LITMIR.BIZ

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out his side of the Jeep. For the first time he looked at Ross. “How come you cough so much?”

      “Andy!” she cried in embarrassment.

      Contact at last. “It’s all right, Mrs. Wentworth, a perfectly normal question. I’m not sick in the way you might think, Andy. My partners and I picked up a cough in Afghanistan from breathing bad air, the contaminants of war. You can’t get it from being around me. Today it’s a little worse because there’s some smoke in the air from a forest fire. Smoke is our enemy. We always keep oxygen around to breathe in case it gets bad.”

      Andy studied him for a minute without saying anything. Mrs. Wentworth’s exquisite sea-green eyes fringed with black lashes sought his. “Will you get better?” She sounded as if she really wanted to know.

      “Maybe.”

      “In other words, you might never recover completely. I’m so sorry.”

      Ross shook his head, taken back by her seeming sincerity. “We’re fine.”

      He transferred his gaze to Andy who was still eyeing him. “If anyone’s sorry, we are for what happened to your father. He was a very brave marine who made himself a decoy under heavy fire and saved eight lives. I’m sure you’ve already been told the circumstances, but it bears repeating.

      “Hold that knowledge to you, Andy. Not every person born on this earth has a dad like yours, who was willing to give his life for his friends and country. What he did was remarkable. None of us will ever forget. It’s an honor to meet his son. If you’ll let us, we’d love to show you a good time while you’re here. Tomorrow I’ll take you riding if you want.”

      If Ross didn’t miss his guess, the boy’s light gray eyes grew suspiciously bright before he looked down. Illness and death seemed to be the only two areas that had reached him so far. “You must be tired. I’ll take in your luggage so you can get settled.” He opened the back of the Jeep to get their bags.

      “Come on, Andy. Let’s help.” She grabbed a case and handed it to him, then reached for one for herself. She kept surprising Ross. He took the other one and went up the steps first to open the cabin door.

      “I love it!” she announced once they were inside. “Yellow and white are my favorite colors. This place is charming, Mr. Livingston. We’re going to be so happy here, aren’t we, Andy?”

      Ross didn’t expect him to answer, and the boy didn’t disappoint him.

      “There are two bedrooms.” They followed him past the front room to the hallway. “The bathroom is behind that door. Which room would you like, Andy?” One room had a queen-size bed, the other contained twin beds.

      “I guess that one.” He meant the one on the right with the two beds.

      “Good.” Ross set down the case.

      His mother joined them and lowered her case to the floor. “This cozy room will be perfect for both of us. We’ll figure everything out later. Let’s go check out the snacks.”

      Andy put the other suitcase down and gave his mother a startled glance before they all moved to the other room. “We’re going to sleep in the same room?”

      “Why not? We don’t ever get to do it at home. I think it will be fun. We’ll read stories to each other.” She walked over to the table near the minifridge. “What’s in these little pouches?”

      “Pine nuts gathered on the ranch.”

      She smiled at Ross before putting a couple in her mouth. “Umm...nummy. Here, honey. Try some. Put out your hand.” When Andy did her bidding, she poured a few in his palm, then she turned to Ross. “What about you?”

      How could he say no? He didn’t like admitting it, but she had a disarming way about her. “Thank you.” He tossed back a few. “Just so you know, the maids come in daily to do housekeeping. If you need wash done, put it in the laundry bag hanging on the bathroom door and they’ll return your clothes before evening.”

      “Talk about being pampered,” she murmured. Just as he was thinking what a statement for her to make when you considered her background, her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket to check the caller ID. It wiped the smile from her face.

      “Excuse me. I need to answer this.” She clicked on and said hello. After a minute she said, “I planned to call you, but we just walked in our cabin with Mr. Livingston.”

      Another pause, then, “Yes. He’s right here.” She called to Andy, who was looking in the minifridge. “Your grandfather wants to talk to you.”

      “Do I have to?” he grumbled.

      “I think you better.”

      Andy didn’t look happy about it, but he walked over and reached for the phone. “Hello?” There was more silence before he said, “It’s a nice ranch. I guess we’ll be going riding. Mr. Livingston’s going to take us.” Whether that explanation was meant to satisfy his grandfather on some level or whether the idea of it actually sounded interesting to Andy, Ross didn’t know yet.

      “I’ll be careful, but I’ve got to go now.” Another pause. “I will.” He hung up and whispered something to his mom.

      Mother and son needed to be alone. Ross eyed them. “If you’ll forgive me, I have an errand to run before dinner.” Because of the smoke in the air he needed to take his medicine. “The dining room will be open in an hour. Shall I come by for you in the Jeep, or would you like to walk and meet me there? We’ll discuss an itinerary for you while we eat.”

      “Oh, walk! Definitely.” She escorted him to the door where he stepped out on the porch. “Thank you for everything, Mr. Livingston.”

      He detected a catch in her voice. His little talk to Andy would have affected her, too. She’d lost her husband, yet was trying to remain upbeat for her son. Ross admired that. Somehow her emotion had gotten under his skin. Facing her he said, “You’re welcome, Mrs. Wentworth. Call me Ross.”

      “I’m Kit.”

      His brows lifted. “Is that your given name?”

      “No. I was named Kathryn, but the grandmother who raised me after my parents died called me Kit and it stuck.”

      Ross liked it. She was the antithesis of the woman he’d been expecting once he’d known her background. Despite his initial misgivings, there were a dozen questions he wanted to ask, but this wasn’t the time.

      “I’m sorry about Andy,” she said in a quiet voice.

      “What do you mean?”

      “He’s been going through a bad time and knows better than to whisper in front of company. My father-in-law wants me to call him before I go to bed, that’s all.”

      She hadn’t owed him an explanation. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you later then.” He climbed in the Jeep and took off without looking back.

      After parking at the rear of the main ranch house, he entered the back door and strode swiftly down the hall to the stairs. He kept his medicine in his bathroom on the second floor.

      “Hey, Ross?” At the sound of Willy’s voice he swung around. “I saw you drive up when I was outside. You had a phone call that sounded important, if you know what I mean.” He handed him a piece of paper with a phone number on it with a wink.

      Ross was afraid he did. “Thanks.” He took the stairs two at a time. When he reached the bedroom, he medicated himself and then lay down on the bed to find out who’d called him. It was Cindy. He needed to put an end to her hopes. She answered on the second ring.

      “Hey, cowboy. Am I going to see you tonight?”

      Cindy Lawrence had been a lot of fun, but the hungry kiss she’d given Ross last night had offered too much. He should have enjoyed it. The beautiful moonlit night, unusually warm, should have worked its magic.

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