“It was either give them to you or go look for one of those homeless people holding a sign that says they’re hungry.”
Landon chuckled, then held up a hand. “I’m not laughing at the plight of the homeless—just the idea of you driving up to some guy and handing him a carton of eggs.” He opened the gift box and smiled. “This was Cal’s, wasn’t it?”
“He would like knowing that you had it.”
“Thanks. That’s sweet of you.” Landon shut the box, went to the door, and opened it for her to go inside.
The foyer looked so nice now. The whole place did, really. The wood tile brought out the warm tones of the stone fireplace in the family room. The blues and emerald green in the rug were repeated in the curtains, the paintings, and the arrangement of ginger jars that sat on the mantel. She felt so at home here now.
As she and Landon made their way to the kitchen, Kate realized she’d decorated the house to match her own style. Granted, Landon had given her free reign to do whatever she wanted, but she could have gone more modern or more rugged. She could have gone with a hundred different color schemes. Instead, she’d used her favorite colors. She’d designed Landon’s home to be a place she loved. Subconsciously, she’d already been buying into that dream of moving in here.
Landon took the eggs from her and went to the fridge. “I’m watching Audrey tonight while Jaxon is out on a date, or I’d suggest doing something fun.”
Summoned either by her name or her curiosity, the little girl bounded into the kitchen. “Who are you talking to?”
Landon didn’t have to answer. Audrey spotted Kate and bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. “I want to do something fun. Are you guys going horseback riding? Can I come?”
Landon shut the fridge. “It’s too late for horseback riding. Although, maybe we can convince Miss Benton to stay a spell and keep us company.”
Babysitting wasn’t the best time to have a serious talk with Landon, but eventually Jaxon would come home, and then she and Landon would have time alone.
Audrey tugged on Kate’s arm. “Can we play princess and evil Queen?”
The spinning game that made Audrey throw up. Hard pass. “How about we play something else?”
Landon scooped up Audrey and deposited her on a kitchen chair. “You’re going to make a Playdoh village, remember?” Several colored blobs of Playdoh sat on the table along with an assortment of cookie cutters, molds, and a press. “When you’re done, you can show us. We’ll be watching you from the family room.”
“Don’t you want to help?” Audrey asked, already grabbing a plastic rolling pin.
Landon took hold of Kate’s hand. “You can surprise us with what the village looks like.”
“Okay.” The little girl began flattening a blob. “No peeking.”
“No peeking.” Landon agreed. He pulled Kate toward the couch, then as though still considering Audrey’s words, his head swung back her direction. “Remember, we don’t eat the Playdoh.”
“No peeking!” Audrey called back.
Kate sat on the couch. “She’s totally going to eat Playdoh. You know that, right?”
Landon joined her, sitting close. “Yeah, but what can I do? No peeking rules are sacred.”
“Fine, but if she looks like she’s about to throw up, I’m letting you handle it.”
“All right.” A smile grew on Landon’s lips. “I don’t think the situation turned out all that badly last time.” He raised Kate’s hand to his mouth and kissed it.
The feel of his lips sent shivers through her. Having doubts about him was impossible when he did utterly romantic things like that. But maybe that was the problem. She needed to stop thinking like a woman in love and look at her situation analytically.
He smiled at her again, blue eyes lit up like they were bits of the sky, sunshine included. Kate didn’t really want to look at their relationship analytically. She wanted to melt into Landon. But first, she needed a little reassurance that his feelings were real, that he wasn’t playing her as a means to get Coyote Glen.
Time to perform her first test: search for signs of disappointment when he found out he couldn’t choose her next foreman.
She kept hold of his hand and casually watched his face. “My father says he can hire a new foreman for me. He still has contact with people in the business.”
Landon cocked his head. “Your father hasn’t done any ranching since he left Arizona. Who does he know in the business down here?” Landon’s expression didn’t show disappointment, just doubt.
She shrugged. “I’ll let you know after he hires someone.”
Landon opened his mouth to speak, argue with her maybe, and then stopped himself. “Fine. I won’t worry about finding anyone for you.”