Jess caught sight of Elle and waved her into the room. Elle checked to see if anyone else—so, Justin—was in the room before stepping inside. But Jess was alone.
"It smells divine in here," she said. "What's your secret?"
"Let's see," Jess said, pretending to think. She sliced through strawberries with quick, efficient movements. "Sugar, butter, and flour. That's about it. Fresh fruit. Real ingredients."
"You are a goddess," Elle said, eyeing a fresh tray of croissants cooling on a baking rack. She pointed to one. "May I?"
"Please do!" Jess said, beaming. She grabbed a linen napkin for Elle and tossed it to her. "There's coffee too," Jess added.
Croissant in hand, Elle began to fill a mug.
"Are you hiding out?" Jess asked while Elle was mid-pour.
"Er. Hiding? No. Of course not." She wiped up the coffee she'd spilled because of course she was hiding out.
"Hmm," Jess said with a knowing look. She went back to slicing fruit. "There's a great overlook of the mountains you might like. Just follow the trail through the cottages. It's a nice spot. Quiet. Good chairs for sitting and taking in the view, too."
"That sounds perfect," Elle said. "I hate to be rude, but would you mind if I—“ she gestured toward the door.
"On one condition."
Elle paused.
"I could use another opinion on the table spread," she said, wiping her hands on her apron. "That woman from you-know-which magazine is coming today, and I want everything to be perfect. You seem to have an eye for that sort of thing, and I'm not only saying that because you like my taste. Okay, yes I am, but only a little.“
Elle laughed. "I would love to help if I can,” she said. "I'm flattered you’d ask.“
"Good. It's settled. Come with me. It'll just be a minute, then you can run along to your hideout."
Elle put down the croissant with a longing glance. She kept her coffee.
Jess led Elle into the breakfast room where she'd set out a number of items. Glass vases, mason jars, and bundles of flowers crowded stacks of linens in various colors and patterns, silverware, and plates.
"Oh, my," Elle said.
Jess sighed. "I know. It's a mess. I’m a mess. What am I going to do?"
The unflappable Jess sounded seriously flapped.
“Between you and me, I’m trying to buy Oak Bramble from the owner. I know I’m being ridiculous. It’s just … all of a sudden having this article written—having some great press behind me—matters more than ever.”
“It’s a big deal,” Elle said. “I completely understand, and I would love to help.” She set down her coffee mug. "Let's start at the beginning. Tell me about the shoot."
Jess described what the magazine editor had in mind for the article and the shoot. They wanted an outdoors brunch that would showcase Jess' most popular recipes. Elle picked through the items on the table, organizing them into piles, gauging colors and discarding things that didn't work.
When she was younger, Elle liked to set the table for Caroline's fancy dinners. Later, she drove Isabelle and Theo crazy by setting the table in their tiny apartment, when they would have preferred something simple and fast. This was similar, but the challenge of meeting a specific goal made it far more fun.
Elle stepped back after a few minutes.
"Take a look at these," she said to Jess. "I've put together three different options."
Jess walked from one pile to the next, making sounds of approval over the way Elle had paired together the items. Elle bounced a little on her heels. It was like waiting for a test score—would Jess like it? Would she approve? Elle grabbed her coffee mug to have something to do with her hands.
Jess walked past each of the three settings Elle put together. She stopped at each one, pausing as if imagining how they'd look for the shoot. When she reached the last one, she stopped.
Elle took a quick sip of coffee. The last setting was her favorite. Caroline would have called it too bright, too down-home, but Elle thought it was perfect. For a moment, she forgot that this was a simple favor for Jess. Elle wished she could do this every day. Make beautiful things come together for beautiful moments. She shook away the thought.
She was helping Jess. Nothing more. Elle was a librarian. She was good at her job, and there was little to no room for making a research library pretty.
Jess spoke, pulling Elle from her thoughts. "You have such a great eye for this," she said. "I would never have thought to use the mason jar with the gold-rimmed plates."
Elle beamed. "I love the way it looks with these linen napkins," she said. "The fuchsia is so fun."
