More to himself than to his father, he said, “I wonder who the hell let them in? I don’t know anyone with a car like that.”
“That’s a car?” Frank chuckled. “Looks more like a thimble on wheels to me.”
The Element drew to a stop in the parking lot between Zach’s cedar home and the arena. The driver door opened, and a woman emerged. The instant Zach glimpsed the shine of her sorrel-colored hair, caught with a clip at the crown of her head, he realized it was Miranda and recalled that he’d agreed to meet with her and her brother today.
Though not tall, she had legs that seemed to go on forever as she walked toward them. Snug jeans, a tailored blue-plaid blouse tucked at the waist, and a blue parka showcased her slender, tidy figure. Worn running shoes lent a bounce to her step. Glancing at the footwear, Zach noted that the shoes were more practical than the pumps she’d worn the other night, but he was still thankful it hadn’t snowed in a while. Otherwise, she might have slipped and landed on her ass.
Frank whistled low under his breath. “Wow.”
Zach couldn’t quarrel with that assessment. Wow was right. He walked out to meet her. She stopped about ten feet away, prompting him to halt as well. With the efficiency of long practice, Zach took quick inventory of her pretty, wholesome face, her almond-shaped hazel eyes, and the sweet, perfectly shaped bow of her full mouth. Even in the bright glare of sunlight, he could detect no trace of makeup on her face, but despite the lack of embellishment, she packed a wallop.
“Hi,” he said.
Her face transformed with a glow of radiance as she smiled. Stepping closer, she extended a hand. “It’s good to see you again. I hope you don’t mind that we’re a bit early. I wasn’t sure how long the drive would take, and I didn’t want to be late.”
As Zach enclosed her fragile fingers in his own, he thought, Early, late, I wouldn’t have noticed, because I totally forgot our appointment. Aloud, he said, “No problem. I keep a pretty relaxed schedule out here.”
She slipped her hand from his and glanced at Frank, who stood slightly behind Zach. Her eyes filled with a question. “If this is a bad time, we can reschedule.”
“No, it’s not a bad time. I’m not tied up or anything.” Normally Zach liked his women a little on the trashy side, but Miranda Pajeck was enough to make a man reconsider his preferences. “I hope you had no trouble getting in the gate.”
The breeze picked up, trailing strands of auburn hair across her cheek. “Cookie spoke with me over the intercom and was kind enough to let me in.”
Zach turned slightly toward his dad. “Dad, I’d like you to meet Miranda Pajeck. Miranda, my father, Frank Harrigan.”
Frank jerked off his hat and strode forward to shake hands. “Good to meet you.”
“Likewise.” Miranda searched Frank’s gaze. “You’re nothing like I pictured.”
“Oh?” Frank looked bemused. “What were you expectin’?”
“Someone in a fancy Western suit.” Her cheeks went pink. “I mean—well, you’re something of a celebrity in Crystal Falls.”
Frank chuckled. “I only wear a suit to weddings and funerals.” He swatted his pant leg with the Stetson. “Jeans and boots are the standard dress. We Harrigans don’t do fancy. Got no time and even less inclination.”
Zach ran a hand over his mini’s back and grinned at his guest. “Judging by the way Rosebud’s acting, she remembers you and can’t wait for more petting.”
Miranda laughed. “I’ll be happy to oblige. It may sound silly, but I lost my heart to her the night she was sick.”
Instead of immediately reaching out to pet the horse, as most greenhorns would have, Miranda dropped to one knee, the movement fluid and graceful. For a long moment, she only smiled slightly, searching the mini’s gaze. Then she extended her hand, palm up, just under the horse’s nose.
Zach liked her approach. She was giving Rosebud an opportunity to initiate contact. He’d brought only a handful of women out to his place to meet his horses, and despite their “cowgirl” apparel, they’d behaved like imbeciles, hugging his horses’ necks and kissing their noses, startling the animals half to death. Miranda didn’t do that.
“Hi, Rosebud,” she said softly. “Do you remember me?”
Rosebud obviously did remember. Zach half expected the mini to sniff the lady’s palm for treats. Instead the little horse astounded him by gently placing her right front hoof in Miranda’s hand.
“Oh, how sweet. You’ve taught her to shake hands!”
