by Verna Clay
Dixie raised her eyebrows. "Sure. They're over here." She walked to the end of the glass counter showcasing muffins and pastries and reached for two boxes beneath an open box displaying the candies.
Returning to the register, she rang the purchase up and asked, "If you don't mind my asking, how did you hear about these candies? I haven't seen you in here before and they're kind of a local secret." She bent forward and whispered, "It's my husband's creation and the only person it's taken off with is a local cowboy."
Monica handed Dixie the credit card with Dirk's name on it. "I must be working for that cowboy."
Dixie accepted the card, looked at the name, and shot her a surprised look, which she quickly tried to hide by switching her attention to ringing up the sale and bagging the purchase. Before Monica turned to leave, Dixie said, "My name is Dixie Kosky and we'll probably be running into each other from time to time. It's nice to make your acquaintance."
The woman's friendly gesture was touching after her look that had shouted: So you're the domestic help from New York.
Monica smiled slightly and said, "My name is Monica Newport and I'll only be here for three months."
Chapter 7: Chocolate Surprise
Before leaving Dixie's Cuppa Joe, Monica asked for directions to the grocery store and after pulling into the parking lot of Biggie Bag-n-Save Big Mart on the corner of Second and Third Streets, she was surprised by how big it really was. She had expected a tiny Mom and Pop store. She started to open the truck door and then paused when she was hit with an inspiration—bring Tessa shopping with her. Dirk had said she got home from school around three-thirty, surely postponing the errand for a few hours wouldn't matter one way or the other. Besides, it would give her time to locate a recipe book in the mess of scattered books in Dirk's living room. Without one, the man was destined to continue eating cardboard frozen dinners because Monica hadn't an inkling of how to make much more than mac and cheese, the ingredients of which were on her list.
She started the ignition and returned to Main Street. As she passed the coffee shop, she noticed a dress shop a few doors down—Cindy's Second Chance Clothing. Am I doomed to wearing someone's castoffs when I need to buy maternity clothes? She sighed. Life was a bitch when you were broke.
*
Dirk heard the gate to his ranch open over the intercom. Monica hadn't been gone long. Maybe the airhead had gotten lost on the straight shot to town. He amended his thought. No, not an airhead; just self absorbed.
A few minutes later she entered the living room and he said, "That was fast."
Slipping her fancy handbag off her shoulder and setting it on the table, she said, "I decided to wait until Tessa got home so we could go together."
That sure surprised Dirk. His attention was diverted to the pretty sack in her hand. "I see you found Dixie's Cuppa Joe. It's one of my favorite places. Always good coffee and plenty of folks to blow the bull with."
Reaching into the sack, she pulled out a candy box with a picture of a jalapeño on top. Delighted, he said, "That's my favorite candy."
"I know. Tessa showed me the almost empty box in the kitchen drawer. I bought you two."
Dirk grinned when she handed him a box. Reaching into his pocket for his pocket knife, he slit the cellophane wrapping and lifted the lid. "Believe it or not, an ex-FBI agent invented this."
Monica looked surprised. "The owner told me her husband was the creator."
"Yep. We call him Alligator 'cause he's so big. After he and Dixie married, he decided to retire from chasing criminals and moved here from New York. Said he's never regretted his decision. From what I gather, he has a new recipe in the making, but he's not ready to reveal it." Dirk lifted one of the chocolates coated with chocolate sprinkles from its paper cradle. "Here try one."
Monica looked at the confection with distaste. "I think I'll pass. I like my chocolate to be only chocolate."
"I promise it's nothing like you're imagining. I wouldn't try it for the longest time, but after I did, I was hooked."
Monica shook her head. "I'll just put this other box in the kitchen."
A few minutes later she returned and asked, "Do you have any cookbooks?"
Dirk swallowed his third piece of candy. "I'm not sure." He gazed at his bookshelves stacked haphazardly with hardbacks, paperbacks, magazines, DVDs, and outdated VHS tapes. "You're welcome to look."
Monica bit the side of her lip like she was considering something, and then asked, "Would you mind if I organized the shelves?"
