LITMIR.BIZ

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than to the ranch.

      “S’wat that?” Frankie pointed at a rotating display rack.

      “Air freshener. It makes the car smell good.”

      “I wan’ it.” Frankie reached out his hand.

      Jake took the inexpensive air freshener from the display. In the shape of a fir tree, it smelled of evergreen. He scratched the odor patch on the back of the package and held it to Frankie’s nose. The boy inhaled deeply, smiled and nodded.

      “Okay, but after it’s opened it stays in the truck. It’s not a toy.”

      Nodding, Frankie reached for the package. Jake handed it over. Frankie immediately reached for another. “Ty’er want one,” he said.

      Jake picked up another air freshener for Tyler. They continued wandering the store until the clerk signaled them a few moments later.

      After loading boxes into the bed of the truck, they stopped for lunch then ran two more errands before heading home. As Jake turned toward the ranch, he thought of Kathryn Stepp again, of the tears she’d tried to hide from him and the worry in her voice.

       Without that car, I can’t work, and if I can’t work, I can’t fix the car. I can’t afford to pay you, Mr. Smith.

      Mr. Smith.

      The contrary woman didn’t like him much, though he was just trying to help her. She did like Frankie, though, and vice versa. That counted with Jake. Besides, how could he not help when he had the skills to do so?

      For most of the drive, he mulled over how to convince her to accept his assistance. Maybe Tina could talk Kathryn into letting him work on her car. Or the Billings sisters. The Billingses were a prominent ranching family around War Bonnet, greatly respected for their honesty and generosity. He wondered if he could get Tina to ride with him when he went to pick up Kathryn that evening. It would be an inconvenience. Six was the dinner hour in the Smith household. Why couldn’t Kathryn Stepp just accept his help and let that be that?

      Before he could decide how to handle the problem, he came upon her old car. Instinctively, he whipped over to the shoulder of the road and got out. A quick look told him that the little coupe had a standard transmission and the door was unlocked. Jake kept a sturdy chain handy for emergencies such as this. It was the work of minutes to hook up the chain, flick on the flashers and move the car’s transmission out of gear so he could tow it.

      “The lady’s car!” Frankie exclaimed gleefully as Jake slowly tugged the little old coupe into motion.

      “Yep. The lady’s car,” Jake confirmed, feeling the snap and tug of the chain.

      Towing a car like this was risky business, but if he slowed properly he could bring both vehicles to a halt without causing damage to either. He guided the truck and coupe into a slow, arcing turn and made his way to Loco Man Ranch on the outskirts of War Bonnet, where he coasted to a stop in the middle of the compound yard. The coupe came to a rest right behind Tina’s old car.

      Tina was driving a brand-spanking-new SUV now, and Ryder was supposed to be driving Tina’s car, but Jake had noticed that his little brother found lots of excuses for driving his brothers’ trucks instead. He couldn’t blame Ryder. All the Smith brothers stood three inches over six feet, and Ryder was by far the biggest, most muscular of the trio. A small car wasn’t a good fit.

      Jake took Frankie and their purchases into the house, where Frankie instantly announced, “We got a lady an’er car!”

      Tina, who was removing the lunch dishes from the newly installed dishwasher, straightened in surprise. “I need to go shopping more often. What size lady did you get?”

      Jake chuckled. “We stopped to help a lady whose car broke down beside the road. I towed it into the yard so I can take a look at it.”

      “Oh. Good thing you happened along. Where’s the lady?”

      “I took her to work. Gotta go back and get her at six.”

      “Ah. I can go get her if you want,” Tina offered lightly. “If you don’t mind eating early.”

      He shrugged as if it didn’t matter. But somehow, it did. “I’ll take care of it. Besides, I need to talk to her about her car.” Tina nodded, but for some reason, Jake felt as if he needed to defend himself. “She doesn’t seem to have much money.”

      Tina smiled. “Naturally you’ll help her.”

      He didn’t know what to say to that, so he changed the subject. “Frankie’s got something for Tyler. To go in the new SUV.”

      “Christmas tree!” Frankie declared, holding the two small packages aloft.

      “So that’s why you had to have it.” Jake chuckled. “You’re four months too early, pal.”

      Smiling, Tina went to take Frankie’s arm. “Tyler’s in his room. Let’s carry it up to him. Okay?”

      Frankie nodded happily, and they moved toward the hallway.

      “If you don’t mind keeping an eye on him for a little while,” Jake said quickly, “I’d like to get Kathryn’s car into the barn and go over it.”

      Tina shot him a smile over one shoulder. “Sure. And thanks for picking up those things for me.”

      “No problem.”

      As he headed to the door, Jake heard her say to Frankie, “Kathryn, hmm?”

      “Miss Kat’ryn,” Frankie corrected.

      Tina’s soft hmm made Jake wince.

      Newlyweds always thought everyone around them was trying to couple up. Well, he’d been there and done that already. Besides, even if he dared reach for such happiness again, he suspected that once in a lifetime was all anyone could expect. Maybe it was all he could endure.

      * * *

      “Where’s Frankie?” Kathryn asked, trying not to sound as nervous as she felt.

      “Playing with his cousin.”

      The truck engine idling, Jake waited patiently until she buckled her seat belt before backing the truck around and heading it down the dirt road.

      Kathryn watched Sandy’s little house recede in the side-view mirror of the truck and wondered if she’d ever be back, and if not, what would become of the gaunt, pleasant old man. Nearly ninety, he got around with the help of a walker and in the average week saw just Kathryn and a rural nurse. With his family far away, he depended on professional caregivers.

      Out of the blue, Jake Smith said, “I towed your car to Loco Man.”

      She gasped. “You did what? I told you, I can’t afford—”

      “Yeah, yeah, I get it,” he interrupted, shaking a hand at her. “But I couldn’t leave it sitting on the side of the road. It could’ve been hit. And I don’t know where you live, so I couldn’t tow it there. Besides, I can fix it for the cost of the parts. My shop’s not operational yet, but I’ve got everything I need to work on it in the barn.”

      Hope welled up inside her. “You’d do that?”

      “Sure. I can give you wholesale prices on the parts, too, but it’s still gonna cost in the hundreds,” he warned. “The engine has to be completely rebuilt.”

      Her hope of a moment before waned. If only she could find that insurance policy, but she’d looked everywhere she could think to look. The company insisted that they had no record of the changes they’d agreed upon more than a decade ago. Kathryn bit her lips, noticed him watching and stopped. A moment’s thought told her she really had no other choice.

      “Put together an estimate then,” she told him uncertainly. “I’ll try to figure out something.” Hopefully, her tax savings would cover it. If not...she didn’t want to go there.

      “I’ll

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