.
and advertising takes money—which I do not have at present.” Taking a cola for herself, she waved a hand. “But I’m getting off topic here. Let’s go sit down and discuss your job. Jade,” she said, glancing down toward the child, “I have some crayons and a coloring book around here somewhere if you’d like to color while your dad and I talk.”
The child’s eyes lit up, so Lindsey gathered the materials she kept stashed in a kitchen drawer and spread them on the table.
The child eyed the table doubtfully and clung tighter to her father’s leg. She pointed toward the living room, not ten feet away. “Can I go in there with you and Daddy?”
The poor little lamb was a nervous wreck without her daddy.
“Of course, you can.” Lindsey swept up the crayons and book and proceeded into the living room, settling Jade at the coffee table.
All the while, she was aware of the handsome stranger’s eyes on her. His references were excellent. She could trust him. She did trust him. She even felt a certain comfort in his presence, but something about him still bothered her.
Was it because he was too good-looking? She had been susceptible to good looks once before and gotten her heart broken.
No. That had happened a long time ago and, with the Lord’s help, she had put that pain behind her.
Hadn’t she?
The sharp tang of Coke burned Jesse’s throat as he watched the play of interesting emotions across Lindsey’s face. She was not a woman who hid her feelings particularly well. If he was to pull this off, he would have to win her confidence. And right now, from the looks of her, she was worried about hiring him.
“I’m a hard worker, Miss Mitchell. I’ll do a good job.”
“Lindsey, please. There can’t be that much difference in our ages.”
“Okay. And I’m Jesse. And this lovely creature is Jade.” He poked a gentle finger at Jade’s tummy.
His little girl beamed at him as though he’d given her a golden crown and, as usual, his heart turned over when she smiled. That one missing front tooth never failed to charm him. “Daddy’s silly sometimes.”
“I guess I’ll have to learn to put up with that if he’s going to work out here. What about you? What are we going to do about you and my dog?”
“I don’t like dogs. They’re mean.” When Jade drew back against the couch, green eyes wide, Jesse sighed.
What in the world was he going to do about this stand-off between dog lover and dog hater? He’d give anything to see Jade get over her terrible fear of dogs, but the trauma ran so deep, he wondered if she ever would. In fact, since Erin’s death, her fear had worsened, and other fears had taken root as well. She didn’t want him out of her sight, she was terrified of the dark, and her nightmares grew in intensity.
He took a sip of cola, thinking. “Could we just play it by ear for a while and see how things go? Jade will be in school most of the time anyway.”
“I work long, sometimes irregular hours, especially this time of year.”
“I don’t mind that.” The more hours he worked the more money he’d make. And the more time he’d have to question Lindsey and check out the farm.
“Then I have a suggestion. The school bus runs right by my driveway. Why not have Jade catch the bus here in the morning and come back here after school?”
Jesse breathed an inward sigh of relief. He’d hoped she’d say that. Otherwise he would have to take off work twice a day to chauffeur his child to and from school.
“That would be a big help.”
“Yes, but coming here will also put her in contact with Sushi morning and night.”
“Hmm. I see your point.” Pinching his bottom lip between finger and thumb, he considered, but came away empty. “Any ideas?”
“Yes, but fears like that don’t disappear overnight. We’ll need some time for Jade to acclimate and to realize that Sushi is one of the good guys.” She smiled one of those sunshine smiles that made him feel as though anything was possible—even Jade accepting the dog.
“In the meantime, while Jade is here, Sushi can remain outdoors or in one of the bedrooms with the door closed. When we’re working in the field, sometimes she hangs out in the office anyway. She won’t like being left out, but it will only be until Jade feels more comfortable with her around.”
There she went again, tossing kindness around like party confetti. He had to stop setting himself up this way. Liking Lindsey Mitchell could not be part of the deal. “I’m sorry about this. Sorry to be so much trouble.”
“Don’t worry about it. Jade’s fear isn’t your fault, and she certainly can’t help it.” She shot a wink toward Jade who looked up, green eyes wide and solemn. “Not yet, anyway.”
The child was poised over a drawing of the Sermon on the Mount, red crayon at the ready. Jesse swallowed hard.
“Daddy, I want to see the Christmas trees.”
The knot tightened in Jesse’s chest. Pictures of Jesus. Christmas trees. What was next? “How about tomorrow?”
Jade didn’t fuss, but disappointment clouded her angelic face. She resumed coloring, trading the red crayon for a purple one.
“Come on, Jesse.” Lindsey rose from the armchair. “You may as well see where you’ll be spending most of your time. While we’re down there, I’ll show you the little office where I keep the equipment and explain my plans for this Christmas season.”
He’d have to do it sooner or later. Feeling as if he were being led to the gallows, Jesse swigged down the remainder of his Coke and stood.
“Where are the Christmas trees?” Gripping Jesse’s hand, Jade took in rows and rows of evergreens, swiveling her head from side to side plainly searching for something more traditionally Christmas.
She might be disappointed, but Jesse inhaled in relief, feeling the pungent pine-scented coolness in his nostrils. They were just trees. Plain ordinary pine trees, no more Christmassy than the thousands of evergreens lining the woods and roads everywhere in this part of Oklahoma. The only differences were the neat rows and carefully tended conical shapes of a specific variety. Nothing to get all worked up over.
“Where are the decorations? And the presents?” Jade was as bewildered as she was disappointed.
Kneeling in the rich dirt, Lindsey clasped one of Jade’s small hands in hers. “Listen, sweetie, don’t fret. Right now, the lot doesn’t look like anything but green pine trees, but just you wait another month. See that little building over there?”
After turning to look, Jade nodded. “Are the Christmas trees in there?”
Lindsey laughed, that warm, smoky sound that made Jesse’s stomach clench. “Not yet. But the decorations are in there. Lights, and Santas, and angels. Even a nativity set and a sleigh.”
“Yeah?” Jade asked in wonder.
“Yeah. And with your daddy to help me this year, we’ll set out all of the decorations, string lights up and down these rows, hook up a sound system to pipe in Christmas carols. Maybe you and I can even decorate one special tree up near the entrance where cars pull in. Then every night and day we’ll have a Christmas party. People will come to choose a tree and we’ll give them wagon rides from the parking area through the tree lot.”
The woman fairly glowed with excitement and the effect was rubbing off on Jade. Pulling away from her dad for the first time, she clapped her hands and spun in a circle.
“Let’s do it now.”
“Whoa, Butterbean, not so fast.” He laid a quieting