Harlequin Historical November 2017 - Box Set 2 of 2 by Amanda McCabe Nicole Locke & Lynna Banning

Author:Amanda McCabe, Nicole Locke & Lynna Banning
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781488021886
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises Limited
Published: 2017-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

Eleanor stretched luxuriously and opened her eyes. Doc Dougherty had ordered her to take afternoon naps, but really, this was ridiculous! From the angle of the sun through the bedroom window, she guessed she had slept for hours.

The sound of hammering came through the open window, and she dragged her aching body off the bed and peeked out. Danny was perched at Mr. Winterman’s elbow, handing him nails, which he pounded into the new porch step. Molly was playing with something in the porch swing. She wondered what it was until a tiny ball of orange fur tumbled off onto the floor.

A kitten! Where had she found a kitten? As she watched, another orange ball dropped off the swing, and then another! She groaned aloud. Surely Cord wouldn’t have brought kittens from town without asking her first?

Molly gave a squeak and scrambled out of the swing to corral the animals, and Eleanor turned away from the window. She splashed lukewarm water over her flushed cheeks and patted some on her neck. Imagine, sleeping away the afternoon when she should be baking bread and starting the beans for supper. It was probably because of that whiskey Cord had slipped into her coffee. The man was a bad influence.

Well, maybe not so bad, considering that he’d apparently worked all afternoon and watched over Daniel and Molly while he repaired whatever he was working on. She looked out the window again.

The front porch step was fixed. Oh, yes, she surely did need a hired man! She was glad she had hired Cordell Winterman. She thought about the tall, sun-browned man all the way down the stairs and into the kitchen to start supper.

An hour later the children tumbled in through the new screen door, dusty and happy. And hungry. “Wash up,” she ordered.

“We already did,” Molly answered.

“Oh? Where?”

“At the pump out front,” Danny volunteered. “With Cord. I mean Mr. Winterman.”

She propped both hands on her hips. “With soap?”

“With soap,” Cord said as he came through the door. He took the chair she indicated, tipping it back until the two front feet lifted off the floor.

“You’re gonna fall over backward,” Molly observed.

“You want to bet on that?”

“Yes!” the girl shouted.

“Okay. I bet three lemon drops that I won’t tip this chair over.”

“Please,” Eleanor interjected, setting a platter of fried potatoes on the table. “Do not teach my children to gamble!”

He stared up at her. “You mean I can’t bet even one lemon drop?”

“I mean exactly that,” she said, keeping her voice extra-crisp. “And kindly tell me where those kittens came from? Not from town, I hope?”

Molly went rigid. Cord returned all four chair legs to the floor. “Well, ma’am, to tell you the truth—”

“Don’t tell her anything!” Danny yelled. “She’ll make us get rid of ’em.”

“Would you do that, Mrs. Malloy?” Cord inquired, his voice quiet. “Make your children get rid of some kittens?”

“Well…”

“Because,” he continued, “actually they’re your kittens. They were born in your barn, up in the hayloft.”

“Are you absolutely sure about that?” She couldn’t soften the suspicion that tinged her voice.

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