Read Online Like Jake and Me by Mavis Jukes - Free Book Online Page A

the axe?” Jake shook his head. “I just sharpened that axe.”
    Alex moved his tooth with his tongue and squinted up at Jake. “I’m careful,” he said.
    Jake looked over at the sheep nosing the pumpkin. “Maybe another time,” he told Alex.
    Alex walked beside him as they headed toward the house. The air was so cold Jake was breathing steam. The logswere stacked to his chin.
    Virginia stood under the pear tree, watching the sunset. Alex ran past her to open the door.
    Jake thundered up the stairs and onto the porch. His boots were covered with moss and dirt. Alex stood in the doorway.
    “Watch it!” said Jake. He shoved the door open farther with his shoulder, and Alex backed up against the wall. Jake moved sideways through the door.

    “Here, I’ll help you stack the wood!” said Alex.
    “Watch it!” Jake came down on one knee and set the wood by the side of the woodstove. Then he said kindly, “You’ve really got to watch it, Alex. I can’t see where I’m going with so big a load.”
    Alex wiggled his tooth with his tongue. “I just wanted to help you,” he said. He went to Jake and put his hand on Jake’s shoulder. Then he leaned around and looked under his Stetson hat. There was bark inJake’s beard. “You look like a cowboy in the movies.”
    “I have news for you,” said Jake. “I
am
a cowboy. A real one.” He unsnapped his jacket. On his belt buckle was a silver longhorn steer. “Or was one.” He looked over at Alex.
    Alex shoved his tooth forward with his tongue.
    “Why don’t you just pull out that tooth?” Jake asked him.
    “Too chicken,” said Alex. He closed his mouth.
    “Well, everybody’s chicken of something,” said Jake. Heopened his jacket pocket and took out a wooden match. He chewed on the end of it and looked out the windows behind the stove. He could see Virginia, still standing beneath the tree. Her hands were folded under her belly.
    Jake balled up newspaper and broke some sticks. He had giant hands. He filled the woodstove with the wadded paper and the sticks and pushed in a couple of logs.
    “Can I light the fire?” Alex asked.
    “Maybe another time,” said Jake. He struck the match on his rodeo belt buckle. He lit the paper and threw the match into the fire.
    Just then Alex noticed that there was a wolf spider on the back of Jake’s neck. There were fuzzy babies holding on to her body. “Did you know wolf spiders carry their babies around?” said Alex.
    “Says who?” asked Jake.
    “My dad,” said Alex. He moved his tooth out as far as it would go. “He’s an entomologist, remember?”

    “I remember,” said Jake.
    “Dad says they only bite you if you bother them, or if you’re squashing them,” said Alex. “But still, I never mess with wolf spiders.” He pulled his tooth back in with his tongue.
    “Is that what he says, huh,” said Jake. He jammed another log into the stove, then looked out again at Virginia. She was gazing at the landscape. The hills were fading. The farms were fading. The cypress trees were turning black.
    “I think she’s pretty,” said Alex, looking at the spider.
    “I do, too,” said Jake, looking at Virginia.
    “It’s a nice design on her back,” said Alex, examining the spider.
    “Yep!” said Jake. He admired the reindeer coat, which he’d loaned to Virginia.
    “Her belly sure is big!” said Alex.
    “It has to be big, to carry the babies,” said Jake.
    “She’s got an awful lot of babies there,” said Alex.
    Jake laughed. Virginia was shaped something like a pear.
    “And boy! Are her legs woolly!” said Alex.
    Jake looked at Virginia’s leg warmers. “Itchy” said Jake. He rubbed his neck. The spider crawled over his collar.
    “She’s in your coat!” said Alex. He backed away a step.
    “We can share it,” said Jake. He liked to see Virginia bundled up. “It’s big enough for both of us. She’s got to stay warm.” Jake stood up.
    “You sure are brave,” said Alex. “I like wolf