Within a half hour, I was done with the discussion. I knew I couldn’t hold the children’s attention for much longer, and I didn’t want to bore them to death, so we ended the day with the kids dispersing amongst the nearest rows of apple trees to play and have fun before we headed back into the city.
I sat down to rest my feet after cleaning up the plates and lunches.
Lukas came and found me. He had a plate of pie in one hand and wore a cheeky smile as he took the seat beside me. He put the plate down and slid it toward me. “You were working so hard this afternoon, I noticed you never sat down to eat lunch.”
My stomach growled and I hoped he didn’t hear it. “It happens more often than it should.”
He nodded at the pie. “It’s delicious. I snagged it for you. Angelica tried to wrestle me for it but I’m bigger and stronger. So, you know, you’re welcome.”
I giggled. “Wow, I’m impressed. Way to stick it to an eight-year-old.”
He laughed.
Chapter 13
Lukas
Art had dozed off with his seat reclined in the Rover. I approached the SUV with a smile and rapped my knuckles on the driver’s side window. He woke with a start, looked around with blurry eyes, and frowned at me before turning the ignition so he could roll the window down.
“I didn’t mean to startle you,” I said.
“It’s no bother, sir. Are you ready to go back to the city?”
I glanced over my shoulder at the group. Most of the kids were making their way back to the bus they’d arrived on. Kayla was outside the bus doors doing a headcount while parents and legal guardians boarded. The only person not getting on the bus was the photographer. Winifred had already gotten in her own car, a red Volkswagen Golf, and driven off.
“I think I’m going to stay behind and ride in on the bus,” I said.
Art blinked and peered past me at the faded yellow bus. “Are you certain, sir?”
“Yes. Thank you. Enjoy the ride back into the city, Art. At least you won’t have to listen to me typing away the entire time.”
Art grinned and fiddled with the touchscreen. “I think I’ll listen to my audio book then.”
I stood back with my hands in my pockets as he pulled away and the tires kicked up dust. I lingered there at the edge of the road, my ruined shoes stained from the grass and the dirt.
The view was incredible. The sky was still vibrant and blue but some clouds had rolled in, threatening to rain later this afternoon. The apple trees varied in colors of red, orange, yellow, and green. I’d seen oil paintings this colorful but it had been a long time since I noticed such beauty in nature.
I’d been cooped up in the city for too long. Sure, I had great views from my office, but they were nothing like this. I stared out at a vast jungle of concrete and glass every day. It smelled of carbon emissions, takeout restaurants, and garbage. Occasionally, I caught the whiff of fresh-baked bread from a cafe down on the street but those moments were few and far between. The sounds of traffic drowned out other more pleasant sounds. Like the sounds here on the farm of birds chirping, children laughing, and leaves rustling in the gentle autumn breeze.
Yes, I needed to get out of the city more often. Maybe I’d been working too hard for too long. I’d forgotten how to take time off—forgotten how good it felt to breathe fresh air.
The bus honked its horn and I turned around.
Kayla waved me over. “Are you coming or what?”
I jogged over to the bus and she laughed at me. “What’s so funny?”
Kayla shrugged and got on the bus ahead of me. “You running in a suit and loafers on a farm,” she said pointedly. “That’s what’s funny.”
I followed her up the three steps and we took a seat side by side in the front row. She looked over at me in surprise. “What?” I asked. “Is this seat taken?”
She shook her head and kicked her feet up on the bar in front of us. “Nope.”
The bus driver closed the doors, and seconds later, we were rolling away from the farm and down the dirt road. Kayla checked over her shoulder that everyone was settled in their seats.
I nudged her hip with mine to get her attention. “I think your day was successful. It looks like everyone had a great time.”
She smiled and settled lower in her seat to get comfortable. “I think so too. I know Angelica certainly enjoyed herself.”
“Cute kid.”
“She’s a troublemaker.”
“No,” I said, shaking my head in disbelief. “She’s an angel.”
“Because she liked you and you were giving her a lot of attention.”
“Isn’t that what all kids want?”
“Yes,” Kayla said with a knowing smile. “But unfortunately, it isn’t what all kids get. Today just might have been the highlight of the entire fall season for her.”
I frowned. I didn’t like the sound of that.
Kayla sighed and closed her eyes. “She’s one of the children on the school lunch program I work with. A few of the kids out here with us today are. It’s been a struggle to make sure we have proper funding to feed the children who are sent to school with no meals from home.”
“Her parents don’t have the means to feed her?”
Kayla shook her head and cracked one eye open to peer over at me. “A lot of these kids’ parents don’t. That’s why they’re in this group. Sometimes, all they have to eat in the day is the food the lunch
