me.
My heart clung to her words. “I hurt him, though.”
She shook her head. “Losing his dad hurt him. Your emergency just showed him how much he had to lose when it comes to you.” Her smile was conflicted, like she was seeing her son as a little boy and a man at the same time.
I felt like I’d already shared too much with this woman who was clearly loyal to her son, but I couldn’t help from asking my next question: “What can I do to help him?”
“It’s not your job to heal someone else’s wound. Only they can do that,” she said. “What you can do is love with your whole heart. I can tell it’s beautiful.”
Laura approached us carrying several bags. “All checked out,” she said.
Mrs. Sadler nodded. “I’ll see you around, Ginger.”
“I hope so.”
Sixty-Two
When I got home, Dad came outside to help me carry the bags into the garage.
“Thanks for grabbing those, Ginger,” he said.
I nodded, lugging one over my shoulder and following him through the open door. He sat his bag at the bottom of our shelving and shoved it into place.
“I guess if the apocalypse comes, we’re set,” I joked.
He laughed. “That dog’s going to outlive all of us.”
“Rosie would make sure of it. I can’t believe mom agreed to let Rosie keep her dog here while the twins are on set.”
Starting back toward the car, he said, “You’d be surprised what someone would do for the person—or dog—they love. Someone might even pull all of your meat from a store recognized across the tri-county area and start his own butcher shop.”
I froze on the sidewalk. “We’re not talking about Rosie anymore, are we?”
He sighed, leaning against my car. “I just got a call from our biggest local rancher saying they weren’t supplying us anymore beef starting next month. Apparently his wife wants him to open a butcher shop instead.”
My mouth fell open. Local beef was one of my parents’ best sellers, and the expansion was counting on it. People liked the idea of supporting local farmers and ranchers, and Ripe bought local whenever it possible.
He dragged his fingers across his brow, rubbing hard. “I shouldn’t be worrying you with this stuff. Not when your mom has a list a mile long you could be working on.”
“Is there anything I can do?” I asked.
With a wry smile he said, “Unless you happen to know a local rancher who grass-feeds their cattle and is looking to expand...not really.”
He picked up another sack of dog food carried it to the garage.
As I lugged the last sack inside, I realized he may not know a local rancher, but I did.
The problem was, I had to call him.
I dodged my mom and her list of to-do’s by going into the bathroom and locking the door. She wouldn’t bother me in here, at least not for a little while.
I paced back and forth in the small space, staring at my phone on the counter. Just a few pushes of the button, and I’d have Ray on the phone. I could make my ask and hang up. After that, he or his mom would be dealing with my parents. End of story. Fin.
Except for the fact they were basically arch enemies... but my parents needed a local rancher, and last I checked the Sadlers had a ranch full of cattle.
I sighed and sat on the toilet. Why was this so hard? I should be able to call him. Selling meat at Ripe was a great opportunity. My parents paid local producers well because they could charge more in the store for the items. If Ray was worried about supporting his family, this was a no-brainer, as long as he could handle his product sold alongside other options.
I picked up my phone, dialed his number, and held the speaker to my ear.
I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath until his voice came over the phone, saying my name. “Ginger.” It was like a life raft and a weight at the same time, holding me up but keeping me down.
“Hi,” I breathed.
The line was silent as he waited, wanting to know what I needed and probably preparing himself to let me down. That thought was just as painful, so I rushed out what I had to say.
“My parents are looking for a local rancher to supply the store with beef. Are you interested?”
“What?” He seemed shocked.
“Their supplier backed out, and they’re going to need someone they can count on. They prefer grass-fed,