A Texas Sky (Yellow Rose Trilogy) by Lori Wick Page B

content to stare up at him, and
    Dakota wished he could think of something to say. He just
    decided to ask them if they were excited to start school
    someday, but he wasn't fast enough.
    "I have to go," Filar said out of the blue, her little brow
    furrowed as she stared up at him.
    "Okay," Dakota said slowly, thinking that her father had
    said to stay put.
    "Me too," "Vivian chimed in, and Dakota watched as
    they walked around him and the stump but didn't go to the
    house. He stared after them, so he knew the exact moment
    they stopped and waved for him to come. Too curious not
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    to, Dakota followed. His mouth stretched into a smile
    when he saw the little girls head to the privy. He had no
    idea why his presence was needed until they approached
    the building, stood still, and looked up at him. The handle
    was over their heads.
    "Do you need me to get the door?"
    Little heads bobbed in unison, and once he had the door
    open, they stepped inside. Wondering how he'd come to be
    standing there, Dakota shut the door and waited. In time
    he heard this:
    "Look, Vivvy, a flower."
    "Where?"
    "Here."
    "Where?"
    "Here."
    "Oh!"
    Dakota's shoulders shook with silent laughter, but he
    didn't comment
    "I'm done" soon came from the privy, and not long
    after, the door was pushed open a bit Dakota reached to
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    hold it wide while the girls filed out. They came and stood
    side by side and looked up at him. For some reason, Dakota
    was speechless. He felt rescued when he saw that both of
    Pilar's little boots were unbuttoned.
    58 lori wick
    "Here, let me get these for you."
    Dakota hunkered down to do the job. Although he was
    not able to get all the buttons, he managed the top few.
    When he looked up, they were both staring at his face.
    "Whaf s your name?" Vivian asked.
    "Dakota."
    "Koda?"
    "That's close enough," Dakota said, smiling into their
    eyes and thinking once again, Mercy, you two are cute!
    The slamming of the back door brought his attention
    around. The threesome looked to see the doctor approaching/
    bag in hand.
    "I guess we could do this inside," Calder commented as
    he followed Dakota back to the stump.
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    Dakota didn't answer. The yard was beautiful, full of
    wildflowers and tall grasses. It was a child's heaven all
    right, and Dakota knew why the girls played out here
    everyday.
    "Where is Darvi this morning?" Dakota thought to ask,
    taking his mind from the foul-smelling bottle Calder had
    just uncorked. Just before the painful liquid touched down,
    Dakota wondered if it would burn.
    "She and Merry went to town. Thursdays are my mornings
    off. I keep the girls, and Merry gets out for half the day."
    This said, Calder looked into Dakota's face. He knew the
    stuff he was using not only smelled bad but had a tendency
    to sting. Dakota's face was utterly impassive, but Calder was
    not fooled. The big man was in pain and keeping his mouth
    shut in order to hide it But Calder was in for a surprise
    "That burns," Dakota said quietly. "If I'd known you
    were going to treat me like this, I'd have gone to town with
    the ladies."
    Calder was still chuckling over the comment when the
    girls declared they were hungry. All four went inside to
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    find something to eat
    ^
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    "LOOK AT THIS FABRIC, MERRY. THE GIRLS WOuld look WOnerful
    in this dark pink."
    Merry looked doubtful. 'It would be great for trim,
    Darvi, but the twins need a dark background or they never
    look clean."
    Darvi nodded but couldn't honestly say she understood.
    As a child she was not allowed to get dirty until she
    came for her annual summer visit to Austin. Her family
    had a yard in St. Louis, but it was all very trimmed and
    proper. She could pick flowers, but her fingers were not to
    touch the dirt. For a moment Darvi wondered how she had
    survived.
    "What are you thinking about?" Merry asked, interrupting
    her thoughts.
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    "Just now I was asking myself how my mother and
    uncle could be so different and still have the same parents."
    Merry