trailer was
dangerously heavy with the big tractor and a whole mess of large attachments that
included a scoop excavator, snowblower, plow, grapple and the same sort of tow
mower the John Deere had. It still wasn't enough weight to faze the 3500, though Alex
was careful to not wander from clearly designated driving areas. Getting unstuck
would be nearly impossible with the heavily laden trailer behind. The truck flatbed and
the small trailer left plenty of room and the two vehicles caravanned around to fill up
with whatever loose stuff they could find.
And there was plenty of it: piles of fencing, buckets, pipe, racks of filthy but perfectly
serviceable nest boxes, sheets of corrugated metal, and all manner of lumber.
Strapping it all down beneath tarps, the gang headed home to haphazardly unload the
whole mess around the tent and behind the barn. Then they gathered proper gear and
headed back to get some real work done.
These people are nuts, I swear. Still, my fascination doesn't wane. Back at the defunct farm, they
enter a large, low shed-barn-thingie with a steel skeleton like geometric ribs and a steel skin that
needs a bath and some new paint, the hinges of the door squealing dryly. There's no missing how
the women wince and wrinkle their noses up, though the only comment is Nia's very calm, "yikes."
Yikes is right. Things rustle and skitter away in the deep, disgusting mess of old straw, feathers and
manure that looks to be knee-deep.
"Well, the bones seem sound, the siding in particular." Nia adds and fearlessly stomps into the
mess while Brainy's camera tracks her. She looks at Lucy, her expression thoughtful. "You did say
stripped to their foundations, right? I'd say you've gotten your money's worth in this building alone.
It would have cost around forty grand even used, at least. Unless the footings are rusted out,
everything else should be a doable fix, though it's going to be a ton of disgusting, backbreaking
work." A brilliant grin breaks over the girl's face. "Life sure isn't boring with you guys. We'd better
get goggles and good respirators for this one."
There is a relieved murmur of agreement and they move on to the next building, dented and filthy
with dirt and what looks like oil. There are metal and wood racks everywhere, scattered machine
parts and stained cardboard boxes here and there. This time it's Alex that looks around and her
expression is the same as Nia's had been, seeing something that the others do not. And that
includes me.
"Hey, Brainy? Didn't you say that the saloon was going to be too small a space to be truly useful?"
"I did. Adequate enough for perhaps an office or a single workspace, but no more."
"What if we combined this with it? Y'know, squish them close, chop out an adjoining door and
really get a good space going."
I can visualize the lad's blink as the camera wobbles in his looking around. Sure enough, the point
of view changes to what is Kara's phone by everyone's position and Brainy is indeed taking careful
note of their surroundings. The shop, barn, shed, whatever it is, looks to be some twentyish feet
wide and half again that deep, a set of garage doors at the far end and a set of dangerously open
stairs leading to a second floor. I can see that it would provide quite a lot of workspace and Brainy
smiles faintly.
"I believe that would be most adequate, yes."
It's a sweet ending and I immediately tap on part two. Kara narrates over pieced-together footage
from handheld and drone cameras of the team busily tearing down various buildings and fences.
"So, as you saw in the last video, we have our work cut out for us. There isn't a lot that got
recorded because we were so busy, but we got enough to give you all an overview. The worst part
was definitely the chicken barn." The disgust in Kara's disembodied voice is both hilarious and
makes me shudder in sympathy. "Luckily, Nia was one hundred percent right that the building is in
good shape under the grime, and what is wrong with it is an easy fix! Though I'm with Alex in
spending the money for a good power washer with a self-heating function, 'cause eeeew! So
between the second and eighteenth, we were in hyper-spastic go-go-go mode, as you can see. It
would have been easier if the weather could figure out it's spring! It snowed twice while we were
there. Twice! Can you believe it? It's April already, for pete sake. Then there's the near-constant
rain making things interesting, though at least we've been spared ice… mostly."
Oh, the poor California girl. It's adorable.
"I guess I get now why people never shut up about the weather. Anyway! At the end of this, we'll
show you the piles back at our place. It's pretty impressive."
