Page 37 of Talon
He gave her neck one more kiss, then released her and went to the coffee pot.It took all her focus to keep her eyes on the skillet and not watch him like a lovesick puppy.
It didn’t take him long to fix his coffee, then come take over.Grateful for the warning that the other men would be in soon, she hurried off to get dressed so they could finish breakfast.
27
Talonsteppedinandtook over the browning hamburger that Madison had been doing.It wasn’t his first time in the kitchen, and he was sure it wouldn’t be his last.Cooking wasn’t his favorite thing, but he didn’t mind it.He had been glad when he’d started prospecting with the Souls and discovered that at least this chapter, they did meals twice a day for everyone on site.It meant no more having to cook for himself or eat take out every day.Take out had gotten old fast when he didn’t feel like cooking.
“I like her,” Kerry said after they heard the bedroom door click shut.
Talon turned to look at his president’s woman but didn’t say anything.He wanted to see what else she would say if he kept silent.
“She didn’t hesitate to volunteer to help, even when I told her she is a guest, and she didn’t have to.I’ve heard enough to know she’s in some kind of trouble.I’m glad she has you and the rest of the Souls at her back.”
“We’re doing what we can.”He didn’t want to say too much.It was Madison’s business to share, or not.He hadn’t given her a choice when it came to telling the men, partly because they had to know what to watch for, but also because he wanted them at his back.This Morgan fucker had at least two deaths at his feet and Talon suspected that if they looked deeper, they would likely find more.He’d have to talk to Jake about that later.He wasn’t going to say it in front of Madison, Kerry, or any of the women.Especially Bonnie.She’d been through enough.He didn’t want to add to that.
A couple of minutes later, Madison came back into the room, fully dressed, even down to the boots on her feet and her hair pulled back into a neat braid.Talon couldn’t help but smile as she stepped close and reached for the spatula she’d given him earlier.
“Is it done?”She looked at the pan, as if it was going to tell her.
“Yeah, I wasn’t sure if you wanted to take it out of the pan before starting the gravy though.”
“How do you normally do it?”She looked over to Kerry.
“I take it out.The flour clumps around the hamburger if you don’t.”Kerry shook her head.“It’s not pretty.Here’s a bowl to put the meat in until you’re ready to add it back in.Spoons are in the drawer next to the stove.”She handed Madison a stainless-steel bowl she’d pulled from beneath the island where she’d been cracking eggs into a bowl of her own.
Talon lowered his head to drop a hard kiss on Madison’s lips.
“Nuh-uh.Not in my kitchen.Either make yourself useful or get out of the way,” Kerry said.
Talon relinquished the spatula and stepped back, taking his coffee mug with him.He stood for a moment, watching as Madison transferred the meat to the bowl but kept as much of the drippings as possible in the pan.Glancing at the counter, he noticed she didn’t have what she needed to make the gravy she’d mentioned.Without waiting to be asked, he went to the pantry and got out the canister of flour as well as three cans of milk.He wasn’t sure how many they usually used but given the size of the pan, he thought three should be sufficient.They’d used four when the Tucson chapter had been visiting, so three sounded good to him.
Carrying them into the kitchen, he set everything on the counter then he dug out the big measuring cup from under the cabinet and filled it with enough water to dilute the milk before setting it with the rest of the ingredients.
Madison finished scooping the meat out of the skillet then turned to see what he’d just set on the counter.
“Oh.Thank you.”She reached for the flour.“Will three cans of milk be enough, do you think?”She glanced past him at Kerry.
Kerry looked up, staring blankly for a moment, then she shook her head as if shaking something loose.
“Yeah, three cans is what we usually make.”She went back to cracking eggs.And while Talon was tempted to start spouting random numbers, he decided it would be prudent not to, at least not today.She was already short-handed and without enough coffee, she might hurt him.
Instead, he went to the cabinet where the dishes were kept and started setting the table.He was here, he might as well help instead of being a hindrance.He’d just finished with the silverware and was making a trip for hot pads and serving spoons when Lurch came in.
He stopped inside the door and looked around.With a scowl, he went to Kerry who stood next to Madison in front of the stove.She was working on scrambling a huge pan of eggs.
“Where’s Robyn?”He bent and dropped a kiss on top of her head before stepping away.
“She called as I came in this morning and said she was too sick to come in,” Kerry said without looking up.
“Why didn’t you call and let me know.I would have had someone here to help you.Though it looks like you found help on your own.”He went to the coffee pot and helped himself to a cup.
Talon finished setting the table, but watched the exchange.
“At first I was just going it do it myself.I started mixing up the biscuits and realized there was no way I could do it all by myself and still get it done in time.So, I was going to call as soon as I finished with the biscuits.But before I’d even patted them out, Madison got up and offered to help.I told her she didn’t have to, she was a guest, but she insisted.”Kerry lifted one shoulder and let it drop.“So I didn’t need to call after all.”
Lurch scowled.“I don’t like that if one of you isn’t feeling well, it leaves the other with all of it.I’ll make sure you have at least one of the men up here to help with every meal until we can get a third person in to help with meals.”He took his cup and went to the head of the table, where he’d taken to sitting since Tuck had left.“I should have thought about it sooner.I should have already had someone in place,” he muttered as he sat.“I don’t like that if either of you isn’t feeling well it leaves the other with way too much work for one person.It’s a lot for two.”He scowled down into his cup.
“I realized the same, and had mentioned it to Kerry and was going to talk to you about it,” Talon said as he took his coffee mug to the pot and refilled it, then did the same for both Kerry and Madison.They were up before anyone else, making sure breakfast was ready so these guys could get a decent start on the day.They deserved to be first in line not just for the coffee, but the food as well.Though he knew Kerry would wait until everything was on the table before she sat down, and likely Madison would too.Still, that didn’t stop him from doing what he could to take care of them both.