Her request surprised him because he'd expected her to do as little as possible. "No. Go for it."
"I need to change first."
When she returned wearing a different pair of slacks and matching top that looked to be as nice as the ones she'd taken off, Dirk wanted to suggest she charge some Levis to his account the next time she went to town, but changed his mind. Maybe he and Tessa could throw some hints out first so "starchy" Monica would loosen up, then he could make the suggestion.
For the next two hours Dirk surreptitiously watched his "charity case" remove books, place them in stacks, line them up in the bookshelves, change her mind, and move them around some more. Her pickiness was starting to drive him batty. He certainly had no intention of turning his home into a rigid military zone. He liked his personal space casual, his women casual, and his life easygoing. Sure, he worked hard in his professional career—his busted leg evidenced that—but working hard just made him want to enjoy his down time all the more.
Monica lifted onto her toes to place books on a high shelf and Dirk gave her points for being a looker with a great body. She was probably in her early to mid thirties and about as shapely as he'd ever seen, with a cute round butt, great legs, and a tiny waist wrapped in a medium height package. Her honey hair fell in perfect alignment almost to her shoulders, in a style that was cut so that the back was shorter than the sides, and she had some of the prettiest baby blues he'd ever clasped eyes on, with thick lashes and arching brows. It was her mouth, however, that was her sexiest feature and immediately drew a red-blooded man's attention; that is, until she opened it, which she was doing now.
"What do you think?" She made a waving motion encompassing all the bookcases. "Your sports books are in the order of the particular sport and travel books by destination. Your equine books are grouped by author, as are novels. The lower shelves are filled with domestic books, like cookbooks, home repairs, car repairs, and such, also miscellaneous. She pointed to the last bookcase. "And your DVDs, video tapes, and magazines are there."
Dirk ground his teeth. He didn't give a rat's ass about the order of the books. "Yeah. Nice."
"Well, I did find some recipe books." Unexpectedly, she smiled and Dirk's breath caught when her eyes reflected genuine mirth. She actually joked, "If we're going to eat anything other than frozen dinners, I need to do my homework." Lifting two books, she headed for the kitchen without another word.
Dirk eyed his precisely organized bookshelves and Monica's curvy retreating figure, and sighed.
*
Flipping the first cookbook open the page landed on a chapter entitled, Steamy Candlelight Dinners.
Nope. Those are history in my life.
Perusing the rest of the book, Monica didn't find anything interesting. Reaching for the next cookbook, Traditional Family Favorites, she decided it was more suitable to her needs and she should jot down some notes. After trying to locate a pencil and paper by opening drawers, she finally reached the drawer with the almost empty box of candy and the new one tossed on top of it. Voila! Paper and pencil.
Just as she started to shove the drawer shut, she paused. What on earth could jalapeño chocolate taste like? Dare she? After several seconds consideration, as if it were a momentous moment, she thought, What the heck! Silently talking to her baby, she said, "I'll only try a nibble so if it's really bad, it won't bother you."
Glancing furtively toward the door, she lifted the lid of the almost empty box and grabbed one of
the candies. Holding it to her nose she sniffed. Smells like chocolate. Hesitantly, she nibbled a corner and waited. Was it going to burn her mouth? Nothing happened so she rolled the chocolate over her tongue.
Mmm. Mmmm. Mmmmm. Sampling a larger nibble, she repeated the process, and then repeated it again. This is really good! In fact, it's delicious! She finished that chocolate and reached for the other one.
An hour later, and three chocolates into the new box, she heard voices in the living room and realized Tessa was home. Quickly swallowing, she feigned interested in the cookbook when the girl entered the kitchen. "How was your day, Tessa?"
The girl shrugged. "Okay, I guess."
"You don't sound too sure. Is there anything you want to talk about?"
"No."
"Okay." Monica shut the cookbook. "I went to the grocery store this morning, but I didn't go in because I thought you might want to go with me. So I came back to wait until you got home."
Tessa looked surprised and Monica continued, "I've been looking through this cookbook for recipes and I've found a few I think you and your dad might like. Would you like to go to the store with me?"