I watch them rip out what looks like miles of chainlink fencing and stacks and stacks of those big
sheets of welded wire that look like fencing… what were they called again? Cattle panels! That
was it. There's also several trailer loads of heavier fence panel sections of thick tube steel that look
like they could slow down a tank. They take down a full four smaller sheds, the two larger shedbarns,
reduce three more buildings to lumber and naked concrete foundations, and drag off a
random assortment of water tanks, two of which are on wheels! Once the infrastructure has been
stripped away, they go for piles of soil and mulch and even soggy heaps of weather-stained straw
bales.
There's finally a break in the sped-up action, which I'm grateful for as it was starting to get
headache-inducing. Kara explains that Alex looks so annoyed because their forgotten preorder of
chicks have shown up and, of course, the team isn't at all ready. So a big cardboard box is brought
out and a dented heat lamp and filthy feeders and waterers from their stash that makes even Nia
wince to scrub out. The post office hands over a packing box alive with peeping chicks loud even
on the video recording, a stop at the well-stocked general store that thankfully has the right kind of
feed for the beasties and back home again. The fluffs are adorable on their oversized feet… but the
noise!
The next day it becomes apparent that the grouchy moods are devolving into something more than
exhaustion and filth. Lucy and Alex both irritably press on in stark contrast to their usual moods,
not helped when Lucy's ex shows up just the day before they have to evacuate the other property.
Lucy clearly refuses to deal with the pretty, sad-eyed Maggie, and a quietly irritated Alex sics her
on several disgusting tasks. Then it's the eighteenth and they scrape up what they can as darkness
closes in and they leave the other farm behind for good.
No shock that the epilog is the besties bundled up in the big tent that is their clubhouse now, being
fussed over by their family and clearly sick with colds. Lucy has wrapped herself around Maggie,
who pets her tenderly, while Alex has her feet propped up on the chick brooder, warming her toes.
Kara plays cards with her sister and Brainy while Nia plies the whole gang of them with chunky
chicken soup and hot tea before joining the quiet game. Eventually Alex falls asleep on her sister,
just as Lucy has on Maggie. Brainy and Nia flirt shyly and the chicks finally settle into quiet. As
the video ends on that soft note, I am once again caught up in that feeling of being there.
I find myself wanting the connection they all share, the adventure that they're on. I still don't
understand it, but I can't deny it if I wanted to.
LL Not-Your-Neck-Of-The-Woods 1 minute ago
You all work so hard, it's a wonder it took this long to fall to illness. Did the cuddles
help? It looks so cozy.
Since I've already watched the 'Playing Chicken' playlist, I get to skip ahead. Which is a good
thing, because I want to be caught up for the girls this weekend as Ruby was excited about this
dinosaur nonsense! But there's still a lot of ground to cover, so I grab a snack and take advantage of
Sam sleeping. With a couple of the relatively healthy cookies she bakes and a mug of coffee, I
settle in with laptop to immerse myself again.
No barn is complete without one! April 27 & 28
10560 views
Rainbow Haven Acres
Published on May 3, 2017
While building the hoop houses and the connecting coop for the growing chicks, the
barn had been understandably neglected. Still, Alex knew her space well enough that
she could tell there was an interloper. Whatever it was, Jerkbutt wasn't upset, so
probably a squirrel or cat or something. Borrowing a live-catch trap from a neighbor
without telling anyone about it netted results the very first night.
"Well hi there," Alex said quietly as she crouched beside the rattling trap alive with
baleful growling. Sure enough, it was a cat, fluffed up and black as night. Even with
hair on end, it was obviously a she due to the bulk around the middle of her small
frame. "Looks like I got to you at the right time, pretty girl."
The soft tone seemed to calm the cat somewhat and Alex wondered if she had once
belonged to a human family. Well, she would be more than welcome here! Still, she
looked too unnerved for a lot of attention. After releasing the alpaca herd to their
paddock for the day, she found a tray to put water in and tilt a corner of the trap into.
