He sputtered for a moment. “The horse was a little temperamental, but we thought he’d be fine. We just got him, you know.”
“Gee, now you tell me.” Irritation sparked in Allie’s green eyes.
Derrick observed the shade of the mayor’s face and hoped he wasn’t going to have to perform CPR.
“You okay? Danny okay? This isn’t going to affect him, is it? I mean, I wouldn’t want things to get worse for him, poor little man.”
Allie’s body went rigid, and the sparks in her eyes turned to fire. “Some things are best left unsaid, aren’t they?”
The mayor flushed, glancing from her to the boy and back again. “Yes, well. . .do you need a doctor?” He drew a noisy breath. “Do you have, er, insurance?”
Derrick watched the exchange with interest. What things were best left unsaid?
“No worries, Mayor. I’ll be fine. But we need to get going.” She held out her hand.
He fumbled in his shirt pocket and pulled out a check. “Ink isn’t even dry on this. Here you go.” He nodded at Derrick, then turned and dashed off.
Allie’s narrowed gaze followed him for a minute, then she opened the check and smiled. “Ha, five times my going rate is almost worth taking that wild pony ride.”
“Is that a lot of money?” Danny asked. “Does that mean you and Granny can buy me that handheld game system?”
“Possibly, but only if you don’t nag me.” Allie stared fondly at her nephew.
“Birthday boy?” Derrick asked, taking mental notes.
Danny grinned. “My birthday is next Saturday. Aunt Allie and Granny are giving me a party. Now I might get better presents.”
Allie thumped his head with her finger. “That’s enough about presents, Spiderman.”
Danny nodded, but his eyes still shone.
Derrick’s breaths came more quickly. Could it be this easy?
“Shannon is right.” Allie interrupted his thoughts. She refolded the check and held it tightly in her hands, then looked Derrick squarely in the eyes. “You are a hero.”
Hero? “Could be because you’ve known me less than fifteen minutes.”
Danny hopped from one foot to the other. “That was cool, the way you caught Aunt Allie. Where did you learn to do that?”
The force of the boy’s enthusiasm was irresistible. Pretending solemnity, Derrick glanced around as if to make sure the coast was clear, then leaned down and whispered, “I learned it in hero school.”
Danny’s eyes widened. “Is that where your face got hurt?”
“No, but it does make me look more heroic. I graduated at the top of my class.” He straightened and glanced at Allie. “And because I’m a hero, I insist I walk you to wherever you’re going while I carry your tools.”
“You don’t need to do that,” she said quickly.
“Oh, but I do.” He lifted his eyes to the summer sky and scratched his chin as though he were thinking hard. “See, it’s rule number. . .um. . .twenty-one, I think. ‘After saving a damsel in distress, always see her safely home or to her vehicle, whichever applies.’ ” He crossed his arms. “I scored a perfect hundred on that test. Of course, I stayed up all night cramming. And it’s been awhile.”
Allie’s lips twitched. “How does one study for a hero test?”
Derrick placed his hand on his chest as though making a pledge. “Sorry, I can’t reveal the secrets of a hero. It’s in the rules. Number one, and I quote, ‘No method, secret, rule, or procedure shall be revealed to anyone at any time.’ ” He paused and winked again at Danny. “And number two says, ‘No hero will ever be caught bragging on exploits, whether his own or those of a fellow hero.’ ”
The boy’s wide smile brought cheer to his heart, but it was Allie’s grin that made his insides warm. He’d have to be careful. Old flirting habits died hard, and he couldn’t afford the complication of an attraction. He had information to gather, then he’d be gone. Most of all, she could never know why he was here.
“All right, Derrick Owens, hero extraordinaire,” Allie said, unaware of his turmoil, “you may walk us to my truck.”
Derrick fought another surge of guilt. He leaned over to pick up Allie’s tools so she wouldn’t see his eyes. As he did someone called her name, and he glanced up. A tall, slender man in creased jeans and a brand-name polo shirt was jogging toward them.
“It’s Mr. Michael,” Danny said in a stage whisper, glancing up at Allie.
