Page 41 of First Bride to Fall
“Do you?” He grinned. “That’s cool. I like Scrabble, too.” He sank his hands in his pockets. “I mean, used to. Haven’t played in a while.”
“I could give you a refresher course, if you’d like?”
“Sure.” His dark eyes sparkled. “There is one issue, though.”
Her eyebrows rose.
“My game’s missing some of its letters.”
“Most or just a few?”
He chuckled. “I think that we can manage.”
Chapter Nine
Grant placed another log on the fire and switched on a few living room lamps, and also the overhead light in the kitchen. Dusk fell outdoors, and darkness crept in through the cabin’s windows, casting long shadows across the floor. He set Nell up at the table with her foot propped on a sofa pillow on another chair. She had the Scrabble game in front of her.
He reached into the freezer for a cold pack. “That bag of peas was kind of shot, so I thought maybe we should move on to corn.”
She giggled. “I was about to say something corny, but I didn’t.”
“Come on, Nell. Don’t be a cornball.”
“Ooh, look at you. Fast with the quip.”
“I can be punny when I want to be. Just lend me your ears.”
Her eyes twinkled. “You’re a cornucopia of humor, Grant.”
“Well, shucks.”
She laughed harder. “You’re a-maize-ing.”
He chortled at her quick comeback. “There’s a kernel of truth in that.”
Susan hadn’t been into wordplay or Scrabble. None of his other former girlfriends had, either. Hanging out with a woman who liked cheesy puns as much as he did was refreshing.
“I do eat corn, though,” she said lightly. “It’s not like it is with the peas.”
“Well, hold yourself back,” he teased, waving the bag at her. “It needs to do its job here.” He draped the bag across her wrapped ankle and positioned it so it would stay in place.
“Thanks, Grant,” she said. “You’re being really sweet in taking care of me.”
“I’m happy to do it,” he said, because that was the truth. He liked tending to Nell. Her cheerful presence had been a welcome surprise. Plus she’d kept him immensely entertained with her wild camping stories. He could not picture any of the Delaney sisters in a tent. Least of all Nell, judging by what she’d selected as a hiking outfit.
He’d been mindful of having her ice her ankle off and on every twenty minutes or so, and his visible observation indicated that it had helped with the swelling. With her kind of injury, “RICE”ing for the first twenty-four hours was key. Rest. Ice. Compression. Elevation. He’d keep working on that, hoping she’d be much improved by tomorrow.
He filled both their mugs with steaming water from the kettle on the stove. “We’ve got two choices for tea. Earl Grey or Pumpkin Spice.”
“Ooh, Pumpkin Spice sounds autumnal. I’ll take that, please.”
He opened two paper packets and dropped a teabag into each of their mugs, carrying Nell’s over to her at the table.
“I don’t suppose you have cream, even the powdered stuff?”
“No, but I’ve got honey.”
“Honey would be great.”