Tessa looked like she was about to cry.
"What is it, honey? Have I said something wrong?"
"No, ma'am. It's just that my mama used to take me shopping with her and we always had so much fun. When you asked me to go, it kinda reminded me of her."
Monica didn't know how to answer and Tessa seemed to understand. Her countenance brightened and she said, "Let me change my clothes."
Monica nodded because she didn't trust her voice. Tessa touched her heart in a way it hadn't been touched since her girlhood. How she wished she'd had a mother who would have wanted to take her shopping instead of one who saw her as a burden. Quickly, Monica pushed remembrances of her childhood aside. She definitely didn't want to travel that path in her thoughts.
The return drive to town went quickly as Tessa pointed out ranches and gave Monica a heads up on who owned them. When they passed the Lazy M Ranch with its fabulously intricate gate, Tessa said, "I just love Sage and Sarah Tanner. Their twin boys, Preston and Toby are two grades ahead of me. They're really nice." She hesitated and then finished with, "Not like Jared."
Monica waited to see if the child would give more information about Jared, and when she didn't, she decided to not press the issue. Tessa would talk when she was ready.
Tessa's face brightened and she said, "The Tanners have a dude ranch and every year they hitch up with the Triple T Ranch owned by Jackson and Ann Martinez and take greenhorns on a wagon train adventure. They call it the Covered Wagon Three Day Trail Blaze. Me and Daddy and Mommy went on it when I was six. It was so much fun! The Triple T is close to the Lazy M down Tritt Road."
Tessa giggled and Monica smiled.
After a minute, Tessa said, "We was gonna go on it the next year too, but that's when mommy died."
Although Monica wanted to ask how she had died, she didn't want to stir up more sad emotions in the child.
Tessa volunteered, "Mommy had a bad heart. The doctors were putting a new one in, but she died while they was operating."
Monica inhaled sharply. "I'm so sorry, honey." She saw Tessa turn her head and finger a tear.
Monica decided to change the subject. "So, Tessa, tell me what your favorite thing to do in the whole world is."
The child smiled. "I like to make things pretty."
"Like you did your bedroom?"
"Yes! Sometimes, when I'm at someone else's house, I think about how to make it prettier."
Monica giggled. "I'll tell you a secret. I do the same thing."
"You do?"
"I do."
"Well, I guess I understand, 'cause my daddy said you had a job in New York where you decorated people's houses but you don't have it no more. That's why you're here." She said shyly, "I'm really glad you decided to come here."
Monica swallowed the lump in her throat. "I am too."
A few minutes later they pulled into the parking lot of Biggie Bag-n-Save and Monica grabbed her list.
Chapter 8: Tubby Tessa
Monica called off items on her list and Tessa guided her through the grocery store. Considering this was such a small town, the store was well stocked with a superb layout, something Monica's trained eye picked up on immediately. In her mind she made a few revisions to improve the produce section, and then laughed silently. Was Tessa doing the same thing?
"I think the spices are on the next aisle," said Tessa.
Monica turned her cart around the corner and almost bumped into another one. The other cart had a toddler in the seat and an older child hanging on the basket. The young mother exclaimed, "Oh, excuse me!" She laughed, "We're having a traffic jam in Biggie's Bag…" She stopped talking and gasped.
Monica had already recognized the woman with strawberry blonde hair and stood immobilized.
Neither woman spoke. Finally, Monica said, "Hello Tooty."
Tooty nodded. "Monica."
Tessa glanced back and forth between them, and the toddler in the cart whined, "Mommy, I want down." The other boy started playing with cans on the shelves.
Absentmindedly, Tooty said, "Not now, Austin, and stop whining. Morgan, leave the peas alone or I'll buy them and make you eat them."
Monica suddenly noticed that Tooty was pregnant. Without thinking, she blurted, "You're having another baby?"
Tooty straightened her shoulders and said, "Yes. Miles and I are having a girl this time."
Monica didn't know how she could get her foot out of her mouth, so she just said, "I think that's wonderful. Will you please give Miles my congratulations?"