Jess moved the napkin closer to the plate. "Me too. Pairing it with gold just says late summer to me, which is perfect for the timing of the feature.” She looked at Elle. "This is perfect. It's exactly what I wanted."
"Really?"
Jess pulled Elle into a hug. "Thank you, thank you!"
Elle held back for a moment before giving in to Jess' warmth.
"Now go enjoy the viewpoint,” Jess told her. “I’ve taken up enough of your time. I'll get the tables set up, and oh! There's so much to do."
After Elle left Jess to fuss over the tables, she returned to the kitchen for her croissant, then started down the main path that connected the house to the cottages. Most people weren't up yet, and the early-bird in her thrilled at the feeling.
There was something magical about early mornings, Elle decided. They were like a secret. While everyone slept and dreamed, she explored a world with soft light and crisp mountain air.
The grounds covered a vast clearing between thick copses of trees. Elle crunched down the gravel path, then through dew-slicked grass marked by trail signs. When she did reach the viewpoint, she caught her breath.
A line of chairs sat before a low stone wall, perched on a flat landing high above the rise and fall of the tree-covered mountains. Morning fog rose from the treetops, hiding some and making others look like ghosts.
She settled into a chair. For a few minutes, Elle simply sat. She sipped her coffee and nibbled on her croissant. She breathed.
Elle had had a realization after her time with Justin. She'd returned to her room at the inn, and had taken a long bubble bath. It had taken some time before the fizzy feeling she'd carried with her had faded. When it did, she knew she had to face it.
It really was over with Carter. She had to let go of her half-hearted hope he’d come crawling back to her a changed man, saving her from having a difficult discussion with her mother. Even if her ridiculous fantasy came true, she didn’t want him. There were people worth forgiving, and then there was Carter. He wasn’t going to change, and she was done being walked over like a ratty carpet.
He wasn't the man for her. She'd never, not once, felt anything near the level of anticipation and electric awareness around Carter as she did when she was near Justin. Elle wanted fireworks. At least little ones.
She wanted a man who looked at her, not at other women. Elle wouldn't settle for anything less. Not even if he were the king of southern gentlemen. Not even if her mother asked her to.
She took a long sip from her coffee.
This left her with a dilemma. Elle wanted Justin, that was obvious, but she had spent too long—her whole life, really—telling herself that men like him weren't worth her time. Justin wasn't the marrying kind, and she wasn't the type of woman to date casually.
So where did that leave her?
Elle's phone rang, a jarring noise in the quiet of the morning.
She was tempted not to answer. So she didn't.
Her phone went quiet.
Elle sipped her coffee.
Her phone rang again.
She groaned but checked the screen. When she saw that it wasn’t her mother or sister, she answered the call.
"Elle," Theo said in her brisk, business-like way. "Is this a bad time?"
"You're calling me at six thirty in the morning, what do you think?"
"I need help," Theo said, admitt
ing it like she was asking for a pap smear on her birthday. "The boys were supposed to be with their father today, but he had to cancel, and I promised to help out at my parents' inn. I can't watch them and run the desk. You have no idea what they're like right now—“ She broke off. "Just a sec," she said.
Elle heard concerned barking, a squeal followed by a wail, then Theo's voice. "Put down your brother this instant. The dog is not a horse. No. Absolutely not. I don't care what you saw on t.v."
There was some whining—children, not a dog. Another bark.
"I'm back," Theo said with a huff. "Can you watch the kids while I work? Just for an hour until Eowyn gets here. There's plenty to keep them entertained, I just need someone to make sure they don't kill each other. Or the dog."
Elle had a wistful moment. She looked at the mist-cloaked view and thought about how nice it was to just sit and think. Then she stood and started walking back to the main house.
"Of course," Elle said. "I'll be there as soon as I can."
On the other line, another scream rang out. "Be here sooner," Theo said, then hung up.
Justin woke up before sunrise thinking about Elle. He took a cold shower. Then another.
