When she pulled up on the driver’s side, Henri opened her door, climbed out and gave her a wave. Then she leaned down and tapped on the window next to Georgie’s car seat.
“Miss ’enri, Mama! Miss ’enri!”
“I know, sweetie.” She popped the locks and got out. “The door’s open if you want to spring him from his seat.”
“You bet I do.” Henri opened the door. “Georgie! How’re you doing, cowboy?”
“I gots my hat.” He tugged it down over his snowsuit hood.
“I see that. Looks great on you.”
Anna rounded the car and paused as Georgie pointed to Henri’s Stetson.
“You gots a hat, too.”
“Just like yours.”
“Yep. Sissy gots a hat.”
Henri looked confused.
“That’s Claire,” Anna said.
“Oh.” Henri smiled.
“Grit gots a hat.”
Anna held her breath. Would he follow that with his usual negative statement?
“Because he’s a cowboy,” Henri said with a quick glance at Anna.
“Yep.”
When he didn’t add don’t want Grit, Anna let out a sigh of relief. It was a small victory, but a victory nevertheless.
Henri leaned into the car. “Let’s get you out of there, okay?”
“Okay!”
She lifted Georgie out of his seat and balanced him on her hip. Thirty-one pounds of toddler was no problem for this lady.
“Miss ’enri?”
“What, Georgie?”
He took a quick breath, his expression earnest. “Lucky Ducky goes huh-huh-huh.”
“Yes, he does! How’d you know that?”
“Mama tolded me.”
“Well done, Mama.” Henri winked at her. “Let’s go see that sweet horse, shall we?”
“Okay!”
“I can carry him, Henri.”
“I’m fine. It’s not every day I get to do this. You can open the door for us, though.”
“Absolutely.” She hurried forward and pushed the door open. It was heavier than it looked. Good thing she’d been lifting a toddler on a regular basis. “Thanks for coming.”
“I wouldn’t miss this for the world. The party broke up earlier than usual since I had this barn visit scheduled and Ed’s meeting us for lunch in town.”
“I haven’t said anything to him about that part.” She followed Henri and Georgie into the barn. “I thought we’d better see—”
Georgie gasped as he caught sight of Lucky poking his head over the stall door. “Mama,” he said in a stage whisper. “Look.” Eyes wide, he pointed toward the horse.
“I see him, son. Isn’t he beautiful?”
Georgie nodded, riveted by the large animal staring at him.
Henri moved forward slowly. “Georgie, I’d like you to meet Lucky Ducky.” She used the same gentle tone Garrett had when talking to the horses. “Lucky, this is Georgie. You’re the first horse he’s ever met. Can you say hello?”
Lucky bobbed his head and made the low chuckling noise Anna had heard before, the one she’d taught Georgie this morning.
“Mama, he said it.” Her son quivered with delight. “He goed huh-huh-huh.”
Over the crown of Georgie’s hat, she met Henri’s gaze. They exchanged smiles. Although she itched to grab her phone and capture his awestruck expression, she might ruin the moment. Not worth it.
Henri shifted him to her other hip. “Would you like to touch Lucky’s nose?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Anna’s heart melted at the note of reverence in his voice. She’d been worried that he’d be afraid. Instead he was acting as if he’d been given a rare privilege.
Henri walked up to the stall, reached out and lightly stroked Lucky’s nose. “Do it like this.” She positioned him so he could easily reach.
Leaning closer, Georgie copied Henri’s movement. Then he did it again and smiled. “He likes it.”
“I’m sure he does. He’s very fond of children.”
Then Lucky snorted.
Georgie jumped, and Anna pressed a hand to her chest. Would that scare him? Would he make a fuss and want to leave?
Instead he giggled and pointed at the horse. “He sneezed, Mama! He goed a-choo!”
“So he did, son.” She relaxed. He was awed, but not the least bit afraid. How ironic. A big horse didn’t scare him at all. But an adult male sent him running for cover.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Have you heard from Anna?” Jake dished three servings of stew into an insulated container while Garrett packaged up coleslaw and hot rolls.
