Page 28 of A Steadfast Heart
Jo muttered, “You barely know us.”
“I know enough.”
Tillie tipped her head questioningly. “How do you know?”
“Well, your papa has a big ranch to run, right?”
Tillie nodded.
“But he still managed to teach you so much. David’s doing great with his math, you already know your alphabet…”
Drew glanced at his middle daughter. She had gone very still, was pretending not to listen. Would Kaitlyn even be able to find a genuine compliment for Jo? His middle daughter certainly didn’t deserve one today. He faced the other direction, not wanting to watch when Jo was hurt.
“And Jo doubled that biscuit recipe without even having to use paper to figure out the numbers.” Kaitlyn said the matter-of-fact words, and surprise turned his head.
Kaitlyn hadn’t even paused. When she had every reason to say something mean, she’d complimented instead. David stood a little straighter, and Tillie bounced on her toes.
Jo kicked at the dirt a couple of times, then left with the empty bucket. Kaitlyn bit her lip as she watched Jo leave, then focused on the other kids. Her smile was a bit tight, but David and Tillie didn’t seem to notice. They jabbered on about what they’d conquer next in schoolwork, as if the whole idea had been theirs all along.
Drew’s eyes caught on the huge stain on Kaitlyn’s skirt as she bent close to listen to something Tillie leaned up to whisper.
I know he is.
His stomach did a funny flip when he thought about the way Kaitlyn’s eyes had shifted to meet his for a millisecond as she’d uttered those words of agreement.
She’d complimented him…like a real wife might’ve. That wasn’t a part of their agreement.
As the kids cleared out and Drew went to wash up, the swirling thoughts itched like a burr under the collar of his shirt.
Did she expect him to compliment her? Amanda would’ve. And would’ve pouted if she hadn’t gotten what she wanted.
Determination stole through him. He’d told Kaitlyn that theirs would be a loveless marriage. It didn’t matter if she said nice things or treated his kids like they mattered.
A deal was a deal.
* * *
Fork, spoon, bowl.
Kaitlyn whirled from the table she was setting, wiping her forehead with the back of one arm. Her yellow dress was finally clean, though it had taken Jo three days of soaking and scrubbing to accomplish the feat.
Everyone would be in for dinner soon, and it wasn’t even close to ready. She stirred the stew simmering on the back of the stove. A large bubble popped, spitting hot broth on her arm. She jerked back, then wiped her arm with a damp rag she’d used to wipe down the preparation table. It was time to add the potatoes, and they weren’t even peeled yet.
She sank into a chair next to the worktable. It had been such a long day already. She should have asked one of the kids to peel the vegetables before they’d left the house, but she wasn’t up to one more power struggle.
David had grudgingly turned his attention to working with fractions but had eventually thrown his pencil down in frustration. Tillie had caught on to the idea that letters made sounds and spent the entire day pointing to things in the house and naming the letter they started with. At least one of the children was excited to be learning, but the constant chatter made Kaitlyn’s ears ring.
And Jo. Kaitlyn buried her face in her hands. Jo. The child who needed her the most seemed to hate her.
Today, Jo had split her lesson time between staring at the first arithmetic problem and glaring at Kaitlyn. She could have solved the simple word problem about how much feed a herd of cattle needed in minutes. Jo knew it. Kaitlyn knew it. Jo knew Kaitlyn knew it.
It was a power play, one that Kaitlyn would have to counter before they could move forward. She’d sent the girl outside a half hour ago just for some peace.
She pulled the bowl of potatoes next to her and picked up the knife. At least she knew what to do with these. She cut the potatoes smaller than usual so they’d cook faster. Then she picked up David’s math. She had to figure out where he had gotten stuck.
Thirty minutes later, a sharp whistle from the corral shattered the silence. Kaitlyn moved to the window in time to see David pointing to the front of the house. She caught the sound of hoofbeats approaching.
Company. Drew had told her there were a few women living on nearby ranches. She whipped off her apron and draped it over the chair, then ran her hands over her hair, finding a few tendrils that had escaped her hairpins. She quickly secured them by feel. She rushed through the front door and onto the porch.