Zach hadn’t taught the mini that trick. He guessed it was a hangover from her stint as a circus performer. But when a single man found himself in the presence of a beautiful lady, pride took a backseat and he accepted all the kudos he could get. “She’s pretty smart and learns fast.” Hell, it wasn’t actually a lie.
As Miranda shook the horse’s hoof, she beamed a delighted smile. “Of course she is. Such a smart, special, precious girl.”
And then the petting and hugging began. Rosebud ate it up. The mini seemed to trust this lady who smelled like—Zach called up his mental perfume identifier—roses. Oh, yeah, a tasteful, faint scent of roses. He found that refreshing.
When the oohs and aahs had run their course, Miranda pushed erect again. Rubbing the sleeves of her jacket, she quirked her delicate brows into a slight frown and met Zach’s gaze, giving him a jolt. What had he ever seen in blondes?
All trace of humor gone from her voice, she said, “I’ll apologize for my brother in advance.” She gestured at the car. “He’s not enthusiastic about a guide horse yet. Like many disabled, he resists change, and he doesn’t want to get out of the car.” She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “I’ll convince him, but please don’t get the wrong idea. He’ll love Rosebud once he gets to know her. He can just be ...” Her voice trailed away. Then her face went bright with another smile. “He’ll come around. You’ll see.”
Zach’s first thought, before he even met Luke, was that the kid sounded a little spoiled. Seconds later, Luke did nothing to change that impression. When Miranda opened the passenger door, her brother refused to get out and took a swing at Miranda when she insisted. Zach’s body snapped taut. Where he came from, no man tried to slap or punch a woman.
“Hold your temper, son,” Zach’s father said from behind him. “Even if he lands a blow, it ain’t your stall to muck out. You hearin’ me?”
Zach heard, all right, but as he watched Luke fling his hands blindly at the air, narrowly missing Miranda’s delicate face, he wanted to jerk that kid out of the car and give him a quick, hard lesson in how to treat a lady. Blindness was no excuse for bad behavior.
Miranda finally coaxed her brother out of the vehicle. Tall, with shoulders twice the span of hers, he bore a marked resemblance to his sister, with the same reddish brown hair, fine features, and nicely shaped mouth. All resemblance ended there. In contrast to her glowing warmth, Luke’s expression was mulish. His bright yellow parka, open at the front to reveal a green plaid shirt, did nothing to make the picture more cheerful.
Luke clung to Miranda’s arm and leaned against her as if she were a pillar, yet another count against him in Zach’s book. She wasn’t large enough to bear the weight of a grown man, and Luke was definitely full-grown, a couple of inches taller than Zach. Soft, with little muscle tone, though, Zach noted.
As Miranda led Luke forward, the kid felt the ground ahead of him with pats of his feet. When he felt a dip, he tightened his grip on Miranda’s arm, digging his fingers in so deep it nearly made Zach wince. Why didn’t he use a cane and give his sister a break? As Zach recalled from his first conversation with Miranda, Luke had been blinded at six and was now nineteen. He’d had thirteen years to adjust to his disability. Zach didn’t know many blind people. Only one, in fact. His sister Samantha’s husband, Tucker, had a blind sister-in-law, Carly. Born blind, Carly had received sight restorative surgery a few years ago, but she’d still endured periodic bouts of blindness between corneal transplants. During those ti
mes, she navigated with a cane, taught the sight impaired, kept house, cooked, and cared for her family. Luke acted as if he could do nothing for himself.
Zach considered himself a compassionate person, but something was totally out of whack here. And his sympathies were all with Miranda.
After leading her brother up to Zach, Miranda flashed one of her amazing smiles. “This is Luke, Mr. Harrigan. He’s a little hesitant right now about Rosebud, but I’m sure that once he meets her, all his misgivings will melt away.”
“Fuck that!” Luke said. “Nothing about my situation is going to melt away. You want me to walk around a campus, making a spectacle of myself with a dwarf horse? Yeah, right. Anything to get me out of your hair!”
In Zach’s family, the F-word was never uttered around women, and for a moment he saw red. He also had to bite his tongue to keep from informing the spoiled little bastard that Rosebud was not a dwarf. But in the end, his father’s warning helped him to remain silent.
