Chapter 14
14
B y Friday, Petra felt as if they’d officially made progress. They’d bought Jinx a phone, some clothes, and all the items on the school checklist, an experience that had flashed Petra back to her own high school years.
With a few more days left before her first day of school, Jinx was already having fewer panic attacks, displaying the strength that had made her ask Danielle for help in the first place.
They still hadn’t decided whether she'd be taking the bus or getting a ride on Monday morning. Aiden promised Jinx she could decide at the last minute, but he and Petra had both promised to drop her off if Jinx decided it would help.
And Sasha had already informed Jinx that no matter how she got to school, Sasha had her back.
A promise that made Jinx blink hard. “She doesn’t even know me,” Jinx told Petra as they slowly walked back from morning chores, Dixie bouncing at their feet. “I mean, I’m glad to have her around, but she just accepted me right off the bat.”
Petra shrugged. “Some people hit it off immediately. If you’re happy getting to know Sasha better, I’m sure there will come a time in the future you’ll be the one who helps her. It’s okay to be the one taking for a while.”
Jinx nodded slowly. “Can I message her? She was going to go over the math they’ve already reviewed with me so I’m not behind.”
“Yes, but let’s stay in the living room like we agreed and please check first how long Sasha has so you don’t get her in trouble.”
Lord. Rules about phone usage.
Petra shook her head as she settled on the opposite side of the living room and pulled out her own phone. It was past time for checking in with her besties.
Petra: Supper tonight at High Water. It's my turn to cook and I’m conscripting both of you to help.
Tansy: You just love us for our culinary skills.
Sydney: OMG, I hope not.
Tansy: Don't knock yourself, sister. You’ve got the best carving skills of anyone I know.
Petra: That she does. But not much slice and dice tonight. I want to appeal to the masses and make pizza. Tansy, can I bribe you to bring over your portable pizza oven? Sydney and I can be your sous chefs and do all the chopping if you deal with the crust.
Tansy: High Water Pizzeria. Sounds like the place to be.
Sydney: I want to come and help, but six p.m. is the earliest I can promise. I arranged to go out to Mr. Talita’s this afternoon. Depending on how ornery he is, I might get back later than that.
Petra: Talita’s? Isn’t he the one my brother said went off the grid back in the eighties? Every time he shows up in town he gives the guys from Duck Dynasty a run for their money on redneck style.
Sydney: Even people with questionable fashion choices deserve quality health care.
Petra: Are you taking backup?
Tansy: That's what I was going to ask. Tell you what, I’ll come with you.
Sydney: Please. After years of night shift on EMS at Calgary General, I can deal with one ornery old man just fine, thanks. But I’d love to come for pizza and meet Jinx. Which I assume is the ulterior motive?
Tansy: Nice topic change there, slick. Call if you need help. But yes, P. How’s your new chica doing?
Petra: Jinx is doing great. One little panic attack yesterday when she looked up in the middle of helping Aiden and realized there were two additional contractors in the room. She hadn’t noticed when they walked in, and extra male humans in unexpected places are definitely a trigger. But she’s a sweetie with a huge heart that needs filling, and I think knowing you guys better will only give her more of a sense of family.
Tansy: You’re making me blush.
Sydney: We’ll be there.
Petra got Jinx’s attention. “The girls are cooking tonight,” Petra informed her. “My friends Tansy and Sydney are coming over, and the four of us are hosting a family pizza party.”
“Okay.” Jinx glanced at the table where Declan was working. He was listening intently but pretending not to. Jinx considered then informed him, “We’ll make you pizza, too, Declan.”
He peered over the top of the glasses perched on his nose. “I assumed that.”
Jinx pulled her expression to deadpan and looked Petra in the eye. “I heard Declan loves liver on his pizza.”
His lips twitched, which was as close to an outright smile as he seemed to get. “Best pizza ever if there’s caramelized onion on there as well.”
This time, Jinx outright snickered.
That bubble of hope in Petra’s chest expanded another little bit. “Tansy will come over first to help us make the dough, and you and I will get started chopping ingredients. Sydney will show up when she can. She's got a house call planned to one of the local old-timers, Mr. Talita. If he’s not cooperative, it might be only you and me helping Tansy.”
