Because for so many years Grace had been as much caregiver as child, she had felt the loss even more deeply, felt even more abandoned and alone. She blinked back tears at the memory of that time. She had been so frightened and so determined not to show it.
That was when she had met Michael and, for a time, she had felt connected. She had leaned on him, drawing strength from the attention he had showered on her, envisioning herself a part of his large family even though at that time she’d never met them.
But, in the end, he hadn’t been able to give her what she desperately needed—a storybook family in which she would come first with him, just as he did with her. Graduation day had been a brutal awakening for her. She had realized then that the only person she could truly count on was herself. She’d clung to her independence ever since, not wanting to risk more disillusionment with another man.
But while her lifestyle suited her now, she didn’t want that for Jamie and Josh, who were already far too used to fending for themselves. She wanted them to be surrounded by people who cared, people they knew would be there for them always.
“Grace?”
Michael’s concerned voice drew her back to the present. “What?” she said without glancing up.
“You okay?”
“Of course,” she said, forcing a brisk, confident note into her voice. It was her courtroom tone, the one she drew on so no judge or jury would ever sense a hint of vulnerability. Even so, she wasn’t quite ready to look him in the eye.
“This is a hell of a mess, isn’t it?” he said.
“Now there’s an understatement, if ever I heard one.”
“What are we going to do?”
Her gaze came up at that. “We?” she echoed, not bothering to hide her surprise. “I thought you intended to dump this into my lap.”
“Look, if you don’t want my help, that’s fine by me. Believe me, nothing would please me more that to turn this over to you and get on with my nice, peaceful vacation.”
She regarded him skeptically. “‘Peaceful’ and ‘vacation’ are not two words I normally associate with you,” she said. “You’re here under duress, remember?”
“The prospect has become considerably more appealing overnight.”
“How unfortunate, since we have a crisis on our hands,” she declared, emphatically echoing him.
“I knew it was a mistake the minute I said that,” he muttered.
He didn’t sound half as disgruntled as she was sure he meant to. In fact, he sounded like a man who’d unwillingly been deeply touched by what those boys had already been through in their young lives. For the first time ever, she thought maybe she knew Michael Delacourt better than he knew himself. She had always known that he possessed a heart. He just wasn’t in touch with it very often. He wouldn’t allow himself to be, because he wanted nothing to compete with the time he devoted to Delacourt Oil.
Those boys had reached him in a way she suspected he rarely allowed to happen. She wasn’t about to let him back away from the experience. Just as he was about to rise from his seat—probably intent on beating a hasty retreat—she put her hand on his.
“Oh, no, you don’t. You’re not getting out of this that easily.”
He sank back down with a sigh of resignation, then reached for a piece of paper. “Okay, what’s the game plan?” he asked.
He sounded as if he were strategizing a corporate takeover and wanted every detail nailed down in advance. He almost seemed eager to get started. Or maybe, she thought more realistically, he was simply anxious to get finished.
Despite Michael’s sense of urgency, Grace considered their options thoughtfully. “I’m going to make a few discreet inquiries,” she began slowly.
He regarded her worriedly, as if he already sensed that he wasn’t going to like the role she had in mind for him. “What about me?”
She regarded him with a certain amount of delight. “You’re going to go out there and see how much more information you can pry out of Josh and Jamie.”
“Such as?”
“A last name would be helpful. So would their mother’s name.”
“Grace, those two fell in love with you at first sight. They were all but falling all over themselves earlier to please you. If they wouldn’t talk to you, how do you expect me to get them to open up? They don’t trust me. The only reason they didn’t sneak away from here last night was because they were too exhausted to try.”
“It’s not too late to change that. You can become their new best buddy.” She looked him over carefully. He was in another pair of slacks with creases so sharp they could have cut butter and a shirt that probably cost more than everything in her suitcase. “One little suggestion, though, before you go outside.”
“I could use more than one suggestion, sweetheart. I need a damned manual.”
“You were a boy once, Michael. You had brothers. Surely you recall what that was like.”
“Of course, but Jamie and Josh are nothing like we were.”
“For good reasons.”
“I know that. What I don’t know is how to get through to them, especially Jamie. He’s got solid concrete walls built around himself.”
“Are you surprised?”
“Of course not, but—”
“Michael, give it up. You’re a bright man. You can do this. For starters, how about changing into a pair of jeans and some boots? Dressed like that, you’d intimidate a CEO. That outfit might be fine for an afternoon at the country club, but out here you are seriously overdressed.”
To her surprise he chuckled.
“What’s so funny?”
“I was wondering how long it was going to take before you tried to get me out of my clothes.” He winked at her on his way out of the room. “Turned out to take a whole lot less time than I’d imagined.”
Michael’s taunting good humor was short-lived. He exited the house in the jeans and scuffed boots he normally wore to the oil fields feeling about as confident as a man facing a firing squad.
He stood silently for a moment, drawing in a deep breath of the scented morning air. He had a feeling it was the first time in years he’d actually been aware of the air he was breathing. The last time had probably been at the beach house where he’d always enjoyed sitting on the porch with a cup of coffee and the scent of salty sea breezes surrounding him.