The initial visit was shaping up to be a disaster. Zach felt certain there wouldn’t be a second. Give Rosebud to this spoiled, petulant brat? No way. With a sharp pang of regret, he glanced at Miranda’s hazel eyes, lovely face, kissable mouth, and glowing smile. Eventually, Rosebud would be placed with a blind person, but it would never be with someone like Luke. No matter how badly it disappointed Miranda, Zach would make damned sure of that.
Chapter Five
Telling Miranda up front that there was no way her brother was a good match for Rosebud would make Zach look like a jerk, so instead he focused on getting through the meeting without losing his temper. Though Luke’s hazel eyes had an opacity that made it tough to get a read on him, the kid seemed intelligent enough to realize he was behaving like an ass. But apparently Luke didn’t give a rip about the impression he made on others. Head hanging, shoulders hunched, he crossed his arms, leaned heavily against his sister, and refused to pet Rosebud. Zach got a strong urge to apply his hand with vigor to an appropriate part of the little pill’s anatomy.
“Please, Luke,” Miranda coaxed. “Just let her smell your fingers.”
“No,” Luke cried. “She probably has germs. I don’t want a guide animal. This is a total waste of time. What about that do you fail to understand?”
“I’d just like you to give it a chance. Luke. What harm can it do to touch her?”
Catching movement from the corner of his eye, Zach turned to see his father lifting a hand in farewell. Frank’s brown eyes danced with laughter. Thanks, Dad. At least someone thought this whole mess was funny. Zach certainly didn’t, and judging by Miranda’s strained smile, she felt just as uncomfortable.
When Luke persisted in his refusal to touch Rosebud, Miranda led him back to the car. In Zach’s estimation, it was just in time. Blunt words to inform the kid exactly what he thought of both his manners and his treatment of his sister were crowding Zach’s throat. If Frank Harrigan had ever caught his boys behaving like that to a woman, they wouldn’t have been able to sit down for a week. There were lines a man never crossed, and Frank had always made sure his sons knew precisely where those lines were drawn.
After getting her brother deposited on the passenger seat and belted in, Miranda retraced her steps to where Zach stood with the horse. Cupping her elbows, she said, “I’m so embarrassed. Luke can be ... well, difficult sometimes.”
Difficult? How about rude, disrespectful, and a whole string of similar qualifiers?
“No worries. Guide horses work well for some and not for others.”
Her eyes went bright, and Zach feared she might burst into tears. He hated it when women cried, always had. Instead she pulled a tremulous smile out of the hat. “Please don’t let Luke’s behavior put you off. He has some issues. I can’t deny that. But he’s a good kid. In time, he’ll warm to the idea of a guide horse. I just know he will.”
On the verge of announcing that he didn’t give a tinker’s damn any longer if Luke warmed to the idea, Zach leaned over to make an unnecessary adjustment to Rosebud’s halter. It gave him a second to calm down and collect his thoughts. Even a small horse like Rosebud required care and attention. Luke struck Zach as being far too self-centered and spoiled to give a hoot about anything but himself.
As cowardly as it was, instead of dashing her hopes, Zach dredged up a smile. “We’ll see how it goes. Rosebud still isn’t trained, so there’s plenty of time.”
She extended her hand. “Thanks so much, Mr. Harrigan. I’ll be in touch. Okay?”
That was what she thought. When and if the lady called, Zach wouldn’t answer. He felt a stab of regret as he enfolded her slender fingers in his. Maybe he’d been looking in all the wrong places, but even at church, ladies like her were hard to find. She was pretty and sweet, a heady combination for a man who’d dated busty blondes who were as casual about sex as they were about getting their nails done. Was he out of his mind to be telling her good-bye, with no intention of seeing her again?
No. Rosebud depended on Zach to find her the perfect home with a loving and appreciative person. Luke Pajeck didn’t fit the bill. Zach wouldn’t sacrifice Rosebud because Miranda Pajeck was the most delectable package he’d come across in years.
As Miranda walked away, Zach gazed after her, feeling oddly depressed. Meeting her had been like glimpsing a splash of sunlight on a dreary day, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that he might regret passing on this opportunity to get to know her better. For an instant, he strongly considered asking her out on a date; then he kicked the thought from his mind. When she learned that he had no intention of letting her brother have Rosebud, she’d be pissed, and Zach couldn’t change his mind about that.
