North Of Happy. Adi Alsaid

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      Jenna stuck out her hand and he shook it. “Good to see you again, Paul. What are you doing here?”

      “Helping my big brother. The master chef. I was hoping I’d see you!”

      “How the hell do you two know each other?” Sandro’s voice was gruff with suspicion.

      “Manners, bro,” Paul reminded him, and Jenna saw the sassy teenager in him and couldn’t help smiling.

      “We met today, on a dirt road,” she told Sandro. “I had a flat and Paul changed it for me. It was really very kind of him. I’m not sure what I would have done if he hadn’t come along.”

      “Well, nice to know he’s good for something.” There was pride in Sandro’s eyes that belied his belittling comment.

      “You mean besides hauling all your gear? And chopping your vegetables?” Paul was smiling at his big brother’s needling. Clearly these two had a close relationship.

      “Hey, I’m paying you a good wage.”

      Paul sighed. “Yeah, you are, actually. I guess that means I’d better get to work. Great to see you again, Jenna.” He disappeared out the door and Sandro and Jenna watched him go.

      Sandro stood so close that Jenna could feel heat radiating from him. “He’s a nice kid, your brother. I can’t tell you how helpful he was today.”

      “Good.” Sandro looked down at her and she noticed again how full his mouth was and the dark, sooty way his lashes rimmed his eyes. “Though I gotta ask. Paul was down in our southeast pastures all day. It’s the most remote area of our ranch. How’d you end up on a dirt road out there?”

      “You were on a dirt road?” Samantha’s voice came from behind her and Jenna turned to see that her friend and Jack had both entered the room and were staring at her with similar expressions of surprise. “Was this the mishap you mentioned earlier?”

      “Well, yes, but—”

      “Jenna, you could have been lost for days out there!”

      “Well, I wasn’t.” Jenna could feel her face getting hot again. The last thing she wanted was a scolding in front of Sandro, whom she barely knew, and who probably already thought she was nuts after her garbled introduction. He had stepped away and was unpacking groceries directly behind her. She swore she could feel the air move every time he did.

      “How did that happen, anyway, Red?” Jack wasn’t laughing yet, but she could hear it behind his voice.

      “Um...I had a little trouble with the map.”

      “Upside-down again?” Samantha asked.

      There was a snort of barely contained laughter behind her. Jenna glanced back and saw Sandro’s shoulders shaking with mirth.

      “Maybe,” Jenna answered, grinning despite her embarrassment. Samantha knew her too well.

      Sandro walked by her to put a bottle of white wine in the refrigerator, more composed now. “Ah,” he said mildly. “So this is a common problem?”

      “Okay, so I can be a little directionally challenged!” Jenna admitted. “Can we change the subject?”

      “Jenna’s a really great dancer!” Paul was closing the back door behind him with his shoulder, his arms wrapped around a cardboard box. He obviously wasn’t aware that Jenna was already the subject of conversation.

      “And how would you know that?” Sandro turned from the refrigerator and looked from Paul to Jenna, concern etching lines onto his face.

      “She was dancing when I found her.”

      This wasn’t good. Jenna felt a little too fragile to be the butt of all the jokes this evening. “Well, just a moment of practice while I got up the nerve to change my tire.”

      “No, it was awesome. She did these turns and then this shake-and-roll thing.” Paul imitated Jenna’s step so flawlessly that her jaw dropped. He’d imbued those two moves with more grace than she could ever muster.

      “You were dancing in the desert? Instead of changing your tire?” Samantha pulled Jenna into a side hug. “I love you, my friend. But I will never understand you.”

      “Jenna’s a dance teacher.” Paul turned to Sandro, and Jenna could hear the excitement in his voice.

      “Okay, enough.” Sandro’s voice held an authority that Jenna imagined must serve him well in busy restaurant kitchens. “Paul, I’m not paying you to get your groove on. And as much as Jenna’s adventures are entertaining to hear about, I respectfully request that you all leave this kitchen and let us cook you something awe-inspiring.”

      “We’re happy to stay and help prep,” Samantha offered.

      “No, we’re good.” His voice was just a little abrupt.

      Jenna wondered if Samantha and Jack had noticed, but they seemed happy enough to wander into the living room and settle onto the couch in front of the fireplace. Jenna took one last look at Sandro, who had moved to the sink and turned his back to her. He was briskly pulling vegetables out of the box to wash. She gave Paul a little wave and followed her friends out of the room.

      * * *

      SANDRO WAITED UNTIL Paul had finished chopping the shallots. While his little brother added them to the skillet on the stove, Sandro tried to keep his voice casual. “So how come you didn’t mention meeting her today?” He tilted his head in the direction of the living room.

      Paul shrugged as he rinsed the cutting board in the sink. “I dunno. It happened a lot earlier on. I did a bunch of stuff afterward.”

      “But you changed her tire.”

      “I change tires all over the ranch. It was no big deal.” Paul raised his eyebrows. “Why are you so curious about it, anyway?”

      “I’m not curious. Just wondered why you didn’t say anything, that’s all. Usually you don’t shut up for more than two minutes.” Sandro didn’t know why he was so curious. Of course Paul would help anyone he found stuck out on the ranch or anywhere else.

      There was just something about Jenna that was getting to him. Maybe it was the way her bright blue eyes had widened when she’d seen him. Or the way her delicate skin had flushed so pink when they’d been joking about the map. Or maybe it was because she was a dance teacher, and the last thing he needed was someone fueling Paul’s useless dreams. Dreams that would only lead him to a whole lot of heartache.

      Sandro took the medallions of lamb he’d been marinating out of the cooler and put them in the roasting pan. He went to find the root vegetables he’d cut this afternoon. The murmur of Jenna’s voice from the next room was distracting him in a way it shouldn’t. She looked like a 1940s bombshell combined with a pixie. Her legs were slim in their pegged jeans, and the black Converse sneakers on her feet were retro and rebel all in one. They were a sharp contrast to the sweet button-up blouse she wore. Then there was the red hair, styled in an elaborate curl over her forehead and falling in perfect waves down her back. With the heavy makeup and the dark lipstick, she looked СКАЧАТЬ