Page 45 of Cowboy’s Christmas Baker

“The other ingredients will take care of that,” Mal told him. “Don’t worry.”

“Now how much yogurt would you say?” Alice asked, pulling a carton out of the fridge.

“About a quarter of a cup for each missing egg,” Mal told her, heading over to help without thinking about it.

The two of them whipped up the dough in no time, and Alice set the biscuits in a pan, touching each other.

“Where did you learn that trick?” Mal asked with a smile.

“What trick?” Alice asked.

“The placement,” Mal said, gesturing toward the biscuits, which Alice had laid out together with no space in between.

“Oh, my mother always did them this way,” Alice said. “It’s not much of a trick, but they don’t really stick, and I can make more at once if I don’t mind them touching, which is a good thing for a big family.”

“But it is a trick,” Mal said, delighted to be able to share it. “You’re making fluffier biscuits this way because they have no room to spread so they have to rise more.”

“Isn’t that clever?” Alice said wonderingly. “Mother never told me that part. She was such a good cook.”

Alice’s eyes misted over a little, and Mal wrapped an arm around her.

“Goodness, look at me,” Alice chuckled, hugging her back. “I guess we never stop missing our mothers.”

“I definitely don’t,” Mal said softly.

“Oh, I’m sure you don’t, sweetheart,” Alice said kindly. “She was a wonderful lady. And she managed to teach all my children algebra, bless her.”

“Even me,” Jacob piped up.

Mal had almost forgotten that anyone else was in the room. She turned and saw Jacob giving her a crooked smile. Joe Cassidy winked at her, and Harrison had a look of such warmth in his eyes that it almost took her breath away.

She had been so nervous, but here she was, completely in her element, half-covered in flour. And somehow, she was having a heart-to-heart with a whole house full of people, like she’d lived here all her life.

The sound of more family coming in the front door sent the others off down the center hall to greet them.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Alice whispered to Mal, giving her one last squeeze before letting go.

Mal looked up and saw that Harrison was still in the family room, a thoughtful expression in his bright blue eyes as he gazed at her.

10

HARRISON

Later that evening, Harrison looked around the big table and felt a sense of belonging that he’d missed.

Dinner had been delicious and the conversation had flowed easily. From farm stories to school tales from the kids, everyone had something to contribute and everyone was interested in what the others had to say.

Now that the meal was finished, they were all pulling back chairs and patting their bellies. No one ever went without at Aunt Alice’s house, not even in the hard years. Back then, they might have had less meat on the table and more produce from the neighboring farms. But Alice and Joe Cassidy always managed to fill empty bellies and soothe lonesome hearts. Harrison had never left this table sad or hungry.

Katie sat beside him now, her eyes sparkling with interest as Nick told a funny story about Zipper the dog, and his first visit to this house.

Seeing her like this was all Harrison had hoped for. There were more kids here now than when they first arrived, but Katie had bonded a little with Nick when the house was quiet, and now she seemed to be following his lead, perfectly at home and willing to keep her attention on the scene in front of her instead of retreating inward, even though there was a whole crew of children around her.

And she wasn’t the only one who seemed to be feeling right at home. Mal, seated across from him, was smiling at Nick’s story, her green eyes dancing with humor. She had marched right in, rolled her sleeves up, and started helping. And the moment she’d shared with Aunt Alice had touched Harrison’s heart.

She belongs here, a little voice whispered in his mind.

Maybe it was right.