When he managed to stop thinking about Elle, he started to think about Lynn calling him an ass, or about his mom buying Oak Bramble. Every time he pushed one thought down, another jumped up in its place.
By the time he left his place, he was beyond annoyed. He was frustrated, angry, and not at all interested in playing nice.
He stalked across the grounds to where the landscaping crew had left off, grabbed a shovel, and spent a solid half hour whipping his mind and body into line. He worked until sweat ran down his forehead and into his eyes until his muscles screamed. When Jo and her crew arrived to get to work, he was done.
He was human again.
Well, at least he stopped thinking about Elle and the way she looked in the most bizarre underwear he'd ever laid eyes on. Or the way her nose crinkled when she laughed. Or how there were always bits of hair escaping her ponytail and the way she’d tuck them behind her ears.
Justin cursed out loud, startling a flock of birds. He stomped into the house from the side door, not wanting to frighten guests with his mood. When he stepped into the kitchen, it was empty. For all of five seconds.
Just as he started to wolf down some eggs and bacon, his mom swept into the room. Humming.
"Could you do that somewhere else?" he grumbled.
Because he had all the luck in the world, Amy overheard. She followed Jess into the kitchen, whistling low. "Someone's in a mood."
Jess chuckled. "Don't give your brother a hard time."
"Yeah, don't give me a hard time," Justin told his sister. He was this close to giving her the finger but relented. It would only fuel Amy's amusement.
What was wrong with him? He hadn't been this pissed since ... well, he couldn't even remember the last time something had him this riled up. His mom and Amy started chatting and he tuned them out, only listening enough to hear them mention Elle. Apparently, she'd helped Jess with the decorating stuff. Saved the day, from the sound of it. Great. Just great.
"Well that was fast," Jess said.
Justin looked up from his eggs. Elle stood in the doorway. Her smile fell when she noticed him.
"You didn't like the view?" Jess asked.
Amy snorted. "Not possible," she said.
Elle's smile returned. "It was stunning," she assured Jess. "But something came up."
She explained that her friend needed help taking care of her kids. The moment Elle mentioned the Murphy House—one of the Valley’s most popular inns—his mom and sister leaped into the conversation, bombarding Elle with questions about how she knew the family.
Justin tuned them out. He ate methodically, finishing with a gusto he didn't feel in order to push Elle as far from his thoughts as possible.
Which was why he had no idea what his mom was talking about a minute later when she said, "Oh, Justin wouldn't mind. Would you?"
He glanced up from his plate. The three women looked at him, each expecting him to say ...
"What?"
"Honestly, Jus," Amy huffed. "Can you pay attention?"
Elle hid a smile.
"Our guest needs a ride to the Murphy House. You remember the Murphy's. You dated one of their daughters, didn't you? Was it the one with the tattoos, or the fitness one?"
"Not the fitness instructor, Mom," Amy corrected. "She's gay."
"Oh, then the other one?"
“Rosa wasn’t always into women,” he said, then wished he hadn’t when Amy looked as though he’d confessed to something.
She raised an eyebrow. “How would you know?”
God, she was annoying.
Elle was watching the exchange with poorly hidden amusement. He grimaced.
"Never mind that," Jess said. "Elle needs a ride to the Murphy house because she's helping with the eldest Murphy daughter's kids. You can take her, right?"
"I thought you wanted me to make the croissants. I prepped them yesterday."
Jess shrugged. "Do it when you get back. I'm sure it won't take that long."
Justin pushed back from the table and stretched his shoulders. He had no good reason to refuse. Except that keeping his hands to himself around Elle was becoming a problem. So, nothing he could ever admit in front of his mom and Amy. They’d never let him hear the end of it.
"Yeah, okay," he said grudgingly.
"You should help with the boys, too.” To Elle, Jess added, "Not that you couldn't handle them.”
Elle shook her head. A pretty flush brightened her cheeks. "I can handle two small children on my own. I don't need Justin—“
"Of course you do!" Jess interrupted. Her blue eyes sparkled. "And Justin would be happy to help. Wouldn't you?"
