The Ride of Her Life (18 page)

“My point is I’ve waited all day to get you to myself, and tonight I want to be the only man in here.” He kissed her forehead. “And here.” He placed his hand on her heart.

“What am I gonna do with you?”

He grinned and his dimples deepened. “I have a few ideas.”

19

Nick awoke to the steady drumming of rain on the boardinghouse’s roof. He rolled onto his back and moaned. He’d planned to get going on the rest of the trestle since their supplies would be arriving today.

Maybe this was a sweet spring shower. A sweet,
short
, spring shower. He pushed up on his elbow and saw a bright flash of lightning, followed by a thunderous boom. He flopped back on the pillow and groaned. Okay, maybe it wasn’t a shower.

Avery Nash, the park manager, would be coming to see him now and would demand to know why things were not as far as they ought to be. The lack of supplies or the rain would never serve as an adequate excuse for the man. He wanted the coaster ready on opening day, and he’d settle for nothing else.

A knock on his door startled him. “Mr. Perrin?”

Nick recognized the nasally voice of Mrs. Whitson, the owner of the boardinghouse. He swung his feet to the floor and scrubbed his face with his hands. “I’ll be right there, ma’am. Let me throw on a shirt.”

She continued talking from the hallway. “I told your men that even if it’s raining, they need to find somewhere to go. I will not have them underfoot all day—”

With his suspenders still hanging at his sides, Nick opened the door.

“And I certainly don’t intend to cook for them.” Her eyes grew wide. “Were you still asleep?”

Nick drew his fingers through his hair and smoothed it down. “Yes, ma’am. I guess without any sun to wake me, I overslept.”

“Well, your men are downstairs, hanging around like lost hound dogs, so you’d better come tell them what you want them to do for the rest of the day before I shoo them off.”

Clearing his sleep-scratchy throat, Nick slipped his arms into the suspenders and pulled them onto his shoulders. “Mrs. Whitson, I understand you don’t want to cook for them, but do you really expect them to stay out of the house all day? It’s raining. We won’t be able to work outside.”

“That’s not my problem.” Mrs. Whitson gave him a curt nod. “Today’s the day I change sheets. You and your men need to be gone by eight. I won’t have them ruining my schedule.”

She didn’t wait for a response but marched away like a general who’d delivered indisputable orders. Nick closed the door behind her and hurried to the washstand to shave. After lathering his thick-bristled brush, he slathered the soap over his face and neck. He pulled his skin taut and drew the razor along the length of his jaw.

“Nick, do you want me to take the fellas on over to the diner?” Sean asked from the other side of the door.

Nick jerked and the razor slipped. He pressed a towel to the bead of red that formed on his cheek. “Yeah, go on ahead. Take some cards and the checkerboard too. We may be there all day.”

Sean opened the door to the room and leaned inside. “Does yer Lilly know that?”

“
My
Lilly?” Nick chuckled. His Lilly wasn’t going to appreciate a hoard of men hanging around her diner any more than Mrs. Whitson wanted them in her boardinghouse. Still, he knew she might grouse a bit, but she was too kind to send them away. “No, she doesn’t know. Not yet. Do you want to tell her for me?”

“Sorry, boyo, friendship only goes so far, but I’ll be wishin’ ya well in that endeavor.”

“Thanks, Sean. Thanks a bunch.”

All day?

Lilly dropped the heavy, cast-iron skillet onto the cookstove with a resounding bang. What was she going to do with a whole crew of men in her diner all day long?

She motioned to Eugenia to put the lard into the pan to fry two chickens for lunch. That along with gravy over biscuits would have to suffice. Already the men had consumed three pots of coffee and had eaten every sweet she had in the place, including the cobbler she’d intended for lunch. And it was only eleven o’clock. Thank goodness the rain seemed to be coming down a little less hard. Maybe the work crew would be out of here soon.

The worst of the morning had not been the raucous laughter or the incessant munching. The worst had been seeing Nick Perrin over and over. He’d been exceptionally gracious and thankful all morning. He’d even tried to pay her extra money for the hassle of having his men there. Lilly firmly refused his offer. It was storming outside. That wasn’t his fault. What choice did they have but to hole up somewhere?

Levi scooted a stool across the wood floor, making a screeching sound that prickled her skin with gooseflesh. He climbed on top of the tall stool and stood with his hands on his hips. “I’m gonna help you now, Mama.”

“Not from up there, you’re not. Sit down right now, young man.”

With an exaggerated sigh, Levi slid down onto the stool and swung his feet back and forth. “It’s gonna be hard to cook from clear over here.”

“You”—she tapped his nose—“are not cooking.”

“But I’m big enough.” He puffed out his chest. “’Sides, Mr. Nick told me to go help you for a while.”

Lilly rolled her eyes. It figured. She sank her hands into the wash water in the sink. “Are you old enough to grab that dish towel and dry these plates for me?”

With a big grin, Levi hopped off the stool and snagged the towel. “Yes, ma’am, and when I’m done, I’m hunting night crawlers.”

Lilly held out a plate to him. “Outside? In the rain?”

“You don’t have any in here, do you?” His eyebrows scrunched together.