“So it is.” Her face was an interesting study in consternation. “Go ahead, Danny.”
“Hi!” he said to the blond man.
“Danny, good to see you.” He gave the boy a quick brush on his head, then stopped close to Allie and touched her arm possessively. “My father just told me what happened. Are you all right?”
The mayor’s son. Derrick recognized the resemblance now. Both had the same classic Roman nose. He also recognized disappointment in Danny’s eyes. Perhaps he hadn’t gotten the response he’d expected from Mr. Michael.
“I’m okay.” Allie shrugged. “Just stiff and tired.”
Pointing at Derrick, Danny said, “He rescued Aunt Allie.”
Michael frowned and shook his head. “I can’t believe my father would allow anyone to ride that horse. If it had been Paige, she might have been killed. She’s not nearly as good a horseman as you.”
Paige? Derrick’s shoulders went rigid. Lord, You are answering Sandy’s prayers.
“Why your father would allow your sister to even be near that horse is beyond me,” Allie said. “Two nervous Nellies.”
“Well, we owe you. How about I take you home?”
Allie straightened her narrow shoulders. “I’m just fine, Michael.” She sidestepped him and snatched Danny’s hand. “Derrick is walking us to my truck.”
Michael turned to him, a flash of surprise in his eyes. . .and irritation. He extended his hand. “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure.”
The man didn’t look like he was feeling pleasure. Derrick clasped his hand. “Derrick Owens.”
“Michael Maynard.” The guy stared at him with intense curiosity. “You aren’t from around here.”
“No, I’m from the Tri-Cities. I’m here on business.”
“I’ve got to get going. We’re hungry,” Allie said, cutting off their conversation.
“I’ll call you later then.” Michael glanced from Allie to Derrick and nodded.
Allie didn’t respond. She squeezed Danny’s shoulder with her right hand and began to walk away, pulling him along. Derrick had no choice but to follow.
As he followed, her tools in tow, Derrick felt Michael’s eyes on his back and fought the temptation to turn and look at him. He hurried to catch up with Allie, whose strides were long and fast for such a petite woman.
Could he have imagined Michael Maynard’s possessive attitude toward Allie? Not likely. Maybe they were dating. Derrick loosened his tight grip on her tool case. None of his business if the two were involved. With Sandy dying, he had to find answers quickly. He breathed a prayer of thanks to the Lord for blessing his efforts so far. He’d been in Walla Walla less than two days, and he was confident he’d found his nephew. He needed a bit more information—then he’d hightail it out of this town.
Four
As they prepared for dinner after the parade, Allie laughed when Danny described the wild horse incident to his grandmother while she sliced ham at the kitchen counter.
“I could have been killed!” Allie feigned a scowl.
“Not you, Aunt Allie. You ride too good.”
“Too well,” Allie corrected. She popped two painkillers into her mouth, took a drink of water, sat, and stifled a groan. Stiffness had already set in.
Her mother chuckled. “I’m not surprised you’re okay. You always were good with horses. And you were such a tomboy. So independent. That’s your father’s fault.”
“You know you did just as much to encourage me.”
Ma hid a smile and shook her head. She carrie
d a platter of cold ham along with a bowl of onion, cucumber, and tomato salad to the dinner table. “Ah, the perfect summer meal.” Allie’s mouth watered.
After they prayed and passed the food, Danny went on to describe the tall hero who had even attended hero school.
Ma’s eyes widened. “Who is this man? We don’t get many heroes coming through town.” She looked at Danny. “Especially ones who went to hero school!”
The sudden memory of Derrick holding her in his arms warmed Allie’s face. He was a stranger—and maybe it was the severity of her predicament—but she’d felt safe against his solid chest. Stop it, Allie.
She needed time to heal before allowing any man to bowl her over with his charm. Michael had practically abandoned her at the altar, and Luke. . .
There had to be a reasonable explanation for why her brother left them deep in debt. Please, Lord. Allie stabbed at a slice of onion, then met Ma’s glance. “His name is Derrick Owens. He’s a stranger in town on business.”
