No Ordinary Bloke Read Online Free PDF

Don’t they have Queens of Corn and Princesses of Poultry? I’ve heard of this.”
    She laughed. “They do, but believe me. The last thing I ever wanted to be was one of those. I got out of farm country the first moment I could.”
    “So what was that about?”
    “It’s not very interesting,” she said with a quick shake of her head to end the discussion.
    “I don’t believe that. To me, it will be fascinating. I don’t know anything about growing up on a farm in Iowa.” As Natalie arrived to refill our wine glasses, I continued, “Go on. Tell me the story of your life.”
    I glimpsed at Natalie, who side-eyed me. I probably deserved it, but not with Allison. I was genuinely interested in where this pretty little creature came from.
    “My life story?” Allison said in disbelief. “I don’t think anyone has ever asked me for that.”
    “Start from the beginning.” I eased back, trying unsuccessfully to recline. “We’ve got all night.”
    She wrinkled her nose, but after a second or two, she began. “Well, I grew up on a medium-sized farm, but I always knew I wanted to get out of there. My whole goal growing up was to get good enough grades to get a scholarship to a college out of state. I ended up going to Wellesley.”
    “Wellesley? Where is that?”
    “It’s a women’s college in Massachusetts.”
    Swirling my wine in my glass, I raised my eyebrows. “All girls? So no boys around? I need to hear more about that.”
    She frowned, though a smile cracked through. “Imagine a bunch of really smart women studying all the time, not some lesbian porno, okay?”
    “Hmm. What a shame.” I smiled. “Let’s go back to the farm. Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
    “Two older brothers, Pete and Larry.”
    “Where are Pete and Larry now?”
    “Larry is an insurance salesman in Des Moines. He’s got two kids, and his wife works at home. Pete runs the farm with his wife and kids. He’s got three of them.”
    “Did your parents retire?”
    “My mom lives with Pete. My dad died when I was young. Pete’s run the farm ever since.”
    “I’m sorry to hear about your dad.” I suppose I could’ve left it at that. Most polite people would. I really wasn’t that polite, and I was too curious to let it go. “How old were you?”
    “Thirteen.” Her words became rushed. “He had a heart attack. It’s been over twenty years now. It’s seems very distant.”
    As she took a drink of wine and then focused on her dinner, I wondered how many people bought that line from her. Probably old Trey let her leave things at that. Not many men are interested in slogging through a woman’s emotional issues—me included. What Allison said made her different.
    If she’d said a younger age, I’d believe that she’d put it behind her, but not at thirteen. My father was alive, but he became dead to me when I was about that age. The passing years had given me perspective, but it didn’t change facts that forever altered my life. I couldn’t imagine it would be any different for Allison.
    Still, I let it go. I didn’t know her well enough, so I took a drink and said, “I’m terribly sorry.”
    “Thanks,” she said, tightening her lips. She seemed happy to have the subject behind her. “So there you have it. I grew up on a farm. I went to Wellesley and left it behind, and then I went to Wall Street and began working in HR.”
    “Which you appear to excel at.”
    “Thanks. I’m really happy to have this promotion.”
    “Any farming skills come handy? Herding employees must be a little like herding cows.”
    “Farming skills? Uh. No.” She laughed. “I’ve never had to milk a cow at work.”
    “Well, I can’t milk a cow at all.” I glanced at the ceiling and considered what it might entail. Maybe it wasn’t a completely foreign idea, so I chuckled. “Though I bet I could easily get the hang of it.”
    Her mouth dropped open, and then she looked down trying not to smile. After a moment, she lifted