I fucking hate soybeans.
I hate their stupid fucking plants with their pretentious fucking leaves.
I hate the way they grow in neat, little lines close to the ground. Their glossy sprouts swaying casually in the breeze like they aren't the biggest cock block in the midwest.
Because of FUCKING soybeans, I had to walk TWO MILES to Larry Balmer's field because he's the only saint who planted corn in this god-forsaken county this year. It seemed like after the war, all the farmer sons who came back started planting soy. My own dad owned the general store and proudly proclaimed, "The U.S. dominates the world soy industry!" I said, "Who gives a shit when only the cows eat it?" Then I got slapped for saying "shit".
I hiked up my dress as I hopped the split rail fence between the Masons' properties. Unfortunately, I stepped in a pile of sand from a huge ant hill on the other side, the sand filling my shoe. Tomorrow I'll have to start the wash early so my mother doesn't see my dirty socks.
The half-moon didn't provide nearly the light I was counting on. I had my little brother's Eveready flashlight in hand (easy to sneak out of his Boy Scout bag), but I knew I couldn't turn it on until after I passed Sue Ann Reynold's house. Her grandmother lived with them and liked to sit up late smoking on the back porch and minding everyone else's business.
That's the thing about small towns. Everyone is all up in everyone else's shit. They've got nothing better to do than wonder why Mary Beth wore her blue dress on a date with Bobby Carter, but not the pink bow in her hair like she had when she went out with Nathaniel Schurt. They gossiped louder than blue jay's then sat in church on Sunday and shamed their neighbors when the preacher spoke about gossip being a deadly sin.
My sins would certainly be the hottest gossip in town if anyone knew. And they could NEVER know. Not until I was long gone. Which is why I needed the goddamn farmers to plant fucking corn.
"What are you thinking so hard about there, beautiful?"
"Ahhhh!!" I tripped forward over some loose dirt and screeched as the voice, and person behind it, surprised me in the dark. The tree line behind the neighborhood houses I had been passing through obscured the moonlight completely. "What the fuck, Lou?! You scared the shit outta me!"
"Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" I felt her warm hands wrap around my waist as she breathed into my ear from behind. She pulled me flush against her body, immediately igniting the fire in mine.
"No, Lou. I only kiss you."
I felt her smile on the skin of my neck as she kissed me below my right ear. Then her strong hands spun me around, yanked me close, and her hot mouth engulfed me. My brother's Eveready slipped out of my hand as I reached up to tangle my fingers in her dark, curly hair.
Lou was unlike any woman in town. Born Louisa Jean Scott, she pulled her dress off at three years old and went screaming up the church aisle that she wanted pants forever. Since that day, she'd never worn a dress or skirt. She was as rough and tumble as they came; fighting, running, digging in the mud, anything outdoors or anything loud, Lou was right in the middle of it. She worked afternoons in her uncle's shop and could fix anything with a motor.
And Lou was all mine.
Not that anyone knew, of course. Good, Christian Eileen Ruth had no business sneaking out to the corn fields to mess up her perfect, blonde curls or get dirt all over the back of her blue cotton dress...but here I was.
"I missed you," I breathed into her open mouth.
"I've missed you too, baby. I've thought of you every moment."
I pulled back to try and catch the moonlight on her face. "Honest? Or are you pulling my leg?"
Lou's hands ran down the small of my back, over my ass, and cupped the back of my thighs over my full skirt. Her eyes were even with mine as she bent down to grip me. "Every moment." She dropped her voice lower, "And you know exactly which ways I want to pull your legs."
I shuddered. "Then get to it. I'm ready to burst."
She grinned with mischief as her hands pulled against my thighs harder, plucking me from the ground. I squealed and wrapped my legs around her waist. Even though she'd carried me many times, I thought for sure this position would tip us. But Lou proved stronger than even my wildest fantasies.
"My lady," she teased, "Shall I carry thee to bed?"
"What, you've got a four-poster stashed in Balmer's field?"
Lou kissed my cheek, "Nah, but I did bring an old horse blanket this time. So hopefully we don't ruin that pretty dress."
I rolled my eyes, "You hate dresses."
Lou's body moved with the force of her head shake, "No way, baby. I just love dresses...when they're on you."
I blushed, not that the half-moon would betray me by showing Lou my red cheeks.
She carried me along the back treeline as we headed out toward the Balmer's property. We had to be silent as we passed a few houses. I kept my legs and arms firmly wrapped around her, occasionally kissing her neck or nipping her earlobe. She responded by pinching my butt or groaning low in her chest. I liked teasing.
"Lee, you're killing me," she whined.
"How much further?"
"Not far," Lou responded, "There's a few trees in this yard, then the corn there will put us out of sight."
I tried to see where she meant but couldn't make it out in the half darkness. "How can you see?"
She shrugged, "Lots of nighttime sneaking."
I smacked her arm, "Hey!"
Lou laughed, "I'm teasing! Only with you, baby."
I knew Lou was only teasing, but I also knew I wasn't her only like she was mine. That was fine with me though. I didn't care so long as I had her all to myself now.
As we neared the corn field, the nighttime noises began to fade slightly. Crickets chirped, but they preferred to hide near the bushes and the croaking of toads from the irrigation channels was dampened by the taller crops. Insects buzzed around us, but nothing a little swat wouldn't shoo away.
It was hot and sticky out. The light breeze was too light and too far between drafts of relief. I was beginning to think this was a bad night, until Lou carried me through one more line of corn. When we squeezed through the stalks to a deep section of the field, I saw what Lou had set up.
