Page 43 of A Cowboy's Bride
She nodded, looking around the kitchen and room as if planning the best escape route.
He gestured to the counter three feet to his left where he’d left a big mixing bowl, a dozen eggs, and a few other ingredients. “If you could give me a hand, I’d appreciate it. We’re making French toast this morning. Put all dozen eggs into the bowl and add about a cup of milk. Give it a shake or two of cinnamon and one-half teaspoon of vanilla before you whisk it together. I’ll get the griddle set up.”
Her eyes widened, and this time it seemed with approval. “I can do that.”
He continued arranging bacon on racks on cookie sheets to prep them for the oven. “We’ll wait to set our official schedule for the day until Jake shows up, because that’s something he enjoys. But have you been thinking about what kind of stuff you’ll need over the next few days?”
“Some.” The egg she held broke crooked, and some of the shell fell into the bowl. She eyed him then grabbed a spoon to fish it out.
Aiden kept on with his task, and after taking a deep breath she did the same.
What was it that Petra had said?
Two steps forward and one step back was still moving forward.
11
It wasn’t the loudest or most rambunctious breakfast Petra had ever attended, but there was plenty of food and drink. Jinx looked proud as she placed a platter stacked high with French toast in front of Petra.
Most of the conversation that followed circled around the horses. All three of the brothers had brought their own rides to High Water, but it seemed that Declan was already rounding up extras. Rescues that were still in good enough shape to be ridden both for visitors and for the artists to use as models.
Petra could ride, but she hadn’t ever gone crazy over it like some of her friends, so it was a nice background discussion she didn’t have to take part in.
Instead, she dug into the food and examined her companions.
Jinx’s eyes were tired, but she sat straighter today than yesterday. Dixie rested between Jinx and Petra, but the dog’s gaze was one hundred percent on the younger woman—optimistic dog.
The guys looked mostly rested. Aiden wore a far too satisfied smirk—but it was possible Petra wore that same expression. She’d slept like a rock, which considering the past days was saying something about the potency of a good solid orgasm.
“Petra.” Aiden laid a hand on her arm to get her attention.
Dammit. She’d gotten lost in her thoughts again. “You guys must think I have the attention span of a gnat. What’s up?”
Jake dipped his chin toward Jinx. “Shopping.”
The girl slouched in her chair, breaking eye contact with everyone.
Yeah, shopping was a priority, but something else needed to happen first. “Jinx has enough loaner clothes for now that she and I can take care of that tomorrow. But first, I promised my sister-in-law we’d drop in this morning.”
Four sets of eyes bore into her. The masculine ones displayed concern, and Jinx’s bore outright consternation.
Which was just fine. None of them had to like it, but considering first impressions were important, they were not going out in public in Heart Falls until there would be no reason for anyone to take a second glance at Jinx other than because she was new.
Petra leaned toward Jinx, curling her fingers to motion her closer. Dropping her volume so the guys couldn’t hear, she laid it on the line. “I think I know why you let your hair get to be such a mess. But since we plan on registering you for school, somewhere between tangled knots and dreadlocks is not going to fly. My sister-in-law has dealt with hair disasters, and while neither of us are hairdressers, if you trust us, we can get you looking presentable.”
It hadn’t been said loudly, but Jinx still glanced around the table at Jake, Declan, and Aiden to see if they were reacting before meeting Petra’s gaze. “You’ll stay with me?”
“Absolutely.” Petra raised her volume to normal levels. “I think you’ll like Julia. Sometime this week, I’m also setting up a girls’ night out with my two besties so you can meet them.” Petra leaned back and eyed the boys. “There’s a lot of testosterone in this house, so us girls have got to make sure we get doses of female power on a regular basis.”
Declan’s lips twitched, but he dipped his chin. “Jake will go over the numbers with you, but we have money in the budget for more than bread and water. Don’t be afraid to spend money on necessities.”
“What my brother is inelegantly saying is that you don’t have to use the horse shampoo unless you want to.” Aiden grinned at the scowl Declan tossed him. “Hey, I’m not saying you smell bad, but…”
A snort escaped Jake. “I’ve got a credit card for the ranch that we’ll give you, Petra.” He glanced at Jinx thoughtfully before adding on for her sake. “We’ve had the ranch in the works for a while, but you can see we’re nowhere near ready to open. There’s still building to do, and we’re figuring out our routine, like we talked about last night.”
Jinx stayed quiet, but she nodded.
“If you’ve got a question about something and we don’t have an answer, that’s good. Means you’re helping us figure things out,” Jake said.
