Page 35 of Single Mom's Mountain Men
I got my turn to make them happy soon enough though. That weekend while Patty was working in the kitchen, Maddie came out onto the porch to watch me on the log loader. She made loud whoosh and thump sounds respectively each time I lifted and dropped logs of wood. I grinned, enjoying her adorable soundtrack, occasionally holding for a dramatic pause on the descent to make it more exciting for her.
And eventually, when I took a break and hopped off the machine, she ran to me to ask if she could ride with me too.
“No can do, darling,” I told her, ruffling her hair. “Pretty sure you gotta be at least twelve to ride.”
“Aww,” she pouted. “That’s a long time from now.”
“Not that long,” I said, although I understood how it would feel like an infinity to a kid like her.
“I may not even be here by then.” She crossed her arms over her chest and I smiled, squatting so I could meet her gaze.
“Tell you what,” I said. “Your mom has my number. Wherever you are, you turn twelve and you still want to ride a log loader, just tell her and I’ll come get y’all.”
Maddie’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“Really.” I extended my hand for a handshake and she grinned and grabbed it with her little hands, shaking it enthusiastically.
It was at that point that Patty came out of the kitchen with a look of apprehension on her face. Katie was by her side, her cheek dusted with flour which told me she was helping her mother bake.
“Is it safe for her to be there with you?” Patty asked.
“Yup. But I’ll be sending her back in a second so I can get back to work.”
Patty nodded and then I picked Maddie up in my arms while she asked me a hundred and one questions about riding a log loader. I smiled as I answered them and even let her sit briefly in the vehicle, during which she made vroom noises pretending to drive it. Then once we were done, I carried her back in to her mother and got back to work.
Maddie must have told her sister about our deal because Katie asked me at breakfast the next day if she could ride in the loader with me too when she turned twelve. I told her yes and it was the first time she grinned so brightly at me, similar to how she’s beaming at Wes now.
“Not today,” Wes says, to answer Maddie’s question. But as the child’s expression falls, he adds, “But how about we plan a picnic sometime soon?”
“Yay picnic!” Maddie cheers and Katie grins too. I’m not surprised Wes has won the girls over in such a short time. He’s good with kids. I am too, but it usually takes them a little bit of time to warm up to me.
I’m a little envious of Wes’ budding closeness with Patty’s daughters until Katie’s head swivels to me as she asks, “Will you be coming to the picnic too, Uncle Charlie?”
Wow. ‘Uncle Charlie’ instead of ‘Mr Charlie’? I guess I’ve won her over after all.
“Sure,” I say and return her smile. And then Patty spins around grinning at us.
Yellow again today. She looks like the sun.
“Patty hon, what is that delicious-smelling thing you have for us today?” Wes inquires.
“It’s pork ribs in a barbecue sauce, with mashed potatoes and sweetcorn. All local produce too.”
“Jesus. You’re making me pack on at least twenty pounds per week. It'll ruin my lovely figure. But those ribs are gonna be worth it."
I agree, even just the scent of it is mouthwatering. And I have noticed that I've been eating more than usual, but I haven't gained any weight. Probably because most of that just goes into extra energy I’ve been spending in the shed, so I'm pretty sure it all gets worked off.
Patty smiles at Wes but then ducks his gaze shyly turning back to her pan. Wes for his part, stares at her for a few seconds too long, before realizing and catching himself in the act. He then looks away, laughing uncomfortably and running his hands through his hair.
Observing my brother’s body language is something I’ve been good at since he was younger. Because I watch him a lot, I always know right when he’s on the verge of a tantrum, when he’s hungry, and when he’s up to no good. As we grew up I was mostly responsible for keeping him out of trouble, so I had to be able to read what he was thinking, just to keep him safe from himself.
But that’s not what I’m sensing here.
There’s a carefulness with which he moves around her to start positioning the plates, an awareness that wasn’t there before. And the way she looks at him out of the corner of her eye as he lays down the cutlery beside the plates around the table.
Something’s happened between them in the past few days.
The sound of heavy footsteps comes from the hall and Mitch walks in.
