Читать книгу Make-Believe Husband - Linda Varner - Страница 11

Chapter Four

It wasn’t easy to put Shari’s prediction out of her head, but Jessi did exactly that for the rest of that Monday by focusing on her new job as cook. She chose to prepare her first meal on the stove inside the spacious RV she would call home for a while, even though there were other cooking choices, namely an open campfire and a portable barbecue rig. Jessi served dinner indoors that night, too, instead of in the camp dining room, which was really just a centrally located tent with netting sides to keep out insects.

Her hearty tomato-and-beef stew was a big hit with everyone, in particular the men, who helped themselves to seconds and then thirds, complimenting her with every bowl. After the meal, the five of them went outside and, since it was a beautiful night, sat around a campfire that resulted from Anna Kate’s meticulous wood gathering.

The child sat as close to Gabe as she could sit while they all relaxed and talked, but he didn’t seem to mind. Jessi herself sat clear across the campfire from the two of them, with August and Shari to her immediate left. She relished the absence of city noises and marveled at how many other sounds—foreign sounds—filled the air around them.

The buzzes, of course, could be credited to insects, Jessi decided, and the chirps to birds that hadn’t turned in for the night. The tree frogs and cicadas she recognized, too, but what was that weird-sounding yowl? A cat of some kind? A wolf?

Suddenly a little spooked—a feeling not alleviated when she realized Gabe actually had a hunting rifle within reach—Jessi wondered if Anna Kate were frightened by the wild sounds. The child was so young and had never been out of the city. At that moment Anna Kate crawled right into Gabe’s lap, a certain indication she might be a little nervous about their wilderness surroundings, too.

“Tell me a real scary story, Daddy G,” she demanded, grabbing a handful of his shirt and pulling him down so that the tip of his nose was barely an inch from hers.

Jessi wanted to laugh. So much for fear in the under-five set.

Gabe considered her request for a moment, his questioning gaze on Jessi, who shook her head slightly to discourage him. “Will you settle for a tall tale instead?” he finally asked, gently disentangling his shirt from Anna Kate’s grip.

The child nodded eagerly.

“Okay.” Gabe sat in silence for another half second, then nodded to himself as if he’d made a mental selection. “Actually,” he began, “the story I’m about to tell you is said to be true. Maybe it is, maybe not. I really don’t know, so we’ll call it a tall tale.”