Page 4 of Mail Order Marvelous
Chapter Two
To Josie’s surprise, she woke the following morning with the top half of her on Jack.It was not something she’d imagined could happen.She’d started the night so close to the opposite side of the bed from him that she had been afraid of falling off.
She quickly got out of bed and pulled her nightgown—which had somehow ended up around her waist—down.Once she’d finished blushing, she hurried to the kitchen to see what he had on hand that she would be able to cook.
The cabinets were bare.Not one sign of food.Did he think she could cook without any ingredients?Myrtle probably could, but she didn’t have the kitchen abilities of her friend.
She heard footsteps coming up behind her.“Good morning, Jack.”
His arms came around her from behind, settling at her waist.“I didn’t think you’d be here quite this soon.I only have hardtack and jerky, and a bit of coffee.”
“Well, there’s not much I can do with that.I’ll make coffee.”
He opened a trap door in the floor and walked down into what she could only assume was the cellar.When he returned, he had exactly what she’d promised herself she would never eat again.Her stomach rolled just thinking about it.
“This will work for this morning.You’re going to meet up with friends this morning, right?”
She nodded.“And I’ll do some shopping if you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind at all.I have an account at the store.Just put whatever you think we need on the account.”
She turned to look at him.“Are you certain?I do have some money.”
“I’ve been working overtime so I could provide what was needed when you arrived.I will provide.”
She frowned.“I do plan to work with my friends.Will that be a problem?”
Jack shook his head.“Of course not.You just don’t need to finance it with your own money.Unless you plan to open your own store of something, I can afford to help you.”
Josie pursed her lips, thinking about it.It would help to start out with his money, depending on what she planned to do.But she had no idea what that was.“Thank you,” she finally said, but in her mind, she vowed she wouldn’t spend his money on more than the necessities.
“You’re my wife.It’s my job to provide.”
She nodded.“All right.”
She served the coffee and put some of the jerky and hardtack on a plate, carried it to the table, and set it down.
“We need two plates,” he said, reaching up into the cupboard for another.
“I’m not hungry this morning,” she fibbed.
His eyes narrowed, but he wasn’t going to force-feed her.“I don’t like the idea of you going hungry.”
“I cannot eat another meal of jerky and hardtack.The mere thought of it makes my stomach churn.”
“All right.Make sure you grab food you’ll eat from the store.”
She nodded, thankful he wasn’t pushing the issue.“I will.What are your favorite foods?”
“I’ll eat just about anything,” he said.“In the winter I really like soups and stews.In the summer, I’m happy with sandwiches.I won’t be difficult to feed,” Jack promised.
“Glad to hear it.It’s going to take a little while for me to learn how to cook better.I’m not a bad baker, though I don’t enjoy it.I think my friend Myrtle is going to ask to be the baker for all of us, though.She can bake anything.I’ve seen her throw random ingredients onto a pie crust, and the result was wonderful!”
“Make sure you get her to bake bread every day for us, and if she could make an occasional dessert, I’d be very happy.”
“I’ll talk to her then!I’ll see her in an hour or two at the store.Though I think I’ll head to town and do my shopping before we meet up with the others.”
“Sounds good.”He finished his food and pushed his plate away.“I’m heading to work.Don’t expect me before dark.”
