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“She’s probably right,” Wes said.

Alan glanced at him. “That isn’t the kind of answer I would have accepted two weeks ago.”

“No?”

“I’d have wanted somebody to give me wind speed, direction and a chart.”

“You still can.”

“I know. I’m beginning to understand there are times when looking at the trees is part of the chart.”

Alan didn’t seem embarrassed to say it.

Wes leaned against the side of the shed. “You’re learning fast.”

Alan looked toward him. Had he said too much?

Then Alan smiled. “Kate said something similar today.”

“She worries about you.”

“She always has.” He said it fondly. “When she was little, if I was ten minutes late getting home she wanted to know where I’d been. Then she grew up and that turned into checking whether I’ve scheduled an eye exam and asking if I’ve renewed the homeowners insurance.”

Wes laughed.

“Janice says I encouraged it.”

“Did you?”

“Probably. When she was young, I liked that she came to me when she was worried. It’s hard to complain now that she still does.”

The warmth in Alan’s voice made Wes think of Kate that morning, sitting beneath one of his trees with her fingers hooked through his while Penny watched for rabbits. He understood why she worried. He also understood why Alan did not resent it.

The farmhouse door opened before Wes could answer. Kate stepped outside carrying two mugs. “There you are. Mom said if Dad had found you, there was no chance either of you would come inside before the coffee went cold.”

Alan accepted one mug from her. “Your mother knows me too well.”

“She said the same thing.”

Kate held the other mug toward Wes. Their fingers touched around the handle. Neither of them let go immediately. The look she gave him was quiet and warm, nothing like the charged almost-kiss beneath the trees that morning and just as intimate. “How bad is it?” she asked.

“Bad enough that tomorrow’s changing. Not bad enough to panic.”

“That sounds very Wes.”

Alan took a drink of his coffee. “He’s telling me not to strip the orchard.”

“I’m telling you to bring in what makes sense and leave what doesn’t.”

Kate leaned lightly against the shed beside Wes. Her shoulder rested against his arm. The contact was small enough that Alan probably did not think anything of it. Wes noticed every inch.

Kate looked across the rows. “Do you need more people tomorrow?”

“Not yet. We can do more with the crews we already have if we move them around.”

“And if the forecast gets worse again?”

“Then we start calling people.”