“That’s a lot for me to consider, but okay,” she nodded, “When we’re settled in a bit more I will come by and have a look around.”
“Promise?” he asked as he stood up and slid his hat on.
“Promise,” Jill agreed, standing up with him, her arms crossed over her chest to ward off a chill. The afternoon had been hot enough to fry eggs, but the night air seemed crisp and cool in the valley beneath the mountains.
She watched him limp to his truck and waved one more time when she heard the old engine sputter and turn over. She sat back down on the rocker to finish her tea as Aunt Meredith joined her on the porch. They watched the old truck turn around and drive down the lane.
“Don’t let that old work truck fool you!” Aunt Meredith commented. “Logan Haven is loaded from ridin’ the rodeo circuit all over the nation. He’s got himself a garage full of brand new, shiny trucks. He owns his own helicopter and has plans to buy a crop duster, too.”
“Don’t be foolin’ with me now, Aunt Meredith Johnston!” Jill scolded.
“You’ll see for yerself,” her aunt remarked. Jill didn’t believe her, but she had never known Aunt Meredith to lie about anything. Then again, maybe that’s what Logan had meant when he’d said they’d fly down to his cousin’s ranch. Perhaps he had meant they would fly in one of his own planes.
“Where’s his wife? Didn’t he marry that Angie Brooks prom queen?” Jill raised an eyebrow in the direction of her aunt.
“No, Angie ran off with some other fella. Nope, Logan Haven never married anyone… leastways not yet,” Aunt Meredith winked.
Some wonders never ceased, Jill thought as she considered Logan. The rocker made the porch floor boards creak as they rocked, but she hardly noticed as she quietly pondered the day’s events and considered the job offer.
Aunt Meredith yawned, “I usually go home long before now, but I’m spending the night in the guest room on the first floor. The kids are all tucked in. I’m plum wore out and too tired to drive home!”
And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me. Isaiah 49:23
Chapter 5.
Silly Love Songs
By the end of the first week of August, they were unpacked and settled in except for the items Jill planned to keep in the barn storage room. Cleaning out the attic had taken three days of hard labor, but it had been worth every bit of effort.
Jill decided to give her friend Lindy a ring while she rummaged through the attic.
“Grand Central Library! Get booked and get hooked! How can I help you… Jill?!” Lindy burst into giggles.
“Lindy! You crack me up girl!” Jill couldn’t help but laugh.
“Hey there! How’s it going, cowgirl?”
“One cat and three kids stuffed in my jeep driving across the country makes for an interesting trek!”
“I would die!” Lindy laughed. Jill could almost see her friend rolling her eyes and shaking her head at the very idea.
“You’re at the library today?” Jill asked. “I won’t keep you long.”
“Yeah… we’ve got your book, Best of the East Coast, flyin’ off the shelves today. We’ve featured it on our ‘Best Reads of the Month’ first floor display. All ready checked out four copies this morning. Madison’s working the main check out desk with me today. Hang on a second,” Lindy replied. “Madison, say hello to Jill!”
“Jill… is that you?” She could hear Madison’s smile through the phone.
“The one and only!” Jill responded as she discovered an old-fashioned flat iron stashed in a corner.
“I’ve got someone coming up to the counter to check out a stack of books but hey, good to hear your voice,” Madison explained.
“Okay, we’ll catch up later…” Jill turned the iron over in her hands a few times and decided to place it in the pile of items worth keeping.
“She said she’ll try to call you soon. So are you all unpacked?” Lindy’s voice was back on the phone.
“Yeah, Logan helped us unload the truck when the movers arrived.”
“Wait, who’s Logan?” Lindy drew out Logan’s name playfully.
“Boy-next-door… all grown up, single, former rodeo cowboy, aircraft pilot, rich, and gorgeously handsome!” Jill blushed, embarrassed to have blurted details about Logan when she was still unsure about him. Biting her lower lip, she began rummaging through a box of dusty, yellowing books trying to decide if she should toss them or not.
