Wooing the Farmer

by Jenny Frame

  Penny let Princess out of the car and gathered up her briefcase. “That’s okay. Just drop my bags off at the cottage and take it back to my parents’ house. I won’t be needing it again—I hope.”

  She walked up the drive, and as she breathed in the country air she began to relax. Axedale was the home she’d always been looking for, and she hadn’t even known it.

  When she arrived at the farmhouse door, she took a breath and knocked at the door, but nobody answered.

  “Maybe she’s out in the fields, Princess.”

  But then she heard a bark and saw Dougal coming out of the barn. He ran straight for her and jumped up excitedly, giving both her and Princess lots of kisses. “Hi, Dougal. Is Sammy in the barn? Let’s go and see.”

  The dogs played and tussled with each other as she walked up to the barn. Penny pushed open the barn door and walked in. She stopped breathing when she saw Quade lifting and stacking bales of hay. Quade was wearing a tight T-shirt and her muscles looked gorgeous as she flexed and carried the heavy bales.

  This was like a scene from one of her fantasies. Quade with bales of hale, in a barn, with delicious muscles, but this was real life, and in real life Quade didn’t want anything to do with her.

  Quade must have heard the door, as she turned around quickly. “Penny?”

  “Yes. Here I am.” Penny smiled but Quade’s face remained stony. This was going to be hard.

  “What are you doing here? I thought you’d be packing for America.”

  “Let me explain—”

  “Explain? That what we had wasn’t real?” Quade had convinced herself Penny would never come back to Axedale, that way she wouldn’t have to face her, and she could ignore the pain. But seeing Penny now made the pain inside her chest multiply tenfold.

  How could she ever get over this?

  Penny walked up to her and said with an edge to her voice, “Of course it was real, and if you had stayed and talked to me, instead of running away, you would have known that too.”

  “What? Stay so you could deny what your good friend showed me?” Quade said.

  “I love you, Sammy.”

  Quade couldn’t believe her ears, and she snorted, “Yeah, so in love that you’re going to America? I saw the contract, Penny.”

  “Did you see my signature on the contract?”

  That stopped Quade in her tracks. “What? Um…no.”

  “Sammy, Olivia is jealous. She’s had a thing for me since we were at school. I always made it clear that a relationship wasn’t going to happen, but when she knew we were together…anyway she wanted to break us up.”

  Quade rubbed her forehead with her palm. She was extremely confused. “Are you saying that contract was a fake?”

  “No, it was real, is real, but I’m not signing it.”

  “But that was your dream,” Quade said. “You told me that from the beginning.”

  Penny smiled. “I have a new dream now, and I’ve already started working on it. Look.”

  Penny took her iPad out of her briefcase and opened her website. “Tell me what you see.”

  Quade scanned the page carefully, but her heart was beating so fast she could hardly take anything in.

  Penny pointed to the homepage header. “It used to say Penny’s Kitchen, but it now says Penny’s Country Kitchen.”

  Quade looked up at Penny quickly. She couldn’t even dare to let herself think what this implied. “Penny’s Country Kitchen?”

  “Axedale is where I want my new dream to be, my new business, my new life,” Penny said.

  Quade was overwhelmed. She could feel the tiny pieces of her smashed heart starting to rebuild with every word and loving glance from Penny.

  “Really? Is this really what you want, because I couldn’t take the pain again like I’ve felt for the last few days. You live for your business.”

  “Not any more, but I’ve one more thing to show you.” Penny opened up her email and brought up a contract, signed this time by Penny and Harry.

  “What is this?” Quade asked.

  “It’s a long-term lease for a huge area of land behind the farm. My new dream is to live here with you and run a business that is true to what I believe in, what you believe in—organic farming. I want to grow the vegetables I use in my cookbooks and recipes, on a large scale, and sell them to farmers’ markets and supermarkets. I want us to be partners in life and in business.”

  Penny handed Quade the iPad and said, “All that’s missing is your signature. I can be a farmer’s wife and a businesswoman.”

