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“Those look familiar to me.” Moving aside, she let him in.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Matthew carried the purloined cookies to the small table where she had placed the salad.
“I mean, I saw Ginny making a batch of cookies for Gavin to take The Last Riders.”
Unashamedly, he pulled the cling wrap back to take out one of the humongous peanut butter cookies. “The Last Riders don’t need them. They get freshly baked goods every day—one of the members is married to the town’s best baker. Ginny used to work for her.”
“I should have paid more attention to her recipe, then. I didn’t know you liked cookies.”
“There isn’t a man alive who doesn’t like cookies. By the way, she’s making cowboy cookies on Saturday. They’re my favorite, in case you just want to drop by unexpectedly when she’s making them.” His boyish grin melted her heart. She knew where she would be spending part of her Saturday.
She dipped out the lasagna into a serving bowl and set it down on the table.
“An Italian restaurant couldn’t have done better,” he complimented her. “All we need are some candles.”
“Ask, and you shall receive.” Alanna went back to the kitchen to pull out a small drawer and take out a long white candle and the tiny holder for it.
Matthew raised an eyebrow when she set it down on the table. “When did you buy a candle?”
“I didn’t.” She smiled, taking a seat at the table. “I found it in the drawer when I was searching for oven mitts. Jacob must have bought it for when he had a date over.”
Matthew shot that assumption down. “More like he bought it for when the generator goes out.”
Alanna dipped a large lasagna portion onto his plate before serving herself a smaller amount.
“Do you have your lighter on you?”
“Yes … Do I smell bread?”
“Oh … I almost forgot.” Hopping up from the table, she went to the stove to take out the garlic bread. “I almost burnt it.” Placing the toast on a plate, she brought it to the table, seeing the candle was lit.
“Thank you for lighting the candle.”
“No problem.”
After they ate, they did the dishes together then went on their nightly walk. As they did, they stopped by Molly’s pen to feed her the last apple.
Alanna turned her head and saw Moses walking with his dogs.
“He has a real affinity to them, doesn’t he?”
“Yes,” Matthew said, turning to look at where she was staring.
Alanna turned back to Matthew. “That reminds me. When are you going to let me see your house? Moses broke and let me tidy up his place yesterday. Come on; I promise I won’t be shocked at whatever shape it is in.”
Matthew leaned back against the fence to stare at her. “You think I haven’t showed you my place because I’m a slob?”
“I’m not saying slob, per se.” Teasing him, she bumped his arm with her shoulder. “Come on … I promise I won’t be a judgmental bitch.”
A myriad of expressions crossed his face before he gave her a worried look. “I’m going to hold you to that.”
She became worried at the way he was acting when he didn’t take her hand as they resumed walking.
The direction was the same as his other brothers’, yet farther back, so they walked on the back dirt road, which was another entry from the main road.
“This way.” Matthew led her up a small rise that blocked the view from the road they were walking on. He hesitated when they came close enough that she could see the shape of a house beyond three massive trees.
“Matthew, we don’t have to go inside if you don’t want to show me.”
