Free Love in Romance Arkansas by Jim Northum Page B

Damn! You people make me sick. Get out of my house!”
    “Sir, I think if you will take just a few minutes to read a bit of my grandmother’s journal, you will better understand my position. This is only one volume of many. I think you will also see this situation wasn’t exactly a picnic in the park for them, either. The pertinent section is marked. I’m going to sit on your front porch and take in the wonderful view.”
    After about thirty minutes, she went back inside. The old man was sitting in his easy chair crying, the journal carefully placed on an end table. “Mr. Williams are you okay? I know this is a big shock to you. I’m sorry for your pain and sorry that I was the one to bring it to you, but at least you can have some closure. Anything I can do to help?”
    The old man looked at her with reddened eyes and whispered, “She did love me, and loved me all those years. I left the only woman I ever loved, unknowingly left her pregnant with my child, left her to fend for herself. Thank God Doug stepped up to the plate and had the nerve to do what I didn’t. I’ve held a grudge against him all these years when I’m the one at fault. This bitterness inside me is my own doing and it hurt no one but me. Now it is too late to make amends to Doug and Missy, but maybe I can do something for you that in some small way will compensate for what I’ve done.”
    For some unknown reason, a statement from the journal popped out of her mouth. “Only the Lord can bring you inner peace. Get things right with Him, let Him handle it, and only then will you have peace.”
    “You are correct in that. I’ve let my bitterness affect that area of my life also. I need to get lots of things right with Him. Over the years, I’ve strayed from the path many times without even trying to get back right. Your visit will be a blessing after all.”
    Upon her return to Romance, she mentioned nothing about the family business to John. When he asked how the negotiations went, she replied, “We should have no more problems with getting breeding stock as needed. We now own two of the finest Angus herds in North America.” Why did I automatically say we? Wonder if John caught that?
    “How did that happen? Mr. Williams like you, or something? Always struck me as a cantankerous old man, mad at the world in general and Doug in particular.”
    “Mr. Williams is actually my grandfather. It’s all here in Grandmother’s journal. When best friends fall for the same girl, some bitter feelings can result. Mr. Williams didn’t know the entire story, now he does, and he understands much of the ill will was his doing. He has dealt with his issues, since he is the only one left. He and I reached an agreement to the effect that he has signed his ranch over to me lock, stock and barrel. I had a title search conducted, no problems at all. No strings attached, free and clear.”
    “We are going to have to do lots of repair work up there. Mr. Williams is alone and now is too old to do much in the way of maintenance. The barn is right on the bank of a small stream, so every time it rains, the corrals flood and the stream picks up a heavy load of pollutants. The pasture to barn arrangement is not what I would like, so now might be a good time to relocate the barn and corrals. There are other environmental issues that must be addressed as well. Fences need to be tightened and or replaced. It has the potential to be a beautiful ranch. I would like to make another showplace of it, as you have done here.”
     

Chapter Fourteen
     
     
    “Jenny, the state trap shoot is coming up in about a month. Want to have a go at it?”
    “Sure, I think it’ll be fun, and I’ll get to see other shooters and their equipment.”
    “I suspect you will surprise a few shooters with that little twenty gauge of yours. Trap is almost exclusively a twelve gauge event. However, modern ammunition allows the twenty to hold its own at the sixteen yard line. Many twelve gauge