“Whatcha doing?” Josh asked, slipping up beside him and regarding him curiously.
“Trying to decide what that scent in the air is,” he admitted. “Take a deep breath and see if you can tell.”
Josh gave an exaggerated sniff. “Must be those roses over there,” he said, indicating a garden Michael hadn’t noticed before. “They smell real sweet, just like that.”
Michael laughed.
Josh stared at him. “What’s so funny?”
“Some would say it’s about time I stopped to smell the roses,” Michael told him.
“What’s that mean?”
“It means I’m usually too busy to pay attention to what’s going on around me.”
The boy nodded. “One of my foster dads was like that. He was never home. Sometimes he stayed out all night. When he did, my foster mom would cry.”
Michael doubted Josh had any idea what the man had probably been up to on those nights away from home. Obviously, though, seeing his foster mom cry had troubled him. He gave the boy’s shoulder a sympathetic squeeze. “That must have been tough on you.”
“Yeah, well, when you’re a foster kid, you get used to stuff,” he said with a shrug.
Michael resolved then and there that there would be no more stuff for Josh and Jamie to learn to take in stride. He would do whatever it took to see that they landed in a good home this time, maybe even try to make them eligible for adoption if their mother wasn’t ever going to get her life straightened out. The courts were looking more favorably on making that happen these days, rather than leaving children in limbo forever. Whatever he and Grace decided to do, though, they had to m
ove quickly, before logic got all tangled up with emotion.
He glanced down and saw that Josh was mimicking his wide stance, his hands locked behind his back just as Michael’s were. He bit back a sudden desire to smile.
“Where’s Jamie?” he asked Josh.
“In the barn. He’s not touching anything,” he assured Michael hurriedly. “Just looking.”
“Looking is fine,” Michael assured him. “Does he like horses?”
Josh’s head bobbed up and down. “He loves horses more than anything. He really, really wants to learn to ride,” he confided. “Even more than me. Do you think we could? Could you teach us?”
What was it with everyone trying to get him on a blasted horse? Michael wondered.
“We’ll see,” he hedged, then felt terrible when he saw the disappointment rising in Josh’s eyes. Maybe he could get someone from White Pines over here to give the boys lessons. He couldn’t do that, though, until he and Grace had made some progress in finding out their legal status. That had to be cleared up before everyone landed in a heap of trouble.
“I’ll make you a deal,” he said, hunkering down until he was at eye level with Josh. He’d pulled off multimillion dollar negotiations with less finesse than this conversation was likely to require.
“What kind of a deal?” Josh asked, regarding him with innate distrust.
“You tell me your last name so Grace and I can get your situation straightened out, and I’ll get someone over here to give you riding lessons.”
“I don’t know,” Josh replied, clearly torn. “Jamie would be real mad if he found out.”
“Jamie wants to ride. Maybe he’d consider it a fair trade-off.”
Obviously tempted, Josh brightened. “Let’s go ask him,” he said, tugging on Michael’s hand.
Michael had a feeling Jamie’s hide was tougher than Josh’s. No matter how badly he wanted the riding lessons, Jamie might not be willing to tell Michael what he needed to know.
“No,” Michael said, halting their forward motion. “This deal is between the two of us. I won’t tell your brother you told me.”
“But he’ll know,” Josh reasoned. “How else could you find out?”
“If he asks, I’ll tell him I had my brother do some research. He’s a private investigator.”
“But that’s a lie.”
Michael winced at his shock. “I know, but once in a very long while, when it’s to protect someone’s feelings, a very small lie is okay.”
Josh was still hesitant. “But I promised I wouldn’t tell. Not ever.”
“Some promises can be broken if it’s for a really, really good reason,” Michael reassured him. He couldn’t help wondering if he wasn’t teaching Josh to bend way too many of the values he’d been taught. Maybe these were lessons that should have waited until he was old enough to make the right distinctions about the circumstances. Too late now, though.
Josh regarded him worriedly. “You swear we’ll get to ride the horses?”
“Cross my heart,” Michael said, sketching a cross across his chest.
Josh beckoned him closer. Michael bent down. “Miller,” he whispered. “That’s our last name. Our mom is Naomi Miller.”
“Josh!”
The shout of betrayal echoed across the corral. Neither of them had seen Jamie emerge from the barn. Whether he had heard all of the words from that distance or not, he clearly suspected that Josh was confiding something he shouldn’t.
Before Michael could react, Jamie raced across the ground and tackled his brother, throwing him to the ground, then landing on top of him, fists flying.
For a moment, Josh gave as good as he got, but Jamie was bigger and stronger. When Michael figured the odds were way too uneven, he reached down and snagged Jamie by the back of his shirt. The boy came to his feet flailing at Michael. One punch caught him squarely in the jaw, jarring his teeth. He figured it was no more than he deserved for his role in this.
“Enough!” Grace commanded, appearing out of nowhere, her voice calm but unyielding.
Jamie stilled, but the anger in his eyes continued to cast sparks in Michael’s direction.
“What is this all about?” she demanded, her gaze on Michael.
