In the morning, Jo woke extra early, made the breakfast and coffee, and hurried out of the house before Mr. Harrington woke. She couldn't face him. Not yet.
Instead, she went to the barn and checked on Darla. Thankfully, the cow wasn't in labor yet. Jo knew nothing about birthing a cow, or any other creature. After giving fresh hay to the horses, Jo stood behind the row of the cows and cocked her head, looking at the teats.
It looked easy when Ruby milked the cows, but when Jo moved her hand over the soft skin of the low-hanging teats, no milk spurted out. She pulled again, but the cow grunted and shifted away.
"What are you doing?" Ruby walked into the stall.
"Oh. You scared me. I was trying to milk the cow. Can you show me?"
Ruby bent over and placed her hand on the long teat and massage it down, gentle but firm. Milk squirted into the wood bucket underneath with a satisfying splash. Jo copied Ruby's movement, but nothing happened except the cow grunted.
"Oh, for God's sake, it's not that hard." Mr. Harrington's booming voice sent a shockwave through Jo.
She faced him and heat shot up her neck, the demeaning act from the night before ricocheting between them in unspoken thoughts.
"Then show me how easy it is," she challenged. Her voice was calm in an effort to prove he hadn't broken her, if that had been his intention.
She'd expected him to push her aside and demonstrate like Ruby had, but instead he pulled a stool up behind hers. In a smooth motion, his hands slid down the sleeves of her dress until his fingers tangled with hers. He pressed his chest to her back and leaned them both forward, wrapping their entwined fingers around the warm teats.
"Gently squeeze downward. Don’t pull." His fingers moved with hers, milk squirting out with each tug. His chest rubbed against her back with every movement, and her stomach clenched. He released his hands from hers and sat up. "You try it."
In an attempt to copy his movement, she moved her fingers gently down the firm teats, but nothing happened. She tried again, tugging harder, but the cow mooed and shifted away.
“You’re too rough. Don’t pull. Just squeeze. Like this.” Mr. Harrington gripped her hands again and squeezed the teats in quick succession. Milk squirted out—splash, splash— but when Jo tried again, nothing happened. Mr. Harrington stood.
“Farm work isn’t meant for everyone,” he said. Ruby giggled from across the barn where she watered the horses.
“I can do it,” Jo insisted, and turned determined eyes to Mr. Harrington. “Just have a little patience. I’ve never done this before.”
He took a deep breath and settled back on the stool behind her, roughly taking her hands. Jo bit her lip and held back the frustration, resolved to master this simple task. Mr. Harrington wrapped their hands around the teats again and firmly pressed downward. Jo studied his movement. Their thumbs and forefingers were wrapped around the very top of the teat and the rest of the fingers were in a straight line underneath.
“Let me try,” Jo said.
Mr. Harrington freed Jo’s hands and rested his fingers on her wrists, ready to assist if she failed.
Copying what he’d done, Jo squeezed, and milk sprayed out. “Yes!”
Growing confident, she moved faster, the milk spraying out in thick streams. She was so into the work she forgot that Mr. Harrington was wrapped around her, his lean chest still resting against her back and his hands on her arms, until his warm breath in her ear drew it to her abrupt attention.
Every nerve in her body perked up and sweat slid down her back, the effort of milking the cow and Mr. Harrington's closeness heating her core. His hips bucked forward suddenly and Jo wobbled on the stool, her hands gripping the cow’s teats for balance, causing the animal to mewl in protest.
"I think she's got it, Daddy," Ruby spoke behind them.
Mr. Harrington stood abruptly, adjusting his pants. "I've got to go into town for some supplies. Ruby, will you ready my horse?" Then he rushed out.
Jo stared at the cow's swollen utter, tapering her breathing, which had grown quick and shallow. A heat pulsed between her legs. She thought of Mr. Harrington's hands on her backside the night before—when his thumb had caressed her— and wondered what it would feel like to have his fingers slip to her most sensitive place and touch her.
"Are you okay?" Ruby asked. "You look ill?"
"I'm fine." Jo stood and shook off the crazy thoughts. "Now show me how to saddle a horse. I want to learn to ride."
Ruby was a good instructor and showed Jo how to groom, bridle, and saddle Mr. Harrington's white stallion, Snow. Teaching Jo to ride would take time they didn’t have that day, so Ruby took Jo on a tour of their land by foot. Then they gathered eggs and checked on the water for the chickens, as Ruby explained the day-to-day tasks of running a farm.
There were new lambs grazing in the pasture and a pond at the far side of the property. One of the three fields was cotton, another corn, and the third was fallow, waiting for the winter wheat crop to be planted. Jo only understood half of what Ruby explained, but asked many questions and understood better how a farm was run by the end of the day.
"What is it your father needs the most help with? Why did he put the ad in the paper for a young man to come help?"
Ruby looked out over the empty soil of the field in front of them and considered. "He thinks he needs help with the plowing and the harvesting. But I think if he can find a good woman to take care of his home and Tommy, he won't feel so burdened upon." Ruby’s head shot around to look at Jo. “I don’t mean you. I’m talking about a woman that Daddy could love.”
"Don't you worry. I have no intentions on your father." It was true, but there was a small pull in her belly at the thought of Mr. Harrington with another woman.
"Have you set your intentions on someone else?" Ruby crossed her arms. "James?"
"No." Jo laughed. Ruby huffed back to the house and Jo hurried after her. "Ruby, I swear. I have no interest in your beau."
"He has an interest in you," Ruby called back.
Jo stopped, swatting at the flies buzzing around her face. "How do you know?"
