…and impressing the hell out of everyone, including him. Though she had these profound obstacles, she laughed as though life was a treat. It was only Tom who had hang-ups, who wanted the woman of the rest of his life to match some unachievable fantasy woman. What a fool. The real deal had been picking apples for him all along.

Duke wandered to the back door. He wagged and looked over his shoulder at Tom and Tom got up to let him out, welcoming the distraction.

“There are so many options for us to look at as we get to know each other better,” Darla was saying. “I mean, things change, Tom. I’m sure you won’t want to grow apples forever. Then again, maybe you’ll want to expand, have a good team running the place while you do something else. And did you know that one of Maxie’s friends lives in a very nice seniors’ community?”

Just out of stubbornness he asked, “Which one?”

“Oh, I can’t remember. I think it was—”

Duke started to bark ferociously, that kind of bark that Tom recognized, not just from Duke, who was ten years old, but from dogs of his youth. That wild, high-pitched cry for backup. His eyes grew big, his mouth opened. He shot to his feet just as the dog’s scream came, as if he’d been attacked.

“Did you leave the gate open?” he asked Darla in a shout.

“I…ah…I don’t…”

“Tom!” Maxie yelled as she came pounding down the stairs.

He had the back door open. “Duke! Duke! Come on, boy! Come, Duke!”

The dog skittered up the porch steps and into the kitchen door, tail between his legs, head down, panting in terror, shaking all over.

“Bear!” Maxie said. “I’ll call Junior!”

“I’ll call Junior—check Duke over. He doesn’t look like he’s bleeding. I hope he’s just scared.” He picked up the phone and punched in some numbers. “Junior—we got the bear back. I’m pretty sure the gate was left open.” There was a pause. “I’ll be waiting near the house so don’t shoot anything that just rustles in the bushes—it could be me. I’ll carry a flashlight. Let’s not waste a lot of time.”

He went to the living room where the locked gun closet was and pulled out a rifle and extra ammunition. He put on his jacket, gloves, hat.

“What are you going to do?” Darla said, standing uncertainly from the table.

Tom ignored her. “Duke all right?” he asked Maxie.

Duke was down on the kitchen floor, baring his belly, Maxie beside him. “He’s all right, just scared to death. You be careful, Tom.”

“I’ll be careful,” he said.

“What are you going to do?” Darla shrieked.

“I’m going to get the goddamn bear!”

“Can’t you just go close the gate?”

“And close that bear and her triplets in here for the night? Then maybe when my employees come in the morning they can meet four bears face-to-face? I don’t think so. Or I could leave it open all night and have a herd of elk or deer divest me of my apples. Didn’t I tell you to close the goddamn gate after you come through?”

“I don’t know,” she said, immediately crying. “You always did it for me!”

It was pointless. “Yeah,” he said in exasperation. He looked at his grandmother. “Maxie, stay in the house. And I mean it.”

“Aren’t you going to tell me to stay in?” Darla asked.

“I know you’re not going out there.” And he left the house.

* * *

Junior and Tom took out the quads in search of bears. Typically they used the quads to pull a small flatbed with equipment or to drag soil aerating attachments when the tractor was too large to get between the trees. They could cover the orchard once in little time but it was a big job to check all the fencing, up in all the trees with flashlights and then backtrack to make sure no wildlife had slipped by them and doubled back.

They were out till three in the morning. They never saw a bear. They did see plenty of bear scat—there was no question who’d been to call.

It was probable that the bear and her cubs exited the orchard after Duke gave them a talking to, but it was impossible to know for sure. This was disconcerting for several reasons. First of all, they weren’t sure whether these bears were nocturnal feeders—that wasn’t necessarily the rule. Tom had always assumed they avoided the orchard while there were a lot of workers around and broke in at dawn or dusk when the gate was closed and the workers were gone and the orchard quiet, but maybe they’d been breaking down the fence at night. But there was no evidence they came daily—bear were scavengers—they loved feeding in dumps. And they had a particular fondness for fish. The river ran along the other side of the orchard. They could go around the orchard to get to the river.

“Nora’s usually the first one here,” Tom said.

“She doesn’t come before sunup anymore,” Junior said. “Not these days.”

“I’m sure there’s no wildlife trapped in here,” Tom said as he pulled the gate closed. “Just the same…”

“I’ll be here early,” Junior said. “I’ll go get a couple of hours and be right back.”

The men shook hands, Junior got in his truck to depart and Tom went into the house. The rifle didn’t go back in the gun cabinet, but leaned up against the cupboard in the kitchen.

In the living room he found Maxie in her recliner sound asleep, a crocheted throw over her. She was wearing her slippers but otherwise hadn’t dressed for bed—she was still in her clothes, ready if there was any action. Beside her was Duke. He lifted his head when Tom came into the room and gave his tail a couple of thumps.

Tom scratched him under the chin and said, “Yeah, thanks, buddy. Good work.” And then, without even taking off his boots, he dropped onto the couch and closed his eyes.