Rosebud wasn’t going to be placed with that smart-mouthed kid.
The instant the Element was out of sight of Zach Harrigan’s ranch, Mandy jerked the wheel to the right and white-knuckled the car onto the narrow shoulder of the road. She slammed her foot down on the brake so hard that Luke, unprepared, pitched forward and nearly smacked his head. With a jerky shove, she shifted into park.
“Shit, Mands! ” he yelled. His head slewed around, his eyes huge. “Are we having a wreck?”
Mandy slammed her hands down on the steering wheel, inadvertently blasting the horn. Luke jumped and hit his elbow on the door. She didn’t care. Normally when she was this angry she held her tongue until she calmed down. Not this time.
“Your behavior was absolutely inexcusable. I can’t believe you acted that way!”
“Like I give a shit?”
Remembering Zach Harrigan’s expression of astonished distaste, Mandy fought down an unfamiliar urge to slap her brother. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been so embarrassed. “Watch your mouth! If you ever use the F-word in my presence again, you’ll go without dinner or get your own for a week. Is that crystal clear?”
“It’s called an F-bomb, and yeah, it’s clear, and I’ve heard that crap before, but you always end up feeding me.” Luke bunched his fists on his spread knees, his sightless gaze fixed on the dash. “Lots of other things are clear, too. Think I don’t know why you’re all of a sudden pushing so frigging hard to get me to be self-sufficient? It’s not because you care about me! You just want me off your hands!”
Well, this was a new line of attack. Luke knew better, and she knew not to believe what he said when he was angry and upset. But it still hurt. “You know that’s not true!”
“Not true? Of course it’s true! All you talk about is college. For my own good, you say, but my own good doesn’t have much to do with it. After I’m in some dorm, you’ll be free. No more helping me, no more leading me, no more fixing my meals, no more being tied down. Once you’re rid of me, do you really think it will ever be the same?”
“Stop it!” Mandy heard her voice shoot up, and she snatched at her self-control. “I do not want to get rid of you, and I have never once so much as hinted that I do.”
“The hell you don’t!” Now Luke was yelling, too, his fists beating i
mpotently against his knees. “No, you never hinted at it, but Mom never gave us any hint she wanted to get rid of us, either, and look what happened. She was all hugs and kisses one day, then gone the next. She didn’t want us. And she ... she never came back.”
The pain in Luke’s voice caught Mandy off guard. A hot lump that felt the size of a grapefruit jammed in her throat as ideas she’d never even considered began falling into place. She stared at her brother for a long moment. “Oh, Luke,” she said shakily.
“It’s true and you know it! ” he cried. “She never let on that she didn’t want me, either, but that didn’t stop her from taking off and leaving me behind, did it? Maybe you’re the same way. You’re her daughter, after all. Every morning I wake up scared to death until I know you’re still in the house! And now you keep saying you want to send me away! Do you think I don’t know you won’t be around when I’m done with school?” He made a choking sound and put his hands over his face.
So that was it. He really believed she would abandon him like their mother had. Scalding tears welled in Mandy’s eyes. His mother hadn’t wanted him, so why should his sister, especially disabled as he was? Every time she encouraged him toward independence, he interpreted it as being rejected. He truly believed she was eager to be rid of him.
With a concentrated effort, she loosened her grip on the steering wheel. The anger that had surged through her earlier evaporated, replaced by a flood of tenderness. She knew now what he’d been thinking all these years. If anyone could understand how painful it was to feel insecure, it was Mandy. Luke hadn’t been alone that long-ago morning when he’d awakened to find his mother gone. There had been a frightened, teenage Mandy there, too. She’d just been older and better able to deal with her emotions.
Mandy opened her mouth, but the words couldn’t get past the logjam in her throat. She gulped and tried again. “So that’s what this has always been about,” she said. Her voice quavered, and Luke turned his head toward her, his expression suddenly alert. “That’s why you won’t try a service animal or anything else that will make you self-sufficient. If you don’t need me, you’re afraid I’ll take off, just like Mom did. Oh, Luke, I love you! I want you to be independent for you, not for me! Don’t you know I’d never abandon you? You’re all I have! ” The last words came out on a strangled sob.