Rugged Cowboy - Elana Johnson Page 0,51

of course, as she was a whiz in the kitchen. Spencer had thrown his hat into the ring, and Jess had actually been impressed when his dish had won the first round. Not just scraped by but won.

The last two contestants were Hannah and Bill, and Jess had watched them perform a delicate dance in the kitchen as they sliced, diced, baked, and broiled their way toward ranch fame.

Emma had come in second to Spencer’s Thanksgiving pot pie, complete with flaky sweet potato crust and “stuffing bombs” that were really just mashed potatoes and stuffing bound together with flour and egg and fried. He’d done something magical with the spices, though, and they were the perfect thing to dip into the creamy sauce of the pot pie and pop the whole thing in her mouth.

Those two had advanced to the next round, along with Bill. He’d slung his arm around Hannah when the announcement was made, and they’d laughed together while he pressed a kiss to her temple.

She’d seemed so happy, and Jess was happy for her.

Round two had been yesterday, and Bill had been eliminated when he forgot about his mashed potato “toast points” and not gotten all of the ingredients on the plate.

“All right, all right,” Nate said, holding up his arms. Folding chairs had been set up and furniture rearranged so people could sit and view the cooking. “We’ve got Spencer Rust on this side of the kitchen.” He indicated Spence with a huge smile on his face. The assembled crowd went wild, and Jess moved out of the way as Ted and Missy squeezed into the kitchen behind her.

Three more cowboys followed, and Jess figured she better get a seat now or she’d be standing to watch the cook-off.

“And Emma on this half of the kitchen,” Nate said. More cheers filled the room, and Jess added her voice to those siding with Emma. In moments like these, Jess didn’t miss her family. She had a new group of people she belonged to here at Hope Eternal Ranch, and she sometimes marveled at how well Ginger integrated everyone into the ranch, no matter how small their role was or how short their visit lasted.

Jess wanted to build something like that for her own family, but she didn’t know how. She lived too far away from Montana, but her thoughts lingered on Dallas, Thomas, and Remmy. Perhaps if they became a family, they could start to build a place where all were welcome, no matter what time of day, what condition they were in, or how far they still needed to go to make things right.

Ginger had started taking men from the Bureau of Prisons as a way to make ends meet on the ranch, but Jess had seen her heart grow and expand beyond belief as everyone who’d been on the ranch for any length of time could see that it was about more than money now.

Jess’s own heart and mind had been opened in ways she’d never thought possible, as she hadn’t given dating Dallas a second thought, at least not because he was an ex-convict.

People made mistakes.

She knew she did, and she wanted to believe that with some effort and some honest sincerity, those wrongs could be righted.

She faded into the background by taking a folding chair on the side of the room as Nate and Ginger tag-teamed explaining the rules. She’d been present for both of the other rounds though—as had everyone else—so going over the rules wasn’t necessary. They did it though, and then Nate circled the long kitchen island and said, “Ready, set, cook!”

Emma and Spencer flew into action, and Jess clapped along with everyone else. They had an hour to present their best Thanksgiving Day leftover meal, and the excitement would wear off in about two minutes.

Only when Ginger would pretend to be a television host and go into the kitchen to ask questions would the crowd be stimulated again, and Jess looked down the row to where Jill sat with Michelle and Nick. She scooted down to the next empty chair and smiled at Jill.

Nick leaned over her and said, “We’ve got a friendly competition going on Spence.”

“What about him?” Jess asked, watching him pull a mixing bowl toward him and dump all of his mashed potatoes into it.

“If he wins, Ginger said she’ll host a Christmas giveaway.” He grinned like Santa Claus had come early.

“And if he loses?” Jess asked, wondering if she could cheer against Emma.

“Nothing.” Nick shrugged