“Uh, I’m starting to think I need to be on the next plane to Wyoming myself. First Madison finds a cowboy, and now you…” Lindy sounded cheerfully wistful.
“Well, we’re just friends right now, but it has been really nice seeing him again,” Jill admitted. “I might work on his dude ranch resort as his Marketing and Activities Director. Haven’t decided yet. I don’t think I’m ever going to find anyone who holds a candle to Alex.”
“He offered you a job? So you’ll get to see him every day. That sounds promising!” Lindy’s cheerful voice replied. “A second chance at love… don’t waste it girl!”
Her friend’s words were full of wisdom, even though Jill hadn’t decided if Logan was worth a second look or not. He was tall, muscular, strong, and handsome with his All-American cowboy good looks. His slight limp only endeared him to her all the more… and according to Aunt Meredith, he was extremely successful. So many people in the world would never even find a first love let alone have a second chance at love. Could it be possible she was being given that chance?
Zach hollered up the attic stairs from the second floor. “Mom, Grandma Betty says to tell you lunch is ready!”
“The kids are getting hungry so I better let you go… I know you’re at work too so we’ll catch up later,” Jill tossed a bag of old, men’s clothing into the throw away pile.
“Yeah, I hear Zach in the background and I’ve got a cart full of returns to check in. Take care and we’ll talk soon. Have fun with your cowboy!” Lindy hung up the phone, but her words “a second chance at love” and “don’t waste it girl” replayed in her head throughout the rest of the day.
With help from all three of the kids, Jill cleaned out all of the junk from the attic and tossed most of it. They carried everything worth saving out to an empty corner in the barn except an old steamer trunk of letters she wanted to read; an oval, full-length mirror she planned to salvage for her bedroom; and a Singer sewing machine Jackie wanted.
“Look Mom! I could learn how to make fifties clothing on this!” Jackie danced around the machine as if floating on air. “Can I have it? Can I have it?”
“I didn’t realize you wanted to learn to sew,” Jill commented. She hadn’t seen her daughter this excited in ages. “Go ask your grandmother. If she says yes, it’s all yours. It looks like it’s hardly been used. I think this might be the same one Mom used to have downstairs when I was growing up. She loved sewing! Can’t imagine why it’s even up here. Some women are really attached to their sewing machines though, so to be sure, you’ll have to ask Grandma first.”
“What is my granddaughter supposed to ask me?” Betty Anne Fontaine asked, heaving as she climbed the last step into the attic bedrooms. She paused at the top of the landing and looked around. “Wow, it really looks nice up here!”
“Well, it might be a little too warm,” Jill replied, standing in front of the box fan they had plugged in to cool down the space. “We’ll need to have more fans installed and open a few more of these air vents to cool it down, but I’m glad you finally have central air.”
“Yes, we really enjoy air conditioning during these hot summer months.” Her mother stepped toward the sewing machine where Jackie was manually turning the wheel to see if the machine still worked. Then she added, “Especially during the month of August.”
“Grandma, may I please have this
sewing machine?” Jackie pleaded.
“You know, that machine is the very one my mother used to teach me to sew. I taught Jill to sew a few things on the same machine. Consider it yours, my dear. Do you know how to sew?”
“Thank you, Grandma!” Jackie gave her grandmother a brief hug. “Sew? Not yet, but I’ve always wanted to know how.”
“Well, I will be more than happy to show you how,” her grandmother replied. “I used to sew quite a bit when I was younger. Now I crochet, embroider, and cross stitch.”
“Ma, she’ll want a bunch of fifties dress patterns. That may be hard to find in Lander…” Jill cautioned. “If you have trouble finding those, let me know and I’ll order some from on the internet.”
“Of course, dear,” Betty Anne Fontaine nodded as she surveyed the radiant smile on Jackie’s face, obviously happy to have made a connection with her granddaughter.
Not wanting to burden her mother with costs associated with the remodel, Jill used some of the funds in her savings account from the sale of the house in New York. She had added those funds to the insurance funds she’d carefully set aside from her husband’s life insurance policy.
