Read Levi (Prairie Grooms, Book Five) for Free Online Page A

else would he have left? She stood up, smoothed the skirt of her dress as best she could, and headed for the door. She stopped as she passed the window, and looked outside. She saw Levi remove things from the back of the wagon, then disappear from sight as he brought them into the house. After a moment, she heard the front door close and knew he'd gone back outside. Sure enough, he reappeared and started to unhitch the horses. “A score of four to four. Hmmm, now how am I going to get ahead?” She continued to watch her new husband do his work, until he disappeared into the barn, and then decided she'd best go downstairs. At least she’d been given a moment to calm down. If he kissed her like that again, she didn't know what would happen. Would she faint? And what if he anticipated that very thing? The blackguard would win another point and that would never do.
    Once downstairs, she saw that Levi had brought in a couple of baskets that she’d forgotten about. She recalled Mrs. Dunnigan shoving them into his hands, before he had a chance to climb up beside her on the wagon seat. Curious, she removed the folded cloth- covering from one of the baskets and peeked inside. “Oh, my,” she whispered. “Mrs. Dunnigan, you angel! You've just spared me the task of cooking.” Fina reached into the basket and pulled out a bowl of fried chicken, a bag of cookies, and two loaves of bread. She went to the second basket to see what treasures lay inside. She wasn't disappointed. Two pies, a dozen boiled eggs, a bag of apples, and some jerky. Fina looked to the ceiling, closed her eyes, and said a silent prayer of thanks to the Lord above for the likes of Mrs. Dunnigan.
    She covered the baskets back up, then began to look around the kitchen to see where she might store some of the wonderful food they'd been given. She found a bowl to put the eggs in, a place for the apples and jerky, and had just set the pies and chicken on the table when Levi walked in. “What's all this?” he asked.
    “ This is what was in those two baskets Mrs. Dunnigan handed you,” she told him as she reached into one and pulled out the loaves of bread.
    “That was mighty kind of the woman to fix us all this food,” he said as he picked up a pie and examined it. He held it under his nose and inhaled deeply. “Mmm, nobody makes pies like Mrs. Dunnigan.”
    “So I've heard,” said Fina, hoping her own pie-baking skills wouldn’t be put to the test.
    As if reading her thoughts, Levi set the pie on the table and closed the distance between them. “I'm sure you'll be making pies just like Mrs. Dunnigan’s in no time.”
    “Ha! That's what you think.”
    He raised both eyebrows at her remark. “You know the old saying, practice makes perfect.”
    “Then I can guarantee you that I’ll be getting in lots of practice.”
    “I’m counting on it.”
    “Counting on it? What do you mean, counting on it?”
    He grinned. “You said yourself you'll need lots of practice, and I knew you would.”
    “So?”
    “Sooo… that means I just won myself another point.”
    Fina's eyes narrowed on him. “Levi Stone, that's not fair! Stop tricking me into telling you things!”
    “You're not telling me anything I don't already know.”
    Fina put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “That point doesn't count!”
    He chuckled and pulled her into his arms. “Did anyone ever tell you you’re mighty pretty when you're mad?”
    “I'm not supposed to be pretty when I'm mad!”
    “Why not?”
    “Because I'm mad!”
    He laughed, kissed her on the forehead, and then grabbed a piece of chicken out of the bowl on the table. “Eat something if you're hungry, then I'll show you around the place.”
    “What about the score?”
    “What about it?” he asked with a shrug.
    “Are we still even?”
    Levi took a bite of chicken and eyed her as he chewed, then swallowed. “The score is five to four, beautiful, my favor. Now grab an apple or something, and let's go.” Fina