Pining For You (Jasper Falls 4)

Her stare once again intensified as she looked directly at her. Skylar had the urge to drop her gaze, but forced herself to hold the other woman’s stare. She didn’t want her to assume she couldn’t handle the job.

“Rhett might seem like a patient man, but that’s all part of the job,” Erin continued. “It’s my business to adjust his life where needed, whenever needed, so he doesn’t have to. That’s the way he likes it. He tells me what needs to be done and I do it, so he can maintain diplomacy at all times. That includes the supervision, hiring, and firing of his staff. Understand?”

Skylar blinked like a cartoon, not used to this sort of abrasive intensity from others. She wasn’t sure what Erin thought of her, but it seemed clear she didn’t care for her. Skylar wasn’t even sure she viewed her as a person, but it seemed clear she didn’t see her as an equal.

At the moment, she felt a little like a trespassing spider Erin had decided to let live—for now.

“I understand.” How else could she respond? Her attitude was completely unexpected and unfamiliar. Seriously, who spoke to people like that?

“Good.” The word had a completely different impact than when Rhett had used it as a form of praise earlier.

Skylar swallowed, a little afraid to blink.

Erin reached into her purse and removed a manilla folder. “Here’s your paperwork. Paychecks get electronically deposited every Thursday.” She removed a one-hundred-dollar bill from her wallet. “And this is for this week’s groceries.”

Skylar never shopped for a family before, but quick math told her a hundred dollars wouldn’t be enough for three people requiring three meals a day for a solid seven days, especially if she wanted to feed them more than junk.

Maybe when he said meals, he expected her to pay for her own. She should have thought of that. And he probably skipped breakfast and grabbed lunch in town.

“Is there a list?”

“Rule number one, Skylar, no one has time to hold your hand and walk you through every step. You’ll only survive in this position if you know how to be assertive and get things done.” She cocked her head and made the most patronizing pout. “Is that something you think you can handle?”

She wanted to snatch the money out of her hand and tell her to fuck off, but she simply smiled, some deep seated voice of maternal wisdom telling her that the strongest women didn’t need salty language to face off with a bully. But the hillbilly in her really wanted to hogtie the bitch and shove a frog in her mouth. “I think I can handle it.”

“Good.”

Just then, Addison came running back into the foyer. She had a brown mustache and a spill down the front of her fuzzy, white coat.

Erin tsked. “Oh, honey, what have you done?”

Addison put her chin to her chest and frowned. “Whoopsie. I spilled.”

“Your Daddy’s going to be very upset if he sees that. That’s your good coat.” The child pouted and Erin turned to Skylar. “You’ll have to get that cleaned. Mr. Buchanan wouldn’t want his daughter walking around town in dirty clothes.”

Really? Because yesterday she was running around in thirty degree weather without a jacket, in a mismatched outfit, with unbrushed hair. “I’ll take care of it.”

By the time Erin left, Skylar felt like she needed a nap. What had started as a fun outing, now felt like a heavily weighted assignment that could make or break her.

She blew out a breath and Addison did the same, mimicking her post-tornado posture. “Is she always like that?”

Addison shook her head at the door, imitating Skylar’s tone. “Is she always like that?”

Skylar chuckled, needing the slight comic relief. Addison had a decent sense of humor for her age and they were going to have a nice day together, stains or not.

“Come on, kid. Let’s change your coat and get going. We have a lot of stops to make.”

Being that she was only given a hundred dollar allowance to feed a family for a week, Skylar had to get creative. Luckily, she came from a long line of women who could feed an army on a dime and make pretty much anything from scratch.

She stocked the pantry with the basics, splurged on produce from the farmer’s market, and went to the butcher for some cheap cuts of meat she could disguise with fancy side dishes.

A whirlwind of efficiency, she managed to do all the shopping, drop Addison’s white coat off at the cleaners, swing by her Aunt Colleen’s to grab a jar of Italian Mary’s sauce, and get everything back to the house and unloaded before the snow truly started to stick.

Addison was getting cranky and Skylar figured she could probably use a nap, but naps weren’t something the child was accustomed to.