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enthusiasm.
    “Well, at
least you’re not lazy,” Mattie said when it was nearly time for her to leave
for the day.
    “I love
growing things,” Annie said, earning a nod of approval.
    She settled
Mattie down in the den with a glass of iced tea—none of that herbal stuff
that tasted like cardboard for her—and was ready to leave when she heard
the front door open.
    Her face was
damp and flushed, the knees of her jeans were soiled from kneeling in the dirt,
and her hair was plastered to her head from wearing the straw hat. She thought
of ducking out the rear door rather than let Nathan see her looking like a farm
hand, but she was too slow.
    “Did you
ladies have a good day?” he asked, coming into the den with the jacket of his
navy pinstripe suit slung over one shoulder.
    “There’s soup
in the crock for supper, and I had Annie put out one of those long,
store-bought breads to thaw,” Mattie said, ignoring his question.
    Nathan looked
at Annie with a quizzical expression, obviously expecting some kind of response
from her.
    “We did have a
good day,” she felt compelled to say. “I did some weeding.”
    “You look like
you plowed the back forty.” He said it in a teasing way, but Annie mentally
squirmed under his gaze. “She’s your companion, not your slave, Aunt Mattie.”
    “The girl
likes to keep busy,” his great aunt said without a trace of remorse.
    Nathan gave
Annie an apologetic look and shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll walk you to your
car.”
    Much as she
preferred to make a quick departure, Annie could hardly refuse. “I’ll see you
Monday, Mrs. Hayward—Mattie.”
    Walking beside
her, Nathan seemed even taller than she’d thought. He draped his jacket over
the banister in the foyer and opened the front door for her.
    “You’re not
here to be the gardener, you know,” he said. “You don’t have to do everything
my aunt says.”
    “I don’t
mind.” She kept her eyes on the pavement as they walked to her car. The VW
looked like a junkyard relic compared to his shiny gray Lincoln parked directly
behind it.
    “Mattie will
steamroll you if you give her a chance,” he warned.
    “She means
well. She’s just frustrated because she can’t do everything herself.”
    “I’m glad you
understand that. I adore her, but she can be a tyrant.” He stopped beside her
car and smiled down at her. “Anyway, I appreciate how well you’re getting along
with her.”
    “I have to
go,” she said, but she wasn’t thinking about getting to her next job. Being so
close to Nathan was unnerving. She liked him a little too much considering they
lived in different worlds. The last thing she wanted was to develop a crush on
him.
    “You’ll be
back Monday morning?” he asked a bit anxiously.
    “Yes, of
course.”
    He opened the
car door for her and leaned down after she slid in. “Thank you for being
patient with her.”
    “Thank you for
giving me the job. It means a lot to me.”
    She breathed a
sigh of relief when he shut the door and stepped back. Nathan made her nervous,
and it wasn’t just because she needed his job to realize her dream. How was she
going to get through the summer without giving in to some very unwise feelings
for him?

Chapter 6
    Annie liked
the Saturday morning shift at Yum Yum Pancakes. Customers were happier and tips
were larger than in the evening. Better still a steady stream of people filled
the tables and booths, which certainly made the time go faster.
    The only
drawback was fatigue. She had to be there at six a.m. after working until
nearly eleven the night before. By noon when she could go home, she felt
steam-rolled. Fortunately her feet didn’t hurt, a complaint of many of the
employees, but she hated the sensible but unattractive shoes she wore to work.
    “What do you
have planned for today?” Nanette asked as Annie walked to the parking lot
behind the restaurant with the older waitress.
    “I’m going to
the Carbonville mall with my mother.” Annie took