She liked this room, its old wallpaper dotted with tiny yellow roses. White Priscilla curtains over the windows matched a white chenille bedspread on the twin bed where she lay. The chenille had made her smile at first sight. It was just one of the things about Maddie that had driven Robert crazy, that she loved vintage clothes and wore them whenever she could. Stored in her apartment in New York was one whole closet of odds and ends she’d picked up, from broad-shouldered suits and tiny hats with veils to a genuine flapper dress and a big brown mouton coat.
Among her prize possessions was a lilac chenille robe that she’d brought along with her. It wasn’t sexy and it sure wasn’t glamorous, but Maddie loved the peacock design spreading across the back, the chenille feathers topping the patch pockets in front. She didn’t wear it often because it wouldn’t stand up to daily wear, but whenever Maddie was troubled, bundling into that robe made her feel protected and coddled.
It was the kind of robe she could imagine a grandmother wearing, a grandmother who would have fixed her a cup of hot chocolate when she spent the night, who would have worn that robe while bustling around the kitchen in the morning.
Maddie had never had a grandmother, never known any other relatives than her parents. Her mother had been an orphan, and her father’s past had been a dark hole at the core of their lives, a subject never to be discussed. It was simply the way things were, and the child Maddie had never questioned it. The woman Maddie now knew why.
Her father had moved them from place to place all of her life, constantly reminding her of the folly of depending upon anyone but herself. Maddie had had little choice. At the succession of schools where she’d always been the new kid, she’d always been too eccentric, too colorful, too smart. She had never fit in, but she hadn’t let it matter.
Until Robert. After losing her only family, she’d been alone and scared and wanted desperately to do things right so she wouldn’t be alone anymore. She’d lost too much of herself in the process.
Now Maddie was alone again. Though a part of her was shocked and furious with the father she’d always loved deeply, she recognized that he had been right. She was a fool to depend upon anyone but herself.
And if she ever got involved with a man again—which wouldn’t be soon—she swore it would only be someone who didn’t want to change her, someone who liked Maddie for exactly who she was.
Her stomach rumbled. The aroma wafting up the stairwell reminded her it had been early this morning since she’d last had food. But downstairs, she would have to contend with Boone and this mess that Sam had left her.
Maddie straightened and shook her hair in defiance. The glowering giant would be her test at standing up for herself. She ran a quick brush through her hair and bounded down the stairs.
Boone toed his boots off outside the back door, leaving them on the porch out of years of long habit. His mother had trained them well.
Something smelled terrific, and he was starving. He and Gulliver had enjoyed their run, and he had found Jim and worked out tomorrow’s plans. There were problems here, for sure, but nothing that couldn’t be handled by buckling down to hard work, something he’d never minded. Both Jim and Sonny Chavez, a hand who worked as needed, had seemed glad to see someone at the helm again. Now all Boone wanted was a shower, something to eat and to fall into bed until sunup.
When he opened the back door, laughter greeted him, Vondell’s rusty cackle mingling with a full, rich laugh that landed a punch to his gut. Maddie laughed like she talked, throaty and low, filled with life and sparkle. Their backs were turned to him, both bent over the counter, studying something intently.
“I swan, I will never get the hang of this, gal.”
“Sure you will, Vondell. You’ve already got the top petals right. You’re a quick study.”
He could see one side of Vondell’s face and the quick blush that stained her cheeks.
Blush? Vondell?
He closed the door behind him, and both jumped and whirled. He couldn’t tell who looked more guilty.
“Boone, I didn’t expect—uh, supper’s not quite ready.”
Boone glanced back and forth, wondering what it was that Vondell hid behind her back. “Didn’t mean to startle you,” he replied. Despite feeling like his bones could sink into the floor, curiosity tickled at his resolve to head straight for the shower. “You all right?”
“Oh—sure—sure. Never better,” Vondell blustered.
Maddie simply watched him, chin up but eyes sparkling.
“Need some help?”
“Me?” Vondell squeaked. “Why, no, not at all. Uh, Maddie’s helping me.”