  Quade took the iPad, set it down on a bale of hay beside her, and pulled Penny close. “Is that what you want? To be a farmer’s wife?”

  Penny rested her forehead against Quade’s. “Yes, I want that more than anything.”

  “Oh God. I didn’t think you would come back. I didn’t think what we had could work,” Quade said.

  Penny threaded her fingers through Quade’s short hair. “I’m so sorry Olivia hurt you, but she’s gone from the company. I bought her out.” Penny took Quade’s hand and placed it on her chest. “I want you, I want to be a family with Dougal and Princess, and I want Axedale to be our home. I love you, Sammy.”

  Quade was overwhelmed with emotion. All the hurt and pain she’d felt for the last few days needed more than words to be banished. She needed to feel Penny.

  She pulled Penny to her and leaned her forehead against hers. “I thought I’d lost you, Penny. I love you with all my heart. If you’ll be my wife, I’ll promise to always make you the happiest I can.”

  “It that a proposal?”

  “It is,” Quade said.

  “Yes,” Penny replied.

  “Is that a yes, you will marry me?” Quade wanted to make sure before making any assumptions.

  Penny gazed into her eyes and smiled. “It’s a yes.”

  Quade kissed Penny and soon their kisses became frantic, the emotion and difficulty of the last few days taking over.

  Quade pulled up the side of Penny’s dress and grasped her thigh. Penny moaned into their kiss, and Quade pulled back. “I think we better go back to the farmhouse and talk about this some more.”

  Penny gave her the sexiest smile. “No, I think we should stay right here.”

  After a couple of seconds, Quade got her meaning. Penny’s fantasy. “Here?”

  Penny took her hand and led her over to the ladder that led to the hayloft. “I think in order to be a true farmer’s wife, you need to make love to me in the barn.”

  Quade didn’t need to be asked twice. Still holding Penny’s hand, they both climbed up.

  Penny looked around at the bales and giggled. “It’s my fantasy come true.”

  Quade took a step to her. “What is your fantasy? Just the hay bales?”

  Penny swept her hand over Quade’s shoulder muscles. “It’s not just the hay. It’s you and the hay, dressed like this, so I can ogle your muscles, and”—Penny lifted Quade’s hand and caressed her palm—“these hands on my body.”

  “I had no idea working hands could be considered a turn on,” Quade said.

  “They are to city girls.” Penny slipped off her jacket and pulled off her sparkly T-shirt.

  Quade was starting to see the attraction of barns, seeing her lover standing there in just her jeans and lacy black bra. The pain she had felt over the past few days was melting away, to be replaced by want and hunger.

  She lifted Penny in her arms and carried her over to the back of the hayloft. When she laid her down, Penny said, “I love it when you carry me.”

  Quade lay down and leaned over her. “You didn’t think that the first time I carried you.”

  “That’s before the benefits of carrying were fully explained to me.” Penny cocked her finger and beckoned Quade. “Come and show me how sexy farmers make love.”

  Quade smiled and then said seriously, “You’re really sure about this? You’re the love of my life, Penny. There’ll be no one else for me.”

  Penny
put her hands around Quade’s neck. “You’re the only love of my life, the only one I’ve ever trusted to touch me. There will never be anyone else. I love you, baby.”

  Looking into Penny’s eyes, Quade saw the truth. Penny was hers. She’d found her farmer’s wife.

  Penny pulled her down into a kiss. She moaned when she felt Penny’s nails dig in to her neck. She swept her hand over Penny’s bare stomach, and she could feel Penny shiver at her touch. Quade pushed her hand under Penny’s bra and grasped her breast. Penny’s nipple hardened under her touch.

  “Yes, baby.”

  She never thought she would feel Penny ever again, and here she was touching her, loving her. Quade wanted to never let go of her, and she had to make her come to erase the past few days of pain.

  Quade pulled out of the kiss and took her hand from Penny’s breast. She slid down to the button of Penny’s jeans. “I want to make you come, sweetheart.”

  Penny put her hand over Quade’s and pushed it, encouraging Quade. “Please? Give me my fantasy, Sexy Farmer.”