“Not yet.”
“Ah.”
“Henri texted me, though. The visit to the barn was a hit and Georgie was excited about his new boots. Anna had a lot going on today.” And she might still be thinking.
On the other hand, she might have made her decision after talking it over with Millie, Kate and Isabel after he’d left. Even if she hadn’t, Millie would likely have filled Jake in on what was discussed. He snapped the lid on the coleslaw container. “Did Millie say anything about last night?”
When Jake didn’t reply, he asked again. “I figure there was a discussion after Anna went back in the cottage. Did Millie mention anything to you today?”
After screwing the lid on the container, Jake tucked it in the canvas bag on the counter.
“She did, didn’t she?”
Jake faced him, his expression apologetic. “Yes, but she made me swear not to—”
“Damn it, Jake! I need to know what—”
“I can’t tell you. She made me promise. I shouldn’t have asked if you’d heard from Anna. I thought by now she would’ve contacted you.”
“You’re killing me, bro. Can’t you give me a hint?”
“No. It’s Anna’s to say. Millie… oh, God, here she comes.”
Millie sailed through the back door of the kitchen. “Claire asked if she can serve the stew. I told her—Jake, why are you looking guilty?” Then she sucked in a breath. “Please tell me you didn’t—”
“He hasn’t said anything.” Garrett turned to her, his heart on fire. “But have mercy! At least give me some indication—”
“It’s not my place, much as I’d love to.” She came over and hugged him. “Sorry.” She gestured toward the canvas bag. “I suggest you take off. This will be Anna’s first taste of chuck wagon stew. You don’t want to serve it to her cold.”
“No, ma’am.” He grabbed the bag, fetched his coat and hat and barreled out the front door. On the drive over to Anna’s cabin, he made himself drag in several deep breaths. He couldn’t go racing in there thinking she’d blurt out her answer.
She might not even have one. Maybe she was waiting to see how Georgie reacted to his presence when Claire wasn’t around to run interference. The Babes could talk all they wanted about the right to indulge in adult activities. They weren’t the sole caretaker of a toddler.
Smoke drifted from the chimney when he pulled up to the cabin. He was a little later than usual because he’d waited until the stew was done. Made sense that she’d gone ahead and built a fire.
Yeah, he liked doing that for her, bringing in wood, tending the fire so it would end up a perfect bed of coals for s’mores. Would that be on the menu tonight?
He switched off the engine. Would they have precious moments alone or would Georgie return to his spying routine? Anything was possible with that little guy.
And with Anna, too. She might go the entire evening and not mention the plan for tomorrow night. He’d told her she could think about it. He’d put the ball firmly in her court.
Nice job, doofus. With those parameters, he couldn’t even ask her about it. Climbing out, he walked around to the passenger door to fetch the canvas sack from the floor of the cab.
Would Georgie like chuck wagon stew? It was on the spicy side. So far Anna had planned their dinner menu, probably around things Georgie would eat.
A little face appeared at the window, nose pressed against the glass. Then the face was gone. He sighed. Arriving with Claire had been easier.
But she’d been incandescent with joy at the prospect of tonight’s gathering of the Brotherhood and their sweethearts. She’d be the belle of the ball and that made him smile. He’d soldier on without her.
Anna opened the door as he climbed the porch steps. “Georgie’s been keeping an eye out for you.”
“So he can dash into his room?” He drank in the sight of her. Many long hours had passed since he’d held her in his arms. He ached to do it again.
“He did that, but…” She stepped back to let him in. “He seems less panicked about you coming this time.”
“Really?” He was afraid to put too much faith in it. “Does he know Claire’s not with me?” He walked in and glanced toward Georgie’s room. No sign of him. The table had been set for three.
