Jessie Belle: The Women of Merryton - Book One by Jennifer Peel Read Free Book Online Page A

then I was struck with genius. I got up immediately and ran several
sleeves of store bought graham crackers through my food processor. I omitted
the chocolate chunks and substituted the graham cracker crumbs for flour in my
world-famous chocolate chip cookie recipe. Okay, it wasn’t world famous, but it
was a highly sought-after commodity in Merryton.
    I
waited impatiently for the first batch to bake and cool. I had to say I was
pleased with the texture, consistency, and taste when it came time for taste
testing. I’d just have to see how it held up to the chocolate coating.
    While
I melted dark chocolate over my double boiler, my husband walked in. I looked
at the clock on my stove—it was barely after nine, another long day for him. Sometimes
I wondered how he found the stamina, or if he just didn’t want to be at home,
so he used work as a good excuse to stay away.
    He
didn’t say anything, but I heard him trudge up the stairs to the guest bedroom
and then heard the water from the guest bathroom shower. I tried not to let it
bother me. We hadn’t exactly left things on a good note that morning. I wasn’t
even sure that was possible. Our lives were about to change in a major way, and
I don’t think either of us knew if our unstable marriage was going to be able
to withstand it.
    My
mom had reassured me that it could, but we had to make the choice to save it
and fortify it. She had tried to convince me that perhaps Madeline was a
blessing in disguise. I had a hard time swallowing that. Regardless, she
reminded me that no matter my feelings for Blake at the moment, there was
probably a very confused and frightened girl living in Salt Lake City. I had
not stopped to think about that. I felt terrible for only being so worried
about how this affected me. I had forgotten this girl had a mother facing an
uphill battle with cancer. It was a sobering thought.
    I
heard Blake make his way back down while I was dipping cookies. He still didn’t
say anything, but I could hear him draw near. He came close, and I felt the
smallest of kisses on the base of my neck. I shivered at the touch. I had
missed small gestures like that.
    “Hi,”
he said from behind me. 
    “Hi.”
    “What
are you doing?” he asked.
    “Experimenting.”
I would have loved to ask if he wanted to try a cookie, but he was not into
dessert of any kind. I sometimes still wondered how we ended up together. He
should have married someone like Easton’s ex-wife. She was a clinical
nutritionist.
    He
didn’t respond other than to walk to the commercial-size refrigerator and take
a peek inside.
    “I
made some vegetable beef soup, if you’re interested.”
    “Sounds
good,” he said, to my surprise.
    He
rarely ate anything I prepared, which was disappointing to me. Before I ever
got married or met Blake I thought for sure the one thing I would do well as a
wife was cooking and baking. I did both well, but it wasn’t Blake’s cup of tea.
    I
moved over so Blake could use the burner next to me. He refused to microwave
anything.
    While
I continued dipping, he stirred his dinner. We didn’t say anything to one
another for a couple of minutes, but I could feel him staring at me.
    “What?”
I finally said as I dipped my last cookie.
    “I
talked to Easton today.”
    I
looked over to him. “So did I.”
    “He
mentioned that. He also mentioned you need an extra player for your team.”
    “We
do. I hope we find someone quick or we won’t be able to register this year,” I
said as I carefully walked my dipped cookies over to the refrigerator to aid in
the hardening process.
    “Why
didn’t you ask me?”
    I
narrowed my eyes at him. “A girl gets tired of rejection.”
    “I’ve
never rejected you, Jessica.”
    That
was a matter of opinion . I slid my cookies into the fridge.
“So what are you getting at?” I asked into the refrigerator.
    He
came behind me and closed the refrigerator door. I turned and backed up against
the cool stainless steel and he