Brenda Coulter At His Command (pdf)

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Ready to get back to work?
Yes, ma am. Maddie was more ready than she had ever
been.
On Friday afternoon Gloria walked into Jake s office, os-
tensibly to water plants. Jake was busy answering e-mails
186 At His Command
from clients, but didn t miss the furtive glances Gloria kept
shooting his way as she puttered around the room. When she
walked over to the window and tipped the spout of her
watering can into something green and leafy, Jake ex-
changed a look with Tripod and shrugged.
Your friend Olga Terenkov is chasing our preacher,
Gloria said.
Hmm. Jake hoped his bored tone would nip that discus-
sion in the bud. Gloria was a good-hearted woman, but she
had a lamentable inclination to stick her nose into other
people s business.
He s been widowed for years and it s time he got married
again. They re perfect for each other, if you ask me.
I didn t, Jake pointed out in the same flat voice as he
typed a few more words.
She s not being real subtle about it, Gloria said. But
some men can be dense, if you know what I mean.
Jake s fingers stilled on his keyboard. Something about
this one-sided conversation was beginning to worry him.
I had to chase Leland until he caught me, Gloria con-
tinued. Back in his prime that man rode some of the
meanest bulls in Texas. But do you think he had enough
courage to ask me to dance? She barked out a laugh. No,
sir. He did not.
Is there a point to this? Jake asked, desperately hoping
there wasn t. Because if there was, she was undoubtedly
planning to stab him with it.
I m just saying there s something about being in love
that tends to scare the boots off a man.
Travis, who had strolled into Jake s office in the middle
of that sentence, turned on his heel and scurried back through
Brenda Coulter 187
the doorway faster than a retreating cockroach. From the
safety of the hall, he snickered.
Hey, thanks for the support, Jake called after him.
Undaunted by the interruption, Gloria set her watering
can on the floor, folded her plump arms over her chest and
continued, the gleam in her eyes half amused, half
scornful. I honestly don t know why so many women
complain about men being hard to understand. Y all are as
simple as peach pie. See, a man wants to feel he s in
control of his life. So when some pretty girl comes along
and steals his heart, he s terrified. He doesn t want to be
vulnerable to anyone, especially a woman who can twist
him round her little finger. So he ll tie himself in knots
trying to convince himself he s not in love. And Jake s
intercom buzzed.
Profoundly grateful for the interruption, Jake leaned
forward and pressed the button.
Ms. Lopez is here for your three-thirty, Lexi said.
Send her in, Jake replied, watching Gloria from under
raised eyebrows. Quick.
Gloria s bottom lip poked out; she was clearly disappointed
that she wasn t going to be able to finish her lecture. But she d
lost Jake right after that part about peach pie, anyway.
We ll talk later. She bent to pick up her watering can.
I ll be busy later, Jake said. But if you still feel the need
to talk to somebody, I m sure Travis will be free.
She gave him an amused snort in response to that and
bustled out of his office.
Jake shook his head at the empty doorway and
wondered where on earth she d picked up the crazy idea
that he was in love.
188 At His Command
* * *
Jake had season s tickets to the Longhorns games, but
he d given Saturday s pair to Travis so he could spend that
afternoon and evening with his mama. She d been putting
on a brave face, but she still missed Jake s father terribly, and
Jake was convinced that the recent scare over the lump in
her breast had affected her more than she was letting on.
He took her out to lunch, then devoted the remainder of
the day to fixing leaky sinks and performing other chores
around the ranch-style house he d grown up in. It was late
when he finished, so he opted to spend the night instead of
driving home.
Awakened the next morning by a blast of country music,
Jake opened his eyes and stared at the light fixture on the
ceiling of his old room and wondered what his mama was
doing playing a George Strait CD at he turned his head to
look at the beside clock seven in the morning.
It wasn t that Jake minded being awakened. He didn t
have any objection to mornings, except for the moment
when he had to put weight on his left leg after being off it
for hours. And he was glad to know she still had good taste
in music. But as he shuffled to the shower, goose bumps
prickled his shoulders and he sensed something unusual in
the air, something almost like the drop in pressure that
heralded the arrival of a summer storm.
He had the strongest feeling that while he d slept, the
world had begun to change in some material way.
In jeans and bare feet and a gray University of Texas T-
shirt, his wet hair slicked back, Jake padded down the hall
to the kitchen. On any other morning the aromas of yeasty
cinnamon rolls and frying bacon would have made his belly
Brenda Coulter 189
rumble with anticipation, but right now he was worried. It
was out of character for his mother to play music before
breakfast, especially at this decibel level. Jake s jaw nearly
hit the floor when he reached the kitchen and saw what was
going on in there.
Dancing.
In a flowery blue dress covered in front by a ruffled white
apron, with her mostly gray hair already curled and sprayed
for church, his mama was Texas two-stepping and twirling
her way around the kitchen table. She looked pretty, Jake
thought, but she d gone crazy on him.
Mama?
She looked at him and grinned, but kept dancing, her [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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