The landlord had backed off. In fact, he was behaving like a gentleman and couldn't even look Ginnie in the eyes for how embarrassed he was for his display in the brothel. Ginnie was in a cheerful mood as she began to knead cold butter into pastry as quickly as she could, singing merrily away as she worked. She slipped the disc of it into parchment paper and then let it rest.

She was getting used to Pony's presence, though she wasn't quite sure how to feel about his being around as much as he seemed to be. She didn't mind, of course, he was nice to talk to when they went to work and when they tiredly went home for the night. In fact, she was starting to think about him at times.

She wondered how he was doing. She wondered if one of the girls from the brothel held his attention, then she scowled at herself. And why should she care? He was just her friend. Right?

She frowned as she stirred the filling for the pie, having cooked apples down with sugar.

There was a knock at the door before it opened. "Morning!" He said cheerfully as he stepped inside. He eyed the resting dough, "ah! What are you making? Bread?"

He had been enjoying his time with the woman before him. They were becoming friends and it was nice to have her on his side as he had so few friends in the world. Had he considered being more than friends? He wasn't dead! But he was her friend and wasn't about to ruin it by appearing like a dog who only thought about such stuff. Especially since she was clear she didn't need a man and he completely respected and admired that.

"Need help with anything?" He asked as he glanced around. "And where's that charming sister of yours?" He teased light heartedly as he looked for her grandmother.

"Apple pie," she murmured, not looking up from her task. "I could use a break, actually." She was attracted to him, that much was for sure, but she was wary. Finally, she turned to him and grinned, flexing her floury hands with a chuckle. She had a smudge of flour across her cheek.

"She is visiting a friend," she replied to his question.

"Oh, fantastic. Will it be to sell?" He asked completely curiously as he turned to look at her face with a warm smile. He had been enjoying talking to her more and more, so things were going well for him for once. He told himself he wasn't going to ruin it.

"I'm happy to hear she's seeing a friend, hope it's a pleasant visit! Ah.. you have.." He was about to gesture, but her hands were a mess. He reached over to brush his thumb across her cheek and then held it up for her inspection to show he wasn't making it up. "A bit of flour.."

"Oh," she said as warmth spread through her belly at his light touch to wipe away the flour. "I hope she has a good visit," she said then, her voice a little thicker than before. She turned as if that would hide her blush. It didn't, he'd probably be able to see it on the back of her ears and neck. She played it off though, like she wasn't affected by his very nearness, grabbing for a towel and wiping debris off of her fingers.

"I thought I would sell these if they turned out well," she said then, as if nothing at all happened, when in reality, she had gooseflesh and it wasn't hard to miss. In reality, she had been enjoying his company more and more as well, and she wanted more than the budding friendship between them, but she feared he might not feel the same as she and she was not one to push such an issue. She then said over her shoulder, "Would you like to try some of the pie?" It was up to him to determine whether she was offering a slice of pie, or, well, a piece of herself, for she wasn't really thinking about the fact that she sounded like she offered either or at the moment.

"Same. She deserves a fun day out with a friend." Pony smiled and stood while Virginia turned away. Be rose his. Row curiously as he noticed a pinkness to her skin. It must have been his imagination. He remained idly in place as she cleaned.

"Of course. I bet your pie is delicious. Your food hasn't been disappointing in the least so far. " whether it was lucky or unlucky, his mind remained free from any gutter with her. "How long have you been cooking today?"

"Since early this morning," she replied, then moved over to where there was a pie cooling in the window. She put that on the counter and put a small piece of pastry on a plate. Then she offered it to him, "It's my first time with apple pie. It smells good, I'll say that much!" She took a piece up with her fork and offered it to him without thinking about it. She was genuinely excited for him to try the pie, her eyes filled with it.

She forgot about his nearness for a moment at that, and the blushing ebbed, thankfully. "I thought I would try a couple with cooked filling and a couple with raw filiing, and different cuts on the apples to see which ones had the best texture, this is the first one with cooked filling and sliced apples, the next is with cubed and cooked, and the next two are the same of each cut but uncooked." Assuming he took the offered bite, the pie was almost perfect if one liked softer pie filling, and the flavor was delicious.

Pony nodded and smiled as he took the offered piece. He thought it was odd for her to hold it out to him, but who was he to deny her? He closed his eyes to relish the flavor and made a pleased 'Mmmm'. "it is delicious. I like my apple pies a touch on the tart side, but this is heavenly. I am sure you could sell a hundred of these easy! I bet the others are just as good."

He opened his eyes as he looked to her and his grin grew almost splitting his face in half. "You have quite the talent. I should let you enjoy your slice or I'll eat the whole thing!" he laughed lightly.

She gave a most radiant smile his way. She had a rather stunning smile, in fact, especially because it warmed her dark eyes tremendously. "Thank you, Pony." She then offered the rest of the piece to him. "I am glad you like it." She chuckled and then said, "I made plenty. I can have a piece later, but for now, I want to take a break from eating apples." Ginnie gave a chuckle.

"I bet you we'd make a great team if you sell these out of your wagon." He did have a way with words.

Her smile was infectious in its radiance and he smiled brightly in return. "Of course!" He didn't hesitate to take the offered piece and ate it slowly to enjoy it, the flavor and texture were wonderful. "You made it wonderfully, how could I not?" The redheaded man chuckled as he dug in. "I guess I can see that. Even as wonderful as this food is, you don't want to eat too much you get sick of it."

The idea of selling them for her was very tempting. "I'd be happy to, it would be easy to sell something that everyone should want. Though I think having you there would help, you have such a lovely and welcoming face. But I do not want you to feel you have to, you are such a busy person."