Charm School For Cowboys. Meg Maxwell

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СКАЧАТЬ his brother did like Stella—for more than the usual three days.

      Talk turned to what needed doing that morning—from the usual daily chores to a fence that had to be mended up near the ridge, to moving the bulls out to a new pasture, to taking a trip into town for some supplies at the feed store. The crew had eaten their fill, but instead of getting up and heading out, leaving whoever was on cooking duty to clean up, as was the usual routine, they all started picking up their plates.

      Emma stood up. “No, no! You all have done so much for me this morning and I appreciate it. I’m the cook here now and I didn’t even lift a finger this morning. So I will clean up, as I will every meal. I may be pregnant, but I’m capable of not only cooking, but lifting plates.” She smiled at them. “Go ahead. And thank you, guys. All of you. You sure know how to make a lady feel welcome.”

      At that last sentence, Jake almost gasped. Grizzle actually took off his hat and held it to his chest. Hank’s chest puffed up. Golden had pink circles on his cheeks. And CJ threw an aw-shucks smile at Emma but a second later was glued to his phone as if waiting for a text that wasn’t coming.

      Once the crew headed out, Jake had to force himself not to help clear the table. Emma was capable and he didn’t want to seem overly protective.

      He finished his coffee. “I don’t know how you managed it, but you actually have the guys almost acting like gentlemen. They’re pretty rough around the edges—even CJ, who thinks he’s Mr. Smooth. They’re all looking for love, but they kind of repel women. Especially the ones they’re most interested in. There’s a dance tonight they’re all going to—maybe over dinner you could give them some tips on what they’re doing wrong.”

      She stacked breakfast dishes along her arm. “I’ll try, but honestly, I’m O for three in the romance department myself. I mean, here I am, pregnant and single. Who am I to give advice to anyone about love?” She smiled, her pretty face lighting up for a moment, but then she paused and her expression changed as though she was thinking about something. She grabbed the butter dish with her free hand and headed toward the kitchen.

      He followed with his mug, needing a refill on the strong coffee. “You got Grizzle to take off his hat indoors without even asking him to. That’s how good you are without even working at it.”

      “He did, didn’t he?” She smiled again. “I’ll see what I can do.”

      He wanted to stay and talk to her. Ask her about her father. Ask her more about where she was from in Oak Creek, if she grew up on a ranch. But as he watched her set the dishes on the counter, the sunrise glowing past her through the sliding glass door to the kitchen, he was socked with such a pang of attraction that he backed away. What the hell was this?

      Yes, Emma was pretty. And kind. And...vulnerable. Last night, Jake had found himself tossing and turning with the notion that he was responsible for Emma’s baby. Tex had been riding one of the new mares and a backfiring truck spooked the horse and threw him.

      He turned away, his chest tightening with his line of thought. Maybe he wasn’t attracted so much as that he felt responsible for her. Tex had been a nice guy, his employee, and Jake felt like he owed Emma something.

      Which was fine. He’d take responsibility. He’d given her a job and a home, and he’d furnish a nursery for her baby and make sure the child had everything he or she needed, including a fund started for college.

      Now that he’d settled that in his head, a million other thoughts bombarded him—from livestock he wanted to buy for the ranch to Frodo the old black horse on the mend in the barn, to...his twin brother, who was walking around out there, maybe looking for him. Jake needed to talk to CJ, let him know he was thinking about getting the search started in earnest. Jake would assure his brother that nothing would ever come between them, that he’d never feel any differently, that he’d always have time for his kid brother. No matter what. Which was all true.

      So why was he putting it off? CJ wasn’t that same kid who’d sobbed in his arms five years ago about losing everything. He was a man. So why was Jake so reluctant to bring up the subject again?

      It wasn’t like him to be unsure of how to proceed, to not know the best way to go with something. Dammit, this thing had him out of sorts. Aware that Emma seemed to be watching him while she loaded the dishwasher, he nodded at her, thanked her again for breakfast and headed out, stopping to watch the sun rise over the ridge. He focused on it, trying to clear his mind. But just when his mind settled he started thinking about the beautiful woman in his house. He was attracted to her in a way he hadn’t been to any woman in five years.

      Well, he’d have to add himself to his lineup of clueless cowboys because no matter what he told the guys about the heart wanting what it wants, he wasn’t about to heed his own.

      * * *

      The dishwasher full and going, the dining room table clean and the kitchen spotless, Emma glanced in the refrigerator to see what the guys would have for lunch, which was “make your own.” There were at least five pounds of sliced meats, from roast beef to ham to turkey, plus condiments and lettuce and tomatoes. Someone sure liked potato salad—there were two one-pound take-out containers from Hurley’s Homestyle Kitchen. And was that a jar of pickled herring? On the counter, one of a few bread boxes was full of Kaiser rolls. Whoever did the grocery shopping knew what he was doing. The fruit bowls were picked almost clean through, so those would need replenishing. Emma would have to ask Jake if she should take on the shopping.

      She headed up to her room on the third floor, her suite like a palace compared to her small apartment in Oak Creek, if not the big house she’d grown up in. She loved the old hardwood floors in her bedroom here at the Full Circle, the soft Persian carpet covering a good portion of it. Her bed was plush, just the way she liked it, and the views outside all the windows were of endless green and trees and livestock. She glanced in the corner between the two big windows. That’s where she’d put the crib when it was time.

      She touched her hand to her belly, amazed for the millionth time that in just five months she’d have a baby. Emma had lost her mother her senior year of high school and wished Violet Hurley were here. What a grandmother she would be. Her dad’s disappointed face came to mind and she thought about calling him to let him know about her baby’s father and where she was living now. But he’d just insist she come home and not listen to a word about how she felt, what she wanted, so she kept her phone in her pocket.

      After a quick shower, Emma dressed in jeans and a pale blue T-shirt for her shift at Hurley’s. She helped out on Tuesdays—always a busy day since the restaurant was closed Monday and folks missed their po’boys and ribs and chicken fried steak—and Saturdays, today, the busiest lunch day. She headed back downstairs, gave Redford a scratch on the head and went out the front door. She could see Hank and Golden carrying hay bales from the barn, and in one of the pastures, Grizzle and CJ were leading the bulls farther out. She wondered where Jake was, what he was doing.

      A few weeks ago, her baby’s father had been out there on this land. She touched her hand to her stomach again and let the warm May breeze wrap around her. She suddenly wanted to see the ranch and take a look in the outbuildings.

      The big red barn was huge, home to many stalls with horses and a bunch of goats and sheep. She saw Jake checking on a small herd of goats in their pen and watched him open the gate and let them into the fenced-in pasture. The morning sun lit up his dark hair and shone on his strong, handsome profile. She realized she was staring and forced her gaze to the large bulletin board on the wall by the double doors.

      “Bucks’ Choice Dance?” Emma said, reading the flyer announcing a dance for the rancher association СКАЧАТЬ