Countryside Girl [Pic Companion] (Patreon)

The city slicker looked about ready to melt into that hay bale. Dust motes danced in the sunbeam slicing through the barn door, making him cough. City folk. Can't handle a little honest dirt. I grinned, wiping a stray strand of hair from my eyes. "Relax, mister," I drawled, my voice laced with the sweet scent of honeysuckle. "This ain't no torture chamber, it's a stress reliever." I tossed him a worn feed sack. "Spread it out there, under that window. Sun'll warm your bones right up." He hesitated, brow furrowed, then did as I said. Outside, crickets chirped a lazy rhythm. "Now," I said, kneeling beside him, "close your eyes. Listen to the wind whisperin' through the pines. Let the city noise melt away." A hint of skepticism lingered, but slowly, his shoulders slumped. A smile played on my lips. "There you go. Just breathe." The scent of hay and sunshine filled the air, a balm to his city-weary soul. "You'll be feelin' brand new by the time the sun sets," I promised, a mischievous glint in my eye.