Farm Boy

"Hamilton County Breaks Livestock Records"

County Extension officials report that livestock births are surpassing historical records on local farms this year.

'It's kind of insane,' Extension Manager, Richard Peck, reported to the Growers' Association semi-annual meeting yesterday in Hadleyburg. "We are seeing double and even triple the birth rates for livestock and poultry."

A map provided by Peck charted the increases across the county, with most of the increased births clustered around Hadleyburg.

'It's true,' local farmer, Ed Harris, stated after Peck's presentation. "I've never seen so many damn calves. And, I've had to sell off a bunch of my chickens to make room in the coops."

While Peck could offer little explanation for the increased fertility, some at the meeting pointed to hotter and damper weather this summer. Others pointed to new and improved feed grains.

Peck concluded by projecting big gains in livestock prices for the spring, as reproduction and growth rates meet increasing nationwide demand for beef, pork, and chicken. Though waiting for processing reports, he noted that soy and corn crops also seemed to be headed for record bounties.

The meeting ended at 4 p.m. and was followed by the semi-annual Hog and Hoof Dinner at Dolan's Diner on Route 36.

By Sam Bryan, Hamilton Farm Reporter (August 8, 1973, page 2):

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Sammy and Lucinda were happy to welcome Mrs. Johnson - - otherwise known as Jenny - - to the farm, even as they reckoned with the complications of Jenny's presence. The day before their new guest's arrival, they lay together, Lucinda's chin propped on Sammy's chest, and discussed the new situation as the rain slowed outside to a drip.

"We'll just have to be careful, honey," Lucinda said finally. "Real careful."

Sammy stroked his grandmother's hair and murmured his agreement.

"Oh lord," Lucinda continued, lazily combing her fingers through his chest hair. "Mornings are gonna be real tough."

He smiled. "We'll have to be up early."

Lucinda grinned, remarking to herself how easy that would be. Most mornings, images and memories of her grandson and his tight, muscled body and glorious cock drove her from bed well before the sun rose.

"It's always worse in the morning," she whispered. "I just have to have you in the mornings."

Her hand draped itself lazily over his deflated cock.

"I have to have this real bad... in the mornings."

He pulled her up, over his body, to kiss her.

"I know the feeling," he whispered back. "I'm crazy for you in the mornings. And only just a little less crazy the rest of the time."

Lucinda chuckled and kissed Sammy, resting her palm against his cheek.

"Say," Sammy said. "I forgot to tell you about Doc...and the water district."

Lucinda snuggled against her grandson while he related the good news from his two earlier calls. Relieved and happy, they drifted off to sleep.

-------

Sammy and Lucinda made hurried love in the shower early the next morning. As Lucinda prepared breakfast, Sammy peered through the kitchen window. The storm had cleared out overnight and a strong mid-summer sun was already drying the fields. Better to be busy when his mom arrived, he thought to himself.

"Here you go, honey," Lucinda said as she dropped a plate of eggs, bacon, and toast in front of him. "Go on and eat."

Sammy sipped his coffee and dug into the food.

"Now, remember," Lucinda said to him across the table. "We have to be careful" She paused until he raised his eyes to hers. "No matter what. Even if we're burning and itching and...." She gulped as she smiled. "Even if all we want to do...right now, right here... is grab onto each other and diddle ourselves silly."

Sammy nodded.

"But sometimes," he said as his cock twitched in his jeans. "Sometimes it's real hard, gran. And I mean real hard."

Lucinda sighed and fanned her hand in front of her face, which had suddenly flushed red.

"I know, honey. I know." She dropped her eyes. "I mean right now all I want to do is jump across this table and kiss you... kiss you real good."

Sammy's hand slid onto the front of his pants.

"Gran," he said in a low voice. "All I want to do right now is grab those big juicy tits of yours in my hands... and just go crazy."

Lucinda gulped.

"Oh my," his grandmother wheezed. "Honey, you know I want that too. And you know I just want to strip you naked and run my hands all over you."

Sammy stroked his cock, straining now against the coarse fabric of his pants.

"Uh huh," he muttered. "I'm already hard for you, baby. My cock is gonna explode out of these jeans."

Lucinda planted her hands on the table and screwed her eyes shut. Her chest heaved up and down.

"It's not fair," she panted. "I need that big old man-thing of yours. Right now. I need it, honey. I really do."

Sammy shot to his feet, his fingers already working at his jeans button.

"No," Lucinda practically shouted as she raised her hands. "No, baby. Fight it. We have to be careful."