Tooty seemed to relax slightly and started to say something when a red-headed, freckle-faced boy about Tessa's age barreled around the corner and skidded to a halt just missing smashing into her. From the look on Tessa's face, she didn't like the boy. Instantly, Monica didn't like him either. Disregarding the adults, he smirked, "Hi, Tubby Tessa," and started to dart away, but Monica grabbed his shirtsleeve as she watched Tessa turn every shade of red and visibly shrink backwards. Forgetting her disaster with Tooty for the moment, she narrowed her eyes at the boy. "What did you say?"
At her menacing tone the boy's eyes widened. Before he could answer, she said, "Do you know what the mean kids in my class called the boy with red hair and freckles? They called him Freaky Freckles Freddie. Is your name Freddie?"
"N-no, ma'am. It's Jared."
"Should I call you Jerky Jared? Or are you going to apologize to Tessa?"
The boys eyes widened even more and he said, "S-sorry, Tessa." Monica released his shirtsleeve and he ran back the way he'd come.
Both Tooty and Tessa stared at Monica with their mouths open. Monica reached a hand to pat Tessa's shoulder. "Honey, if he gives you anymore trouble, you just let me know. He's a bully and I have no qualms about letting his parents and your teacher know. If he isn't stopped now, he'll only get worse." When Tessa nodded, Monica looked back at Tooty. "Please tell Miles I said hello and thank him for finding me this job."
Tooty barely nodded and her little boy started whining again. The last thing Monica wanted to hear was a whining child, so she pushed her cart around Tooty's and said, "Come on, Tessa, let's find those spices."
*
Tooty rushed inside her home, deposited Austin in his bedroom and ordered Morgan to play with him, and then went in search of Miles. Unloading her groceries was low priority at the moment.
She found her husband in his office working on his latest romance novel. As she had learned while working as his personal assistant, she let him finish typing his sentence and when he looked up she burst out, "You're not going to believe what just happened!"
With a curious expression, he rolled away from his desk and over to where she had plopped into an easy chair.
"I just ran into Monica."
Miles looked even more curious. "Was it terrible?"
Tooty shook her head. "No." Her
eyes widened. "It was…I guess you could say…eye opening. There's more to Monica than I ever imagined."
After explaining detail by detail what had happened, Tooty said, "She was wonderful in standing up to that little bully. I've heard a lot about him from Toby and Preston. And the way she treated Tessa was heartwarming." Tooty tapped her chin. "What do you know about Monica's childhood?"
Miles furrowed his brow trying to remember. "She never talked much about it. I do know that she came from a wealthy family and was an only child. I believe her father died before she started school and her mother never remarried. She once mentioned her mother going from lover to lover." He shrugged. "That's about all I know."
Tooty felt their baby kick and changed the direction of her thoughts. "Miles, our little girl is a linebacker. Feel this." She reached for his hand and placed it on her stomach. He felt a kick and grinned. Then he said mischievously, "Are you sure this is our last child? I'm always up for the challenge."
Tooty slapped his hand away, "Hardy har har. Love your play on words. You should use it in your next book. But the answer to that is…I'll think about it."
Miles gave her a shocked look. "Tooty, I was just kidding. If we have anymore children we'll have to build another house."
"We could just add on to this one."
"Tooty, I was joking. No more children."
Tooty laughed and bent forward to kiss her husband. "Then I guess you'll just have to watch those baby kisses of yours."
*
Monica and Tessa carried their many bags of groceries to the kitchen table. They were both surprised when Dirk crutched into the room. He glanced at his daughter and said, "You sure have a big grin. What's up?"
Tessa looked at Monica. "Uh, well, Miz Monica just told Jared off in the grocery store."
"Huh?"
Monica interjected, "He was being obnoxious so I put a stop to it and I told Tessa if he bothers her again, I'm going to his teacher and parents."
Dirk frowned. "Monica, may I speak with you privately?"
"Of course." She opened the fridge and shoved a carton of milk inside. The refrigerator was next on her list of places needing organization.