Every Little Thing About You (Yellow Rose Trilogy 1) (9 page)

would be very personal. But he genuinely liked the man.

For this reason he extended the invitation.

"I'm headed next door tonight. Mam and Laura are

under the weather, and Laura needs a little cheering up.

Would you like to come?"

"If you're sure I won't be in the way."

"Not at all. We'll go right after cleanup."

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Which is precisely what they did. Slater had offered to

cook that evening. He'd been overrun with homesickness

that day and wanted to make a beef dish that his family

often had on the ranch. The weather was cooler now--he

could head home anytime--but something compelled him

to stay on in Shotgun; more specifically, to stay on with

Griffin. He'd sent word to his oldest brother and folks

about where he was, but right now he couldn't leave.

Walking next door and going through the back, just like

family, made him very glad he'd stayed.

Griffin led the way through the kitchen, through the

dining area they'd eaten in last Sunday, and into the parlor.

Zach was reading a book, Liberty had sewing in her lap,

and Laura was swathed in quilts on the chair, bright-eyed

with fever and remarkably wide awake.

"Hi, Griff." Zach was the first to spot him,

"Hey, Zach," Griffin said as he leaned down to hug the

boy. "How was your day?"

"It was good. I lasted three rounds in the spelling bee."

"Good job. Do you remember Mr. Rawlings? He lives

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with me now."

"Hello," Zach said with a smile.

"Hi, Zach. You can call me Slater if you want to."

"All right. My sister's sick."

"I heard about that."

Griffin took a seat, so Slater did the same thing. From

his place next to Zach, Griffin looked over at his younger

sister.

"Are you going to come and see me, Laura?"

"Papa says I'm not supposed to run around."

Liberty's hand came to her mouth, and Griffin smiled.

"It won't be running around just to come over here to

my lap."

Laura looked to Liberty, but that woman only smiled at

her. Dragging along one small blanket and a stuffed bunny

that had seen better days, Laura left the chair and went to

Griffin's lap on the davenport.

Every Little Thing About You 63

"Where's Mam?" Griffin asked Liberty as soon as he

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hugged and kissed his very warm sister.

"She feels miserable, so Duff is putting her to bed."

Griffin looked down at the hot bundle in his lap. "Did

you share your cold with Mam?"

"I think so, but her throat doesn't hurt"

"And yours does?"

'I'm not supposed to talk."

"Well, we both know how long thaf s going to last"

Laura only smiled and laid her head against him.

"How's the work on the porch going, Mr. Rawlings?"

Liberty asked.

"I would say we're about half done. Mrs. Tobler doesn't

want us there before 8:00, so by midafternoon the sun gets

a little intense."

"If s anyone's guess why she doesn't want you there

earlier," Griffin speculated.

"I think she said something about disturbing her breakfast"

"I'm amazed that Hank puts up with it. He's pretty

much his own man," Liberty commented.

"He's not as eager to work as he once was," Griffin

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said. "Has he talked to you, Slater, about missing Price?"

"Not in so many words, but one day he expected me to

lift the wagon for him and muttered something about Price

never having any trouble. It made me wonder about the

man I've replaced."

"Price is big," Laura suddenly put in, and Zach came

alive.

"He lifted Miss Amy's horse right out of the creek. I

saw it! He didn't even groan."

"I think they should have been married," Laura stated,

and the occupants of the room stared at her.

"Who?" Griffin finally asked.

"Price and Miss Amy. He won't find a nice girl like her

in Austin."

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Zach looked at her as if she'd grown two heads, but the

adults in the room were all working not to laugh. Griffin

hugged her close so he could hide his face, and Slater

dropped his head down to check for stains on the front of

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his shirt. Liberty became very involved with her sewing.

"That's just dumb, Laura," Zach told her mildly. "Why

would Price want to get married?"

"Because it's fun/' Laura told him. "Mam and Papa

have fun, and when I marry Bobby Fossett, I'll have fun

too."

"Bobby Fossett is a whole year older than me," Zach

felt a need to remind her, his voice very logical.

"Well, Papa is older than Mam," Laura argued.

"I thought we decided that you weren't supposed to

talk," Duffy said as he came into the room and stood

looking down at his daughter.

"I had to set Zach straight."

Duffy looked at her sternly. "It's not your job to set

anyone straight, and you need to be quiet when your throat

is sore. Do you understand?"

Laura nodded, and Duffy turned away. Griffin was

behind him, but Slater and Liberty could not miss the way

his eyes lit with laughter and tenderness the moment Laura

could not see him.

