Free The Ranch by Jane Majic

The
Ranch
    by
Jane Majic
     
     
       That was it...Emma had decided
she had enough of the city life. This was the third time in two years that the
loft had been broken into. It was time to pack it all up and start over...The money
she came into, through a good investment would allow her to take a couple of
years off and just do her thing. This was the perfect time to start..she was
sick of her job at the newspaper..she had no partner, so there was nothing to
hold her back. except her fear of the unknown. She had hooked up with this
realtor named Amber a couple of weeks ago and Amber called the other night
raving about this old farm house she had found for sale...said it would be
perfect for her...just what she was looking for. So she grabbed her purse and
out the door she went to meet Amber.
         Through
conversations, she knew Amber was with Amy. They had been together for almost
eight years now and had a house on the lake. She had met Amy once briefly, she
seemed nice enough...and she and Amber
    kept wanting her to come for dinner, they
had this nice girl they wanted her to meet. So with directions in hand, Emma
got in the car and headed down the road to meet Amber at this ranch. When she
saw the exit, she gently eased off the freeway and turned down this old dirt
road...she came upon a circle drive and that is when she saw it...the most
beautiful ranch style farm house set back among the trees...a veranda went from
one end to the other..it needed some work..but nothing a little paint and sweat
wouldn't fix up. As she drove up the drive she saw Amber's car. Standing beside
Amber was this woman, brownish hair, mid thirties, not butch, but not femme,
more the athletic looking kind of girl. Emma got out of the car and waved, as
Amber and this mystery woman walked towards her.
         "Hi Emma, I
would like you to meet Nina."
         "Hello, nice
to meet you. "replied Emma.
          "I
brought her along because she runs her own construction business and I thought
she could give you some input on how much work the ranch needs."
         So with eagerness,
Emma, Amber, and Nina walked up the steps.....is this the woman that Amber and
Amy kept talking about wondered Emma..... Emma entered the house first....as
she stood in the doorway and looked around, a feeling of excitement filled her.
She began to imagine all of her things here, what she could do with the place.
The three looked around, Emma asking questions and Nina giving her advice.
Amber trailed behind and just watched on as the two women chatted about repairs
and costs. Just the other night Amber and Amy were talking about how on earth
they were going to get Nina and Emma to meet. Then Amy got the scoop on the
farm house and it all came together...what a perfect opportunity to get the two
of them together
         As they locked up
the house Emma headed toward the back yard to get an idea of the rest of the
property. As she rounded the corner and stood near the house looking into the
back yard, she stopped, her breath caught and the look in her eyes was
indescribable. The trees, the flowers, and just at the end a pond...the ducks
swimming. For a moment Emma pictured herself sitting on the veranda, the sun
coming up, coffee in hand to fresh country air. This is the life...my
life...this is what I want. And with that she turned looked at Amber and said.
"I'll buy it". Her mind was made up.
          The next day
Emma met Amber at the office signed all the papers and the deal was
done...Amber handed her the keys to the ranch. Emma raced home and started to
make some calls. She had a month till the lease was up in the condo and there
was still so much to do. She had already given her notice at the paper, a place
she could truly say she would never miss. She had to pack and still decide on
what she needed to start repairing the ranch. She walked in the door, threw her
keys on the table and went to check the answering machine. She heard Amber 's
voice and