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Scout walked into the B&B, where Noah had indicated he could grab something to eat. He had been bringing his lunch most days, but today he had gotten so caught up in the task of framing out the new section of barn that he missed lunch. The other hands lived here on the ranch and were able to go home quickly to recover and eat. He had decided to live in Little Bend with Jake for his short tenure here and was now grateful for the B&B being close enough that he didn’t have to go any distance for food.
He made his way in through the back door as Noah had instructed, and tentatively stuck his head around the door frame. He was caught off guard by the tiny sleeping baby in the playpen in front of him. It was obvious from the fluffy pink top over stretchy pink leggings; it was a girl despite her lack of hair on top of her head. He found himself smiling at the tiny little noises she made, oblivious to the world around her.
“Can I help you,” a voice asked, causing him to glance up as he found himself face to face with a woman who looked to be about sixty.
“Marissa?” He asked as that was the name Noah had given.
“That’s me, and I’m going to guess you are Scout,” she said, holding out a hand in welcome.
He gave a firm handshake, “I am.”
“Jack told me you got that bad section of the barn stripped down and reframed today. He’s pretty impressed, and that is hard to do with my old Jack,” she said in a conspiratorial tone, “so of course I never said anything.”
“Of course,” Scout said, with a grin.
“Come on in,” she waved him deeper into the sitting area and was pleasantly surprised to see Mary Williams.
“Scout,” Mary said, standing and coming over to hug him, “twice in such a brief period, I love seeing so much of you. How do you like the ranch?”
“It’s great. There is always a lot of activity going on, the therapy areas, and all the hands working in fields; it never seems to slow down out here. It’s a big, well-run operation, and I’m excited about the improvements we are making in that main barn area.”
“Jack said you had come up with a cute little project to add,” Marissa said, offering a chair next to the table tucked into the corner of the kitchen.
As he sat, Marissa put a bowl of soup in front of him. “I will make you a fresh grilled cheese if you like.”
“Man, that would be great. I hope I’m not putting you out; I thought the dining room was open the way Noah described it,” he said, worried he was putting the nice lady out.
“Nothing doing. We keep it open for anyone that needs it during the day,” she said, glancing over to check on the sleeping baby.
“I know Belle is your daughter, but do you have another child? I noticed the baby resting,” he said, inclining his head to show direction.
“No, silly, that is Avery’s sweet baby Jayne. That is a story,” Mary said with amused eyes.
“I didn’t think so at the time, but that little one has wrapped her tiny fist around my heart,” Marissa said with a chuckle. “Her momma showed up here and went into labor on the chair, as I was trying to talk Margaret into getting rid of her. She was determined she was going to go to work for us here despite being nearly nine months pregnant,” she said, shaking her head.
Scout laughed. “Seems like she got her way, as I’m pretty certain she didn’t leave that cutie pie behind.”
“Avery’s a hard worker, and that baby is the sweetest. Even when Avery drops her at the nursery in the morning, I truck on over and pick her up most days, while her momma works,” Marissa said.
“Jayne’s a doll, but you will love Avery,” Mary said, with a twinkle in her eye as she made an odd face at Marissa.
“I’m sure she is really great, but I’m not looking for a girlfriend. I am not staying put, and besides, I’m not looking to take on a kid, when I barely have my life together, no matter how cute she might be,” he said, with a huge grin.
“And I am not interested in anyone at all,” another female voice joined into the conversation.
Scout looked up and felt the direct eye contact of the younger woman to his toes. Her chocolate hair that was in a messy bun on top of her head showcased her delicate facial features with a smattering of freckles on dewy skin and curves that filled out her jeans in the right spots. He suddenly understood the sweet features on Jayne when he had seen the baby the first time.
“I guess we agree on one thing right off the bat,” Scout said, standing to his full height and walking over to Avery. He took note of the fact that she barely reached his shoulder, but within reach now, she smelled like flowers. He found it oddly intoxicating.
It had been an exceedingly long time since a woman had captured his full attention in such a manner. It was not just the looks, but her cheeky attitude that had her staring at him without flinching.
“Scout Westbrook,” he said, holding out a hand. “I think we might have gotten off to a bumpy start.”
“Avery Tomlin,” she said, and put her hand in his, “Everyone here on the ranch has the best intentions, and believes in true love, matching up everyone our age, and getting into everyone’s business,” she said, glancing back at Marissa and Mary with a smile.
“Hey, we just love,” Marissa said, with a teasing tone.
“Jayne is a cutie pie,” he said, hoping to change the topic.
“Thanks,” she said, glancing over at her daughter. “I can’t disagree with you. You were military,” she asked, suddenly catching him a bit off guard.
“Army Special Forces,” he said, with pride.
“Oh,” she said, moving by him without another word. He went back to his lunch, with a quizzical look, watching as Avery moved to the cabinet area across from the kitchen sink and pulled a couple of vases out. She checked on Jayne and then went out of the kitchen again.
“Okay, she didn’t seem like a big military fan,” he said, as he sipped the soup. “Or was it just me?”
Marissa looked at Mary as she sat down hard in her chair with a deep sigh. “The reason she is here,” she said, quietly looking over her shoulder as if to confirm Avery was not there. “Her husband died, deployed in the middle east. She hasn’t spoken about it yet to me, except in tiny snippets here and there.”
“Well, I’m going to go out on a limb here, ladies, but I’m pretty certain the lovely Ms. Avery and I are not going to be friends,” he said with a grimace.
“We shall see,” Mary said, sipping her coffee.
Scout just shook his head as the two elderly ladies went about their gossiping around him. He missed this, the simple joys of life like grilled cheese sandwiches, gossiping sweet old ladies, and a bunch of old-fashioned work to get done before sunset. He could not remember having this level of peace in an exceptionally long time, and he quietly enjoyed it more than he thought he would.
