Chief Cook and Bottle Washer (7 page)

Cal Travers had already gotten a bowl of
ice-cream for Sammie Jo and was feeding her as Emma approached the
huge table just the other side of the kitchen.

"Yes sirree, nothing like a bowl of ice-cream
for those sore chompers, huh, Sammie Jo? Papa Cal knows, don't he?"
Cal was saying as he looked up at Emma with interest. "She's a
right friendly little tyke, isn't she?"

"Yes, she is. But I've never seen her go to a
stranger so easily."

Sammie Jo looked as though she couldn't be
happier. Emma watched their interchange with fascination. After
all, Sammie Jo didn't usually take to strangers. At her age she was
usually leery of anyone or anything new, unless curiosity got the
best of her. Emma imagined her teeth hurt so bad she just didn't
care. Either that or the senior Mr. Travers made an immediate
impression on her.

The old man looked frail, but the sparkle of
life was in those nearly transparent blue eyes. A man to fall in
love with. A man very unlike her own father. Cal Travers emitted a
warmth Emma had seldom been exposed to. She liked him. He made her
feel at home.

"You must have a way with children, Mr.
Travers."

"Call me Cal. The Mr. makes me feel old.
Never thought much about it, but the Mrs. used to look just as
surprised as you do. Kids, calves, puppies, all the same. All they
need is love, and understanding. My wife taught me that, a long
time ago. I just never told her," Cal said whimsically.

"She must be a wonderful lady," Emma
said.

"Was wonderful, yes, the best." Cal's voice
drifted off. His eyes taking on memories.

Emma felt his sorrow almost as if it were her
own, it seemed so profound, as though it might have happened
yesterday. These people astounded her. She felt as though she had
found an identical family to her own so very far from home. Except
her family had never been this much like a real family. No, they
were nothing alike. She just got a good dose of lonesome in her
soul.

"Well Emma, welcome to your new home and
family," Deke said turning her loose and pulling out a chair for
her. He sat down on the other side of the table and eyed her for a
moment before speaking again.

"I want you to know we don't expect much from
you. Just a couple of decent meals a day and a little laundry would
be nice. We aren't the best at that," Deke was saying. "Dad here,
can't tell the reds from the whites."

"Now don't go telling her about the red
thermal. God, that was embarrassing," Cal clipped.

Clint smiled. "Embarrassing for all of us,
even though it was Dad that goofed up."

"Don't pay them any attention. I just hate
doing laundry."

Emma chuckled. "Most men do. And that sounds
reasonable. What time does everyone get up around here?"

"We work dawn to dusk."

"So fivish be okay?"

"Great."

Emma smiled and nodded, her eyes going around
the room.

Yes, it looked as though things might work
out here. This family wasn't a lot different than her own by size.
She could handle the house easily enough. They weren't slobs.

Sammie Jo had just finished the ice-cream
when she fell asleep in Cal's arms. Her little face was almost in a
smile now, no sign of tears. Emma rushed to take her, but the old
man was having none of that.

"Oh, I'll take her."

"She needs to go to bed. Poor little thing is
tuckered, and in this heat there's no wonder. Look at those red
cheeks. That ice-cream was just the trick, she wouldn't have been
able to eat a regular supper anyhow. I hope you don't mind. I just
felt so sorry for her is all."

"No, no I don't mind at all. I'm glad you
thought of it. I have a playpen for her to sleep in." Emma motioned
toward the truck.

No sooner had she said it, than Rusty was
bringing it inside, "Where should I put it?" He asked.

"In her room. Mattie's old room," Deke added
as he shook his head. "Come on down the hall, Emma, we'll show you
your room and you can get her settled down." Deke was insisting,
again taking her elbow and guiding her.

She wished he wouldn't do that, it made her
feel funny and very aware of the man. She didn't want to be aware
of the boss. Strange how that mere touch set off such sparks. She
was probably just tired and over-reacting to his kindness. Emma
wasn't the kind to flirt. She'd been around men all her life, but
not intimately, and this feeling was shocking her into a new
awareness. Maybe she ought to concentrate on Charlie.

