Getting to his feet, he entered the kitchen and saw her elbows-deep in the sink, washing the dishes.Her bowl of food was on the counter in the center of the kitchen.
“You’re not eating,” he said.
“I’ll eat when these dishes are done,” Astrid said.
He expected to see the kitchen a mess.There were the large saucepans, along with the bowls, but it was all clean and neat.Not a speck of dirt anywhere.
Lord would learn to deal with his yearning.
“You’ve got the job,” he said.
Chapter Two
Two Months Later
Astrid looked at the pumpkins and knew it was pointless buying any.Lord grew his own pumpkins, and he’d been bringing them to the house for her to use.She had carved a couple and left them outside the front door.At first, Lord hadn’t liked it.Then, when he saw the trick-or-treaters coming, he changed his mind.It had been an interesting two months.
She rarely saw her boss.Lord was the first to leave the house, the last to arrive for breakfast, and the last to arrive for dinner.He was never around after she did the dishes.They lived completely separate lives.Even on Sundays, when everyone had a day off and there were no ranchers in sight, Lord was nowhere to be found.
Astrid kept herself busy by planning the weekly menus and checking the ingredients in the pantry.
Monday was always a busy day.She had no choice but to make breakfast out of whatever she had on hand, and then she would take a trip to the store to stock up.
She’d been growing Lord’s pantry, fridge, and freezer.He didn’t seem to mind her constantly bringing more food than she needed for the week, but she knew winter was fast approaching.When the snow hit, she didn’t want to worry about getting to town.
Also, some of the guys had turned their extra orders of food into a regular thing.Their families even liked the way she cooked, and she was not going to complain about that.She liked to keep busy.It was how she was able to distract herself from Lord’s lack of presence.She expected to see him a little more, but she was starting to think she saw him more at the library than she did working for him and living with him.
Her parents hadn’t been pleased with her leaving.They liked having her around, but they also understood her wanting to move on with her life.Her brothers rarely returned home, and she just wanted to make something of her life.Handing in her notice at the library had been a relief and felt freeing.People thought she was nuts for wanting to work for Lord.
The last two months had been pretty amazing.The hours were long, but she had always been an early riser.Now, she got to do something with her time, and as she made her way through the aisles, filling her cart, she soon found herself feeling ...happy.Very happy.It was a strange feeling.She’d never been unhappy, but this felt good, it felt complete.Like this was where she was supposed to be in her life.
With her cart completely filled, she made her way outside to the truck Lord had given her to use for shopping.She loaded up the back with all her bags, climbed into the front, and made her way to Lord’s Ranch.
No Wolves Road was preparing to enjoy Halloween.Carved pumpkins lined the streets, the shops were filled with spooky décor, and the coffee shop was advertising their annual delicious spooky drinks.She loved October, November, and December.The autumn through winter was the time of year she enjoyed.She couldn’t get enough of it.
Driving back to the ranch, she felt the chill in the air.The sun was shining, but it was crisp.