Jinx nodded. “That’s okay. I'm looking forward to meeting Sydney when it works.”
“She’s looking forward to seeing you, too.”
The day passed quickly. Tansy showed up early as promised, and Petra and Jinx, fresh from their showers after helping Aiden and Jake in the studio, greeted her.
Tansy strolled into the house as if she lived there—probably from all the years when it had been her Grandma’s place.
She shook the Rubbermaid tote in her arms. “You probably have all the stuff I’ll need, but just in case, I came prepared.” She tilted her head toward the door. “Hey, Jinx. Can you grab the second box from my truck?”
“Sure.” Jinx headed to the door at a rapid clip with Dixie hard on her heels. “Don’t start making the dough without me,” she called over her shoulder.
Petra boldly seized the tote from Tansy's grasp. “Thank you for arriving early. That girl has had ants in her pants all day waiting for you.”
“I do inspire that level of excitement,” Tansy offered seriously, ruining it by adding a brow waggle. She pulled a wrapped candle from her box. “Here, this is for you.”
“Not suitable for Jinx to see?” Petra suggested, ripping away the paper and letting out a huge guffaw. “ What (and I can’t stress this enough) the Fuck? It’s awesome. Thanks. ”
“It seemed appropriate,” Tansy teased, accepting the hug of thanks Petra offered. “So, other than obsessing over the wonderfulness that is me, how’s the kiddo doing?”
“Settling in,” Petra said quietly, tucking the candle away in the cupboard for now. “I don't want to jinx it, but it seems as long as I'm around, things are going smoothly.”
Tansy wrinkled her nose as she piled things on the counter. “That doesn’t bode well for school on Monday.”
“I know. The shopping trip with Sasha went wonderfully. I hate to rely on one nearly sixteen-year-old to watch over another, but from the sounds of it, Sasha is a bit of a mother hen to begin with.”
Tansy nodded, a big, exaggerated motion. “Oh, girl. You have no idea.”
Which still left Petra feeling a little kerfuffled. She suddenly had a whole lot more sympathy for those helicopter parents she’d read about who had seemed so horrible at the time. She was now mentally apologizing for every eye roll she’d offered at how ridiculous those parents had sounded because she was tempted to hold on too tight as well.
Jinx burst into the house with an open tote in her arms. “Is all the stuff in here for toppings on the pizzas?” She sounded moderately horrified.
Tansy planted her hands on her hips. “Man does not live on pepperoni pizza alone, my girl. So, yes. Not all of them at the same time, but trust me. I’m magical in the kitchen.”
Jinx placed the container on the counter then held up what looked like a miniature white log. She tilted her head slightly as she stared at it. “Goat cheese. Which I know is a thing because there's goat’s milk, but really ?”
Petra smiled. “Oh, sweetie. We look forward to expanding your tastebud repertoire.”
Jinx made a face. “Fine. But there will be pepperoni, right?”
“There will be plain old pepperoni,” Tansy promised.
She got the dough going, and once it was set aside to rise, the three of them wrangled the pizza oven into position by the fire.
“It's electric,” Tansy explained, setting up an extension cord. “I fully plan to build one that’s woodfired at some point, but it makes no sense to have that where I am now. They don’t approve of open fires in apartments.”
“Your restaurant is really nice,” Jinx offered sincerely.
“Thank you. It’s got a lot of charm,” agreed Tansy. “I like it as well because my sister is either helping me or right next door dealing with the flower shop. Rose is now living with her fiancé instead of with me, though, so the only time I see her is at work.”
“And at your mom and dad’s for dinner every few days. Plus, when you go to visit your sister Fern. Maybe even when you go to visit your Grandma and Grandpa,” Petra added helpfully.
Tansy pressed a hand to her chest. “Yes, those times, too.” She offered a long-suffering sigh and head shake to Jinx. “I'm so hard done by. Everybody loves me. They can't survive without their daily dose of Tansy.”
From the expression on her face, Jinx already had a serious case of hero worship.
