Rocky Mountain Heat Read Online Free PDF

presence, but she’d already suspected she’d have to nip any plans of theirs in the bud.
    “Pass the potatoes,” Matt said, scooping the last of the sliced cucumbers onto his plate.
    “Sorry, Daniel finished them.”
    Jaxi pushed back her chair. “There’s still more in the kitchen, I’ll go—”
    “You sit. I’ll get them. Everything is delicious but you’ve barely eaten anything.” Jesse held her in place as he grabbed one of the empty bowls and trotted away.
    Jaxi sat comfortably and looked around. A feeling of contentment rose at being here with the family, accepted and cared for by all of them. She checked Marion with a casual glance. The woman was managing all right for her first meal with her left hand, although she seemed to be running out of steam.
    Mike was doing a little examining of his own. “Young lady, you make sure to eat enough. You’ll be working hard the next couple of weeks and we don’t want you to overdo it.”
    Jaxi pulled a face at him. “Jesse exaggerated. I ate plenty, just not as much as he did. I’m not six foot something and two hundred pounds. Don’t you worry, I’m strong. I’ll do fine.”
    “You’ll do wonderfully.” Marion nodded her approval. “I can’t believe you found enough lettuce in the garden for a salad. What did you think about the rest of things out there? Can we leave the beets for a few days?”
    Jaxi’s face flushed at the mention of the garden. Involuntarily, her gaze swung to Blake’s face. She had to stop herself from licking her lips as she admired the way his plain blue T-shirt stretched over his shoulders, tight over the firm muscles.
    Soft laughter rose from Matt.
    “Yeah, Jaxi,” Daniel said. “I wondered too. When you were in the garden earlier, did you see anything interesting? Anything that needed taking care of?”
    Oh lordy, Matt and Daniel must have seen her gawking at Blake as he showered. An awkward silence hung in the air before she plucked up her courage. She grinned at Daniel. Might as well let them know right off the bat what her plans were. As far as she knew, those two boys wouldn’t give her trouble. Heck, they might even support her.
    “There’re a few things looking mighty fine in the garden.”
    Matt choked on his drink and his shining eyes met hers. He raised his glass for a moment, then leaned forward to speak around Blake to Daniel. “Wonder what Jaxi’s favourite vegetable is?”
    “Carrots?”
    “For better vision? I don’t know, she’s probably got pretty good eyesight already. Maybe the red-hot cayenne peppers?” Matt wiggled his brows, and Jaxi bit her lip and fought to keep from laughing.
    “You think? Here I thought it might be the zucchini.” Daniel started stacking empty plates together. “Course, the garden has such amazing views she—”
    Jaxi rose quickly and went to the sideboard to serve the apple crisp. She’d been watching Blake out of the corner of her eye and knew the exact second he realized what the boys were teasing about. He didn’t seem upset, more…distracted. She closed her eyes for a moment and drew in a slow breath.
    He’d probably never thought about her that way before. He needed some time to realize little Jaxi was all grown up, and it was fine for her to admire him as a woman admires a man.
    Hmmm. Maybe he needed a chance to do some admiring of his own.
     
    Blake and Joel finished hauling the last of the order into the crate and wrapped it carefully. A few years back, neighbours had asked their dad to make them sets of the log furniture he’d filled the house with. One thing led to another, and the handcrafted items had become a huge success with people living in Canmore and Calgary. Now in their spare time, the Coleman boys took turns creating the solid log bed frames, tables and other household items. Most of their work was done in the winter when field chores were slower, but there was a constant trickle of orders they filled throughout the year to keep their name in