Farmer's Daughter
Chapter 9
"Mrs. Meyers?"
"Yes, Brian."
"Isn't there anything I can do to help out?"
Taking pity on his plaintive tone, Lizzie looked up from the green beans she was snapping the ends off of, an empathetic smile on her face. "Well, Mike says you still need to give your ribs more time; but, I don't suppose there's any harm in giving you some light chores." She shook her head in amusement at the look of sheer bliss on his face, having never seen someone so excited to do chores. "Billy's either in the chicken coop or the barn. Find him and you can give him a hand with whatever he's doing. He'll show you what to do."
"Really?!" he asked, the excitement in his voice unmistakeable.
"Really." she laughed.
He was so thrilled at finally being able to repay at least some of the kindness he'd been shown, he ran over to Lizzie, hugging her as tightly as his ribs would allow, before running out the back door. "Thank you!" he yelled over his shoulder as the screen door slammed shut behind him.
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"You're not serious, Billy." 'Brian' stated, incredulously.
"Sure I am! You just stick your hand underneath, grab the egg, and put it in the basket. It's easy! See!" Billy replied, expertly retrieving a large brown egg and placing it gently in the basket.
"Do they bite?"
"Chickens? Bite?!" Billy took to a fit of giggles at 'Brian's' trepidation. "They don't bite -- they peck; and, yeah," he surmised, rubbing his chin like he'd seen his father do when pondering a question, "they can peck ya if you're not quick enough. You just gotta be quick enough is all."
"That's real comforting Billy. Thanks." he deadpanned.
"Mister?" Donna Jo questioned, tugging at 'Brian's' pant leg to get his attention "Are you really scacred of chickens?"
"Nah, Sweetheart. I'm not scared." he replied, smiling, playfully wrapping the end of her ponytail around his finger. Crouching down, he continued, "I just don't think I've ever been this close to real live chickens before; so, I'm a little nervous."
"Can I help too?" she asked sweetly.
"Donna Jo, you're too little." Billy teased, causing her lower lip to tremble.
"Am I, Mister?"
Sighing at her innocence, 'Brian's' eyes sparkled and he donned a small smile as he answered her. "No, you're not too small. How about Billy and I reach under these chicken things and we'll hand you the eggs and you can put them in the basket. Billy, that okay with you?" he asked over his shoulder.
Billy merely shrugged his shoulders, clearly not happy that his sister would be horning in on some good old-fashioned male bonding, which Billy was looking forward to.
They set to their task and 'Brian' was soon clucking and acting like a chicken, leaving Billy and Donna Jo in stitches.
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Their laughter echoed across the barnyard, drawing Amanda Grace to it like a moth to a flame. The sound seemed almost foreign to her and she stood outside the door, memories of Faith, her eldest sister, dancing through her mind, flooding her senses. It dawned on her that the laughter, which had once been abundant when she was younger, hadn't been heard -- like she was hearing it now -- since Faith passed away.
It had been almost six years since that awful night that Faith's body had been found down by the creek, which signified the southern border of her family's land. Her father had been the one to find Faith; and, all he would tell any of them was that she "was hurt real bad." Amanda Grace didn't know what those words meant back then; and, something awful in the pit of her stomach told her that she didn't want to know what they meant now.
The sound of singing brought her out of her somber remembrance and she slowly opened the door, peering inside, stifling a giggle as she watched 'Brian' leading her brother & sister in a dance.
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"What is this called again?" Billy asked, laughing.
"The chicken dance!" 'Brian' shouted between pecks, flaps, and wiggles.
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"What did he say?" Lizzie whispered, causing Amanda Grace to startle. "Sorry, darlin'. I came out to change the clothes on the line and heard all the laughing; and, well, I just had to come see."
"It's ok, Mama. You just gave me a little scare. I know what you mean, though. I was mucking the stalls."
"So, what did he call it?"
"I think he called it 'The chicken dance'." she whispered back.
"It looks like fun." Lizzie quietly stated, peeking her own head through the door.
"Yeah, it does." Amanda Grace giggled.
"Come on then." Lizzie replied, taking her daughter by the hand, pulling her into the coop.
"Mama! Mama! I can't!" she whispered forcefully, trying in vain to dig in her heels.
"Nonsense!" she whispered back, before calling out to the group "Hey! Can anyone join in?"
"Sure Mrs. Meyers! Amanda. Join us."
"Yeah, Momma! Come dance!" Donna Jo hollered as she wiggled her little butt and clapped her hands four times.
"You can watch me and then jump in when you're ready." BIlly offered, exaggerating his movements so they could catch on quickly.
Soon enough, they were all dancing around, singing in unison, laughing heartily. They danced and sang for well over an hour, from the chicken dance to square dancing, BIlly paired up with Donna Jo, 'Brian' with Amanda Grace, Lizzie calling the steps.
'Brian' was busy promenading with Donna Jo, when the "change your partners" call came again. He turned to take Amanda Grace's hands and he saw her face, flush with excitement, her eyes sparkling with joy and he felt like someone reached right into his chest and grabbed hold of his heart. He was overcome with an insatiable need to taste the sweetness of her lips.
She saw his eyes cloud over; but, didn't know what that cloudiness meant. Her body knew; and, she began to feel that warm tingle in her belly. For the first time in her life, she felt an achiness at her breasts. She knew her nipples were hard, as she could feel the material of her bra rubbing against them.
"What in the world is going on in here?!" Bill, Sr. bellowed as he stood in the open doorway, his arms folded across his chest.
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