anything but the best.” The young woman carried more plates to the table. “Eat up, honey. We need to get some meat on your bones. You a model or something?”
Eden’s cheeks heated. “I’m a nurse.”
Madeline touched Rita’s braid when the young woman sat beside her. “Could you braid my hair like that? Then we would be twins.”
“I sure can, honey. Or maybe Mrs. Larson can. She’s probably better at it than me.”
Eden smiled. “I’m not very good at braids. Maybe you could teach me as well.”
“Where are you from, Mrs. Larson?”
“Please call me Eden. I’m from Indiana. A little town called Wabash.”
“First electrically lighted city in the world.”
“How’d you know that?”
Rita shrugged. “My cousin lives in Peru, just down the road a piece.”
“Usually no one has ever heard of Wabash.”
“The Wabash-Erie Canal. Wabash Cannonball. Lots of interesting things in the area.”
Eden took a bite of pancake dripping with syrup. It was magnificent. “You’re quite the history buff.”
“I’m working on a historical romance set in Indiana. I’ve been reading up on the area.”
“You’re an author?”
“Well, not yet. Someday I’ll be just as famous as Nora Roberts. Most folks think I’m just a dreamer, but they’ll see when my first book is on the shelves.”
Eden grinned. “Somehow I believe you can do anything you set your mind to do.”
Rita’s smile was brighter than the sunbeams gleaming on the stainless sink. “We’re going to get along swell, Eden. I’m glad you’re here.”
“So am I,” Eden said, realizing she meant it. This place was so different from Indiana. The harsh landscape of red rocks and cacti. The sharp scent of creosote and sage in the air. The blue bowl of sky that went on forever. It was a little scary and exhilarating at the same time.
The girls finished breakfast and went off to watch their morning allotment of Dora the Explorer on TV. Eden helped Rita and her assistant, Tepin, a Hispanic woman of about thirty, clear the table.
“What do you know of the girls?” Eden asked Rita.
“They’re sweethearts, aren’t they?”
“They’re wonderful. I love them already.” Eden smiled. “Any of their families come to visit since they’ve been here?”
Rita turned on the hot water and dumped Dawn detergent into the sink. “Nope. We don’t let them come until the kids have been here at least a week, preferably two. Visits too soon only make them more homesick.”
Eden handed her a stack of dishes. “What did you think of that snake showing up last night?”
Rita dumped them into the soapy water. “I think it was blown out of proportion. Snakes get in all the time. One of the hazards of living in the desert.” She shrugged. “I saw one in the bushes outside my window just two days ago.”
Maybe no one had told her about the note. Eden opened her mouth to tell her, then closed it again. “Any new employees on the ranch right now?”
“Got several new ones. Tepin here. Sam’s a new hand. You. I guess not everyone wants to live in the desert.”
Before Eden could ask more questions, she saw Clay’s truck pull up outside. “Clay’s back. I think I’ll go see how he’s feeling,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”
He should have spent the night in bed, not roaming the rocky hilltops. Clay rubbed his bleary eyes and parked the truck. His leg ached, but he’d popped ibuprofen all night, and the pain was somewhat better this morning. He’d let Rick out down by the barn.
When Clay exited the truck, he turned toward the house and saw Eden running toward him. The sight of her brought him a surge of energy. The morning sun turned her auburn hair to fire. He had to grin at her pumps, so out of place with the jagged rocks of the landscape.
She stopped three feet from him and tucked her hair behind her ears to reveal gleaming diamond earrings. “Find anything?”
“Not much. Just some tire tracks behind the barn, but Rick
Eden’s cheeks heated. “I’m a nurse.”
Madeline touched Rita’s braid when the young woman sat beside her. “Could you braid my hair like that? Then we would be twins.”
“I sure can, honey. Or maybe Mrs. Larson can. She’s probably better at it than me.”
Eden smiled. “I’m not very good at braids. Maybe you could teach me as well.”
“Where are you from, Mrs. Larson?”
“Please call me Eden. I’m from Indiana. A little town called Wabash.”
“First electrically lighted city in the world.”
“How’d you know that?”
Rita shrugged. “My cousin lives in Peru, just down the road a piece.”
“Usually no one has ever heard of Wabash.”
“The Wabash-Erie Canal. Wabash Cannonball. Lots of interesting things in the area.”
Eden took a bite of pancake dripping with syrup. It was magnificent. “You’re quite the history buff.”
“I’m working on a historical romance set in Indiana. I’ve been reading up on the area.”
“You’re an author?”
“Well, not yet. Someday I’ll be just as famous as Nora Roberts. Most folks think I’m just a dreamer, but they’ll see when my first book is on the shelves.”
Eden grinned. “Somehow I believe you can do anything you set your mind to do.”
Rita’s smile was brighter than the sunbeams gleaming on the stainless sink. “We’re going to get along swell, Eden. I’m glad you’re here.”
“So am I,” Eden said, realizing she meant it. This place was so different from Indiana. The harsh landscape of red rocks and cacti. The sharp scent of creosote and sage in the air. The blue bowl of sky that went on forever. It was a little scary and exhilarating at the same time.
The girls finished breakfast and went off to watch their morning allotment of Dora the Explorer on TV. Eden helped Rita and her assistant, Tepin, a Hispanic woman of about thirty, clear the table.
“What do you know of the girls?” Eden asked Rita.
“They’re sweethearts, aren’t they?”
“They’re wonderful. I love them already.” Eden smiled. “Any of their families come to visit since they’ve been here?”
Rita turned on the hot water and dumped Dawn detergent into the sink. “Nope. We don’t let them come until the kids have been here at least a week, preferably two. Visits too soon only make them more homesick.”
Eden handed her a stack of dishes. “What did you think of that snake showing up last night?”
Rita dumped them into the soapy water. “I think it was blown out of proportion. Snakes get in all the time. One of the hazards of living in the desert.” She shrugged. “I saw one in the bushes outside my window just two days ago.”
Maybe no one had told her about the note. Eden opened her mouth to tell her, then closed it again. “Any new employees on the ranch right now?”
“Got several new ones. Tepin here. Sam’s a new hand. You. I guess not everyone wants to live in the desert.”
Before Eden could ask more questions, she saw Clay’s truck pull up outside. “Clay’s back. I think I’ll go see how he’s feeling,” she said. “I’ll be right back.”
He should have spent the night in bed, not roaming the rocky hilltops. Clay rubbed his bleary eyes and parked the truck. His leg ached, but he’d popped ibuprofen all night, and the pain was somewhat better this morning. He’d let Rick out down by the barn.
When Clay exited the truck, he turned toward the house and saw Eden running toward him. The sight of her brought him a surge of energy. The morning sun turned her auburn hair to fire. He had to grin at her pumps, so out of place with the jagged rocks of the landscape.
She stopped three feet from him and tucked her hair behind her ears to reveal gleaming diamond earrings. “Find anything?”
“Not much. Just some tire tracks behind the barn, but Rick
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