Her brothers had teased her about not wanting
to date. So much so, she finally began taking Charlie's flirtation
seriously. Charlie had been their neighbor for years. Her father
had told her repeatedly she'd never find a man of her own in jeans
and T-shirts. She should be wearing dresses, he had said with a
firm shake to his head. But he'd never spare a dime for such a
luxury. And she had Charlie, with or without a dress. But she
didn't want to think about that now. She wasn't here for a man.

The room they offered her had a beautiful
canopy bed in the middle. Another thing she hadn't expected. It was
decorated with delicate white lace and yellow flowers. An antique
dresser matched the bed, and a trunk full of blankets propped at
the foot. An old fashioned tapestry lamp adorned the dresser.

Nothing about this ranch house looked dreary
or old, or dirty, Emma thought. It would be a real pleasure taking
care of a place like this. Someday her and Sammie Jo would have a
place like this–a real home. She peeked out the window and saw a
few ranch hands gathering about. There was a half a dozen or more
so Emma figured this had to be a good size spread.

"Shouldn't I be starting supper?" she asked
when no one seemed in too big a hurry to leave.

"Not tonight. Tonight is on us. Sort of a
welcome. Rusty's got the fire going out back, we'll have some big
steaks and baked potatoes in no time. Don't worry, after tonight,
that chore will be yours. So enjoy it while you can. Just remember
most of the men are meat and potato kind of men. If you can fix
biscuits all the better." Deke winked. "Now, this will be your room
Emma. We hope you like it here and will consider it your home. Make
yourself at home. The bath's down the hall, and I've taken the
liberty of putting a sign on the door when it's occupied, so we'll
all know you're in there. I'm afraid we've only got one bath, these
old houses were never equipped with more than one, I'm afraid. But
I'm sure we can make allowances. Better find Jake and let him know
about all this, too, I guess."

"Jake?"

"Our other brother," Clint added with a
smile. "He'll be in directly. He's the serious one. The strong
silent type. Most of the women fall for him right away."

"Most of 'em." Rusty winked at her.

"Too bad he don't have a roving eye," Clint
quipped.

"Oh. I never asked but will I be cooking for
the boys in the bunkhouse too?"

"Yes ma'am. But if you get in a strap, Little
Jim will help you out. He's the trail cook. Most of the time.
Clint's a right fair hand at it too, when he's around. So you will
have plenty of help if you need it," Cal Travers added. "And they
all eat in the kitchen. They all use the back door. And they all
drink a lot of coffee. We don't allow liquor on the job, so you
don't have to worry about that from our men."

"Just like home."

"Home? Where you from, Emma?" Rusty asked
innocently as he went about setting the playpen up and Cal laid the
baby down. Sammie Jo sighed and rolled to one side, sound asleep.
Deke had pulled out a small blanket from her bag and covered her
with it. Clint put her suitcase in the closet. Emma stood around
looking silly.

"I'm from around Greenville. East Texas. I
grew up on a spread not half this size. I have three brothers. My
mother died when I was three. So I guess I'll feel right at home,
here."

Emma was overcome with how easily these men
adapted to having a woman and baby around. Nothing seemed to shock
them. At least they appeared to adapt.

"If there's anything you need, just ask. Any
of the boys around here will be glad to fetch it for you or Sammie
Jo. All our men are trustworthy and been with us for years. Not a
sorry one of the bunch. Deke's a right good judge of character, and
if he says someone's okay, you can bet on it," Cal explained.

Emma glanced up at Deke and felt a blush
creeping up her cheeks. Had he said she was okay? Even with the
lies? Something about him made her feel things she hadn't felt
since she was a kid with a crush on Billy Daniels, in the fourth
grade. But that was silly too. She wasn't here to romance the boss,
she was the cook!

Strange, now that she thought on it, her
feelings for Charlie weren't on the same level. Charlie had been
around for so long, a good friend of Jesse's, and they had started
going to dances together. Charlie hadn't been the romantic type. He
just took her, assuming she was going since she had her dress shirt
on. He never told her he loved her in so many words, he expected
her to assume it. She had. Up until Kate died. That changed
everything. But she didn't blame Kate.

Surely she'd get over this infatuation with
the new boss. Probably as soon as he produced his wife.

