Ruby sneezed.
“God bless you, sweetheart! Here. You can use my handkerchief, if you need to.” Callie pulled the lace-edged square from her sleeve.
“I’m all wight. My nose just tickled.” The little girl rubbed it with the back of her hand.
“Sawdust can do that, and there’s plenty of it in here. Mr. Chip has been working very hard.”
Callie looked around the large woodshop. Stacks of boards rested in neat piles. Some were waiting to be cut, others had been planed and a fair number were sanded and ready to be oiled before being assembled into bed frames.
Her gaze lingered on the handsome carpenter as he kept his saw busy—and his muscular biceps flexing. The steady rasp as he sliced through the pine planks kept time with the rapid beating of her heart. At the rate Chip was going, he’d have the first order of furniture for the new dormitory built in no time. She wasn’t in any hurry. He was fun to be around, and he was so good with the children. She dragged her attention from him.
Jasper raced up to her on a stick horse. He’d whooped and hollered when Tess had dropped by with it the day before. He stroked the horse’s cinnamon-colored yarn mane. “I know what I’m gonna name him. Gingersnap, ’cause he’s the same color as one of them cookies we had after lunch. Do you like it?”
Callie smiled. “It’s a fine name.”
Chip paused, saw in hand. “I like it, too. You could call him Snap for short.”
Jasper tilted his head. “Like a nickname?”
“That’s right. Miss Callie has one. Her full name is Caroline.”
Callie seized the opportunity to learn what his name was. “What is Chip short for? Christopher, Charles or something else?”
Chip shook his head. “None of those. My name is really Sebastian. The first carpenter I worked for when I was a boy of ten, a Scotsman, said it was too much of a mouthful for a laddie like me since I was no bigger than a wood chip. He called me Chip, and the name stuck.”
“It suits you. Thanks for telling me. We’re keeping you from your work, though.” She held out a hand to Ruby. “We should find something else to do while Mr. Chip gets the next batch of boards cut. Let’s see if Mr. Isaac has time to lead you around on the pony, shall we?”
The thumping of Jasper’s stick horse on the wooden floorboards as he rode around the room came to an abrupt halt. “Mr. Chip don’t need my help now. Can I go, too?”
“He doesn’t need your help or ours just now, so I suppose you could join us.” She leaned toward him, smiled and adopted a playful tone. “If you’re interested in a riding lesson, that is.”
“Yee-haw!” Jasper galloped over to them, one hand holding the rope reins and the other swinging an imaginary lasso over his head. Ever since Jasper had seen the cattle on the day Chip and Callie brought him to the Double T, he’d been telling anyone willing to listen that he was going to be a cowboy when he grew up.
The room quieted. Chip stood with the saw hanging at his side and an exaggerated pout on his handsome face. “Are all my helpers going to abandon me?”
“Just for a short time. The children have spent the better part of three days in here with us. I understand why, but I thought some time outdoors would be good for them. Isaac mentioned that he would be free this afternoon and hinted rather strongly that he’d like to meet Jasper and Ruby.”
“I see.” Chip crossed the room in a few strides, wearing a smile. “And you’re going to take your brother up on his offer and leave me here to slave away on my own, are you?” He heaved an exaggerated sigh. “Good help is so hard to come by.”
Callie chuckled. “Since we really can’t do much to help at this point, I figured you might appreciate having some time to yourself. Without distractions.”
“Ah, but these are the best kind of distractions.” He ruffled the children’s blond heads. And winked at her.
Chip’s impulsive gesture didn’t mean anything. He was just being his usual engaging self, but even so, a shiver of delight raced up her spine.
His brow furrowed. “Are you cold?”
“Not at all.” With him standing so close, she could smell the masculine mix of wood, linseed oil and sunshine that was Chip. Even better, she had a good excuse to look into his intriguing eyes, a far deeper blue than her own, with golden circles around the centers. Those eyes widened, and she realized she was staring. “You’ll be fine without us for an hour or so, won’t you?”
“No. I’ll miss you something fierce, but I’ll manage somehow.”
She laughed and gave his arm a playful swat. “Oh, you.”
Jasper gazed up at her, his brow furrowed. “Why did you hit him, Miss Callie?”
She’d momentarily forgotten about their young chaperones. “I didn’t hit him. I just swatted him. Mr. Chip was teasing me, and I was teasing him back. That’s all. But you’re right. Hitting isn’t a good thing. We should get on over to the corral. We’ll see you when we return, Chip.”
“You might see me sooner than that. I could use a break myself.”
“We’d like that.” She certainly would, more than he knew.
“Then I’ll definitely join you.” He flashed her a smile that held the promise of an enjoyable time to come. She had to force herself not to skip down the path.
Minutes later Callie stood outside the corral fence watching Isaac lead Ruby around on a pony. Callie’s brother didn’t let his war injury hold him back, but he still had trouble with loud noises or altercations of any kind between adults. He was fine with children, though, because, as he said, they posed no threat. He’d certainly overcome Ruby’s hesitation in a hurry. The little girl was actually smiling.
Jasper waited beside Callie, his feet on the middle rung of the slat fence and his hands gripping the top one. “How long do I gotta wait for my turn?”
“Until Ruby’s done. It won’t be long now.” Footfalls from behind caught her attention.
Tess approached them, with her hands behind her back and a smile on her face. “Since you want to be a cowboy one day, Jasper, you’ll be needing one of these.” She held out a small cowboy hat.
Jasper’s eyes grew as round as wagon wheels. He took the hat and plopped it on his head.
Callie leaned close. “What do you say?”
He beamed at Tess. “Thank you.”
“I’m glad you like it. The Double T is a good place for boys like you. Papa Spencer and his ranch hands can teach you everything there is to know about raising cattle.”
Isaac led the pony up to the fence beside them. “This little lady had a nice ride. It’s her brother’s turn now.”
“Yee-haw!” Jasper cringed and clamped a hand over his mouth.
Tess’s forehead furrowed. “What’s wrong?”
Callie rested a hand on the remorseful boy’s shoulder. “He remembered that we’re not supposed to make loud noises around horses. Isn’t that right, Jasper?”
He bobbed his head.
Isaac passed Ruby to Callie and smiled at Jasper. “Sounds like you’re well on your way to being a good cowboy then, but you need to learn how to ride a horse. Let’s get you on the back of that pony, shall we?”
In no time, Jasper’s lesson was underway. Ruby sat on a bale of hay near Callie playing with her beloved doll,