  Quade unbuttoned her jeans and pushed her hand straight in Penny’s sex. She groaned when she felt how wet Penny was. “Jesus. This really is your fantasy, isn’t it?”

  “Yes.” Penny gasped as she thrust her hips against Quade’s fingers.

  “I love you,” Quade said before kissing Penny again.

  Her fingers stroked Penny, tenderly at first, and then faster as Penny started to lose control.

  Penny gripped her neck tightly, went taut, and Quade swallowed her cries of pleasure.

  “I love you, I love you, baby,” Penny said, catching her breath.

  “I think I see your attraction to barns,” Quade joked.

  Penny rolled onto Quade and placed her head on Quade’s chest. “You will when I get my breath back. You know, I’ve had to hug Truffle every night since we’ve been apart?” Truffle, the stuffed unicorn Quade bought her in London was very special and had reminded her of Quade and their love. Quade knew what she liked, and it had melted Penny’s heart.

  “Now you can hug me, Truffle, Princess, and Dougal,” Quade said with a smile. “Our little family.”

  Penny kissed Quade’s nose and said, “Our little family.”

  Epilogue

  Penny checked her camera and turned it towards herself. “Hello, friends, welcome to what is truly the first day of Penny’s Country Kitchen. After a lot of preparation of the soil and choosing what vegetables we are going to plant, we are going into production.”

  She turned the camera away and walked into one of the large greenhouses they’d had constructed on the land they had leased from Harry.

  “This is just one of the two huge greenhouses we’ve built. We are going to grow tomatoes, lots of delicious greens, and micro veg—by the way, I’ve given up trying to explain micro veg to Sexy Farmer,” Penny joked.

  “I hope that one day soon, Penny’s Country Kitchen veg will be in a supermarket near you.”

  Penny heard the honk of a horn and smiled. “My carriage awaits.”

  She hurried out of the greenhouse and saw the sight that made her heart flutter, her little family. Sammy was sitting in the driver’s seat of the quad, Princess in the passenger seat, and Dougal in the back.

  But the nicest sight of all was the thick gold band on Quade’s wedding finger. She looked down at her own engagement and wedding rings, as she did often, just to make sure her dream was real. They had only just returned from their honeymoon the day before, a long wonderful honeymoon, with no cameras, no internet, and no distractions.

  “We’ll be late for Riley’s medieval day, sweetheart.”

  “Coming. I was just admiring you from afar,” Penny said as she walked over.

  Penny lifted Princess up, so she could sit in the passenger seat. “I don’t think I’ve got a dog any more. She’s been glued to you since we picked them up last night.”

  Riley had looked after Dougal and Princess at Axedale while Penny and Quade were on honeymoon. The only other time Penny had been without Princess was her stay in hospital, and that had been hard on them both, but here in Axedale, everything was different for them.

  Princess had Quade and Dougal, whom she adored, she had new friends in Riley and Caesar, and she knew she was loved and protected, no matter what. Just the way Penny felt.

  Quade ruffled Princess’s fur and gave Penny a lingering kiss. “She’s just happy to have lots of people to love her. Now let’s go before we miss all the roasted boar.”

  Penny laughed. A true carnivore, Quade had been particularly excited by the thought of eating roasted boar at the medieval day celebrations.

  “I’m sure there’ll be more than enough for you.” Penny leaned over and ran her hand up and down Quade’s thigh and whispered, “And if not, then I can satisfy you when we get home.”

  Quade shivered. “Don’t say things like that or we won’t make it to medieval day.”

  Since they had discovered each other and the joys of physical pleasure, Penny and Quade had been like a pair of horny teenagers.

  “Hmm. I’ve missed our barn,” Penny said.

  Quade gripped the steering wheel tightly. “Me too. Who knew I was missing out on all this exciting barn activity before I met you.”

  “Now you’ve got me, and I’m going to show you just how much fun it can be.” Penny winked.

  * * *

  The noise of children’s laughter reverberated around the grounds of Axedale Hall. The space at the front of the house had been given over to a medieval festival, planned by Riley and Harry.