Sydney hadn’t shown up by the time they went inside to make the crusts, but it was still early enough Petra wasn't worried. Instead, she joined in with amusement as Tansy tried to teach her and Jinx how to make the crusts get bigger by spinning the dough in the air overhead for a moment.
“I’ll drop it,” Jinx worried.
Tansy shrugged. “Then you drop it. I made tons of dough,” she said soothingly. “Trust me. I've taught all my family to make pizza, and you can't be as bad as my father. The man goes from ten fingers to two whenever it's convenient.”
“Your dad is a kick,” Petra teased.
“My father is an outstanding member of this community with a little bit too much starch in his shorts at times.” Tansy said it with a straight face. “Which is why it's my duty, as his favourite daughter, to ensure he has lots of opportunities to lean toward the light and airy.”
Tansy's father was an outright saint for some of the hijinks he’d tolerated, most instigated by Tansy. “I'm pretty sure somebody told me you put actual starch in his shorts once upon a time.”
Tansy didn’t deny it. “It was a science experiment.”
Jinx looked up from where she was carefully cutting thin slices from a pepperoni stick. “What kind of science experiment?”
“Saturation point of a liquid or something like that.” Tansy waved a hand airily then sent her dough swirling in the air again. “Of course, then I had this huge bucket of starchy water that needed to be used up instead of wasted. I probably didn't need to use his shorts. And using balloons to hold them in position until they dried was just being creative. Arranging them on the front lawn as if invisible people were holding some kind of wild dance was the logical final step. Science, you know.”
Petra leaned around Tansy to firmly inform Jinx of the facts. “Mr. Fields is a saint.”
“Saint Malachi. Hmm.” Tansy noted. She picked up another ball of dough and thrust it at Jinx. “I’ve taught my dad, and I taught my little sister, Fern. Fern was born with a shortened arm on the left side, with differently formed fingers right about here.” She tapped her arm about two inches past the elbow. “She has a prothesis but doesn’t wear it all the time, and I have taught her to throw a mean crust.” She considered. “Honestly, I think her pizza crusts are better than mine. She said she uses mathematical calculations to time her spin. Something about a speed to flight ratio.”
Petra laughed. “Food science and math. Who knew?”
“Right?” Tansy agreed. “To me, cooking is not science. It’s tossing things in the pot and hoping it works.”
Whether she’d been convinced by the stories or not, Jinx took the dough Tansy offered her.
The shrieks of laughter from the kitchen kept growing. Aiden gave his head a final rub with the towel then dragged his fingers through his hair.
In the mirror, his grin shone back huge and bright. It was good to hear Jinx joining in. Mixed with Petra’s hearty laugh, the combination was quickly growing addictive.
Tomorrow would be one week since everything had changed, and High Water had gone from an idea to a reality. One week since Jinx had walked in the door.
One week that he and Petra had been sharing a bed.
All three facts astonished him, but perhaps the fact he’d managed to keep him and Petra on the slow boat instead of diving into full-out fucking might be the most miraculous.
Of course, Petra informing him on Monday evening that her period had started and that no way, no how, were they doing anything sexy had helped.
He’d insisted on cuddling, though. She’d huffed and rolled her eyes, but every night she’d willingly curled up facing him, legs entwined.
Falling asleep staring into Petra’s face was an entirely new level of intimacy he hadn’t expected to be quite so thrilling.
Jinx still had her moments of panic, and she eased closer to Declan every chance she got, especially when Petra wasn’t around. But after only a week, none of them expected things to have gone as well as they had.
Aiden marched out to the kitchen, eager to join the ladies.
“You guys are having way too much fun,” he complained jokingly.
Jinx whirled on him. She held forward a cookie sheet where a pizza crust rested on a layer of cornmeal. “I made this one. It’s rising.”
He stopped and took a closer look. Lopsided instead of circle, it was clearly a fine pizza crust. “It's amazing. Although I hope we’re not on a raw food diet.”
Jinx smiled then ducked her head. A second later, she lifted her chin. “Nope. But there will be goat cheese.”
“Okay. Hopefully pepperoni as well.”
