around, I find Rona has approached the kitchen, which is part of the open plan layout.
She looks good enough to eat and having showered as well, Rona’s hair is still damp. She’s wearing some kind of stretchy vest top, underneath a soft knit cardigan which she pulls together watching me give her a once over. She has paired this, with what my daughter calls jazz pants and a thick pair of socks.
“Do you need help with anything?” Rona asks me with a tender look on her face.
“No, I’ve got it covered. Why don’t you take a seat while I get you a drink? Would you like a soft drink or alcoholic?”
“As we are having Italian to eat, I would love a glass of wine please.” I pour her a glass of Gavi, as she makes herself comfortable at the breakfast bar.
“So what do you do when not on vacation?” I ask, just as Jake comes through the door.
“Give me five minutes to change,” he shouts, dashing to his room.
“I work for a design company. We get a lot of business creating company logos, but occasionally, I get the chance to do something fun like wedding invitations, promotional posters for movies and I actually love creating book covers, because I get given a copy of the book to read so I can do it justice.” Laughing, she continues, “Sometimes I cheat when I have no interest in the book and just read the book’s description, but I love to read, so getting a copy of some books is definitely an added bonus.”
“It sounds like you love your job.” I drain the pasta and put everything into serving dishes.
“What about you? What business are you in.”
“I’m a lawyer, but only take the odd case, because I much prefer staying here on the ranch, helping Jake at the training centre. We train various breeds of horses. Beth and Anna run the equestrian centre, which is on the other side of the property. Jake and I get involved with that part of the business when they have a large group booking or if they generally need help. We also employ a few staff at both sites; everything runs smoothly, most of the time.”
“That sounds really interesting. I’m afraid I don’t know anything about horses though. Perhaps you can take me out on one of yours while I’m here? You’ll have to be gentle with me though.”
“Always,” Cade replies and I’m not totally sure we’re talking about the same thing.
~~ Rona ~~
As we sit down for dinner, Jake joins us, “The stables are fine and no problems while we were away. Just a few invoices that need paying. I’ve left them in your office.”
“I’ll sort them out tomorrow. Let’s eat.”
Tasting the pasta and Italian sauce Cade has made; my taste buds explode.... wow! It’s the best sauce I’ve ever tasted. Finishing my meal rather quickly, I look up to see Cade watching me. Heck, I hope I haven’t acted like a savage by shoveling the food into my mouth.
“Did you enjoy that?” Cade asks me.
I blush, “I certainly did. That was the most enjoyable meal I can ever remember having and the sauce was amazing.”
“An old family recipe,” Cade tells me smiling. “Would you like some tiramisu with a cappuccino, maybe?”
“Oh wow. You carry on feeding me like this; I may never want to leave.”
Cade’s eyes shoot to mine, but he quickly looks away.
“That’s the plan,” Jake grins.
Standing up, I help them both clear the table and load the dishes into the dishwasher.
Once the kitchen has been put back to rights we take our coffee and dessert into the lounge. This area is made for comfort and has two large sofas and four oversized chairs.
Taking one of the chairs with a side table, I unload my hands while making myself comfortable in the chair. it back down on the table, so I can eat my dessert, which is delicious.
“I promised I would help some friends move house tomorrow,” Jake says to me. “But if you want, the day after, I can take you around Teton Village or into Jackson for some shopping or sightseeing. We can get lunch?”
“Once I get some calls over with first thing, I can take Rona to Teton Village for some fresh air and to show her around and then you could take her to Jackson the day after.” As Cade says this, I think the end sounds a bit forced.
Jake not hearing anything weird in his dad’s voice, agrees, “Yeah.