Jenny shook her head. “You always leave money in your pockets. Sometimes I think you do that just so you can be surprised when you find it.”
Sally shrugged. “It doesn’t hurt to do that. Besides, it is nice to think you have nothing and find out you do.” She waved for the others to follow her. “Let’s go in.”
Mary shifted Adam to her other hip and went into the shop. Poor Adam had grown tired and was fast asleep in her arms. Going from Richard and Amanda’s home to the offices downtown and then watching the rest of the interview had taken its toll on him.
Rachel tugged on her dress. “Can I get something?”
“I brought some money, so yes,” Mary told her. Making sure she didn’t wake Adam, she reached into her pocket.
“What a pleasure it is to see you three!” Maureen called out past the four customers who were scanning the selection of baked goods on the shelves. “We were hoping you’d stop by.”
“We wouldn’t miss your grand opening,” Sally said as she approached Maureen.
Mary followed the others, noting that Carl, Emma, and Rachel had gone to check on the items they could buy while Isaac was studying the pen as if he’d never seen one before.
While Connie was talking to Sally and Jenny, Maureen gave samples of a couple of the treats to the children. “I would offer you a sample,” she told Mary, “but I’m afraid you’ll find it inferior to the kind of food you make.” She pointed her finger in a playful manner at Mary. “Ever since you married that Larson boy, it’s been nearly impossible for me to win a cooking contest if you’re in it.”
Mary smiled. “I like your food, Maureen. You do a wonderful job.”
“That’s nice of you to say, but you are a hard competitor. You have a gift.” She arched an eyebrow in a playful manner. “I don’t suppose you’ve changed your mind about the apple pie recipe?”
Mary shook her head. “No, I can’t sell that. Everyone in my family enjoys it too much.”
With a resigned shrug, she said, “Well, you can’t blame a woman for trying. That recipe would pay for this building within a month. Speaking of which, I read that fascinating article about your brother-in-law. I didn’t realize he owns the building his office is in. He leases that out to all of the other businessmen who have their offices there. That’s a clever way he managed to make more money. Connie and I were talking about doing something similar. We could allow someone to sell some items that would complement what we sell, and that person could pay me and Connie for the portion of this shop that they use.”
Yes, Mary supposed Maureen and Connie might be wise to do such a thing, especially since there was vacant space in this shop.
“Isaac?” Maureen called out. “Would you like to sample a cookie?”
Isaac shook his head. “I’m not hungry.”
Mary gave Maureen an apologetic smile. “Richard gave him one of the pens he ordered for his company. It’s like a new toy.”
“Who can blame him? His uncle is famous.” Maureen’s gaze went back to Isaac. “You should be proud of your uncle. He’s accomplished a lot in Omaha. He’s an inspiration to a lot of people.”
Isaac beamed. “I know. He’s amazing!”
Mary hid the urge to wince. Would everyone start telling Isaac how terrific Richard was? And worse, would Dave be in town when they did it? At least on the farm, Dave didn’t have to hear the praises people were giving Richard.
While Mary was happy for Richard, she worried this would only heighten Dave’s insecurities. She could assure him that Isaac looked up to him more than he looked up to Richard all day long, but nothing was going to convince him of that if he came across this kind of thing. She could only hope Dave wouldn’t want to come to town for a while.
Forcing her attention off of Isaac, she decided to get something for Rachel and Adam so they could enjoy a treat.
***
When Mary finally got home, she told Isaac to go straight to his bedroom and put the pen in a safe place. She thought this might give her a chance to find Dave before Isaac did, and she was in luck. Dave wasn’t in the house. She hurried to change Adam’s diaper and then took Adam outside with her since he was now wide awake.
Rachel had chosen to stay on the porch to eat the tart Mary had bought her. “Have you seen Pa?” she asked the girl.
Rachel shook her head.
“If Isaac comes out, tell him to stay with you until I talk to your pa,” Mary said.
Rachel indicated she would, so Mary carried Adam to the barn. Jasper ran over to them as soon as she entered it. She saw the bone on the floor and realized what had delayed him in finding her and the children sooner.
“I thought he might like a treat,” Dave called out to her. “I hope you don’t mind. I got it out of the cellar.”
She turned and saw that he was milking a cow. “No, I don’t mind.” She set Adam down so he could play with the dog then made a beeline for Dave.
“Did you and the kids have a good time in town with Sally?” he asked.
“I don’t know how good you’d say it was.” She knelt beside him and lowered her voice. “Jenny wanted to see Amanda’s new hat, so we went to your brother’s house.”
He nodded but didn’t say anything as he pulled on the cow’s teats.
“As it turns out,” she continued, “Richard was there, too.”
This time Dave paused and turned toward her.
