Rescued by the Farmer by Mia Ross Read Free Book Online Page A

and her eyes were fixed on the critter she’d clearly become attached to. “I want to say goodbye.”
    Sierra glanced at the mom for her permission, and the woman nodded. “I explained why we couldn’t keep him, but I think it would be nice for them to see for themselves that he’s back where he belongs.”
    “Will do. I’ve got your contact info, so I’ll call when we’re ready to release him.”
    “Thank you. Have a good day.”
    Adding a quick smile for Bekah, the woman shepherded her kids out to a minivan that looked like it had a lot of miles on it. The girl gazed longingly back into the lobby, then reluctantly climbed into her seat and disappeared when her mother slid the door shut.
    “Wow, that was tough,” Bekah commented in sympathy. “Is it always that hard?”
    “No, but the kids really get to me. They see a fuzzy friend they can play with, but he’s a wild animal, not a Disney character.” Pausing, she took a deep breath and sighed. “Are those Maggie’s fabulous jumbo muffins?”
    “And coffee,” Bekah added, setting the basket on the counter. Glancing at the clock on the wall, she saw it was nearly eight. “I’m not sure if I’m late or not, so I thought I’d bring them just in case. How was your class last night?”
    “Impossibly mind-boggling.” Blowing on her coffee to cool it, the clinic’s director took a long, grateful sip. “I’m great with all the practical stuff because I do it here every day. The biology and anatomy terms just don’t stick in my head. I desperately need a tutor, but I can’t find one whose schedule meshes with mine.”
    Munching on a cranberry muffin so moist she barely had to chew it, Bekah pondered a possible solution to Sierra’s problem. Recalling what Drew had said about his sister-in-law, she said, “What about Lily? She’s a teacher. Maybe she can help get you through the rough parts.”
    “That’s brilliant! I don’t know why I didn’t think of that.”
    Bekah had never been called brilliant in her life, and it was rewarding to know she’d helped someone who’d been so kind to her. Thoughts of kindness led her to a problem she’d been pondering since she woke up. “Sierra, I have a big favor to ask.”
    “Shoot.”
    “I’ve only got one day’s worth of clean clothes left, and I hate to ask Mrs. Kinley for anything more. Could I do a couple loads of laundry in the machines here?”
    “Sure, but ick.” She made a disgusted face. “We wash all the animals’ blankets and towels in those. I wouldn’t put my clothes in them, that’s for sure. I remember hearing they were doing some renovations at the Oaks Café on Main Street and were planning to put in a connected Laundromat. I don’t know if it’s finished yet, but you could check.”
    The mere idea of going into Oaks Crossing on her own made Bekah slightly nauseous. People would ask her all manner of questions she’d prefer not to answer, which meant she’d either have to deflect them or outright lie about her less-than-glorious background. She feared the trip would end up being a complete disaster.
    That left her imposing on the Kinleys. Again. Not the ideal solution, but once she’d gotten all her clothes clean, she’d have some time to come up with a better one. While they ate, they chatted about the various animals housed at the center, and Sierra gave Bekah a brief lesson on the computer system they used to track everything from food and supply orders to wildlife release dates.
    She was no computer expert, but she’d used enough of them that she couldn’t miss the flashing red shield at the bottom of the monitor. “What’s that?” she asked, pointing to it.
    “Some kind of alert I haven’t been able to diagnose. This is a hand-me-down system from a donor, and I’d say we got what we paid for.”
    “When I get some time later on, I’ll take a look at it. Maybe it’s just a matter of finding the explanation online and downloading a program that will fix it once