Free Uninhibited in Apple Trail, Arkansas - Volume 2 by Keri Ford Page A

front of her yellow shirt.
    Tiffany grinned. “Problem solved.”
    And then dirt smacked Tiffany in the face and Mary Sue’s laughter filled the warm May morning.
    “You got me in the face!” Tiffany grabbed two handfuls of dirt and turned and slung. Just as fast as she threw dirt, she was hit with more.
    Laughter spilled out. Tension released. Dirt flew.
    And then she was grabbed from behind and jerked to her feet. “Hey!”
    “What are you doing?”
    Tiffany spun around and came face-to-face with a wide-eyed Mike. She blinked and blurted the first thing to mind. “Getting Mary Sue dirty.”
    She glanced down to see Mary Sue was being cuddled and checked by her husband just as fast as she was swatting the overprotective man off. “I’m fine. We were just having some fun. God made dirt, dirt don’t hurt.” Mary Sue lifted her gaze to Tiffany and laughed. “You have a purple petunia hanging off the side of your head.”
    Tiffany reached and pulled the uprooted plant from her hair. “Oh, man. We made a mess of the beds.”
    Mary Sue leaned forward. “Nothing that can’t be fixed. You’re actually really good at this.”
    She shrugged and dropped back to her knees when Mike released her. “Jessie and I grow a vegetable garden every year. Different animal, same basic thing. Dig a hole, stick in a plant.”
    Mary Sue chuckled. “True. Are you busy next weekend? I’m going to work in my beds and Momma’s coming over to help. She won’t let me do a quarter of it since I’m pregnant and her eye on arrangement isn’t half as good as yours.”
    Oh, dear. Tiffany had picked a number of roses from Mary Sue’s mother’s bushes over the years. “No” was on the verge of escaping, but she changed her mind. This was a chance though. If Mary Sue’s mother could over look her snipping prized roses for years then maybe, just maybe there was a chance with Mike.
    It had been years since she cut the woman’s roses. Not since that night she’d almost been caught taking a handful. Tiffany didn’t think her momma and daddy would enjoy the beautiful roses on their graves so much if Tiffany got arrested getting them. She stuck to wildflowers from then on.
    “Be happy to help.” After the words came out, Tiffany was glad to feel warmth fill her. She hadn’t agreed just because it was polite, but because she wanted to. She glanced up to find Mike smiling back down at her.

Chapter Nine

    Mike climbed down from his truck at his house and waited at the front as Tiffany met him there. Her hand naturally fell into his. So in sync. So comfortable. So right. He had to straighten out this idea of hers that they couldn’t be together. It was going to be hard. People were going to talk, but as long as they kept on like they were, and Tiffany kept her head above trouble, he knew without a doubt they’d be fine.
    All these years he’d focused on her trouble, he never realized the beautiful, strong, caring woman beneath the surface. People would eventually see that part of her too.
    She smiled up at him. “I think I have dirt in places I didn’t know dirt could be.”
    He laughed. “Do we need to hose you down out back?”
    “That’s a great idea. Cold water from hose will feel good right about now too.”
    “I was only teasing.”
    She shook her head. “I want to. The cold water will feel good and I don’t want to track mud through your house.”
    He nodded and dropped her hand to dig out his keys. She started around the back of the house, but he called out to her. “Hey, Tiffany?”
    She glanced up.
    “I’m not sure what that whole dirt throwing fight was about, but thanks. Watkins later told me he didn’t understand why it started, but that was the first time he’d seen Mary Sue laugh like that in a long while.”
    She smiled. “She’s pregnant with their fourth child. She likely doesn’t have a lot of silly fun. And it all began in good fun and ended that way.”
    He still didn’t understand, but nodded