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She did her best to be polite but equally cool towards Temel as they ate, but she was aware of his eyes on her every time she looked up. Unfortunately for her state of mind, he was the first to finish.
“Do you still want to try driving back into town today?”
“I think we’d better,” she said reluctantly. “So we can decide what we’re going to do.”
She avoided looking at him as he walked around the table to stand behind her chair.
“Very well. We will take the wagon.”
“We? Are you sure? What about your work?” she asked.
“There’s nothing that cannot wait.”
Kalpar gave them a thoughtful look.
“I have an alternate suggestion. Why don’t you both ride over and see if the road is clear first? It won’t take long to check on horseback, and if the road is drivable you’ll save a considerable amount of time taking the wagon that way. If not, you’ll still have plenty of time to make the longer drive before nightfall.”
Dora gave a muffled exclamation, but when Ida looked over at her, she nodded.
“Go ahead. We’ll be fine here.”
“I wanna go too,” Tommy protested.
Temel opened his mouth, but Naffon spoke first.
“I thought you wanted to help me milk the cows.”
Her son looked torn for a moment, then nodded enthusiastically and Naffon grinned at her.
“You see? Everything will be fine.”
“I should wash the dishes first,” she said weakly, but Dora jumped up.
“I can take care of them. You go on.”
Giving in to the inevitable, she smiled at Temel.
“All right. Just give me a minute to get ready.”
He smiled back and she hurried into the bedroom, her pulse already racing with anticipation.
CHAPTER 11
Ashort time later, Ida was accompanying Temel to the stables, wondering again how everything had happened so quickly. He looked down at her and smiled.
“Everyone seems determined for us to spend time together. Do you mind?”
This was her opportunity to back out, but she found herself shaking her head.
“No, Kalpar was right. It makes sense to check and see if the shorter way is open.”
He opened the stable door and followed her inside, then hesitated.
“I could do it alone.”
He was clearly reluctant to make the offer, but the fact that he did it anyway gave her the confidence to shake her head.
“Since you’re doing this on my behalf, it’s only fair that I accompany you. Actually, maybe I should go by myself and let you get on with your work.”
