“Could be,” he said. “I’ve always known there’s something special about it.”
“Is there anything I can do for you? I’m getting pretty good with this paintbrush. I could probably help you transform a room into a glittery girl space for Zan.”
“That is definitely on the list, and I will take you up on that. There is one thing you could help me out with tomorrow after work.”
“What’s that?”
“I’ve got guys coming over to the practice ring tomorrow. I don’t want Zan anywhere around there. Do you think I could send her and Shorty over? They can just play outside in the front yard. I’ll send her with some bubbles. She’ll chase them until she’s too tired to walk.”
She had to bite her tongue to keep from telling him she thought he needed to put Zan first and all those cowboys second. It wasn’t her place. But she’d be lying if she didn’tadmit to herself that it disappointed her. She pressed her lips together and pasted on a smile that hopefully translated over the phone. “Sounds easy enough. Can I have some bubbles too?”
“I’ll get two of the big bottles.”
“You’re on.”
The next day was rainy, so instead of getting out the bubbles, Merry Anna took Zan shopping to get her a couple of Sunday dresses, or, as Zan liked to call them, “princess dresses.” It was like playing house, something Merry Anna had never actually done as a little girl. She played office and inventory, which were not as fun as this.
They had a modeling show of all their purchases when Adam got home.
“You’re the prettiest little girl in the world,” he said.
“Thank you, Daddy.”
That one little word—Daddy—made Merry Anna almost cry, and it had the same effect on Adam, from the looks of it. “We should go to the Creekside Café and celebrate,” he said.
“Can I have chocolate milk?” Zan asked.
“You can have whatever you want.”
“Me too?” Merry Anna wasn’t sure if she was invited to this little celebration.
“You can have chocolate milk too,” he said.
She laughed as she walked with them out to the truck. The three of them got in, and as they all buckled their seat belts, she said, “People are going to be asking questions, you know.”
“Just gonna tell it like it is. Not even going to worry about it.”
“All righty, then.”
“Gossip tears through this town faster than a wildfire on a windy day, and folks don’t mind adding their spin to the story either. I’m sure people are already speculating.”
“Oh, they are.” She didn’t sell out Tara, though their conversation came to mind.
“Which is why we’re celebrating at Creekside Café. Gossip central, Antler Creek.”
The three of them walked into the restaurant. Adam marched over to the counter and helped Zan onto a stool. Then he turned, catching a lot of lookers, smiled, and said, “I didn’t bring cigars, because I don’t believe in smoking, but I’d like to introduce you to my baby girl. This is Zan.”
There was a sweet mumble, then one congratulation after another.
Zan smiled, and Merry Anna went ahead and ordered the chocolate milks, because from the look of things, it might be a while before Adam got to sit down and have something. An old woman offered advice, young girls offered babysitting duties, and several men clapped him on the shoulder. One even asked if he was getting married.
It’s going to be okay.
The Fourth of July rolled around, and even though it had been only six or seven weeks that Merry Anna had known Adam, she felt as if she’d known him forever. She loved his cowboy stories—well, most of them. She could do without the ones where he wrecked on the bull and ended up bloody and broken. And she found his manners and cowboy charm to be delightful. He took his apology seriously and had been ontime ever since, and she loved that about him. He was good to his word.
That afternoon, they weren’t supposed to get together until three, so she took advantage of the free morning to work on another barn quilt. She’d been thinking about it for a while, and this morning, the shapes and colors finally became crystal clear in her mind.
She created the design on her computer first, trying out different combinations until it was perfect. With a color printout in front of her, she used a ruler to mark the outline with a pencil, then made a list of all the colors and numbered them. She stepped back from the half sheet of plywood. It was a big undertaking, but now it was just a giant paint-by-number.
