Page 51 of A Cowboy's Bride
“Maybe holy cow is off the list.” Petra grinned at the girl before stepping closer to the wall and examining Aiden’s work. “So far I see nothing but excellent results on this side of the room.”
Aiden scooped up another load of mudding plaster and smeared it as smoothly as possible over the screw heads holding the drywall in place. “It's boring work,” he told them. “But it's also kind of soothing.”
“Can I help?” Jinx asked.
“You can help me,” Jake offered from across the room. “My job isn’t boring.”
“I don't know if she’s allowed to work with you. You've got such a potty mouth,” Petra teased. “Who knows what unfortunate things will escape and fall into Jinx’s ears.”
Jinx bumped into Petra, giggling softly. “Stop that. I want to help.”
Petra placed a hand on the girl’s shoulders and pushed her gently toward where Jake stood, a pile of sanding blocks on the table beside him. “Have at ‘er. I'll stick around, but I need to get some computer work done. I'll be over there,” she offered.
Jinx was already off, headed determinedly toward her target.
Petra strolled to Aiden’s side, staying just far enough back he could work without interruption.
“Jinx is in a good mood,” he offered quietly.
“Sasha Stone was exactly what the doctor ordered. Jinx having a friend like her will work out fine.” Petra watched him for a minute. “You're not bad. I've helped with house renovations a time or two, and you've got a few of the tricks down pat.”
“I spent a summer doing this right after high school,” Aiden told her. “My stepdad, Jeff, was a firm believer that staying busy was a good way to keep a young man out of trouble. We all got training in a trade, even Jake, who went straight into the police academy at the end of his first summer.”
Petra looked thoughtful. “I’m surprised to see he beat us here. He showed up at Buns and Roses during lunch.”
“Really?” Jake hadn’t put it on the schedule, but then again, he was in charge of his time. “He showed up about ten minutes ago. Maybe he’s gathering information for once we've got the artists’ resident set up. Hosting for special events and that kind of thing. Tansy as a caterer would be great.”
Happiness bloomed on Petra’s face. “I love the idea of giving work to people we like. Tansy would do a great job.”
Petra offered a final smile then retreated to the middle of the room where two folding chairs nestled under a small table. She pulled a tablet from her purse and set it up as a miniature computer, fingers flying over the portable keyboard.
Aiden carried on overlaying another smooth ribbon of plaster over each section Jake had already sanded smooth.
His playlist of country music pulsed softly in the background as Jake taught Jinx how to use the sanding block. She dragged one stroke after the other across the buildup of plaster, switching to a clockwise motion when Jake told her to. Slowly the fine grit paper knocked all the ridges down until the wall was smooth to the touch.
“That's perfect,” Jake encouraged. “Use a little more pressure to start, and after those first few broad strokes, keep your motions small and circular. Makes it easier for me to knock off any final ridges that show up.”
Jinx worked for a while. “You guys know how to do lots of things.”
“That’s because of our stepdad.” Jake echoed Aiden’s earlier admission. “He thought if it was worthwhile doing, everybody should learn how. It didn't matter what, we were supposed to do it to the best of our ability and give it long enough to see if a talent needed to be built to make it more enjoyable.”
“It wasn't just about work,” Aiden added. “The same thing applied to the arts. The man never blinked when he learned I was playing classical guitar. Just nodded and told me that he'd learned to play the flute when he was young.”
Jinx considered. “Was he any good?”
It was not so much the question as her longing tone that said Aiden was adding music lessons to the list of things to get the girl involved in during the coming days.
Anything that made a person light up that bright was worth exploring.
“Was Jeff any good? You know, it was the damnedest thing,” Jake offered. “He had just started to date our mom, Nancy. Here we are, all wondering who this man was and if he was going to be any improvement over our bio dad. Or at least Declan and I were wondering. Aiden was like a puppy dog in love from the moment Jeff arrived.” Jake flashed him a grin. “Although that’s not something to tease you about since it turned out you were the smartest person in the room. Still, Declan and I were worried, and not sure about the whole flute thing. But here's Aiden playing some goddamn-awful piece over and over?—”
“Watch your language, bro. Also, I waspracticing,” Aiden declared. “It’s supposed to sound terrible.”
Jake raised a brow. “Jeff comes in and plops down beside him. He pulls out a case and assembles his flute, listening all the time and somehow not cringing.”
“Hey,” Aiden complained.
Petra didn’t look up from her screen, but her lips twisted into a bigger smile.