He wasn’t sure why that made Jinx snicker so hard, but he didn’t care. Snickering was great. Aiden made his way to Petra’s side, slipped a hand around her waist and leaned in to kiss her cheek. “I hope you’re making my pizza extra-large.”
She snickered. “Why? Overcompensating?”
She offered the tease quietly enough Jinx couldn’t overhear, but Tansy did. Her friend snorted so hard she choked.
Tansy waved away help. “Nothing. It's nothing.” She shook a finger at Aiden. “I like you.”
“We’ve already established there’s so much to love.”
“Ego much?” But Petra smiled even as she pushed a tray with ingredients into his hands. “Okay, Mr. Everybody Loves Me. Carry this to the table beside the fire pit. We're setting up a cooking station.”
Obediently following directions and acting as a delivery boy, Aiden spotted Jake already settled by the fire. “Aren’t we missing some people?”
“Sydney will be here when she can,” Petra promised. “I have no idea where Declan is, though.”
“Hey, Jake,” Aiden called. “Know where Declan is?”
His brother shrugged. “I didn’t send him off. He must have gotten tied up chatting with someone, but I’m sure he’ll be here.”
“Text him a reminder. After that, more pizza for us,” Aiden declared happily to Jinx.
The first pizza was just about ready to come out of the oven when Declan’s truck roared past, stopping in the parking area on the far side of the building.
On the opposite side of the house, a second door slammed shut.
Less than a minute later, the small, very determined redhead who was Sydney came striding into view.
She went straight to Petra and gave her a hug. “Hello, all. Sorry I’m late.” She raised a hand and saluted Jinx. “I’ll save the hugs for down the road. Hi, Jinx. I’m Sydney.”
Jinx waved. “Hi.”
Sydney examined the area with a critical eye. “Jake and Aiden. Nice to meet you again.” She accepted the beer that Tansy gave her and raised it in the air. “Here’s to the truth that no good-deed goes unpunished.”
A worried noise escaped Petra, which set Aiden on high alert. “You had trouble at old man Talita’s place?” she asked.
Sydney shook her head then made a face. “I had no trouble with Talita.” She paused, waiting until Declan fully emerged from behind the barn and joined them at the fire. She tilted her beer bottle at him. “ He , on the other hand, was a royal pain in the butt.”
What the hell? Aiden eyed his brother. He’d gone and interrupted Sydney’s work? Declan was protective, and both he and Jake knew their big brother tended to go big when it came to watching out for others, but how in the world had he gotten involved this time?
Declan stared down Sydney’s finger as if she were holding a daisy instead of a potential weapon. “I didn't say anything Talita didn’t need to hear.”
Jake made a rude noise. He folded his arms where he stood on the other side of the food table. “What were you doing dropping in at Sydney’s house call?”
“Yes, Declan, I'm curious too. What were you doing dropping in while I was on a house call?” Sydney’s tone went saccharinely sweet.
“Seemed like the right thing to do.” Declan's gaze drifted over the group before landing on the pizza on the cutting board. “Is that pizza ready? I'm starving.”
Sydney rolled her eyes then pushed past him and sat in the chair next to Jinx. “Go ahead and feed him. He probably can't think straight and it’s making him hangry.”
“I wasn’t angry,” Declan insisted. “I was reasonable but firm. Now he knows better than to pull a gun on anyone.”
Holy shit. Instinctively, Aiden glanced toward Jinx to see how she was doing after that comment. Petra was doing the same, because, sure enough, Jinx had shot upright. “Someone pulled a gun on you?” she demanded of Sydney.
Jake’s gaze slid over Sydney as if examining her carefully for wounds. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. There wasn’t any danger. Not really.” Sydney laid a gentle hand on Jinx’s wrist. “Mr. Talita is a cranky old man who would never dream of hurting anyone. He’s used to putting on a show to scare people off, though, trying to protect his territory. I can't take fault with that. We were well on the way to solving our communication problem when the Lone Ranger here came to my rescue .”
Once again all eyes landed on Declan.
He helped himself to a piece of pizza and bit into it without another word. He considered while he chewed then washed the bite down with a swig of beer before speaking.
