Page 17 of A Cowboy's Trust
Chance stepped past, pulled Rose to her feet, and planted a kiss on her that made the little girls clap and squeal. Carter just groaned as if he’d just been handed a sheet of math homework to do over the holidays.
Tansy’s dad met her in the kitchen and helped load dirty dishes into the machine. “He seems a solid young man.”
“Jake? Oh, yeah. All the Skye brothers are down to earth and trustworthy.” Tansy thrust her hands beneath the running water to rinse them clean. “I’m enjoying working for them.”
“I heard that tomorrow is the first day with the extra cooking for the retreat house. You ready to roll?”
She considered for a moment then dipped her chin firmly. “It’s funny. I never thought about exactly how many people I cooked for in a single day at the café. But when I did the math, just to be sure, it turns out that catering for a weekend should be a piece of cake. Excuse the cooking humour.”
Her father leaned a hip on the counter and folded his arms over his chest as he considered. “You got a bit of butterflies, don’t you?”
“You’re not only handsome, you’re smart as a whip,” she teased before shrugging. “Once I’ve got a few of these events under my belt, it’ll be fine. Besides, a little bit of butterflies are sometimes fun.”
A laugh escaped him, rolling up, deep and warm. When she’d been twelve years old—the day they’d said that she’d been adopted—she’d heard that laugh, and her world had changed.
Which meant it was completely natural to step forward and curl her arms around her father, hugging him tight. “I don’t mind being a little scared these days. I know I’ve got people at my back, and that makes a difference.”
Malachi pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “You’ve got lots of people. You are loved. Never forget it.”
Tansy went and visited with her grandma, then her mom, then her sister Ivy, and when nine o’clock rolled around she went looking for Jake.
He hadn’t moved far. In fact, he’d returned to the scene of the crime because he was once again in the big wingback chair. This time he had Harper in his lap, and she was sound asleep.
Tansy swallowed hard. What was that sensation? A tightening between her gut and her throat that made it difficult to breathe for a moment.
He was listening to a conversation again, this time between her mom and Carter. Jake’s gaze drifted over the room, but when it landed on Tansy, it froze. They stared at each other, the tickling sensation inside her going off again.
She couldn’t ignore that seeing him with the kids was enough to trigger something in her. A level of trust she hadn’t had before—maybe it was that.
Something to think about…
She strolled forward. “We should head out. It’s starting to snow.”
Jake nodded. “You know where your sister is? Where should I put Harper?”
“I’ll take her.” Tansy’s mom offered. Sophie held out her arms, and Jake carefully made the transfer, speaking softly as she offered an approving smile. “I’m glad you came tonight, Jake. You’re welcome anytime.”
“Thank you, ma’am. It was a very relaxing evening.”
Once again, Tansy guided Jake through the house quickly, back to the front door where they grabbed their things and headed outside.
Overhead, light fluffy flakes were falling. Not enough to have accumulated on the windshield yet, so Tansy used the wipers to brush them away, and they were down the road and headed back to High Water.
A comfortable silence fell between them.
Comfortable at least until Tansy couldn’t resist asking. “You want kids, don’t you?”
“Always said I did. Someday. But in the meantime, it’s fun to borrow other people’s then give them back. Thanks for giving me a chance to do that tonight.”
“Hey, you were the one who was spontaneous,” Tansy told him before adding in all seriousness. “I enjoyed having you there. And it was a nice distraction from thinking about tomorrow and all the cooking I’ll do over the next three days.”
Jake hummed for a minute. “I overheard you talking to your dad,” he confessed. “If you need any help, ask.”
Tansy snickered. “Because you and I cooking together worked so well the last time we tried?”
“I didn’t say I’d be the one who actuallyhelped,” he said dryly.
They grinned at each other for a minute then Tansy focused back on the road and getting them home safely.