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9b

'we

"Do you have family, slater?" Duffy asked after he'd

taken a seat and they'd all talked a little more about the

day.

"I do. I'm the youngest of three boys."

"Are you from Texas?"

"Not originally, and in fact, my parents moved back to

St. Louis about five years ago. But my grandmother is still

in Texas, and so are both my brothers."

"What do they do?" Liberty asked.

"One is a Texas Ranger, and the other runs the family

ranch in Kinkade."

"So would you consider Kinkade home for you?"

"Yes. I was thinking about heading in that direction

when I found myself detained in Shotgun."

Liberty and Griffin both smiled at his dry tone.

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"Why have you stayed?" Duffy asked. This young man

seemed very straightforward, but he was living with Kate's

son, and it wasn't unusual to see his eyes stray in Liberty's

direction. Duffy wanted to take him at face value, but he

wasn't going to be heedless.

"Mostly the church. If I hadn't found work so easily, I

probably wouldn't have had much choice but to move on.

Griffin's hospitality was a draw too."

"Has he complained of your snoring yet, Griff?" Liberty

asked.

"If I could get up, you'd be in trouble," Griffin told her.

Laura had fallen asleep on him.

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"I can hear it," Slater admitted, "but it doesn't keep me

awake."

Liberty enjoyed sending a teasing look at her brother.

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"What did you enjoy about the church?" Duffy asked.

"The way your pastor preached from the Word, and the

way he didn't skip around the issues or make excuses. He's

obviously studied, and I learned quite a bit I've been

reading in Nehemiah all week, and I'm looking forward to

going back."

"There's a picnic," Zach told him, and Duffy looked

surprised.

"You were so quiet, Zach, that I forgot you were there.

I think you'd best head up to bed."

"All right. Are you coining?"

"Indeed, I am. Get changed and wash your face. I'll be

right along."

"Mam told me about the picnic," Griffin explained to

Duffy after Zach had kissed Liberty and Griffin and told

Slater goodnight. "Do you think she'll feel up to going?"

"I don't know," Duffy admitted. "She tells me she's

been tired lately. I think maybe she should stay home just

so she can rest."

"It's not the picnic itself, Duff," Liberty put in. "If s all

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the work beforehand. I can take care of it, but she can't

stand to lie around."

"I'll talk with her, Liberty," he said, sounding very

much like a doctor. "But it wouldn't hurt for either of you

to realize you don't need to bring enough food to feed the

entire congregation. Everyone brings food to pass, and we

always have an abundance."

Liberty nodded, knowing he was right. They always

brought food home. Liberty was still thinking about it,

even going so far as to figure out what she would make this

time--two or three dishes to share instead of the usual four

or five would be reasonable--when she realized she was

alone with Slater. Duffy had gone up to tuck Zach into bed,

Every little Thing About You 67

and Griffin had carried Laura to her room. Slater was

staring at her, his expression unreadable.

"That was rude of me," Liberty said. "I was thinking

and didn't realize we were alone."

"I don't need to be entertained," Slater said politely.

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The moment he said this, Liberty became thoughtful

again. She looked at Slater and made no pretense that she

was doing otherwise.

"If s terribly rude for a man to ask a lady what she's

thinking, but I must tell you I'm very tempted."

"I'll tell you," Liberty said. "I'm trying to figure out

which man is the real Slater Rawlings: the man who spent

48 hours in the jailhouse, or the man I see now."

Slater nodded, regret knifing through him once again.

"I can't begin to tell you how sorry I am for the way I handled

myself, Miss Drake. I was completely wrong. It's not

surprising that you don't know what to think of me."

Liberty was impressed with his humility and said, "I'm

glad you understand, but please don't think I'm looking

for something. I'm not watching to see you slip up or make

a wrong move, but it does take a little getting used to.

Everyone calls me Libby, by the way."

"I hope you'll call me Slater."

"That's an unusual name."

"A family name from my mother's side. My oldest

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brother is named after my father but goes by a nickname.

And my middle brother was named after the territory my

father always wanted to visit. My mother finally got her

way with me."

Liberty smiled at him and the story. Slater Rawlings

was so straightforward and courteous. People had come and gone over the years, and Liberty's family had helped out whenever they could. Some made more of an impression

than others. After she met Slater, he had glared at her;

just days later he teased her. For some reason the contrast

stayed in her mind. As Duffy and Griffin came back to the

room and suggested a board game, Liberty knew that even

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if this man left town the next day, she would never completely

forget him.