Wildblossom Read Online Free Page B

cooking!"
    And since that day, she had. Through the Sears, Roebuck & Co. catalogue, Ben had ordered a fancy nickel-plated, six-hole sterling steel range and a new oak icebox. They had also gotten every cooking gadget available, from the latest coffee grinder to a nickel-plated lid lifter. If Shelby had loved to cook as much as she loved to ride her horse, she would have been in a perpetual state of ecstasy. Still, she tried hard and made the best of it.
    Now, as she threw back the covers and dressed in the violet light, Shelby realized that her first month in Wyoming was passing quickly. Soon it would be May. She was anxious for their first roundup, and she had so many plans for the ranch that she could scarcely contain her excitement. The only obstacles were Uncle Ben and Titus. If she could convince them to take a few risks, the Sunshine Ranch could achieve success beyond anyone's dreams, even those of her father.
    Shelby paused before the oval mirror that hung over her washstand. Her clothes had been chosen for utility, but she couldn't help looking beautiful. Today she wore a union suit, shunning a corset, and a split skirt of chocolate broadcloth tucked into soft riding boots. Her ivory cotton blouse had a high neck and tapering long sleeves. She had fastened a gold bar pin to her collar, and her shining hair was swept up into the wide pompadour that the Gibson Girl had made so fashionable. On Shelby, the style was exquisite, emphasizing her stunning teal-blue eyes, the lines of her cheekbones and jaw, and her generous mouth.
    She headed into the main part of the house, where the biggest wall was dominated by a giant bear skin. Shelby hated it but didn't want to injure her uncle's pride by taking it down too abruptly. The furnishings were plain but comfortable, and Ben had mounted a large tattered poster advertising "Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Congress of Rough Riders." The decade-old relic featured a map of Europe, colored drawings of Indians in Venetian gondolas, and the slogan: "From Prairie to Palace; Camping on Two Continents."
    In the kitchen, Shelby began to hum, smiling, as she tied on her gingham apron and took eggs, ham, and butter from the icebox. She'd make pancakes, too, with warm maple syrup.
    An half-hour later the men burst into the house, bringing the bracing clean chill of the dawn with them. The quartet of hired hands looked like brothers. Their legs were slightly bowed from long days in the saddle, their faces were deeply tanned, they wore big hats that obscured their faces and bright handkerchiefs knotted around their necks. Shelby liked the music of their jingling spurs and the sharp sound of boot heels on the wooden floor.
    Everyone was talking at once, discussing the odds of another snowstorm so deep into April and how much work needed to be done before the roundup. When all six men were seated at the big drop-leaf table and Ben Avery had said grace, they ate and ate, nodding appreciatively at Shelby with their mouths full. She poured more coffee, passed full platters of pancakes, eggs, and ham, and watched as Titus and her uncle began to smile dreamily and loosen their belts.
    "Well," Ben muttered at last with a sigh of pleasure, "I gotta admit that our little Shelby is learning to cook after all."
    "Here, here!" Titus cried. Beaming, he lifted his coffee mug in a toast.
    "Mighty fine, Miz Shelby," Cal said, eyes fixed on his empty plate. The other three cowboys ducked their heads and made sounds of agreement.
    Shelby graced them all with a smile as radiant as the new morning sun. "Thank you all for the compliments."
    As if on cue, the quartet of ranch hands pushed back their chairs and stood up. "Fences're waitin'," Lucius muttered.
    "Wood t'chop," Jimmy chimed in.
    "Yup," Marsh said.
    "Hope I kin still get up in the saddle!" Cal joked.
    After the four young men had filed out of the house, Shelby laughed. "Aren't they adorable? Have you two ever heard Marsh say anything besides 'yup'?"
    Titus