March
March had brought moderately warmer temperatures. They’d thawed out nicely. Doc had gotten his next round of edits from Essie.
It had taken him days to open the email. He kept pretending not to see the unread message. On the third day, Essie sent him a chicken emoji in a text.
Rude but not wrong.
He managed to open the email without incident. An irrational anxiety, but one he dealt with frequently. There were days when he physically hid his laptop over email stress.
Essie had learned over the years to lightly prod him a few times. Gentle teasing. It usually worked like a charm. She was good at finding the right balance.
And she never expected him to be like her non-autistic authors.
All the windows in the tiny cottage were open. Doc had a perfect view across the farm to where Andie was spending her day planting seedlings. She’d gone into great detail about her plans, but his mind hadn’t held onto it.
Some sort of berry.
A strong breeze whistled through the cottage. The wind had picked up a little as the afternoon progressed. He heard Rupert barking in the distance.
Spring hadn’t quite fully sprung yet. They had another month or so for that. But hints of it were everywhere around them.
Deleting the next paragraph in the chapter, Doc tapped his fingers against the key while staring out the window. His gaze was unfocused. He saw sentences floating around him while he tried to rearrange them in a way that fit the story better.
“Ah, there you are.” Doc sat up from where he’d been slouching in one of the beanbags and began typing away at his laptop. “Progress.”
“Talking to yourself?”
Doc was so startled out of his thoughts that he narrowly avoided dropping his laptop. Instead, he finished typing the sentence before responding to Andie, who’d poked her head through the front window. “The farmer in the pane?”
“Funny. Fancy a tea break? I’m dying for biscuits.”
“I’d love to, but I’d lose my train of thought.” Doc could already feel his fickle muse dancing on the edge of the cliff. “Just have a few hundred words to add back to this chapter.”
“I’ll bring you a snack.” Andie dashed off without giving him a chance to respond.
Shaking his head, Doc refocused on his manuscript. He wanted to be finished with editing soon. Spring on the farm was a busy time—and he was looking forward to helping Andie.
“Special delivery.”
Doc found himself, for the second time in the space of thirty minutes, jolted out of his thoughts. “What’s the opposite of a drive-thru window?”
“A walk-up? A walk-in? I’m not sure.” Andie had a small tray with a mug and a plate of biscuits. She was balancing it on the window frame, waiting for him to retrieve it. “Thought you could use some fuel to keep you going. I’ll be in the orchard if you need me. I’ve got a long to-do list to make sure all the trees are ready for spring.”
An hour later, Doc hit an editing wall. He decided to stretch his legs and wandered out to find Andie. She had a rake in hand and appeared to be inspecting the base of all the trees. Rupert darted over to greet him.
“Are you being a help or a nuisance?” Doc tossed the ball Rupert dropped at his feet. “I’m guessing the latter.”
“He’s very good at taking away the small branches.” Andie paused for a second, then continued dramatically. “And bringing them back to me.”
“Why are you sweeping the ground?” Doc stepped over to help her carry a stack of fallen branches to the wheelbarrow. “Victims from the storm?”
“One aspect to my ‘defeat pests before they start’ plan. Clear out leaves, sticks, and any other mess around the roots.” Andie rested her arm against the top of the rake handle. “This will take up much of my day today, thanks to the winter storm. Tomorrow I’ll start pruning some of the branches. Meant to do it in February, but it was too bloody cold.”
“How can I help?” Doc rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and cardigan.
“What about your edits?” Andie had been going out of her way to avoid distracting him from his deadlines. He’d greatly appreciated her kindness. “Did you get what you wanted done?”
“I’ve hit a metaphorical wall. If I don’t take a break, I might lose the will to finish.” Doc bent down to retrieve the ball when Rupert pawed at his leg. He sent it flying down the path between the rows of trees. “So, instead of staring blankly at my manuscript until words lose all meaning, how can I help?”
“We wouldn’t want that.” Andie tossed another armful of branches into the wheelbarrow. “Storm did a number on the poor trees. Give me a hand clearing up branches and dead leaves? It helps prevent disease and pests.”
“Think Mother Nature did the pruning for you.” Doc grabbed a second rake resting against the wheelbarrow. He started on the row across from where she’d been working. “Do you ever find the endless cycle of tasks dragging you down? Sometimes with writing and editing, I feel like ‘I’ve done this, so why do I have to do it again?’ Essie tells me to have another coffee and quit whingeing.”
“Whether we’re talking bark or paper, we both have to do the drudgery before enjoying the fruits of our labour. Metaphorical or otherwise. You might say we get to eventually rake in the profits.” Andie snickered when he groaned at her attempt at a pun. “Isn’t it worth the effort when harvest time comes?”
“So says every farmer, I imagine.”
“You’re not wrong.” Andie pulled off the jacket over her cardigan. “I couldn’t do what you do. Sitting in front of a laptop for hours and hours on end? My worst nightmare. I love being outside. Love starting with an empty bed and slowly nurturing little seedlings into a bountiful harvest. It’s the closest to magic that I’ll ever get.”
Doc carried the branches and leaves he’d gathered to drop onto the large pile she’d built. It was packed to the point of being overloaded. He set the rake aside and grabbed the handles of the wheelbarrow. “Where am I taking this?”
“Let me show you. I used some of the timber from the barn we tore down to set up a new place for composting. We’ll toss the leaves and some of the small twigs, after I break them down, into the mound. The larger ones can go in the firewood pile.” Andie set her rake up against the tree. “C’mon. I’ll lead the way.”
Wheelbarrows were tricky things. Doc had never been brilliant with them, particularly given his lack of spatial awareness. He struggled to keep it balanced while Rupert dashed around him. It was almost impossible not to get distracted.
“Rups. Stop. You’re going to—” Andie lunged forward a second too late when Doc lost his battle with the wobbling wheelbarrow. It tipped over on its side with a spectacular crash. “Well, shite.”
Rupert wagged his tail proudly. He snatched one of the longer sticks and tore off down the path. Andie peered over at Doc, whose feet were covered in muck. Her lips twitched a few times before giving into laughter.
Doc tried not to join her but failed miserably. “I swear I haven’t been hitting the bottle.”
They wheezed with laughter. Doc bent forward briefly with his hands on his knees, trying to control himself. He wiped away the tears from the corner of his eyes while still chuckling.
“Thanks for all the help.” Andie managed to get the words out in between bouts of uncontrollable giggles.
Doc offered his arm for support while they both tried to reel in their laughter. “Am I relegated to raking and not driving?”
“Well, I might not hand you the keys to the tractor.” Andie collapsed against him. Giggles kept bubbling up out of both of them. “I love you.”
“Not for my wheelbarrow skills.” Doc looped his arm around her, rubbing her side when she struggled to catch her breath.
“No, for laughing with me instead of getting angry when things go tits up.” Andie finally managed to stand up straight. She pressed her hands to her flushed face, still grinning madly at him. “For finding joy in all the silly moments.”
“Always found laughter to be a better option over anger or tears whenever possible.” Doc hugged her tightly, brushing a kiss to the top of her head. “Well… how about we try this again?”
“Without the drunk driving?”
“Without the mildly chaotic wheelbarrowing.” Doc chuckled when she broke into another fit of giggles. “And for the record, I love you as well.”