“Well I’ll be!” Ma’s shrewd gaze hadn’t missed Allie’s emotions.
“I’m sure he’s only here for a few days. We won’t see him again.”
“Hmm, you never know.” Ma’s smile lit her face, only to be outdone by Danny’s.
Allie grimaced. “No matchmaking, you two. Don’t think I haven’t overheard you talking about finding me a man after Michael and I split up. And this one? A total stranger? He could be an ax murderer for all we know.”
“What a mind you have.” Ma clucked her tongue.
“He’s not an ax murderer,” Danny said as he chewed his food. “He’s a hero.”
Allie wagged her finger at him. “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”
The two conspirators said nothing else, but their exchanged glance spoke volumes. Allie determined to forget the whole topic—and the hero—and enjoy her meal. She brought a forkful of salad to her lips when her cell phone started to vibrate, dancing on the table next to her plate. She glanced at the screen, held back a snort, and continued to eat.
“You going to answer that?” Ma asked.
“It’s Michael.” Allie forced a smile for Danny’s sake. “And we’re busy eating dinner.”
Ma dismissed the phone with a wave. “Right, let’s eat.” She understood how badly Michael had hurt her. “I have some good news.”
“Oh?” Allie salted her food. “Do tell.”
“I’m going to work for Shannon.”
Allie’s fork hit her plate. “What?”
“She’s thinking about expanding by adding a shop in the Tri-Cities. She’ll need someone to manage her store here. I’m going to start part-time.”
“Shannon’s really going through with that?” Allie’s appetite fled. Her best friend. . .leaving. “I knew she was mulling it over, but—”
“Seems she believes the Lord is leading her there, and she’ll be closer to where her parents live.”
“Miss Shannon’s leaving?” Danny’s eyes grew watery.
Allie could’ve given herself a swift kick for elaborating in front of her nephew. Danny had suffered enough loss. “Don’t worry. The Tri-Cities are only an hour from Walla Walla.”
“Right,” Ma assured.
“Ma, you’ve already got a job cleaning the church.” Allie shook her head. “No. I don’t approve.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. A combination of the stressful day, a stiff body, annoyance at Michael, and worry about the future made her snippy.
Ma sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. “Young lady, I don’t think you should be telling your mother what to do. And two part-time jobs equal full-time pay.”
“I’m sorry.” Chastised, Allie took a deep breath. “But I don’t want you working so hard. At your age you should be looking forward to some time off.”
Ma’s blond brows nearly hit her hairline. “Are you insinuating I’m old?”
Danny’s head swiveled back and forth between the two like he was watching a tennis match.
“Not at all. You’re not old. In fact, if we looked anything alike, we could be sisters. But. . .we should talk later,” Allie said with a slight dip of her head in Danny’s direction.
“Yes, we should.” Ma’s eyebrows were drawn into a frown. “And we will.”
Allie barely tasted the remainder of her meal. The minute dinner was over she stood and gathered plates.
“Stop.” Ma stayed her hand. “Danny and I will clean up. You sit and rest and give those painkillers time to work. I watched you limp into the kitchen earlier.”
Allie sighed. She couldn’t deny that every muscle in her body ached. Regular exercise and her job kept her fit, but she hadn’t the time lately to do much riding. Clinging to Chester with all her strength during his rampage at the parade left her sore in places she didn’t realize she had muscles. “All right, thanks.”
Danny popped out of his seat and took the plates she’d gathered. Allie shifted in her chair, trying to find a position that didn’t hurt. She longed to lie down, but she had a date with Shannon tonight at which time she’d lecture her friend about offering Ma a job without first consulting her. Not to mention reminding Shannon that Allie didn’t want Shannon to move away. What would she do without her best friend close by?
Allie looked at her mom and mentally rehearsed ways to get her to understand she didn’t need a second job. When Danny had finished cleaning the table, Allie crooked her finger at him, and he came over and stood in front of her.
“Spiderman, why don’t you go feed the horses.”
He grinned. “You want to talk to Granny without me, don’t you?”
