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Once she had the list of ingredients before her it all began to come back. She mixed the dough, then kneaded it and rolled it out as she’d done when she was a little girl. She couldn’t find a biscuit cutter, so she used a water glass, pressing it down into the dough and coming up with a perfect circle. A few minutes later, a dozen biscuits were popped into the oven.
Dessert. She’d seen some small, individually wrapped devil’s food cakes. She got those out, and a big can of peaches. It would have to do, because she didn’t have time to bake. She opened the can of peaches and poured them into a bowl.
By the time she had the table set, Reese had come back downstairs, considerably cleaner but unimproved in mood. He looked pointedly at the empty table and stalked into the living room.
She checked the potatoes; they were tender. She mixed up a small amount of flour and milk and poured it into the potatoes; it instantly began thickening. She let them stew while she checked the chops and green beans.
The biscuits were golden brown, and had risen nicely. Now if only they were edible… Since she’d followed a recipe, they shouldn’t be too bad, she hoped. She stacked them on a plate and crossed her fingers for luck.
The chops were done, finally. “Reese! Dinner’s ready.”
“It’s about time.”
She hurried to put the food on the table, realizing at the last minute that she had made neither coffee nor tea. Quickly she got two glasses from the cabinet and poured milk. She knew that he liked milk, so perhaps he sometimes drank it at dinner.
The chops weren’t the tenderest she’d ever cooked, and the biscuits were a bit heavy, but he ate steadily, without comment. Heavy or not, the dozen biscuits disappeared in short order, and she ate only one. As his third helping of stewed potatoes was disappearing, she got up. “Do you want any dessert?”
His head came up. “Dessert?”
She couldn’t help smiling. You could tell the man had lived alone for seven years. “It isn’t much, because I didn’t get around to baking.” She put the small cakes in a bowl and dipped peaches and juice over them. Reese gave them a quizzical look as she set the bowl in front of him.
“Just try it,” she said. “I know it’s junk food, but it tastes good.”
He did, and cleaned the bowl. Some of the fatigue was fading from his face. “The stereo in the living room looks like a good one.”
“I’ve had it for several years. I hope it survived the shipping.”
He’d sold his stereo system years ago, deciding that he needed the money more than he needed the music, and he’d never let himself think too much about it. When you were fighting for survival, you quickly learned how to get your priorities in order. But he’d missed music and was looking forward to playing some of his old classics again.
The house was full of signs of what she’d been doing all day, and he felt guilty about yelling at her because dinner hadn’t been ready. The floors were cleaner than they’d been in years, and the dust was gone from every surface. The house smelled of household cleaner and furniture polish, and the bathroom had sparkled with cleanliness. The house was ten rooms and over four thousand square feet; his fancy city woman knew how to work.
He helped her clean the table and load the dishwasher. “What’s that?” he asked, pointing to her list.
“The shopping list. The pantry has a limited selection.”
He shrugged. “I was usually so tired I just ate sandwiches.”
“How far is the nearest market? And don’t tell me I’m going to have to go to Billings.”
“There’s a general store about twenty miles from here. It isn’t a supermarket, but you can get the basics there. I’ll take you there day after tomorrow
. I can’t do it tomorrow because I’ve got more fencing to repair before I can move the herd.”
“Just give me directions. I don’t think the food situation will wait until the day after tomorrow.”
“I don’t want you out wandering around,” he said flatly.
“I won’t be wandering. Just give me the directions.”
“I’d rather you wait. I don’t know how reliable the car is yet.”
“Then I can take the truck.”
“I said I’ll take you day after tomorrow, and that’s that.”
Fuming, she went upstairs and took a shower. Why on earth was he so intractable? The way he’d acted, she might as well have said she was going to find a bar and spend the day in it. But then, that might have been what his first wife had done. Even if it were true, Madelyn was determined that she wasn’t going to spend her life paying for April’s sins.
She finished unpacking her clothes, hanging most of her New York clothes in the closet in another bedroom, since she wouldn’t have much use for them now. It still made her feel strange to see her clothes in the same closet with a man’s; she’d shared room, closet and clothes in college, but that was different. This was serious. This was a lifetime.
