Page 9 of The Formation of Us
Duke nodded, then gave Cora a little bow. “Thank you for protecting me.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, so sincerely that Duke bit his lip to stop a grin. “I’ll show you more, but you can’t touch them.”
“I won’t,” he promised, then followed the little imp as she dashed from one dangerous plant to the next. “How do you know which ones are bad?”
She pointed to a red ribbon tied to a stick in the corner of the flat where the herb was planted. “Mama marks them with a bright cloth. That’s foxglove, and ifs very bad because it’s marked with red.”
“What if somebody came in here and stole all your ribbons?” he asked, hoping his question wouldn’t offend Faith, who stood protectively beside her daughter. “How would you know the good plants from the bad plants?”
Cora wrinkled her nose as if he were a pitifully stupid man. “I would look at their leaves or their flowers.”
“What if someone like me came in and got confused? I don’t know much about plants. What if I can’t tell if it’s foxglove or a snapdragon?”
“Then don’t touch it.”
He laughed at her refreshingly honest and simple answer. Faith’s lips twitched, but she didn’t gloat. “Since you’re such a smart lady,” he said to Cora, “perhaps you can tell me the name of that plant over there with the blue eyes and brown handkerchief that’s watching us.”
The little girl pivoted on her heels and looked behind her. “That’s not a plant!” she said with a giggle. “That’s my aunt Tansy hiding behind the fennel.”
“Oh,” he said in a whisper. “Why is she hiding from us?”
“Because she don’t like you.”
“Cora!” Faith gasped and laughed at the same time, blushing dark pink as she spoke to Duke. “I believe your badge has made Aunt Tansy wary.” She turned and gestured for the woman to come out.
Tansy stepped into the row and offered a nervous smile. Her hands flitted to her throat, and Duke thought of a butterfly. She’d tied her kerchief on her head, leaving the tail ends sticking up like antennae, and she seemed breathless and alert, as if the slightest move would make her fly away.
“Good morning,” he said with a polite nod.
Her vivid blue gaze flitted from him to Cora to Faith as if searching for a place to land.
“Aunt Tansy, this is Sheriff Grayson,” Faith said, but he sensed her reservation in introducing them.
“G-good mornin’, Sheriff.” Her soft southern drawl surprised him. He would guess the blonde to be in her forties, but he could never tell with women because they were sneaky about concealing their age with face creams and hair dyes. But no herb or balm could change Tansy’s demure southern drawl or camouflage Iris’s dramatic Oriental looks.
Faith’s aunts could not be related.
Faith tapped her palm against a bushy green plant that looked like a weed to him. “You may as well come out, too, Aunt Dahlia.”
To his surprise, another woman with red pouty lips stepped from behind the bush. She looked Tansy’s age, but was shorter and more buxom, her hair and eyes dark brown. Maybe this one was related to Faith, but not the other two.
“Hello, Sheriff.” Dahlia bobbed her head. “Iris was right about you being handsome,” she said, then surprised him further by reaching behind the bush and tugging a fourth woman into sight. “This is Aster,” she said.
There was no doubt that Aster was the oldest, and she had the air of one in charge. Though she was Faith’s height, she had white hair, a solid build, and wide shoulders. She stood like a soldier and met his eyes without a shred of shame that she’d been caught peeking at him. “We’re glad you stopped by, Sheriff. It’s good to know our niece has a man to depend on.”
“Oh, for pity’s sake!” Faith scowled at the women and slipped her hand into the crook of Duke’s elbow. “My aunts will take up your entire day if you don’t escape now.” She pressed her lips together and steered him to the front corner of the greenhouse, where she’d set up a counter and shelves to make a small store of sorts. “Don’t forget your balm,’ she said, snagging the jar off the counter as they passed. She thrust it into his hand, then hurried them outside to where Adam waited in the warm sunshine.
“How can those women be your aunts?” Duke asked, wanting to hear her explain it to his satisfaction.
“I used to ask my mother the same thing,” Faith replied brightly, “but she assured me they were.” She pushed the hair out of Adam’s eyes, putting an end to the discussion if not Duke’s suspicion. “Come straight home from the store,” she said to the boy. “You need a haircut. And don’t forget my cheesecloth this time.”
He lowered his chin. “I won’t.”
Faith turned a warm smile on Duke that made him wish they were spending the evening together. But she’d dodged his question and he wanted an answer. She spoke before he could pursue it, however.
“Thank you for your kindness today, Sheriff. Please let me know how else I can repay you.”
She could pay him with a kiss from her pretty pink lips, which had been distracting him for the last half hour. Her lashes swooped down to cover her eyes, as if she knew where his mind had wandered.