"I don't mean to be noisy, but where are the
women on this ranch?" Emma asked.

"Women?" They chorused as though they hadn't
heard the word in a long time.

"Yes, wives, sisters."

"Well gee, I never thought of it as strange,
but I guess another woman might. Mom died a few years after Rusty
was born. There are no sisters. There aren't any wives at the 4 Bar
None." Clint explained. "Least ways, not yet."

"I see. Well, we have a lot in common. There
weren't a lot of women around where I was raised either. Just my
cousin, Kate."

She didn't want to think about Kate right
now. Her emotions were still raw.

Emma glanced at Deke's face and felt her
heartbeat quicken. The look he gave her said he'd guessed how much
Kate had meant to her. How could he know.

Why did he always look at her like that. As
though he could see right through her. Like he liked what he saw,
or something. She wasn't used to it. He was staring at her with
that quizzical expression. She suddenly wished they were all
married. She knew one thing for certain–she was in big trouble.

They left her alone, and Emma bounced on the
feather bed. It was so soft, she'd never slept on a bed like this
before. She smelled the sheets. They smelled of sunshine and she
grinned. She twirled about her room happily.

"What a nice family, and beautiful home. Oh
Sammie Jo we are finally off to a good start."

Sammie Jo let out a little whimper, rolled
over and closed her eyes again.

Emma unpacked and set her clothes out for her
and the baby for the next day. She sighed heavily when she realized
she had nothing beautiful to unpack. Maybe someday, she'd have
pretty dresses, like her Dad said she needed. If someday ever
came.

She twirled around the room, and suddenly the
door swung open and Deke nearly barged right into her. She reached
for his arms to steady her, and realized with one slight squeeze
she was holding on to a real man. A man that wasn't her father, or
her brother or Charlie. A man that looked at her with probing eyes
and a sexy smile. Every nerve in her body sprang to awareness. She
temporarily felt paralyzed to the spot.

"I'm sorry." She stepped away finally,
letting her hands fall to her sides. God, he must have thought she
was pitiful.

"Yeah, uh, I brought you some linens for your
bed and bath. Anything else you need–for the baby or such?" he
asked looking down into her wide eyes.

"No–thank you." She managed to sound
relatively normal.

"Okay, supper will be ready in about an hour.
So come on down when you're ready."

"Thanks, I will."

His eyes traveled about the room, and stopped
at the closet where she had hung her T-shirts and jeans. He made no
comment but he must have noticed there were no fancy dresses.

"We're all glad you're here, Emma," he said
in a soft voice.

"Thanks," Emma nodded and backed towards the
bed.

Then he was gone and Emma felt every kind of
fool. She was sexually attracted to her boss! Not only was he the
sexiest thing in jeans she'd every seen, but he was super kind and
gentle with her and the baby. "Never love a cowboy," Kate's advice
echoed in her head.

The backyard barbecue was turning into an all
out party, Deke mused as he watched Emma being introduced to the
bunkhouse men. Clint manned the steaks on the open pit, Rusty
grabbed his guitar every now and then. As usual he was the life of
the party. The boys from the bunkhouse seemed to take right to
Emma, as though she weren't a stranger at all.

"Son, you sure know how to pick 'em," Cal
said just behind him. "I think Emma's gonna work out real
fine."

Deke watched her with quiet satisfaction. Yes
siree, Emma was a natural here on the ranch. He liked the way she
wore her jeans, soft and faded, and comfortable, not skin tight and
askin' for trouble. Her crisp white blouse was practical too. Emma
was no show off, but she didn't have to be. She had the thickest
long brown hair that hung just past her shoulders, and big whiskey
colored eyes that a man could get lost in. She smiled a lot, joined
into the conversations easily. A good choice.

Now all he had to do was sit back and wait
till his wayward brother Clint decided to take the bait. He watched
them with curious intent.

Sammie Jo had been the life of the party for
the first couple of hours, but her short nap when they arrived
hadn't been enough and she gave out quickly. Not surprising at all
considering most the boys had hoisted her piggy-back here and there
and fed her a double dose of home-made peach ice-cream. It was a
wonder the kid wasn't sick.