Jamie and Josh stared at him, clearly wary of what he might say.
“Just a little disagreement,” he said mildly. “Nothing to get excited about.”
“It is not a little disagreement when Josh has the beginnings of a black eye and cuts all over him and you’re rubbing a swollen jaw.” Her gaze landed on Jamie. “Well?”
“I’m not telling,” he said sullenly. He stared pointedly at his brother. “I don’t tell secrets.”
Josh flushed, tears welling up in his eyes.
Michael sighed. The last thing he’d meant to do was cause a rift between the brothers. He knew it wouldn’t last, but for now they were both hurting in ways well beyond whatever physical injuries they’d suffered.
“This is my fault,” he confessed.
Grace stared at him in surprise. “It is? Why?”
“I asked Josh for some information. We made a deal. It was a fair deal, but I should never have put him in that position,” he said candidly. He regarded both boys intently. “I’m sorry.”
“What good’s sorry now that you got what you wanted?” Jamie demanded, not the least bit pacified by the apology.
“He’s gonna get us riding lessons,” Josh said so softly it was barely audible.
Jamie gaped. “That was the deal? You traded our secret for riding lessons?”
“I know how bad you wanted them,” Josh said defensively. “I did it for you.”
“He did,” Michael said. “And I’ll get somebody over here this afternoon.”
“Yeah,” Jamie said bitterly. “And right after that, you’ll turn us in.”
“Nobody’s turning anybody in,” Grace assured him. “This just makes it easier for me to get information.” She regarded Jamie evenly. “I’m a lawyer and I am on your side.”
Jamie continued to regard her with suspicion. “We can’t afford to pay a lawyer.”
Grace returned his look with a solemn expression. “Do you have any money at all?”
“A couple of dollars,” Jamie said.
Josh looked surprised. “You said we was broke.”
“This was for emergencies,” Jamie said defensively.
“Give me one of the dollars,” Grace said.
Jamie balked. “What about the emergencies?”
“Once you give me that dollar, I’ll be working for you. I’ll take care of any emergencies,” she explained.
Jamie still looked dubious. “Honest?”
“Honest.”
He took a crumpled bill from his pocket and handed it to her. Grace smoothed it out, folded it and put it in her pocket.
“Now you have yourself a lawyer,” she said. “With me on your side, nothing will happen to the two of you unless we all agree it’s for the best.”
“All of us?” Jamie repeated skeptically. “That means me and Josh have to say yes, too?”
“Absolutely,” she assured him.
Michael regarded her with surprise. Surely she knew that making such a promise was risky. What if the court overruled their judgment? Just as Jamie had said earlier, grown-ups in general and judges in particular could be notoriously capricious, even in interpreting the letter of the law.
Jamie seemed to be wavering, his distrust of the system weighing heavily against his longing to ride one of the horses.
“Do I get to pick which horse?” he asked.
“As long as whoever comes to give the lesson approves it,” Michael said. When Jamie looked ready to protest, he added, “Just to make sure you won’t get hurt. Once you’ve had your lessons, you can ride any horse around here.”
“Satisfied?” Grace asked.
Josh stared up at his big brother hopefully. “Is it okay?”
Jamie shuffled his sneakers in the dirt, trying very hard to bank
his obvious excitement. “I suppose.”
“All right!” Josh shouted, slapping Michael’s hand in a high five.
Michael had to admit, he felt a little of the child’s glee himself. A glance at Grace suggested she was just as happy. A smile had spread across her face and lit her eyes. Only Jamie refused to give any outward hint of his exuberance. All alone, he headed back into the barn. After a slight hesitation, Josh trailed after him.
“I guess you’re pretty proud that your divide-and-conquer technique paid off,” Grace said, a surprising hint of condemnation in her voice.
“I’m glad we have the information we need,” he agreed. He met her gaze evenly. “But I wish there had been another way to get it. I don’t want those boys to lose their trust in one another.”
She regarded him with obvious relief. “Good. Then you won’t try that again.”
“Since you obviously disapprove of my methods, does that mean you don’t want the ill-gotten information?”
“No,” she said quickly. “Of course, I want it.”
“The last name is Miller. The mother is Naomi. Any luck with your other calls?”
“Nothing so far, but it’s hard to get a line on something like this without giving away more than I’m getting. It’ll be easier now that I’m not just trying to track down two needles in a very large haystack.”
Michael regarded her worriedly. “Grace, how much trouble will you be in if someone wants to make a big deal out of the two of us letting those kids stay here instead of turning them in right away? I imagine there are pretty strict regulations governing this sort of thing. We can’t just decide to keep the kids here without somebody’s approval, right? Not even for a few days?”
“I can handle it. What about you? If some newspaper gets wind of your involvement, this could land on the front pages of the papers all over Texas.”
“I’ve weathered worse,” he assured her. It came with the territory. There were a lot of people eager to dig up dirt on a family as powerful as the Delacourts. There wasn’t much to be found, but a lot could be made of a little indiscretion if a reporter cared to put a negative slant on it.
“All that matters is getting those boys settled someplace where they’ll be together and happy,” he told her.
Marrying a Delacourt Page 5