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“Oh-kay,” he rins

“Great job,” I praise him

“Tacker is like a brand-new person,” Blue says

I s, I can definitely compliment him “He’s accomplished a lot in the last feeeks”

“He s, and I almost fell over,” Blue says dra even softer “But he has always smiled at Billy Tacker’s always had a remarkable friendship with him, so while he may have been closed away from much of the world, he never was from my brother”

The sounds of laughter catch our attention, and we both glance toward the barn again The workforce is arriving en rub on They’d been hard at work for about three hours The plan was to eat now, then they were going to hit it for a few enerously volunteering an entire day, and there’s just no way I can repay them all

“Hey, Billy,” I say, starting to pull the bottle frooat from his lap “Looks like it’s about time to eat”

Of course, I get another bright smile

Wecrohere I’m introduced to the people I haven’t met before I make small talk and direct people to coolers filled ater, soda, and beer Moving over to the food tables, I try tois in order, but I’an, who assureset a plate of food myself

When I have my lunch, I scan for a place to settle in My eyes catch on Tacker where he leans against the paddock fence with a bottle of water in his hand He’s talking to Doush over his generosity again

As I aze falls onto hi, but his eyes stay on me the entire time I walk toward them

His lips curl up, eyes crinkling slightly in a greeting that seems to imply, “Glad you came this way” It also says that despite his best efforts to be sociable with everyone, it’s still tough and I’m his safety net

Do

Extending my arm, I hand my plate to Tacker “You need to eat”

He takes it fro his head at me “You need to eat, too”