Page 56 of Promise Me This Christmas
He desperately wanted to hear the rest of that sentence, but instead she forced a bright smile.“I bet you’re hungry, aren’t you, Robin?”
“I can make his breakfast.You probably have other things to do,” he said.
“Gran told me she would make her own way to breakfast.I’m happy to help.”
As they passed through the foyer on the way to the kitchen, Carson thought about the newspaper he’d tucked in with the slippers.He’d probably have to wait until Amy and Chet returned before he’d have time to read it.
Jo was already in the kitchen, putting a tray of muffins into the oven.When she saw them, she did a double take.“Where are Amy and Chet?”
“You want the long version or the short version?”Carson asked.
Jo considered this.“Long version.”
“We should feed Robin first,” Larkin said.“Do you know what he likes for breakfast?”
“Oat bran cereal,” Jo said, retrieving a box from the pantry.“You need to heat this up with milk in the microwave.He likes it with Greek yogurt and blueberries.”
“I can handle that,” Larkin said.She turned to Carson.“I want to hear what happened to Amy too.”
“Luckily I was up early handling some email for the ranch,” Carson said.“When I heard a scream coming from outside the main house, I ran out and saw Amy on the ground.She’d fallen down the porch steps and hurt her wrist.Also, her shoulder and hip, I think, but the injury that seemed to give her the most grief was her wrist.”
“What was she doing out there?”Jo demanded.
He thought about mentioning the newspaper but just shrugged.
“Do you think her wrist is broken?”Jo asked.
“That’s what they’ve gone to check out,” he replied.
“I wonder why she fell?”Larkin said as she added the bowl of cereal and milk to the microwave and turned it on for a minute.
“The top stair was slick with ice,” he explained.“Which was odd, because it hadn’t snowed since Robert shoveled yesterday.Plus, the other stairs were fine.”
She glanced at him with narrowed eyes, and he wondered what she was thinking.But she said nothing, just went to the fridge and removed the yogurt and blueberries.
Meanwhile Jo was anxiously reviewing her planning notes for that morning’s breakfast.“Amy and Chet are probably going to be gone for hours.I’ll have to simplify breakfast today.”
“I can help,” Carson offered.“Want me to make the coffee?Chet showed me how to work the machine.”
“And I can set the table and help with serving,” Larkin said.
“Really?”Jo looked relieved.“Thank you both.The way things have been going lately, I know Amy wouldn’t like it if I cut any corners with breakfast.I’ll text Shelley and ask if she can come a little earlier as well.”
*
“There sure wasa lot of commotion going on this morning,” Gibson complained as he took his place at the breakfast table.
The past hour had been a whirl of unfamiliar activity for Larkin.After checking in on her grandmother—who was fine and perfectly capable of getting to breakfast on her own, thank you—she had helped to feed and entertain a toddler, set the dining room table, and helped Jo with some sous chef duties.
Cooking and baking were not among Larkin’s fortes.At home she ate mostly simple stir-fries and egg scrambles.Breakfast was always toast and yogurt.Lunch was grabbed on the run as she was usually chasing after a story or writing to deadline.
Now as she carried a plate of hot-from-the-oven, lemon-blueberry-poppyseed muffins to the table, she exchanged a glance with Carson, who was bringing out a thermos of freshly brewed coffee.She sensed his deep need to roll his eyes at Gibson’s grumbling.She felt the same thing.How did Amy put up with this man?She and Chet must be so excited about tomorrow, when Gibson would be checking out.
When they wouldallbe checking out.It was hard to believe that in just two days she would be leaving Marietta, and she’d probably never see Carson again.The thought should have brought relief.Instead, she felt achingly sad.
Before Carson could explain to the guests what had happened to Amy, they heard Shelley come in the back entrance.A minute later she entered, tying an apron around her neck.“Good morning, everyone.”
“I was just about to tell our guests about a little accident that occurred this morning,” Carson said.He explained how Amy had slipped on some ice and fallen down the porch stairs.“She hurt her wrist.It may be broken.”