“He knows she didn’t come this time.” She closed the door and turned toward him. “I explained that she’s at the bunkhouse with her daddy. I said they’re eating the same stew you’re bringing to us. He seemed to like that idea.”
Handing over the bag, he hung his hat on the coat tree. “Everyone said to tell you hello. They all hope you’ll—” Nope, couldn’t mention that, either. “They hope you’ll enjoy the chuck wagon stew.” He took off his coat.
“That isn’t what you were going to say.” She moved closer.
“No.” He put his coat on a hook. “Forgot myself for a minute.”
She took one more step toward him and lowered her voice. “The answer is yes, I’d love to go dancing with the gang tomorrow night.”
His heart beat so fast he was lightheaded. “Great! They’ll be excited.” And? He took a deep breath. Maybe he should just be happy that she’d agreed to that much, but—
“I also told Georgie he’ll see Claire again when they spend the night at Miss Henri’s house.”
He closed his eyes as the breath whooshed out of his lungs. “Thank you.”
“I decided last night, but I didn’t have time to call. It didn’t seem like the sort of thing to put in a text.”
He opened his eyes and met her gaze. “I would have taken that info any way I could get it. Text, email, walkie-talkie, carrier pigeon…”
“I should have texted last night. I just… wanted to tell you in person.”
“I get it. I do. And right now, I want to kiss you so bad and I don’t dare.”
“Yeah, better not. If we’re making progress, and I think we are, we’d be foolish to take chances.” She stepped out of kissing range and held up the bag. “Let’s get started. I’m hungry.” She headed for the kitchen nook.
“Care to be more specific? Some of us might take that as a suggestive remark.”
She laughed. “Some of us have sex on the brain.”
“Some of us can’t help it when contemplating future events.”
“Now I’m thinking I should have told you at the end of the evening instead of the beginning. You’ll be in a state the whole time you’re here.”
“Like you won’t?”
She reached the kitchen and set the bag on the counter. “I’ve been in a state ever since you left last night.” She turned, her dark eyes gleaming. “And if we know what’s good for us, we’ll change the subject.”
He clenched his fists to keep from reaching for her. “Right.” Clearing his throat, he glanced at the floor and did his best to quench the fire raging in his veins. When he’d partially succeeded, he looked up again. “You set three places at the table. Do you think he’ll eat dinner with us?”
“No, but he’s already asked about s’mores. And he put on his Spiderman suit.”
“With his Stetson?” Concentrating on Georgie helped.
“And his boots. Spidey’s gone country.”
“Whatever it takes.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Georgie asked to eat in his room and Anna let him if he kept the door open. She took his food in while Garrett delivered their meal to the table behind the couch and brought a bottle of cider for each of them.
When she came back, he pulled out her chair for her. “I saw Georgie’s Valentine on the fridge. Great job.”
“It is. He had some help, but Erica said he drew the picture by himself.” She glanced up as he scooted her in. “Thanks. Cowboy courtliness is fun.”
“It’s fun for me, too. Gives me a great excuse to lean down and do this.” He gave her a light kiss.
“Careful.” Her lips tingled. “You could start a fire.”
“I plan to. Tomorrow night.” He took his seat next to her.
“I thought we agreed to change the subject.”
“That was kitchen rules. We’re in the living room, now. New location, new rules.” He put his napkin in his lap.
“How do you figure?”
“We have to be more careful in the kitchen. We could forget ourselves. It’s happened in there before.”
“I remember.” She shivered at the prospect of endless kissing… and more. Taking a breath to steady herself, she ate a spoonful of warm stew. Delicious.
“Out here, we’re more in the public eye. Certain people could appear at any moment.” He dug into his meal, too.
“So true. Certain superheroes.” She took another bite.
“So what I just did won’t happen again. I got away with it once, but I won’t risk it a second time.”
“Good plan.” The stew was amazing. Although it didn’t replace what she wanted, it was a halfway decent substitute and eating it kept her mouth occupied.
“But we can still talk about it.” He continued to eat.