A few ranch hands on loan from Logan showed up to install drywall the day after Aunt Meredith brazenly phoned to ask Logan if he had a few to spare. Jill had rolled her eyes but deep down, she appreciated the help.
“Aunt Meredith, doesn’t it seem a bit forward to be asking Logan for more help after he already helped unload our moving truck?” Jill asked when her aunt had ended the call.
“Not unless you ask him, dearie! Now, if I ask ‘im, that’s all together a different sort of thing!” Aunt Meredith replied, causing a chuckle from Mama. Even Jackie and Zach laughed, exchanging looks.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were all up to something!” Jill chided.
“Who? Me?” Aunt Meredith laughed and elbowed Zach, winning her a handsome grin from the young man.
Jill did another eye roll and decided the only thing she could do at this point was ignore Aunt Meredith’s tactics. If she heckled her about her matchmaking efforts, it would only grow worse. The best thing to do at this point was feign ignorance and oblivion. Aunt Meredith meant well. She just didn’t realize her niece wasn’t ready to consider remarrying.
When the drywall was complete and the attic contained three rooms, she and Jacklyn painted each room in various shades: pale, cheerful yellow for Jackie’s room, peach for Jill’s writing office, a shade of coral rose for Jill’s bedroom. Logan generously sent over another crew of cowboys to install a hardwood floor, white baseboards, better lighting, and ceiling fans.
They also lugged furniture upstairs, hung new blinds, and helped Jill set up her office. When the crew of wranglers left, Jacklyn plastered her room with posters of Elvis, The Beatles, and the like. For some reason, everything fifties through seventies continued to fascinate her, a mystery to both Jill and Betty. When she was done decorating her room, Grandma Betty and Jill stood back to admire her youthful, fun-filled favorites approvingly, bringing a smile to Jackie’s face. Pre-teens and teens needed an outlet. Even Grandma Betty knew young people needed to find and develop their own likes, tastes, and interests. Besides, Grandma Betty Anne was a huge fan of Elvis. Thankful Jackie wasn’t fond of hard punk rock bands, Jill figured it could be something so much worse. She was glad her daughter had character and interests of her own.
Once she had her stereo and speakers hooked up, Jackie blared the soundtrack from Grease at volume levels causing Grandma to emerge upstairs more than once. When Savannah and Jackie began dancing on Jackie’s bed and singing into perfume spray bottles for make believe microphones, Jill couldn’t scold them anymore than her mother could. It was the first time in ages she’d seen the girls having fun again. She was thankful she’d had that little talk with her mother on the phone before her arrival in Wyoming. Betty Anne seemed to understand it was exactly what the girls needed to do and enjoyed watching them having fun together. She figured they were letting go of the sorrows in life and embracing the new in a fit of silliness. She had confided in Jill how much she enjoyed hearing laughter and music float down the stairs filling the rooms of her old, Victorian house with joy whenever Jackie played the radio in Jill’s childhood bedroom. Even if she hadn’t mentioned this to her daughter, Mama’s smile was telling enough.
Since Jackie’s stereo was installed, there would be no end to music on that particular afternoon. When the song switched to “Silly Love Songs” by Paul McCartney & the Wings, Jill grabbed a perfume bottle from Jackie’s dresser top and joined her daughters to dance on the bed, causing the girls to burst into another fit of laughter. This happened to be the exact moment Aunt Meredith and Logan Haven walked up the staircase. Oblivious to their presence, the girls continued to dance and sing their hearts out on the bed, the music blaring, drowning out the sound of their footsteps. Amused, Logan crossed his arms and leaned against the door frame to observe their silly performance along with Betty Anne and Meredith.
Laughing and barefoot, Jill twirled around wearing blue jean shorts and one of Alex’s old, flannel shirts. The music was blaring so loud she still hadn’t realized they had an audience as she jumped into a successful half-split to dismount from the bed. She hadn’t estimated how much space she would need to land as Betty Anne and Meredith moved out of the way, laughing. Jill crash-landed precariously into Logan’s arms.
