“What does your brother do? Is he an agent too?”
“No. Nick never got into it. He and I inherited land when our grandfather died. He owned almost five hundred acres, and it was handed down to him from his father, who had inherited it from his father. Have you ever heard of The Richards Christmas Tree Farm?”
“Yes,” she said, then gasped. “Areyouthat Richards?”
“I am. Nick runs the farm. I help around the ranch part of the land on the weekends, but Nick takes care of the trees. He growsFraser Fir, Concolor Fir, and White Pine. Not only that but there are a few small cabins up there that people can stay in overnight if they’d like. Nick’s always busy.”
“That’s amazing.” She frowned. “What is a Concolor Fir?”
“They have long, soft needles, silvery blue-green color, and citrus aroma.”
“I’ve heard of the farm, but I’ve never gone there to get a tree.”
“Why not?”
“I use an artificial.”
“I don’t think we can see each other anymore.”
Rory laughed. “It’s just easier.”
“Is it? Why?”
“I just put it away—”
“Okay, but with an actual tree, you can recycle it. There will come a time when you’ll want to get a new…faketree. What do you do with the old one? Throw it out, right?”
“Yes.”
“And it can sit in a landfill forever. If you have it incinerated, it can release hazardous chemicals. The recycled tree helps with habitat and the planting of new trees. Those real trees serve a purpose. For each one cut down, we plant one to three more. So, which one is better? Unless someone is allergic to real trees, those are the way to go.”
“Wow. I honestly didn’t know that.”
“Nick has twelve men working for him. Four work at the ranch, and eight work on the tree farm.”
“Are they always planting?”
“They plant when trees are cut, but they need to be worked on all the time to keep their shape. It’s a lot of labor. One hundred acres surround the ranch part, and the trees are on four hundred acres. One hundred of those are used to plant new trees. It takes about seven to eight years for the trees to reach at least seven feet, which is the size most people want.”
“Can people go there and cut their own trees?”
“Yes, but Nick, me, or a worker will cut a tree if the customer would rather not. We also supply cut trees to a couple of lots in town and ship them across the states.”
“Is Chuck Sampson’s lot one of them?”
“Yep.”
“So those are Clifton trees.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Fascinating.”
“Nick loves it.” He kissed her lips. “I’ll see you later.”
As he strode down the barn’s aisle, Rory tilted her head to watch him strolling out. She loved watching that long stride. With a heavy sigh, she picked up the rake and got back to work. She hoped the rest of the evening flew by. She was looking forward to tomorrow.
The following day, she finished her coffee, put the cup in the sink, and headed for the door. She halted when someone knocked on the door, then took a deep breath and opened it to see Buster standing there.