* * *

Nora was up, dressed for work and sitting at her table with a cup of coffee, staring at the auction notice when Adie tapped softly at her door. Nora let her in and said, “Come in. I fixed you a cup of tea—it’s so cold this morning.”

There was no mistaking the worry in the old woman’s eyes. “Have you decided what to do?”

Nora smiled reassuringly, though she didn’t feel sure of anything. “I’ll think of something. I haven’t even talked to anyone about this yet—maybe Reverend Kincaid has ideas. Or Jed—he might have a suggestion. Try not to worry.” Or Tom, she secretly thought. What would Tom say about her being thrown out of her house?

“Did you even know this house had been foreclosed?”

Nora shook her head. “Maybe that happened a long time ago. There have been so many foreclosures in the country, I’m sure it’s hard to keep up. I’ve heard of people living in foreclosed property for a year or more before they’re actually evicted.” Like me, she thought.

“I’ll help in any way I can,” Adie said. “You’re always welcome in my home.”

“Thank you.” How like Adie, who didn’t have a nickel to spare or much room under her own roof.

It was early November; Thanksgiving was just around the corner. She had been unable to suppress fantasies of how this holiday season might be spent. She would certainly be spending time with Jed, but after this past week of being chased around the apple trees and kissed on any opportunity, she rather hoped Tom might want to make some holiday plans.

But everything in her mind changed when she got to the orchard. After letting herself into the gate and closing it behind her, she pulled up to the barn. And there, parked at the rear of the house, was the red car.

Her heart plummeted. She almost couldn’t breathe.

Nora gathered her mettle and got out of the car. Tom was not in his office, so she made coffee for him; likely he was sleeping a little later than usual this morning since he’d had a house guest last night. Spirit almost broken, she grabbed a bag and a ladder, pulled on her gloves and went into the trees to get to work.

* * *

Tom woke to the aroma of coffee and bacon, the sun not yet up. He hadn’t moved an inch in about three hours; his feet were still on the floor. He groaned, coughed and stood up.

Maxie turned from the stove when he entered the kitchen. “Bear?”

“Never saw one,” he said. “But if they were hiding in the orchard, they were damn good and quiet. We saw plenty of bear shit, though. Duke outted them.”

“I heard a snore from the couch at about three-thirty… .”

“I didn’t even want to bother with the stairs. Did you get any sleep?”

“On and off. I kept waiting to hear a rifle shot.”

“Darla?” he asked.

“She went to bed not long after you left. I guess she wasn’t interested in waiting up.”

He just shook his head and scratched his itching beard. “I’m going to get a shower. I’ll be down in a few.”

He went to his room, gathered fresh clothes to take to the bathroom and stripped to his waist. The sun was still shy, but a soft glow came from outside the bathroom window. While he shaved, he thought. While he was not the least happy about the circumstances, now dealing with Darla was going to be considerably easier. He wasn’t sure how she survived in her world, but there was no way she could make it in his.

A lot of cruel things sprang to mind—like the fact that she was so self-centered she couldn’t even manage to close the orchard gate much less carry her own briefcase. He wouldn’t say these things, of course. But if he didn’t tell her there was no chemistry between them and send her on her way, Maxie just might. Maxie was getting more outspoken by the year.

He laughed to himself as he was pulling on clean jeans after his shower—he’d better lock up that rifle just in case Darla got the notion to try to convince Maxie it was time to pack up her things and go to some retirement home.

He’d barely pulled on his jeans in the steamy bathroom when he heard a glass-breaking female scream from the orchard.

“Nora!” he said aloud.

He ran down the stairs, taking them about three at a time. “Duke,” he yelled to the dog. “Duke, show me the bear!” Though barefoot and bare-chested, he grabbed the rifle as he passed through the kitchen, Duke on his heels.

Duke, apparently over his fright from last night, got low and fast and shot into the trees, snarling. Tom ran like his life was at stake…or Nora’s…and was so grateful Duke was the only one he heard growling.

She screamed again and added, “Help! Oh, God!”

Duke was way ahead and just might get the bear off Nora, even as old as Duke was. “Nora!” he yelled just so she would know he was coming. And then he turned into the trees to follow Duke, who was barking wildly. And Nora screamed again.

When he saw her, it took a second to process. Was she throwing apples at a big black bear? Screaming and throwing apples?

“Get behind the tree,” he yelled, taking aim.

Nora bolted behind the nearest tree and yelled, “Tom! Behind you!”

He turned in time to see a cub behind him; damn cubs were getting big. He had the rifle trained on the mother, who stood on her hind legs, accommodating him. He was all done playing around with this one—he fired. One. Two. Three. The first one caused her to stop, the second made her stumble back, the third knocked her down. It was a lot of rifle; she wouldn’t be getting up.

“Duke!” he commanded. “Come!” And the dog moved away from the dead bear, coming to Tom’s side.

Tom moved slowly toward Nora and the cub ran to his dead mother, standing on all fours beside her, nudging her. He looked around for the other cubs and that was when he thought he understood what had happened. Nora’s ladder was set up to take her in to the tree branches and there, in one of the big old trees, were two bear cubs.