Samuel rubbed his thumb along a worn place in the wooden armrest. “Three years this October.”
His earlier defensiveness faded as he glanced at the empty chair beside him.
“We bought this place when there wasn't much here but the house and dirt. Planted those cottonwoods ourselves. She wanted fruit trees, so we put in fruit trees. Then she decided she needed a garden big enough to feed every person she'd ever met.”
A faint smile appeared and disappeared. “Our kids think I should move to Blanding. They're probably right.”
Leon leaned one shoulder against the porch post. “That's why you decided to sell.”
Samuel nodded, his gaze drifting across the property. “Deciding and doing aren't always the same thing.”
Thallia understood. Selling meant letting go of more than land.
Leon let the si