“Logan!” she gasped as she clung to his arms to keep from falling, catching her breath as the girls fell onto the bed in a fit of giggles. They’d obviously been able to witness the peanut gallery entrance.
“Well, hello there beautiful! I had no idea you could do gymnastics, dancing, and singing…” Logan grinned, holding her steady with his strong, tan arms.
Betty managed to find the volume on the stereo to turn it down so they could begin to hear each other.
“There are a number of things I can do…” Jill laughed. “But jumping on the bed and singing with my girls is at the top of the list.”
“Looks like you girls are having a blast!” Aunt Meredith chimed in as she peered in all of the attic rooms. “The place looks great!”
“In great part to the men helping us from Logan’s ranch,” Jill acknowledged, pulling away from Logan and blushing awkwardly for the second time since he had entered the attic rooms.
“I drove up about the same time as your Aunt Meredith. Just wanted to make sure the wranglers I sent over did a good job on the place,” Logan nodded. “I also wanted you to meet Gracie and Micah.”
“The men did a great job, Logan! Thanks for sending them over. I tried to pay them extra, but they wouldn’t take a penny,” Jill remarked. “Where are the children?”
“They’re outside talking to Zach and checking out his treehouse progress,” he replied.
Zach had spent hours attempting to rebuild the treehouse in the tree grandmother had designated for the purpose. He hadn’t gotten very far, but he seemed to be enjoying the process. So far, he had stacked all the boards in various piles according to size. He was happy with his back corner bedroom across from his grandmother’s on the second floor, facing the treehouse site.
“Why don’t we all go downstairs for coffee and try some of my chili?” Betty Anne offered. “We can get everyone acquainted with Gracie and Micah.”
After dinner, Jill and Logan leaned against the counters in the kitchen with mugs of coffee. They stood near the window watching Zach and Micah playing amongst the stacks of treehouse boards. Gracie was being given the grand tour of the house and new attic bedrooms by the girls. Meredith and Betty Anne had taken their after dinner coffee into the living room across from the dining room.
“The boys seem to be making friends,” Logan commented. “How’s that treehouse comin’ along?”
Jill drew in a sharp breath. “Zach sees those boards as the only remaining connection he has to his father, except for maybe baseball. I didn’t have a chance to explain when we were unloadin
g the moving truck, but we had the treehouse he built with Alex disassembled. That’s what we have left.”
Logan’s brow furrowed in concern. “How old is Zach again? Ten?”
She nodded. “He doesn’t really have any idea of how to put those boards back the way they were. He was so young when they built it.”
“Do you have a photo of the treehouse they built?” Logan asked, his eyes still staring out of the windows at the boys.
“I have quite a few photos of the treehouse, but I’d have to locate them.” Jill looked out the window at her son as he picked up a board and showed it to Micah. “Why? Are you thinking about helping him put it back together?”
He nodded. “It obviously means a lot to him.”
“Oh, Logan… I couldn’t ask you to do that. I feel like you’ve already done so much just helping us get settled.”
“Well, the sooner you’re settled, the sooner you can visit the ranch.”
A bruised reed shall He not break, and smoking flax shall He not quench till He send forth judgment unto victory. Matthew 12:20
Chapter 6.
Sweetwater River Ranch
A frenzy of shopping for school clothing and supplies in Lander took up the better part of the next few days. A twenty minute ride from home, the children were mesmerized by the beauty of blue skies and mountain peaks visible in the distance as she drove them around Lander in her red jeep. Jill made sure to spare no expense on the items they needed to feel confident, comfortable, and prepared for making the adjustment to attending new schools. She took the kids out for an early dinner of burgers, fries, and shakes at Bubba’s Burgers the evening before their first day of school. Even Savannah cleaned her plate when she tasted the delicious food at the Wyoming styled restaurant Jill had been craving. Old wagon wheels and wooden plank tables were two of the features she enjoyed most at the burger joint. Mason jars with silk prairie flowers decorated the tables.
Dreams of Sweetwater River (Whispers In Wyoming Book 3) Page 4
