Aundy (Pendleton Petticoats - Book 1) (18 page)

O’Connell was soon heading down her lane with his hands following behind. Two of them approached Dent about working there and he discussed his thoughts with Aundy. She agreed to give them a chance and they promised to return the following evening.

Waving one last time at O’Connell, Aundy looked at the lamb, now asleep in her yard, the boy who sat nearby, and the dog with his head resting on his master’s lap. What a picture it made. One she never thought to see, but dearly loved all the same.

“Young man, the first order of business will be to get you settled. You go on over to the bunkhouse and pick out an empty bed for your own,” Aundy said, with a gentle smile to the thin boy. He looked like he needed good food and some motherly attention. Since he mentioned being an orphan, she wondered how long he’d been taking care of himself.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, getting to his feet. “I appreciate you giving me a job and letting me stay with the sheep. When Mr. O’Connell said he was leaving, I didn’t know what I’d do. Thank you for giving me a home and a place to work. I usually sleep out with the sheep, though, so I don’t need a bunk.”

“You pick a bunk, anyway. I’m not sure I like the idea of you sleeping outside when the nights are still cold. You’re most welcome about the job. My men almost revolted until I told them the sheep came with their own shepherd.”

Nikola grinned at her and she smiled. “I’m very glad you decided to come along with the sheep and bring Bob,” Aundy said, placing a gentle hand on the boy’s shoulder. Standing together, he nearly stood eye to eye with her. While he looked thin, she had an idea he was stronger than he appeared. “Do you prefer to be called Nikola?”

“I answer to Nik. It’s what my mother always called me and what my friends call me. I hope to have friends here.”

“Nik it is,” Aundy said, feeling her throat tighten at the sad look on Nik’s face when he mentioned his mother. Where did this boy come from? Who were his people? He was raised with good manners and someone who had been kind, no doubt.

“You go settle in. I’ll keep an eye on Bob and…” Aundy looked from the lamb to Nik. “Does the lamb have a name?”

“He doesn’t, yet,” Nik said, grinning broadly as he lifted a knapsack and headed toward the bunkhouse. “You could give him one, if you like.”

Aundy watched Nik saunter toward the bunkhouse, whistling a happy tune. Turning her attention back to the dog and the lamb, she dropped to her knees and patted both on the head. She was murmuring softly to them when she felt warmth behind her and looked up into Garrett’s silvery eyes.

“Couldn’t help but see the parade go by,” Garrett said with a grin, hunkering down and holding out his hand toward the dog. Bob sniffed it and licked Garrett’s fingers. Garrett rubbed the dog’s ears and scratched his back, making a new friend for life. When the dog rolled over on his back, Garrett gave his stomach a thorough rub, watching Aundy stroke the lamb’s little head.

“I already see disaster looming,” Garrett said, tilting his head toward the lamb.

“What?” Aundy asked, turning her gaze from the lamb to the man squatting so close to her she could feel his body heat through the sleeve of her dress.

“You’re going to make a pet of that one, aren’t you?” Garrett asked, studying the lamb. It did look kind of helpless and cute, for a stinky wooly monster.

“Quite possibly,” Aundy said, grinning. “Feel his coat. It’s so soft. Like touching butter.”

“No thanks,” Garrett said, continuing to pet the dog.

“Oh, don’t be so obstinate,” Aundy said, grabbing Garrett’s hand and placing it on the lamb’s back. Forgetting how the contact of their skin sent wild sparks shooting throughout her entire being, she quickly let go of his hand. Garrett rubbed the lamb cautiously before returning his attention to the dog.

Aundy got to her feet and looked down at Garrett. He gazed up at her with those silvery eyes drawing her to him like magnets.

He slowly rose to his feet and fastened his full attention on her, taking her in from the golden braid wound around her head like a crown to the toes of her shoes. Giving her a second glance, he stepped back and raised an eyebrow her direction.

“Where did you get that dress, Mrs. Erickson? I know for a fact it isn’t one of your creations or one your sister made,” Garrett said, trying to keep from smirking. The dress was several inches too short, revealing Aundy’s petticoat and giving him a view of slender ankles encased in light stockings. The billowing gown looked wide enough to fit two of her inside, but the color suited her well, especially now that her cheeks had blushed pink.