Sammy's fingers froze against his jeans and he whined in protest.

"Gran," he muttered. "What am I gonna do with this? It's not right...that I gotto walk around with this thing in my pants. It hurts."

Lucinda gazed up at him, her eyes filled with concern.

"Honey," she whimpered as she stood and pulled her dress off her shoulders. "Just once. Then we have to be careful. You promise?"

Her dress slipped to the floor and she raised her arms.

"Get on over here, son, and give your grandma some of that good, hard lovin'"

Sammy stumbled around the table, his fingers flying against the buttons of his jeans. They collided together and fell into a writhing, frenetic heap on the floor. When they finished in a wild cacophony of yelps and groans, they traded long, deep kisses. Sammy stood and buttoned back up. He helped Lucinda to her feet and they hugged.

"Get on out of here," Lucinda said with a smile. "Go on, you devil. Before we get any more bad ideas."

Sammy strode out the back door as his grandmother pulled her dress back on and straightened her hair.

-----

It was hot and humid in the fields and the AC in the tractor cab was broken. Sammy hauled fertilizer up and down the rows of soybeans. He dropped onto the damp, warm earth every fifteen minutes or so to plunge the soil tester into the dirt. He recorded the results in a small notebook in his back pocket. Everything looked good and he nodded as he gazed out over the endless rows of leafy plants and calculated yield. A bountiful year lay ahead.

A little while after noon, he drove the tractor to the barn entrance. He hosed off the machine and then applied the water to himself. He dried off with a towel hung on the barn door, pulled his t-shirt back on, and drove the big tractor into the cool shade of the barn. As he approached the house, he caught the tinkling sound of two voices - - his mom's and his grandmother's. He took a deep breath, pushed his hands into his pockets, and walked to the back door.

Lucinda had been vacuuming the living room carpet when she heard the car pull up the gravel driveway. Sighing, she clicked the machine off, looped the cord back into place, and pushed it next to the desk. She patted and primped at her hair and straightened her dress as she made her way to the front door. She sighed again when she caught sight of Jenny slamming shut the door of her big Buick.

To be honest, she reflected, she'd never really liked her daughter-in-law. They just never clicked. Jenny was pretty enough - - maybe a little too skinny and sharp-edged - - and she was expert at keeping the house clean and the food hot. But her daughter-in-law always seemed so anxious and touchy. Tight as a fiddle string, as they used to say. She couldn't understand how Rutherford tolerated all that tension and she felt bad for him.

Of course, she kept it all to herself. Jenny was her son's wife after all. The important thing was their relationship, not her feelings.

She pushed the screen door open.

"Well, hello, stranger," she shouted at Jenny, who startled like a deer at the sound of her voice.

The younger woman worked a smile across her thin lips and waved at Lucinda.

"Hi mom," she answered in her thin voice. "How are you?"

"Thank the lord," Lucinda replied. "I'm wonderful... even if that storm yesterday made the air damp as a wet washcloth."

Jenny nodded and her smile dissolved.

"Where's Sammy?" She asked as her mother-in-law wrapped her in a hug.

"Out in the fields," Lucinda replied. "That boy just loves to work."

Jenny raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Sammy? Work?"

Lucinda laughed.

"We can all change, honey," she said as she ushered Jenny into the cool living room. "How about some lemonade?"

Jenny nodded yes and the two women walked to the kitchen. Lucinda gestured to a chair at the kitchen table. Jenny sat and Lucinda returned from the refrigerator with a pitcher, scooping up two glasses from the drying board.

"Wow," Jenny said after her first sip. "I forgot how delicious your lemonade is, mom."

Lucinda accepted the compliment with a smile.

There was something different about Lucinda, Jenny remarked to herself as she studied her mother-in-law across the table. Her eyes seemed to glitter with energy and she moved through the kitchen with grace and confidence. Her voice, too, was fuller and richer. Jenny had expected her to be more reserved, even diminished, after her husband's death. But, widowhood seemed to have blessed Lucinda.

The two women chatted - - about the weather, the farm, Jenny's trip - - as they drained their glasses. Lucinda offered a refill and Jenny nodded.

"So, honey," Lucinda said as they continued sipping. "I didn't talk to Rutherford. Sammy did." She paused. "It's okay. I know how it is. A husband will run you ragged and then come back for seconds."

Jenny cast her eyes down at the table.

"We all need a good vacation now and then. Even if we can't fly to Paris or London."