Justin saw the happy, expectant look on his mom’s face. He thought of the torture of spending another day with Elle, who looked just as enthused as he felt. He couldn’t read her mood. Did she want his help? Or was she, like him, trying to get out of spending more time together?
Either way, with his mom right there, he wasn’t going to get out of it.
“Sure,” he ground out. “I’ll help.”
As he pushed past Elle to leave the room, he said, “I’ll be outside.” He pretended not to notice the shiver of awareness that passed between them.
It was babysitting. He could handle that. And then she’d be out of his hair.
Simple.
Chapter 13
Theo met them on the Murphy House’s wide gravel driveway. It was a thirty-minute drive from Oak Bramble to the Murphy’s inn, but Justin had made it in twenty at Elle’s urging. When they arrived, she was glad they’d rushed.
Elle had seen Theo in Mom-mode, of course. Mostly, though, she saw Theo with two well-behaved children and the shimmer of Super Mom surrounding her. Her friend was the type who liked things tidy, in order, without a stray hair or bit of makeup out of place.
But today Theo looked like an escapee from a madhouse.
Justin turned off his truck, caught sight of Theo striding toward them, and said, "Whoa."
Elle was determined to put on a brave face. She hopped out of the truck and moved to meet Theo. Her friend had a thick and gloppy paste-like substance in her dark hair, which stuck out in every direction from its low bun. She wore an apron that was covered in what looked like flour. Or, from the crazed look in her eyes, perhaps it was cocaine.
"Thank GOD," Theo said, grabbing Elle and pulling her into a tight hug.
"Oof!" Elle grunted as the air rushed out of her lungs.
Theo pushed back, glanced at Justin, then said, "You brought back up, that's good. The boys are in a state today. My mom decided to leave them a treat to thank me for covering the desk today.”
“Well that’s sweet,” Elle said.
Theo gave her a look. “She snuck them a box full of candy. By the time I found them, they’d eaten God knows how many p
ounds of sugar.”
“Oh,” Elle said.
Theo didn’t bother to reply. She turned back to the house, dragging Elle by one arm. "Come on. I can't leave them alone for long before—“
"Ahhhhh! Mooooommmmmyyyyyy!"
Theo said some very nasty words all strung together like a long, colorful prayer.
Justin whistled, sounding impressed.
Elle shot him an apologetic look over her shoulder.
Surely it couldn't be that bad, she thought.
Then she caught sight of a massive dog, running toward them from the house like its tail was on fire. The poor thing had been shaved, poorly, and tufts of fur stood out against bits of pink, newly exposed skin.
Theo took one long look. "They're all yours,” she said.
To say Justin hadn't been prepared would have been a gross understatement. He was no stranger to a challenge. He’d come up on bears while hiking in the North Carolina mountains, seen snakes—poisonous ones, too—and gotten by without losing his cool, but this … He had to fight his instinct to run when he saw what babysitting looked like. And he had a new respect for his mom.
Theo had abandoned them after spitting out instructions.
Don't let them set the house on fire. Come get me, but only if one of them is close to death.
Elle looked wide-eyed and unprepared, and Justin didn't blame her. In her sundress and sandals, she looked ready for lounging outside with some sweet tea. Justin wasn’t sure about Elle, but personally, he would have felt better in head to toe armor.
A ball whizzed past his head.
"You were supposed to catch that!" said the older boy. Was it Ned, or Ian? Justin had no idea.
The younger one pouted. "It was too high. Besides, Mom said not to throw in the house."
Elle raised both eyebrows. She opened her mouth to speak, but the older one tackled the younger and they dissolved into a tussle—kicking, punching, pinching, squealing. She looked at him.
"Well?" she asked.
"Well, what?"
"Don't you speak boy or something? Please tell me having two brothers makes you better prepared for this than I am.”
He shook his head. "Sorry, Princess. Doesn't work that way."
Love At First Ink: A Woodbine Valley Romance (Tate Family Book 1) Page 11
