Chapter Four
Ande
I looked around at the little house, utterly amazed. I hadn't seen it earlier and just took Jake's and Kyle's word that it would be sufficient. The furnishings weren't new, but they were all good quality and clean, thanks to the drop cloths someone had been thoughtful enough to spread over everything. The hardwood floors would make a perfect surface Janna to crawl on. The largest bedroom held a comfortable full bed and an antique dresser. The other two bedrooms held twin sized beds made up with cute quilts. They were ideal kids' rooms. I just needed to set up the baby's play-pen for her to use as a bed until she grew into a regular bed.
Jake and his brothers had helped carry our belongings inside, all seemingly anxious to help us get settled. Ian immediately attached himself to Sam, the youngest, and followed every step the poor man took. Sam took it in good stride though, and gave Ian little things to carry so he felt helpful too. Their father, Mr. Quick, was the only one I had yet to meet, and worry swirled in my tummy every time I thought about it. If I didn't meet his standards, it wouldn't matter what his sons thought. I'd be out on my ass, along with my kids. I guessed I'd better make sure that didn't happen.
The play-pen only took a couple of minutes to get situated and I put the baby to bed. It was late for her and she was fussy and wanting sleep, so it only took her a few minutes to pass out cold. Ian was another story. His eyes sparkled with excitement as he explored his new home and tried to poke into every nook and cranny.
"Honey, you can't dig into every corner yet. I have to make sure it's safe for you." I tried to occupy him in the living room with his cars, but he couldn't sit still. A slight sound from the kitchen door drew both our attention, and we held hands as we warily approached the door, then opened it.
A ball of silver fur strutted through the door and peered up at us with a haughty green gaze.
"Kitty!" My son's delight made me smile.
"Careful. She might not like to be petted." The cat, however, had other ideas. She wrapped herself around Ian's short legs and purred loudly. I bent down to give her a pet. "You're a beautiful thing, aren't you?" She meowed at me, as if to say 'Of course!'
Thanks to our visitor, I managed to get Ian's bed ready for him and when I caught him yawning as he played with his new friend, I pointed him toward the bathroom and his toothbrush. "I'm sure you'll see the kitty again tomorrow. She has to go to bed now, though, and so do little boys." He only protested mildly when I put the cat outside and tucked him in. His eyes closed and his lips parted with little snores before I finished reading his favorite bedtime story.
My muscles ached with fatigue and I had to start early in the morning. A hot bath sounded like a perfect way to celebrate my new home, but I settled for a shower in the interest of time. I would need all the rest I could get, because I was pretty sure tomorrow would be another very long day.
I woke at the first beep of my alarm and hurried to get dressed. The sun barely peeked above the horizon, and I debated how to handle the start of my first day at my new job. I felt sure the kids would sleep another couple of hours, so in the end, I left the baby monitor on and took the receiver with me into the main house. I preferred not to wake them before their usual time, since that would lead to a cranky day for us all.
The kitchen still lay in darkness, so I switched on the lights and searched the fridge and cabinets to see what I had to work with. Eventually, I settled on thick fluffy omelets with ham and cheese, and fresh biscuits with cooked apples. The plates landed on the big table just as the stomp of boots crossed the porch. I hurried to pour coffee and held my breath, awaiting judgement.
An older version of Jake and his brothers came in first. "You must be Ande. I'm Johnathan." He dropped his cap on the hat rack and sat. "This sure looks a hell of a lot better than what the boys come up with."
The others came in and said good morning and quickly joined their father. The food disappeared at an alarming rate. I started to wonder if I'd made enough.
Finally, Johnathan shoved back from the table. "Jake, you help with washing up then get to those cows in the back pasture. Vet will be here in the morning to check for pregnancies." He stood and pulled his hat back on. "Thanks for breakfast, Ande." And just like that, he was gone.
I stood there with my mouth open, not sure if I'd met expectations or not. I glanced at Jake to find him grinning.
"He ate everything. He likes you." Sam grinned.
"I'm not so sure he wasn't just starved." I replayed it all, searching for any clues I might have missed.
Jake shook his head. "Yeah, he was starved, but if he didn't like it, he wouldn't have eaten it. He also wouldn't have told me to help with cleaning up if he didn't like you."
"Huh." I poured them all more coffee as I considered that information. "I guess he'd have told me to leave if wasn't willing to give me more of a chance."
"Exactly." Nate seemed quieter than his brothers. "Dad doesn't talk much. You have to go as much by what he doesn't say as what he does say." He elbowed Sam and picked up his dishes and cleared his space. "Come on, Sam. That hay won't cut itself." Sam gave a longsuffering sigh and followed him out.
I eyed Jake nervously. "You can go on to your work. I don't mind doing the dishes myself."
"How about I clean up while you make a list of what you need from the store? That'll save you a few minutes." He started the water in the sink.
Somehow, the sight of this big rugged man doing the dishes just to save me some time struck me as incredibly sweet. "Thank you. I appreciate the help." I grabbed a pen and paper I'd spotted earlier and started taking inventory and planning meals for the next week.
"Go to Wilson's Grocery. We have an account there. Just tell them to put it on the Quick account, and get whatever you need. Get stuff the kids like too, you know, snacks and stuff." For such a big man, he worked efficiently, making short work of the breakfast dishes. "Keys to my truck are in the ignition and the tank is more than half full." He stopped to scribble a number at the top of my list. "That's my cell. Call if you need anything or have any questions. Take your time. We'll make do with sandwiches for lunch so you don't have to rush. See you at dinner time."
"Thank you again. Have a good day." I hurried to finish my list and refused to let thoughts of Jake sidetrack me. The baby whined, starting to wake, just as I finished. Happy to have a full day ahead, I went back to the little house to get the kids ready for our trip to town.