Lucinda refilled their glasses.

"You stay here as long as you like. We're happy to have you here - - me and Sammy."

Jenny breathed a quiet sigh of relief. She looked up at Lucinda with gratitude even as something niggled at the back of her mind. "Me and Sammy." She'd said that so naturally. As if Lucinda and her son were an old married couple or long-term partners. Had Sammy really become the man of the house so quickly?

The kitchen door squeaked open and Jenny looked up. Her eyebrows arched in surprise at the sight of her only son. He was tanned and he'd filled out, his arms now thick and brawny, his chest full, his narrow waist and strong thighs. His glance met hers and Jenny almost gasped. Sammy's eyes no longer belonged to a rebellious teenager. They'd been replaced by the steady, confident gaze of a man. As if for the first time, she noticed how handsome her son was - - with his chiseled features and tall, broad body. How unlike his father he appeared. An image of Rutherford's flabby body and jowly cheeks flashed across her mind.

Sammy strode across the kitchen and extended his arms.

"Mom," he said, pulling her to her feet and hugging her delicately. "It's great to see you."

"Oh," Jenny chirped, surprised by Sammy's strength and confidence. "Yes, honey. Good to see you too."

He released her.

"You look so different," Jenny said hurriedly. "I hardly recognized you."

Sammy looked to his grandmother and they broke into a matching pair of smiles. Like a couple of cats sharing a canary, Jenny thought briefly. She rested her hand on Sammy's shoulder and tried to smile along with them.

"Go on," Sammy said. "Sit down. No need to strain yourself after that long drive."

Jenny returned to the chair as Lucinda rose to her feet.

"Let me get some lunch on," her mother-in-law said, rubbing her hand along Sammy's upper arm. "You must both be famished."

They ate sandwiches and chips and drank lemonade at the table together, chatting about tiny, simple things. When they finished, Lucinda cleared the table and Jenny helped her wash the dishes.

"Okay," Sammy said from behind the two women. "I've got a few more rows of soy to take care of...." He stood and sighed. "Damn hot out there today."

The two ladies spun toward him and Lucinda transferred her dishrag onto her shoulder.

"Honey," she said. "You need to be careful... under that sun. That heat could kill the devil himself."

Sammy laughed and he and his grandmother exchanged another smile. Again, Jenny was surprised by their easy familiarity. And again, she thought they acted more like a happily-married couple than a grandmother and grandson. She put a plate in the drying rack and retrieved the last glass out of the soapy water in the sink.

"Oh, baby," Lucinda cooed.

Jenny's head snapped upward. "Baby"? She fought back a scowl and fastened her eyes on the glass in her hands.

"I need to come out and show you something," Lucinda continued. "I think that hose out in the barn has a leak. I noticed a puddle the other day."

Sammy stopped and stared at his grandmother.

"Uhhhhhhh," he stuttered. "Okay."

Lucinda turned to her daughter-in-law.

"You can finish up here, can't you, Jenny?"

Jenny nodded and rinsed the glass off. She watched Lucinda follow Sammy out the kitchen door, breathing a sigh of relief when they disappeared. All these changes so fast. She could use a little break.

Lucinda trailed behind Sammy as he made for the barn. The heat wrapped itself around her. As soon as she'd left the kitchen she'd felt woozy. Whether this was caused by the hot, humid air or the sight of Sammy's ass in tight jeans, she couldn't decide. All she knew was that every stop closer to the cool, dark interior of the barn filled her with anticipation. Wicked, delicious thoughts of her grandson had been building ever since Jenny stepped out of her car. Secrecy - - the very idea of clandestine love - - had brewed her desire into a delicious, intoxicating excitement.

Sammy disappeared into the barn. As he made his way into the shadows at the rear of the big, musty building, he turned. His grandmother rushed into his arms. He stepped backward, gently applying his hands to Lucinda's shoulders.

"Whoaaaaaa," he muttered. "Wait.... hold on there."

Lucinda pressed herself forward against his arms.

"Please, baby," she whispered. "I need you."

Sammy held her away from him. It was true. Thoughts of his grandmother had plagued him all morning. The image of their naked bodies twined together in bed had only grown stronger and more vivid as he chewed his way through lunch. The whole time, he worried that his mother would notice the furtive glances he shot at Lucinda as they ate. His fieldwork was done. It was the tension that forced him out into the yard.

"I need you too, gran," Sammy said quietly. "But remember... we have to be careful."