  Annie and Bridge leaned on the fence around the field set out for the pony tournament. Annie sighed with contentment. Everything had come together perfectly. After long planning, the Axedale grounds were full of visitors who had come from all over the country, vendors from the farmers’ market selling their goods, as well as booths promoting local businesses. It was a great boost for local tourism, but what Riley had been most excited about were the medieval re-enactors. Knights in shining armour having sword fights and fair maidens were all over the place.

  Bridge said, “Aren’t they sweet?”

  Annie followed her gaze over to the two loves in her life, Harry and Riley. Both were dressed in armour, and Harry was helping Riley get her pony ready for competition.

  A mini-course had been set up for the children to ride around, with targets for them to hit with jousting poles. It had been what Riley had been most excited about.

  “They really are, Bridge,” Annie replied.

  Bridge nudged her and said, “Who would have thought Harry would be a great parent?”

  “I did.” Annie smiled. “I’ve always had complete faith in her.”

  Bridge rolled her eyes.

  Annie chuckled and pointed to Finn, who was a few yards away from them with a group of young children gathered around her, showing them magic tricks. “Anyway, who’d have thought you would have your own little miracle love story.”

  “Certainly not me. She really is achingly adorable, isn’t she?”

  “Who is?” Harry had walked over and put her arm around Annie.

  “Hello, Sir Knight,” Annie said. “Finn is adorable.”

  Harry frowned and said, “Buss me, my Lady Annie.”

  “What?” Annie said in confusion.

  Harry smiled. “It means, give me a kiss.”

  “Oh, gladly.” Annie gave her a soft kiss on the lips, and Harry’s hand went to the growing swell of her stomach.

  “Are you feeling all right? Not too tired?”

  “I’m fine. Just make sure baby number one doesn’t break something,” Annie said, pointing to Riley brushing her horse Willow.

  “Don’t worry,” Harry said. “Riley is worried about impressing Sophie.”

  Finn joined them and Bridge grasped her chin to give her a kiss. “Done with all your little tricks, Magician?”

  “For the time being, M—Bridge,” Finn said with a smile.

  Annie heard he
r name called. She turned around and saw her other favourite couple, Penny and Quade. Penny waved, and their two dogs ran by their side. Penny was the only woman she knew who could pull off a dress and wellington boots.

  As they got nearer Bridge said, “Oh, look. It’s Mrs. Sexy Farmer.”

  Penny laughed, and Quade gave her lopsided smile. “Thanks, Bridge.”

  “Good honeymoon?” Finn asked with a smirk.

  “Fabulous,” Penny said.

  Harry chimed in, “Somehow I couldn’t quite picture you in Barbados, Quade.”

  Quade pulled Penny to her and kissed her head. “Penny is broadening my horizons.”

  “I bet.” Harry winked.

  Annie was so happy for Quade and Penny, and Bridge and Finn. Harry once described Axedale as the gloomy, loveless place where she grew up. Until Annie arrived with her cakes, bread, hot choco surprise, and fudgie-wudgies—then love had won out as it always did. Love had brought Axedale Hall and its village to life.

  It gave Annie so much satisfaction to see her friends as happy as she was. Whether it was someone up in the sky or destiny that had brought Annie here, she was exceptionally grateful, because now she had a home, and she and her friends had love, and nothing had greater power than love.

  “Riley’s up next, darling,” Harry said.

  Annie hugged Harry and watched Willow and Riley trot to the start of the course.

  “Yes, she is,” Annie said.

  About the Author

  Jenny Frame is from the small town of Motherwell in Scotland, where she lives with her partner, Lou, and their well-loved and very spoiled dog.

  She has a diverse range of qualifications, including a BA in public management and a diploma in acting and performance. Nowadays, she likes to put her creative energies into writing rather than treading the boards.

  When not writing or reading, Jenny loves cheering on her local football team, cooking, and spending time with her family.

  Jenny can be contacted at www.jennyframe.com.

  Books Available from Bold Strokes Books

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