“Seemed like the right thing to do at the time,” he repeated mildly. He met Sydney’s annoyed gaze and lifted his chin slightly. “Would do it again in a heartbeat.”
Sydney glared harder. “You know, there's names for men like you.”
“Hungry?”
Aiden laughed, and the sound broke the tension. Sydney obviously didn't have a problem with her initial situation, but more of a problem with Declan showing up. But even that was washed away as Tansy continued passing out slices of steaming hot pizza, and the conversation moved to different topics.
An hour later, Jake eased back in his chair and patted his belly. “Ladies, you outdid yourselves. Thank you, that was delicious. Especially the goat cheese one.”
“My favourite was the liver and onions,” Declan said with a straight face.
For some reason that made Jinx snicker.
Sydney eyed Declan. “Are you drunk?” she asked.
“I’ll explain,” Jinx offered. She bounced to her feet, then shocked them all by extending an invitation. “Sydney, do you and Tansy want to see the rope swing Aiden made for me in the barn?”
“That sounds like an excellent idea, and one that gets us out of doing the dishes.” Sydney nodded her approval. “Well done.”
“Rope swings are my favourite,” Tansy agreed. “Plus, I need some kitten cuddle time if you have any.” She eyed Jake. “Leave the pizza oven. I’ll grab it tomorrow when it’s cooled off. Everything else needs to be hand washed.”
“You said your baking sheets always go in the dishwasher,” Petra reminded her with amusement. “Not that there’s a dishwasher here yet in the first place, but…”
“She’s making more work for us,” Jake gave a long-suffering sigh. “I’m not the one who intruded on Sydney’s visit.”
“If you don’t want to get shot, don’t hang with the crows,” Tansy teased before batting her lashes.
Jake rolled his eyes.
Jinx guided the ladies toward the barn. Jake and Declan loaded up the dirty dishes, and suddenly Aiden found himself alone with Petra by the fire.
“Shove over,” Petra demanded before curling herself up comfortably in his lap.
“This is nice,” he told her honestly. He rearranged her soft ass more comfortably in his lap as she draped her arms over his shoulders. It didn’t seem as if she were getting cozy to spark up a sexual connection, though. She was quiet, more so than he’d ever seen her in their short time together.
Aiden brushed his fingers over her cheek. “How’re you doing, darling?”
“I’m…” She hesitated. “Overwhelmed. I hate to admit that, but as good as things have been going, and as much as I know I’m in the right place, I’m teetering on the edge of too much.”
As if the confession had taken every bit of her strength, she laid her head on his shoulder and let out a huge exhale.
Aiden stroked her back softly. Thinking for a moment and filtering through all the possible ways to make things better.
Because that was his first instinct. He didn’t want her hurting, or worried, or overwhelmed, but something held him back from straight up diving into solutions.
They sat there quietly for a good five minutes before Petra wiggled up to meet his eyes straight on. “How are you doing?”
“Pretty much the same,” he said honestly. “I’m worried I’ll accidentally make a wrong move and scare the beejezus out of Jinx. I’m worried I’ll go overboard and be too protective of her when she’s obviously strong as hell and just needs a firm foundation under her feet. I’m worried High Water won’t be ready soon enough to help someone else who needs it.”
She listened intently as he spoke, nodding in understanding.
Aiden took a deep breath. She was already exhausted. This wasn’t the time to drop the other bomb, that he was worried that he was the only one thinking maybe the thing between them could be more than a convenient lie and great sex.
Petra raised a brow. “What?”
Nope. Not going there. Not yet.
“Focus on simple,” he suggested. “Let’s get through the next couple of days. Jinx starts school on Monday, and that will give us more breathing room. That should help.”
“That’s true. You know what? Monday I’m taking a long lazy bubble bath,” Petra warned. “Middle of the day, with sweet treats and candles and no agenda.”
“Perfect.” He brushed his lips over hers and kissed her softly. “I’ll make sure that happens.”
She leaned closer, returning the kiss with gentle enthusiasm. Aiden soaked in the pleasure of having her in his arms even as he plotted mischief.
Operation Bubble Bath was on for Monday. He could not wait.