Chapter Two
“A wife!” Jason shouted.
Amanda glanced around the room at the faces staring at her. “Really, Mr. Kruger, there’s no need to raise your voice.”
“A wife?”
She was tired from her long journey and a headache threatened from the bone-rattling trip up the mountain. This Mr. Kruger was testing the limits of her good manners.
“Yes, Mr. Kruger, a—”
“What about my pie recipe?” Polly demanded.
“And what about her accusing me of stealing?” Gladys asked.
Duncan wrung his hat. “Mr. Kruger, you got to settle this once and for all.”
“Now look, all of you,” Jason said, “I don’t—”
“Excuse me, Mr. Kruger.” Amanda leaned closer and lowered her voice. “You’ve spilled a little pie on your shirt.”
The words just hung there for a moment between the two of them.
“Thank you,” he finally said, grinding out the words between clenched teeth as if he hadn’t the least bit of appreciation for her helpful comment.
He turned to the other women. “Now look, I don’t give a damn about whose pie recipe is whose, or who puts what into their roast chicken, or who stole what recipe. None of it amounts to a hill of ants and I don’t want to hear another word about it.”
Polly bristled. “Well!”
“I never….” Gladys put her nose in the air.
“Get out of my office,” Jason said, “all of you. Come back when you’ve got a serious problem.”
Duncan moaned. “But Mr. Kruger…”
“Excuse me, Mr. Kruger?” Amanda said. “If I may say so, what you have here is, indeed, a serious problem.”
For a moment Jason Kruger looked as if he intended to toss her out of his office along with the others, but Amanda stood firm. He couldn’t give her his full attention until the stolen pie recipe was dealt with, and since Jason wasn’t taking it seriously, she would.
“If I may?” Amanda asked Jason.
He threw both hands up. “Have at it, lady.”
Amanda turned to the women. “As I understand it, one of you thinks the other stole your recipe.”
Polly jerked her head toward Gladys. “She stole my apple pie recipe.”
“And she’s after my roast chicken ingredients,” Gladys said.
“A woman works for years perfecting a recipe. She certainly doesn’t want another woman taking it, then passing it along for everyone to use.” Amanda turned to Jason. “Are you following this, Mr. Kruger?”
He threw her a sour look. “Hanging on every word.”
“Good,” Amanda said. “As I see it, there’s but one way to settle this issue. You ladies will exchange your pie and chicken recipes with each other. Only the two of you will have them. That way you can be assured neither recipe will be passed along to anyone else without fearing that your own recipe will then be passed on in retaliation. How does that sound?”
Gladys and Polly looked at each other, then finally nodded their agreement.
Duncan rushed forward and took Amanda’s hand. “Thank you, ma’am, thank you kindly. This here is surely a load off of my mind.”
He escorted the two women out of the office, then stuck his head back in. “Mr. Kruger, that little lady’s going to make you a fine wife. A real fine wife.”
The door closed, bringing a silence more uncomfortable than the shouting match that had gone on earlier. Jason stared at her, and Amanda found herself pulled into his gaze, held there against her will.
He was tall, with black hair and green eyes that unsettled her. He spent his days in the sunshine; it had deepened the color of his face and etched fine lines at his eyes. He worked hard, too. Thick muscles moved against the sleeves of his pale blue shirt. His shoulders were straight, his chest wide, his waist tight, and his—
Amanda pressed her lips together, containing the little gasp that threatened to fill the silent room. Her gaze collided with his and for a flash of a second he looked as naughty as she felt. Her cheeks warmed. What had he been thinking while staring at her?
Jason frowned. “Do you want to tell me just what the hell is going on here, Miss Pierce?”
“Ain’t you even going to invite the lady to sit down?” Shady snorted.
Amanda had forgotten he was in the room. Jason Kruger seemed to take up all the space, breathe up all the air.
Shady dragged a chair across the room and plunked it down in front of Jason’s desk. “Sit yourself down, ma’am.”
Amanda smiled gratefully as she settled into the chair. In the hours she’d spent in the freight wagon with Shady she’d gotten to know him well and decided she liked him. Gruff and hard-edged on the outside, he was a softy inside.
“Thank you, Shady.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Shady looked at Jason. “Miss Pierce here has had a long, rough trip up the mountain. And she’s only here ’cause you went and sent for her.”
Jason lowered himself into the chair behind his desk and pushed his hand through his hair.
“I haven’t been down off this mountain in months, Miss Pierce,” he said. “There’s no way in hell I could have asked you to marry me.”
“She’s got a letter,” Shady said. “A letter writ by you.”
“It’s a request, actually,” Amanda said, and pulled the letter from her handbag. “You see, Mr. Kruger, I’m here from the Becoming Brides Matrimonial Service.”
Shady chuckled. “Well, I’ll be damned—a catalog bride.”
Jason leaned back in his chair. “Are you saying I ordered you?”
“It’s all right here in your letter.”
He snatched it from her hand. His eyes darted back and forth across the page, then cut over to Shady.
“Go find Ethan.”
“Sure thing, boss.” Shady headed out the door.
Amanda watched Jason read the letter again, then level his gaze at her across the desk.
“Looks like you came a long way for nothing, Miss Pierce,” he said. “I didn’t write this letter.”
Amanda’s stomach squeezed into a knot.