“Oh, I…” Aundy glanced down at the dress and realized she still had on the gown that was too short and too wide. “My goodness.”

Embarrassed, she started to race up the steps into the house, but Garrett caught her around the waist before she made it to the door. Pulling her back to his chest, he bent his head so his warm breath caressed her ear. “Don’t change on my account. I don’t mind seeing your pretty ankles.”

Aundy would have slapped his face or at least rushed in the house and slammed the door if her limbs hadn’t turned languid when her back touched his chest and his breath churned up new, frightening sensations as it danced tantalizingly around her ear.

“You’re intractable,” Aundy said with a huff, trying to regain the ability to move her arms and legs when all she wanted was to fall back against Garrett’s solid chest and stay there forever, wrapped in his arms.

“So I’ve been told,” Garrett said, making no effort to move his hands from her waist or his lips from their place so close to her cheek.

“Garrett,” Aundy said, her voice so low it came out like a whisper as she twisted her head and he fell into her warm blue eyes. “I think…”

“Me, too,” Garrett said, his voice deep and husky as he slowly turned her in his arms.

The kiss he would have surely given her failed to materialize when Nik’s whistling interrupted them from a few steps away.

“Thought I better come get Bob and the lamb,” Nik said, grinning at both Aundy and Garrett.

“I’m Garrett Nash,” Garrett said, stepping away from Aundy and holding his hand out to the young man. “Our farm is the next one over, Nash’s Folly. If you ever need anything, you just let me know.”

“Thank you, sir. I’m Nikola Zorian Gandiaga, shepherd of the sheep,” the boy said, once again executing a bow with his cap held to his chest. “But my friends call me Nik.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Nik. I hope you enjoy working here with Mrs. Erickson. If she beats you too hard, refuses to feed you, or threatens you in any way, just tell me or Dent. We’ll set her straight.

Nik’s eyes grew wide, but then he grinned, seeing the appalled look on Aundy’s face and the teasing smile on Garrett’s.

“Yes, she looks like a cruel woman,” Nik said, joining in the joking. “I’ll have to be on guard at all times.”

“For sure,” Garrett said, reaching out and grabbing Aundy’s hand, giving it a squeeze without even realizing what he was doing.

Annoyed enough that all thoughts of kissing Garrett fled right out of her head, Aundy marched to the door and stood there, glaring at Garrett, then Nik.

“If you both think you can behave, you can wash up and tell the rest of the men to get ready for lunch. Nik, you can bring Bob and Butter to the back porch.”

“Butter?” Nik asked looking at the lamb. “Guess you named him.”

“Yes, I did,” Aundy said, nodding her head primly and going in the door, closing it quietly behind her.

Racing through the house, she pulled off the dress in her bedroom, slipped on one of her own, then hurried to the kitchen where she donned a large apron, slipped a pan of rolls in the oven and set the table.

By the time the men filed in the door, she had everything ready and greeted them all with a smile.

“Don’t know why you think they are smelly, evil beasts, Fred. Even young Nikola can see they’re harmless. Too bad a big fella like you is scared of a few little wooly sheep,” Glen teased as they came in the door.

The daggers Fred shot at Glen with his eyes would have bled him out right there on the kitchen floor if they’d been able to pierce him. As it was, Glen laughed and slapped his back as they all stood at the table, waiting for Aundy to take a seat.

“Garrett, not surprised to see you here,” Dent said, winking at Aundy. “Couldn’t keep from coming over to check things out, could you?”

“You know it,” Garrett said, holding Aundy’s chair for her while she took her seat. Dent gave thanks and the men all dug into the food. Nik filled his bowl twice with stew and looked around the table, sizing up the men.

“So, Nik, where do you come from?” Dent asked, wanting to know more about their young shepherd.

“Mr. O’Connell’s place,” he answered with a cheeky grin.

“Before that, if you please,” Aundy said, smiling at the fun-loving boy.