Not an ideal situation, but it would do. After tucking the cat out of the way in the hay
bales, Alex headed in for breakfast. A discreet word to Nia had a little container of
plain scrambled eggs to offer before her morning chores.
It wasn't hard to stay busy at the farm, but they had all gotten good at figuring out the
basics of getting things done. So come about nine am, Alex asked to borrow Lucy's car
and allowed Brainy to shadow her to get a bit of film on their newest animal. She was
far calmer, if not utterly suspicious, golden eyes huge in her face. Even better, most of
the egg was gone. Alex was thrilled. Brainy took his bit of film, left Alex with a fullycharged
GoPro and vanished once more.
"Okay, kitty, let's get you checked over."
Quiet as a shadow and gaze nearly unblinking, the cat stuck to her corner and barely
moved. The veterinarian was in the next town down-mountain and a bit of a drive
away, but eventually the odd pair were seated in the waiting room, Alex's jacket tossed
over the trap to shield her new friend from the curiosity of a pair of dogs already there.
With a little time to kill, Alex pulled the camera out and spoke softly to it. "So, we're
waiting for the doc, and the kitty seems to be okay. I think she must have known
people to have settled down so fast. I hope she'll be able to stay with us. A cat would
be welcome."
She didn't film the exam, because what professional wanted that? Kitty fought and
growled a bit, but a good grip on her scruff had her out and being checked over. Within
the hour, kitty had been cleaned up, treated for the usual parasites, checked for a chip,
given a plastic collar with 'Danvers' written on it and been placed in an oversized pet
carrier Alex happily bought off of the clinic. They agreed to keep her in a quiet corner
while Alex did some shopping, her mind racing how to keep her new friend safe and
healthy.
Thankfully, she had a whole barn to work with.
A trip to the hardware store followed by the feed store had everything Alex needed
and some basics for the farm as well. Then she went back for her new cat and the good
food she could buy from the veterinary practice. It wasn't a cheap day to be sure, but
the thrill of the animal needing her and kittens on the way had Alex as excited as a
proper auntie.
Back at the farm, Alex slipped the big carrier into one of the empty stalls amidst the
stored supplies and snuck in dishes of food and water before leaving her charge alone.
Then it was lunchtime and telling the others.
As expected, Kara was alive with excitement, the others completely intrigued.
"So I have an idea for her, if you guys could give me a hand. Grab staple guns, wire
cutters and some scrap wood. We're building a kitty corral!"
The south-southwest side of the old barn exited out to the paddock and contained the
oversized stall the alpaca and Jerkbutt packed into at night. But that was only one side
of the wide center aisle. On the other side of the exterior door was a makeshift gate to
keep the camelids in their space. Behind that gate was another oversized stall. With
rolls of sturdy welded wire that made half inch squares, Alex planned on sealing the
entire thing up. With all of them working as a team, they had the wire sheets stapled
tight from stall walls to ceiling joists in short order. Corners were reinforced and the
hardware cloth stapled to the lower edge of every wall to trail out onto the dirt to
prevent digging. A screen door was made for access, and a solid one that would lead
outside when they completed a small run out.
Fresh straw bales were set out with hidey-holes between them, soft hay scattered on
the dirt floors, with a blanket and some old shirts set out for sleeping spots. A big dish
of water not easy to knock over and a proper food dish were added before Alex
shushed the gang and retrieved her friend. She set the carrier near the straw bales and
made sure the door was facing the dishes and poured out some kibble to hopefully
entice the cat. Then she opened the carrier door, stabilized it with a pile of hay, and
left, shooing the others out.
When the next morning the carrier stood empty and the kibble had been nibbled, Alex
was surprised by how good it felt that she had helped.
The video ends with Alex, clearly holding a camera, turning it from the empty cat carrier to her
own softly smiling face.
"So, yeah, we have a cat. Guess we're a proper farm now, huh?"
God, does she even know how many ovaries must ache like mine do from the power of that sweet
smile? Having seen how playful she can be? Probably.
LL Not-Your-Neck-Of-The-Woods 1 minute ago
I'm so glad your little friend found you! Anyone would be lucky to fall into your care.