"I'll be careful, honey," Lucinda answered. "We can be careful out here. She won't notice anything."

Sammy shook his head even as his arms relaxed and Lucinda pressed herself against him. Their lips met. She looped her arms around his neck and he wrapped his arms around her waist. Their tongues dove and cavorted together. Clinging to each other, they stumbled deeper into the barn. Sammy lifted his grandmother up and Lucinda wrapped her legs around his waist, their mouths still glued together hungrily.

The kitchen door banged open and they froze. Sammy's eyes goggled and Lucinda's tongue stopped dead still.

"Sammy... Lucinda?" Jenny's reedy voice called out through the yard. "Are you two out here?"

"Shit," Sammy muttered, lowering his grandmother back onto her feet.

Jenny's voice neared and, reluctantly, Lucinda detached herself from Sammy. She brushed her dress back into place and Sammy ran a hand through his hair. He stepped away from his grandmother just as Jenny appeared - - silhouetted against the entrance to the barn.

"There you are," she said.

She took a few tentative steps into the barn and Lucinda spun around.

"Oh, Jenny," she said, her voice scratchy. "I was just showing Sammy the spigot back here."

Jenny nodded. "I thought I'd come out and see what Sammy's been up to."

Sammy smiled weakly. Lucinda stepped to his side and patted him on the shoulder.

"Well," she said, her voice starting with a tremble but resolving into a firm tone. "I'll let Sammy give you a tour. You'll be real proud of him, Jenny."

Sammy watched his grandmother clench her hands together behind her back. She stepped forward and Sammy followed her.

"Sure, mom," he said. "Let me give you the grand tour."

Lucinda turned to give him a quick peck on the cheek before she strode past Jenny out of the barn.

For the next half hour, Sammy walked his mom around the yard to the edge of the field, pointing out the animals and waving at the endless lines of corn and soy.

"Those animals look a little strange," Jenny said when they approached the goat pen. "Are they sick?"

Sammy smiled. "No. They're fine. They're more active in the morning. They like to sleep the heat away in the afternoon."

Jenny nodded and they moved on to the chicken coop.

When he was done showing off the farm, he guided Jenny to the kitchen door. She was flushed and patches of sweat blossomed beneath her arms and around the collar of her blouse.

"Go on inside,' he said to her. "You look hot."

Jenny smiled at him.

"You've done good work here," she said as she stepped onto the kitchen porch. "Your grandad would be proud."

Sammy shrugged. "I'm just doing what I like," he answered. "But, thanks."

He opened the screen door for her.

"Go on. Get inside. I bet gran has some more lemonade. And, you can take a cool bath."

Jenny slipped inside and Sammy, seeking to put as much distance between himself and temptation as he could, hiked through the corn rows to the pond at the edge of the farm. He spent the rest of the afternoon there under the shade of the old oak tree, dozing and struggling against the memories of his grandmother's gleaming eyes and damp lips.

Dinner came and went and despite an invitation to watch Jeopardy, Sammy retreated to his room. He locked the door behind him and found an old paperback. Tortured by the conflict between desire and caution, he tossed and turned on his bed until he fell asleep.

And, so it went for the next couple of days. Sammy and Lucinda choking back their inclinations. Jenny rising early and helping her mother-in-law with cooking and chores, her presence an exasperating check on the urges that swelled beneath Sammy and Lucinda's increasingly fraught smiles and glances.

Toward the middle of Jenny's first week on the farm, Sammy found himself once again at the edge of the pond. Earlier in the day, he'd had to drive the tractor way out over the ridge and jerk himself into relief deep within the rows of corn. He'd come to the pond to try to relax before lunch.

It was another hot and humid day, so Sammy pulled off his t-shirt and jeans. He rested on his back, nude on the pond bank. The water was murky but its surface sparkled in the sun. He stood, glanced around, and waded out into the big pond. Mud slithered between his toes. The water, though tepid, cooled and refreshed. He floated on his back, his pale legs and torso bobbing up and down in the water.

The corn rustled behind him and Sammy planted his feet back on the muddy bottom of the pond. He peered around the shore. A bird called from the branches of the oak tree. A bit spooked, Sammy trudged out of the water. He heard the sound of the farm's little ATV nearing and, before he had time to scoop his clothes up, the vehicle chugged into view along the dirt path that led from farm to pond. Sammy almost laughed to see his petite grandmother navigating the ATV to the edge of the pond. Lucinda waved at him as she jumped out of the driver's seat and jogged forward.