“I grew up near Jordan Valley, about as south from here as you can get and still be in Oregon,” Nik said, buttering another roll and taking a bite before continuing. “My family came from the Pyrenees Mountains in Spain before my brother and I were born. There are a lot of sheep farms around Jordan Valley and many of them hired Basque shepherds to care for the sheep.”

“So you’re Basque?” Aundy asked, realizing with Nik’s name, his heritage should have been evident.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Are your parents and brother still in Jordan Valley?”

“No, ma’am. They died in a blizzard when I was ten. They went to town to get supplies and never came back. I was sick, so they left me home, planning to return before it got dark. It was early spring and no one thought it would snow. Just came up suddenly,” Nik’s happy smile slipped from his face as he remembered the blizzard and the days he spent trapped in the small cabin alone and frightened. “A neighbor found our wagon just a few miles from our cabin.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss, Nik,” Aundy said, reaching over to pat the boy on the arm. He was so young to bear such heartache.

“Thank you.”

“What did you do… after…” Glen asked, voicing the question they all were thinking.

“My father’s friend took me in for a while, but he had his own children to look after. I went to work as a shepherd that summer and have been doing it since. When the man I worked for sold part of his flock to Mr. O’Connell, I decided to go along with the sheep,” Nik said, looking around the table at the friendly faces. He thought it would be easy to get used to living here with Mrs. Erickson and her hands. They all seemed like good people. “And here I am.”

“I, for one, am mighty glad you’re here,” Fred said, grinning first at Aundy, then Nik. “Miz Erickson has assured me you will take care of the sheep so I don’t have to get close to them.”

Nik laughed. “Caring for the sheep is my pleasure.”

“It would be my nightmare,” Fred said, making everyone laugh.

After Aundy served slices of cake with coffee, and a big glass of milk for Nik, she gave each man a handful of cookies as he went out the door and thanked them all for their hard work.

She started to clean off the table when she realized Garrett was leaning against the kitchen counter, watching her.

“Don’t you have work you need to see to?” Aundy asked, unsettled by his concentrated gaze.

“I sure do,” Garrett said, not making any effort to leave. He did, however, walk over to the table and help carry dishes to the sink. Aundy didn’t say anything and he didn’t either, until the table was cleared and the dishes were all soaking.

“What are you about, Garrett Nash?” Aundy asked, glancing at him speculatively as she began washing the dishes.

“Not a thing, Mrs. Erickson,” Garrett said, trying to force himself to walk out the door, but something about Aundy held him captive. She’d traded the dress he’d teased her about earlier for a soft pink gown that put rosy blossoms in each cheek and made her lips look ripe for the picking. Studying her bottom lip, he recalled how delicious her kisses had tasted when he’d sampled them previously.

Suddenly, he could think of nothing else beyond kissing Aundy, melding his lips to hers. Gazing into her sky blue eyes, he saw something flicker there, something that looked like wanting, mixed with a little fear. Unable to bear the thought she might be afraid of him, he took a step closer and leaned down until his lips were near her ear.

“I won’t hurt you, Aundy. I promise,” Garrett said in a deep husky voice, his breath stirring the tendrils floating around her ear. His lips seared her skin when he pressed a hot kiss to the tender flesh of her neck.

“Garrett,” she moaned, grabbing onto the front of his shirt to hold herself steady. Her knees weakened as soon he put his arms around her. His kiss nearly made her collapse. If he let go of her, she’d surely sink to the floor. Losing the ability to do anything but cling to the man who held her so lovingly in his arms, Aundy raised her lips to his. Garrett gladly claimed them, kissing her until she felt light-headed.

“I think I better leave,” Garrett said, his lips tantalizingly close to Aundy’s.

“I think that is a very good idea,” Aundy said, her eyes still closed as she leaned against Garrett. Drawing back her head, she opened one eye, then the other to see him grinning at her.

“What?” she asked, gathering the loose threads of her composure together. Patting her hair with still damp hands, she looked down to see if she had something on her dress or apron. Garrett continued to grin at her. “I insist you tell me what you’re staring at.”