She squeezed his hands and smiled. “You’re too smart by far.”
He tapped his head with his index finger, then skipped out the back door.
Allie rested her weary head against her fisted hand. “Ma, I can support all of us.”
“No, you can’t.” Ma shut the dishwasher and began rinsing the sink. “We aren’t making it, Allie. You know that as well as I do. You work so hard, honey, but you’ve lost business because you can’t keep up the workload you and Luke maintained together. This property is too big. The place wasn’t meant for two women alone.”
The words cut deep. First Daddy died, a year later Luke, then the dissolution of her engagement to Michael. No adult men in their household. No heroes to save their property. “Maybe we won’t have to sell. We can lease out more land.”
“Not fast enough to catch up with the bills.”
“Okay then, we sell off land like we talked about. Then we could pay off debt.”
“Do you know how long that would take?” Ma shook her head. “We have bills due now. We don’t have months to wait.”
“It’s not fair. Not to you, not to Danny. None of it is fair.”
Ma crossed the kitchen, sat across from her, and took her hands. “You know what I’m going to say.”
“Yes, I do.” Allie snatched her hands from under her mom’s. “What you always say. God never promised life would be fair. Just that He’d walk through the trials with us. You’ve said it a million times, but—”
“It’s true. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise us a bed of roses.”
“More like a bunch of thorns.” Allie clenched her fists.
“Honey, I know you’re still angry about a lot of things. Your daddy dying. Luke and Cindy’s accident, and Luke leaving so much debt. You being unable to pull in the kind of money you want to—”
“Of course I’m angry. Especially at what Luke did.” Allie bit her lip. Why hurl bitterness at her mother?
“Yes, I know. He misrepresented some things.”
Allie slapped her palm on the table. “Misrepresented things? He got credit cards for our business without my knowledge. He kept a second set of books to cover the debts. And he had the bills sent to a PO box. That’s worse than misrepresentation. He was living a lie.”
“You’re right. But you don’t know why he did it.”
“No. Neit
her do you.” Allie glared at her mother. “That’s even worse. I’ve been lied to by two men I loved more than anyone else in the world. The latest being Michael the Cheater.”
“What Michael did to you was awful. I won’t defend him.”
“At least we agree on that.” Allie groaned. “There is no good reason to lie. No excuse for it.”
“I agree with you in principle, but we can’t stand in judgment of someone else.” Ma sighed. “Luke was my son as well as your brother. Don’t you think I have questions, too? But I have to forgive him.”
“I loved him so much,” Allie said. “Looked up to him.” Beyond what she could express in words. She’d had this discussion with her mom too many times. Exhaustion washed over her, and Allie got to her feet, ready to escape to the quiet of her bedroom.
“It’s like you’re trying to make up for Michael’s transgressions and Luke’s by being perfect.” Ma tapped her finger on the table to emphasize her words. “You want to rescue Danny and me by yourself, and that’s admirable, Allie, but you can’t. Your stubbornness is not going to pay the bills. You have to learn to be humble. To ask for help. From me and from others. I’m ready to go to the pastor to get his advice.”
Allie swiped angrily at the tears in her eyes. “I don’t want people to know.”
“I understand, I really do. But if we lose everything, they’ll find out, and then we’ll look foolish. I’ve been trying to tolerate your obstinacy, but I’m not going to let us go under.”
The firm set of Ma’s chin told her she was losing the battle, and she fought tears.
“How about a change of topic?” Ma, ever the peacemaker, smiled. “Remember that tomorrow Danny’s boys’ group gets their safety badges at church. And the picnic here afterward.”
“I remember.” A smile came to Allie’s face. “I’m so proud of him. He’s come so far in a year.”
“Yes.” Ma raised an eyebrow. “We should all be doing so well.”
Allie ignored the jab.
Ma stood. “I’m going to finish making salads for tomorrow.”
Allie stood, too, and couldn’t stop the groan that came to her lips. “I’ll stay and help you instead of going to Shannon’s for our Scrabble game.”
A Hero for Her Heart (Truly Yours Digital Editions Book 885) Page 3
