"Thanks for coming out and spending the day and morning with me," Ashe whispered into my ear as I gave her one last hug with my hands squeezing her ass, "You don't know how lonely I get throughout the week when I wake up in an empty bed."
"That's why I make an effort to come see you every weekend," I replied just as softly, "Though hopefully one day I'll work out a situation where there isn't a day you have to go a day without seeing me."
"Well, we do have a lot of land on the farm." Ashe pointed out with a sly grin, "It wouldn't be too hard to get it surveyed and put aside ten or so acres to develop. Build out a nice cabin in a year's time."
I smirked, "I don't know if a cabin alone is going to gonna fit all of us. Maybe a log cabin manor, one that we can grow into as the years pass and our lives get more settled in their ways."
"To think within a month of knowing you, I'd actually be thinking of settling down," Ashe sighed wistfully. "Before you came along, I was expecting to spend my life alone trying to get this farm back up on its feet. Now I can't see a future where this place isn't thriving again in a year's time."
Leaning down, I kissed Ashe on the lips, "And once it is, I'm gonna remember what you just said now. I wouldn't mind moving out here with you and the rest of the coven. It'll give us some much-needed seclusion once we start really becoming a family."
"A family…do you mean kids or a ring, Tiger?" Ashe questioned as she looked up at me.
I grinned, "Both if you'd let me."
"You're damn right I'd let you," Ashe muttered, almost growling as a feral look ignited in her eyes, "Honestly, I'm surprised I'm not pregnant already with how often you've been filling me up."
"It'll only happen when having children is your real desire," I explained, "Right now you want to restore your family's farm before having children."
"Hmmm, if only it were that easy for everyone," Ashe muttered before letting out a calming exhale, "Alright, I've taken enough of your time, get on going now before the auto shop gets too busy and you have to wait in line. You got the address right?"
"Yep," I confirmed while patting my pocket where the folded-up slip of paper Ashe had handed me earlier sat, "I actually drive past it every time I come out here. Surprised they're open on a Sunday."
"They work hard around the clock. Why do you think my daddy got along with 'em so well? Now it pains me to say this, but stop chatting with me, get going already."
"Alright, alright, I'll leave, but one last thing," I insisted, and before Ashe could protest, I kissed her on the lips, nice and hard, then stepped back, "Now I'm good to go."
---
'There it is.'
Spotting the familiar sign as I came into town, I turned where I normally went straight, pulling into the front lot of Ramirez's Autoshop, as the large sign said.
Following the arrows along the pavement, I eventually found the parking lot where it seemed like I was one of many customers looking for an auto mechanic, 'Looks like business is booming.'
Getting out of my car, I made my way inside and found myself in a customer service lobby with chairs for people waiting and several kiosks manned by attendants ready to help those waiting.
'Ashe was right, I should have gotten here earlier,' For a moment, I was worried that I would have to wait in the probably hour-long queue when someone suddenly called out to me, "Excuse me, Sir?"
I glanced over and found a woman staring at me with interest and a look of familiarity in her eyes, "Sorry for asking, but you wouldn't have happened to be on TV recently, would you?"
"I was actually," I answered honestly as I turned to face the woman, "I did a cooking segment for the local news station."
"Ah, I knew it!" The woman grinned and clapped her hands in excitement, "You're Ramon Young!"
"Yes, that's me, and what's your name?" I asked while offering my hand.
The woman grinned and eagerly shook my hand, "You can call me Nena, Nena Ramirez. I've been trying to get a reservation at your restaurant, but you're all booked up. Though you probably know that already."
"It's something I'm trying to fix, but we were not prepared for all the traffic," I explained, though it didn't seem that Nena was too upset about it.
"I don't doubt it, your food looked perfect. I can't believe you lost to that rude-looking woman."
"Well, she was a world-renowned chef, and I can't be upset about losing fairly," I replied with a smile, "Now, while I would love to keep talking about food, I was sent here to ask if you guys would be open to a different kind of service than what you usually provide."
"Oh, what kind of service are we talking about?" Nena asked, and I watched as her entire attitude switched from casual conversation to business, "Because if it's got a motor on it, then more likely than not we can work on it."
"It's a couple of tractors, older models that haven't been run in years." I explained, only for Nena's eyebrows to raise, "Tractors? What does a cook need with tractors?"
"I'm working with Ode Farms to start supplying my restaurant with fresh produce. The woman who owns it says her father used to do work with the man who owned this place and said you guys could do the job."
"Ode farm…I think that sounds familiar," Nena's brow furrowed, clearly trying to pull something from her memory. "They had the apple orchard, right? And did the tractor rides every fall!"
I nodded, "That's the one. Now the problem is that we're still getting started again and don't have the equipment necessary to transport the tractors here. So we were hoping that one of your mechanics would be willing to come out to the farm and work on the rigs there or, at the very least, give them a diagnosis."
Nena's lip pursed, and I could already hear the hesitation in her voice even though she hadn't said anything, "We don't normally do house calls, but for you I think we can work out something special. Though I have to warn you in advance, it won't be cheap. Even ignoring the service fees and hourly charge, there's a good chance that any replacement parts you're looking for are going to run a decent premium since the older models are no longer in production."
"That's fine, as long as it's cheaper than buying a whole new rig, then I don't think it will be an issue," I replied.
"Definitely going to be cheaper." Nena said confidently, "Just don't be looking for dirt cheap."
I nodded, "Read you loud and clear."
"Good, then let me check in with my father, and then I'll be right out to tell you whether or not we can take on the work," Nena replied, "Feel free to take a seat. It might take me a minute to get that old fool out from underneath whatever side project he's working on."
"Sounds good."
It took roughly fifteen minutes for Nena to walk back into the lobby, but this time she wasn't alone, and right behind her walked an old but fit-looking man dressed in a jumpsuit that was probably older than I was.
"My daughter says you're working with the Ode Farm?"
The man's voice was gruff as he walked over to me and stuck out his hand, stained with grease and oil, but I didn't hesitate to shake it. "That I am, Ramon Young."
"Manuel Ramirez, good to know that someone is breathing life into that place. It was a damn awful shame what went down all those years ago, and it killed me to see a family institution like that fall on hard times."
"Hopefully that means you'll be taking on the job," I prompted and felt a small twinge of relief when the man nodded. "We can work on those tractors for you, or I should say that my daughter can work on them."
I glanced over at Nena only for her to quickly shake her head, "No, not me, I'm only working behind the desk. He's talking about my younger sister! Audrey, stop messing around in that engine bay and come introduce yourself!"