Laughter bubbled in Lilly’s throat. “No, but I don’t know if I want you outside right now either.”

“But, Mama—”

“Let’s do these dishes and then we’ll see.”

With great care, Levi laid the plate on the stool and rubbed it until it glistened. Then, using both hands, he carried it to the Hoosier cabinet’s countertop. Back and forth he repeated his process, returning for more plates. Each time, Lilly blessed him with a smile of approval.

“Miss Lilly?” Eugenia held up a raw chicken leg in one hand and a thigh in the other. “Which one goes in first?”

“First you dredge them in that flour mixture. Remember? Then you put the thickest pieces in first because they take the longest to cook. Like we practiced last week.” Lilly passed another plate to Levi. “Is the lard hot already?”

Eugenia dropped in the first piece, and grease splattered out. “Seems plenty hot.”

“Lay the pieces in. Don’t drop them.” Lilly handed Levi another plate. “And remember, don’t let the lard get too hot and burn the chicken to embers. If it starts smoking, you need to move the pan to a cooler spot on the stove.”

Several minutes later, Levi placed another freshly dried plate on the pile and said, “Mama, maybe we could make something extra special tonight?”

After shaking her hands free of the suds, Lilly dried them on her apron. “Something like night-crawler pie?”

“Mama.” Levi’s nose wrinkled, and the tip of his tongue jutted out from his mouth. “Only fishes and birds eat worms.”

“We eat fish and birds, though, so what’s the difference?”

Biting his lip, Levi seemed to be giving her comment serious thought. A few seconds later, he shrugged. “Okay. I’ll need to find a whole mess of them if you’re gonna fill a pie.” He whirled toward the back door.

After Lilly glanced out the kitchen window and saw the rain had stopped, she decided he could go on out. “Try not to turn into a mud puddle yourself.” She closed the door behind him and remained there for several minutes to watch his search for night crawlers. She shook her head and smiled when he held up his first treasure for her to see.

Eugenia screamed.

Lilly spun. Flames leapt from the skillet and flashed into the air.

Who had screamed?

On his feet in seconds, Nick bolted around the counter and through the kitchen door. Acrid smoke poured from a fire on top of the cookstove and filled the room.

“No!” Lilly lurched forward, knocking an enameled water pitcher out of Eugenia’s hands. The pitcher hit the stove with a tinny clang, and water splashed onto the hot stove top with a hiss, instantly producing a giant puff of steam that rolled toward the ceiling. Lilly jerked back and pushed Eugenia away from the fire.

The fire in the skillet climbed higher. Nick’s insides knotted. He grabbed a larger cast-iron pot from a hook, raced to the stove, and set the heavy pan on top of the skillet fire. Smoke rolled out the sides, but the flames no longer licked at the room.

Lilly flipped the damper closed.

Nick wasted no time. He grabbed Lilly’s arm, and she trembled beneath his grip. “Are you okay?”

She nodded.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” She coughed.

Over his shoulder, he caught sight of his men gawking at the events that had transpired. “You boys, get the doors and windows open to air this place out. Eugenia—” He looked around for the addle-brained girl. “Find Levi.”

“Levi?” Lilly coughed again. “Where is he?”

“She’ll find him. Why don’t you go sit down and catch your breath?”

“Absolutely not.” The fire on the stove had nothing on the one in her eyes. “Look at this place. And where is Eugenia with my son?”

“He’s right here, Miss Lilly.” Eugenia pushed him through the back door.

Mud caked Levi’s shoes and trousers, and a pail swung from his hand. “Why is it so smoky in here? I could only find five night crawlers. Will that be enough for a pie, Mama?”

“Levi.” Lilly pressed her hand to her aching forehead. “Take the worms outside, sweetheart, then come in and wash up.”

“Why don’t you go out with him and get a little fresh air? I think the sun has even peeked out now.” Nick placed his hands on her shoulders and pointed her toward the door.

Lilly glanced around the wreck of a kitchen and leaned into his gentle touch. The ceiling was scorched. The whole place reeked. What was Mr. Thorton going to say now? And how many hours did she have ahead of her to put the place to rights?

“Whoooo-eeee.”

Lilly turned to see Mark standing in the doorway to the kitchen, waving his hand in front of his face. She stepped away from Nick and her cheeks warmed.

“What happened here?” Mark stepped inside and examined the blackened streaks on the ceiling.

“There was a grease fire.” Nick took her elbow and nudged her toward the door.

Mark looked at her. “Was anyone injured? Is Levi all right?”

“Everyone’s fine, and Levi was outside playing when it happened.” Lilly opened the door to the Hoosier cabinet and coughed.

Nick placed his hand on the cabinet door, barring her access. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“It’s past noon now. The men will be starving soon. I need to make them lunch.” She glanced at the stove. “Unless you think they’d like some slightly overdone fried chicken.”

“Lilly Hart, you’ll do no such thing.” He took her arm, led her to the back door, and opened it. “You’re going outside for some fresh air like I said before. Mark, will you tell Sean to come in here?”

“Sure, if you tell me who Sean is.”

“The big, muscled Irishman with red hair and matching beard.”

“Will do. Looks like you have everything in hand here.” He turned and disappeared into the dining room.