Page 54 of A Forgotten Heart
“Good morning.” The quiver of Elsie’s smile said she wasn’t sure he’d return the greeting.
Last night’s talk with Isaac had put things into perspective, but where did that leave Nick? Was being friends even an option?
He slid his hands into his pockets, his shoulder paining. “Morning.”
Her attention flitted about the kitchen as she kept rolling the dough.
Rubbing his pulsing shoulder, he tore his eyes away and scanned the room. The kitchen appeared extra clean. She’d obviously been busy this morning. How long had she been up?
Nick made for the coffeepot on the stove, even though it put him near Elsie. But if they were to continue as friends, he could be close long enough to get coffee.
As he poured, he could smell the lavender soap she’d used to wash up competing with the coffee’s earthy aroma. It did strange things to his stomach.
When he passed by, her hand cutting away the dough stuttered.
The early morning hush over the house resounded around them. She didn’t look at him. It reminded him of those first hours at the clinic. Just the two of them.
She’d avoided his gaze then too, but at least now, Nick understood why.
He cleared his throat. “Did you, ah, sleep well?”
She kept her focus on her hand as she cut circles in the dough. “As well as I could stuck between Jo and Tillie. Jo wasn’t so bad, but Tillie, she?—”
“Holds an entire conversation in her sleep. Yep.” Nick smirked as he took a sip.
She blinked up at him. For a moment, her nose wrinkled. Then she scooted around him to collect the skillet next to the cookstove. “I couldn’t go back to sleep, so I came down here to see how I could help.”
By preparing his family a meal. “No one expects you to do all of this.”
The skillet clanged as she pulled it from under the counter and onto the stove. “It’s the least I can do.”
She began to slice the bacon. He knew how stubborn she could be and left her to it when he heard the murmur of hisbrothers’ voices from the dining room. Without a glance toward Elsie, he made his escape.
Around the table, his brothers leaned toward each other, speaking in low tones. Ed’s head shot up as Nick entered, his words trailing off. All three went suspiciously silent.
Ed spun a coffee mug in his hand, and Drew took a sip from his.
“What’s going on?”
The momentary silence was stifling.
Ed and Drew glanced at each other sideways. Isaac leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Nick’s got the most strategic mind out of all of us.” He kicked out an empty chair. “Have a seat. What do you think Quade will do next?”
Nick had been so caught up in his feelings for Elsie that he hadn’t given Quade a thought since they’d left town.
He sat, not much liking that his brothers hadn’t waited on him.
Isaac tipped his head toward Ed. “Ed thinks Quade will wait for one of us to come into town and ambush us again, but I think he’ll hole up at his main house.”
Nick set his coffee on the table. “We know Quade lost most of his hired hands when everything went down with the Barlow Gang. And Isabella is straitlaced. He wouldn’t go back to the main house, not if she’s there asking questions.”
“So he would stay in town,” Ed said.
Nick thought for a minute. “Not unless he’s acting alone, which he likely isn’t. He’s probably hired guns since Elsie saw him shooting at us. I bet he barricaded himself in one of his smaller homesteads.”
Isaac looked grim. “We don’t have enough deputies to search all of Quade’s holdings. With just us, it’d take days.”
Nick pointed to the star pinned to Isaac’s vest. “Can’t you deputize more men? Just until he’s captured. Fogelson would help. Charlie Hastings too.”