"A girl can tell." Ruby walked around the house to her vegetable garden, which was clearly her sanctuary and pride. The way Ruby talked about her garden as they walked the property, Jo knew she'd not be allowed to lend a hand there.
James hadn’t crossed Jo’s mind since she met him the night before. But it was concerning that he could turn his affections from Ruby so easily. It could all be in Ruby’s head, of course. But it was hard to miss James’s eagerness to escort her to the dance.
Would it be so awful for Jo to open herself up to his affections? She’d only just met Ruby, so it wouldn’t be a betrayal. But Jo liked her. They weren’t exactly friends, but they were tiptoeing in that direction.
No, that wasn’t the path Jo wanted. And she’d felt no spark with James. He was certainly an attractive man, but one step toward James could destroy any chance with the Harringtons. And then what would she do?
If food was the way to a man's heart, Jo was already inside Mr. Harrington's. He scarfed his dinner down again, and asked for thirds. With full bellies, they sat on the porch after supper to escape the heat of the house and enjoy the evening breeze. Jo slowly rocked with Tommy on her lap, and Ruby sat on the steps, watching the waning moon rise above the distant hill.
"Do you know any songs, Miss Taylor?" Tommy asked.
"Call me Jo. And yes, I know many songs."
"Sing one. Please. Ruby says Momma used to sing all the time."
Not daring to look at Mr. Harrington, Jo began to hum a tune her mother had sung to her as a child, “Oh Shenandoah.” When Mr. Harrington didn't immediately object, she sang the quiet words in a soft lilting voice.
Oh Shenandoah,
I long to see you,
Way hey, you rolling river.
Oh Shenandoah,
I long to see you,
away, I'm bound away
'Cross the wide Missouri.
"I've heard this song." Tommy clapped. "Lucy sings it sometimes."
He joined in where he knew the lyrics, and the second time through Ruby hummed along, but Mr. Harrington huffed inside and slammed the door.
"What's your city like?" Tommy snuggled into Jo's chest after they finished the last round of the chorus.
"Crowded."
Tommy laughed.
"The women look so lovely." Ruby rested her head against the post of the railing. "I want to travel. James’s parents just bought a home in Manhattan. So maybe on our honeymoon we can go."
"It's an exciting city. There are so many people from many different countries. The architecture is grand and the bridges magnificent. And yes, the fashion is inspiring. It's loud and there can be lots of yelling, but that's normal. There are hansom cabs and now there are even cars in the city. It's made quite the mess. I'm not sure they'll last. And Central Park is lush and large and beautiful, and there are even sheep grazing in one of the meadows."
Tommy's eyes were wide with worry. "Do you miss it?"
"I've only been here a few days. Give me some time." Jo laughed.
Ruby looked uncertainly at Jo. "Aren’t you leaving after the picnic?”
"We'll see."
"Oh no." Tommy snuggled back in. "Don't leave. You just got here."
"Who knows, maybe some handsome stranger will sweep me off my feet."
"Or maybe James,” Tommy said. “He liked you, didn't he, Ruby?"
"Tommy.” Jo sat him up, hoping to diffuse any worry Tommy may have stirred up in Ruby. “James is Ruby’s beau.”
“Oh,” Tommy said, but he didn’t quite grasp what it meant.
Ruby crossed her arms protectively over her chest. “What if Tommy is right?”
"Oh, Ruby. If James does like me or any other girl, do you really want to be with a man whose heart is so fickle and wavering in his love?"
"So you do want him?” Ruby pouted.
Jo put her hands up in surrender. "I don’t want James. But if he has cast his eyes my way, why would you want to degrade yourself and follow after him like a lovesick puppy. If he doesn't love you, walk away."
"None of this matters." Ruby huffed up the steps. "You'll be gone by next week."
After Ruby's outburst, Jo tucked Tommy into bed, and then went for a walk. She didn’t mean to be combative with Ruby, but Jo despised women who played victim to their circumstances. Jo was a fighter, and she wanted Ruby to be one too.
The walk was peaceful, tamping down the events of the day. The crickets created a string orchestra around her, and the coyotes trumpeted in the distance. Jo took a deep breath and focused on the sounds. It calmed her.
Denver ran up beside Jo and rubbed his face against her legs. Her hand found his short coat, and she petted him.
"I thought you may have run off." Mr. Harrington appeared behind Denver.
"I just needed some time to myself."
"You shouldn't be walking alone."
"I wanted to be alone.” Jo turned and walked back toward the house, Mr. Harrington beside her. “I realize this is a hard adjustment for you, but it isn’t easy for me either. I left everything I’ve ever known or loved to make a new life with your family, and my only ally here is Tommy, and he's just a boy." Jo stopped at the well and looked down into the deep darkness. "I know you think I was complicit in what my brother did, but I'm not. I had no idea he deceived you, but I don't doubt that he did. And for that, I'm sorry.”
She flicked her gaze up to meet his but his face was unreadable. She had no idea if anything she said was making an impact.
“But I'm trying to make this work. Ruby showed me the farm today and how to saddle a horse. And I learned how to milk a cow." Jo blushed, remembering, and hurried on. "And we gathered eggs and she told me about the planting and harvesting of the crops. You said you wanted help, and I'm here. Give me to the end of the month at least. Please."
It was like she was riding a wave when she looked into his eyes, her emotions soaring up, then crashing down. The sensation made her light-headed.
"Okay," he said. "We'll see how it goes. But I'm not promising anything."
The tension that twisted inside Jo since she arrived loosened. "Oh, thank you, Mr. Harrington."
"Call me Jack for God’s sake." He took long strides back to the house, and Jo had to run to keep up. He was at the back door when he called back, "And don't think I've forgotten about the singing tonight."