“We’ll just frustrate ourselves. Let’s discuss something else.” She alternated with bites of coleslaw and rolls, also excellent.
“Like what? My mind is full of the topic you don’t want to talk about.”
“Then don’t talk at all. Eat your food and drink your cider. This meal’s terrific. I had no idea what I was missing every Friday night.”
“I’ll make sure you get stew every week from now on.”
They ate in silence punctuated with the crackling of the fire. Or maybe not complete silence. Eating without talking was erotic when the man next to her would be her lover tomorrow night.
The lips he pressed to the neck of his cider bottle would be busy elsewhere. The arm that brushed hers would be wrapped around her naked body. The hand that grasped a salad fork would be…
Her breath hitched. “We need to talk.”
“We do?” He sent her a concerned glance. “Are you reconsidering your—”
“No, no, I didn’t mean we need to talk like we have an unresolved issue. I mean not talking during this meal lets me think about what will be happening in a little more than twenty-four hours.”
He lowered his voice. “Getting a little hot under the… um… collar?”
She glanced at him. He was smiling, the rat. “Yes, I am. I suppose you’re cool as a cucumber.”
He grinned. “My cucumber is the opposite of cool. I’m grateful for the generous cut of your napkins.”
“Garrett.” She grabbed hers and ducked her head as she did her best to muffle her laughter.
“Just telling it like it is. And by the way, your time estimate has us leaving the Moose immediately after dinner. Do you really want to eat and run? I’m fine with that, but I—”
“No, I don’t want to eat and run, for goodness sakes.” She glanced up. “How would that look?”
“Doesn’t matter to me how it looks.” His eyes gleamed with mischief. “We can skip the Moose completely if you’d rather grab takeout and come straight back here.”
“Absolutely not.”
“You’re sure? Because I don’t want to keep you waiting if you’re that—”
“Stop it.” She couldn’t help giggling. “You’re terrible.”
“You don’t know that, yet. And FYI, I’m bringing my A-game.”
S
he gulped. “We need a distraction ASAP.”
“Got one?” The amusement faded as his gaze darkened to navy. “Because I’m fresh out.”
“Um…” She was caught, ensnared by the heat in his eyes.
“Stop looking at me that way, Anna.”
“Then you stop looking at me like that.”
“I can’t help it. I just want—”
“Mama! All done, Mama!”
She dragged in a breath and pushed back her chair. “Be right there, son.” Her distraction had arrived. She had one for Garrett, too.
Hurrying to the coat tree, she reached in her purse and brought her phone back to the table. Garrett was already on his feet, clearing the dishes.
She tapped the phone and handed it to him. “I have a video of Georgie dancing at the Valentine’s party today. Should’ve thought of that before we sat down. It would have solved our problem.”
He caught her wrist before she could leave. “It’s not a problem.” His voice was warm, his gaze even warmer. “It’s a gift.” Bringing her hand to his mouth, he kissed it. Then he smiled and let her go.
She floated into Georgie’s room buoyed by his heartfelt words, romantic gesture and tender smile. Millie’s words echoed in her head. The members of the Brotherhood are special. If you have a chance to become involved with one, don’t hesitate.
The prospect of s’mores convinced Georgie to suit up and come out of his room. Anna helped him put on his Spiderman mask and settled the Stetson over it. He tugged on his boots by himself, a bonus that had been a selling point from the moment he’d tried them on in the store.
“Gots boots, Mama.” He stomped a few times to emphasize the point.
She longed to take a picture of this getup, but kindness stopped her. And the fact that Garrett had her phone. “Ready to go out by the fire?”
His small chest heaved. “Yep.”
“Take your food tray with you and carry it to the kitchen.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“You’re a brave boy, Georgie.”
“Yep.”
He was very brave. A grown man represented a dragon to him, yet he was going out there to face the beast and enjoy his s’mores. How many adults possessed that much courage?
Stand-Up Cowboy Page 15