Chase The Wind by Janelle Taylor

Author:Janelle Taylor [Janelle Taylor]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781420127300
Publisher: Kensington

Navarro was up and dressed when Matt knocked on the cabin door; Beth was grooming herself while he tried to keep his eyes and thoughts off her. He opened it enough to go outside but still guard her privacy.

“Morning, Matt.”

“Morning. Thought you might wanna eat with me and the boys in the chuckhouse, then ride the range a while. They’re eager to see you.”

“Sounds good to me. Let me tell Beth where I’m going.”

“Jessie said for her to come to the house when she’s ready.”

Navarro went back inside to pass along the quick messages. He wondered if Matt’s intention was to keep him away from Jessie and Lane as much as possible, at least until they all adjusted to being together again. He was eager to see the range and herd to learn how bad things were. He headed to the cookhouse where his old friends were waiting to greet him.

When Beth was ready, she walked to the house and found Jessica in the kitchen. “Good morning. What can I do to help?”

“Grab yourself some coffee and take a seat. I’ll have our food ready in a few minutes. Our husbands are eating with the boys so they can chat. Lane and Alice have already done their chores and left for school. Eat up, Lance.”

After pouring coffee and sitting down, Beth looked at the little boy sitting at the table. “How are you this lovely morning, Lance?”

“Mama cooked me johnnycakes” was the four-year-old’s reply.

“He’d eat them every day if I’d let him,” Jessica said with a laugh. “Don’t forget your milk, son, and slow down or you’ll choke.”

“What chores do the other children have before school?”

“Lane milks the family cow in the morning and evening; Biscuit Hank, the boys’ cook, does the other two. Alice feeds the chickens and lets them out to scratch for the day and pens them up at night, except for those sitting on eggs. Do you know about those chores?”

“I’ve done those two, but Stephen chose which nests and birds were allowed to sit and make hatchlings.”

“I’ll teach you how to do the choosing later. Matt hays the stock in the morning and I gather the eggs for us; Hank, for the men. Big John slops the pigs for me from the bucket I sit on the back porch; he mixes it with their feed and water. I’ll teach you about that, too. Until you hire help, which is a big expense, you and Navarro will have to do the chores yourselves.”

As they ate breakfast in leisure, Beth queried, “Lane is kind of quiet and shy, isn’t he? He doesn’t seem outgoing like Alice and Lance.”

“His best friend just moved away and he’s sad and lonesome, hasn’t had time to get over the loss. But he’s still a mite quiet and serious, just like his father used to be. I suppose Lane is mature for his age. He was our only child for years, so he spent a lot of time around adults—me and Matt and the hands.

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