Kentucky Heat

by Fern Michaels

  Hatch swiveled around, shaking hands with the cook and then swiveling back in one easy, fluid motion to shake Smitty’s hand.

  “I’m so glad to see you again, in happier circumstances. I want you to tell me again how you hatched that egg,” Smitty said.

  Hatch grinned. “Very carefully.”

  Smitty grinned in return. “I already ate, Nealy. I have a lot of work piled up, so I won’t be joining you. Nice meeting you, Mr. Littletree.”

  “Likewise.”

  “There’s a bathroom off the kitchen if you want to wash your hands. I’ll go upstairs and be right down. Just pancakes for me, Matilda. Hatch, give her your order.”

  Nealy galloped up the steps, breathless with the effort. She ran down the hall to the bathroom, where she leaned against the wall, struggling to take deep breaths. Something was happening to her. She looked in the mirror and groaned. She didn’t look anything like Hatch’s beautiful wife. Would he compare her to Sela? She clapped her hands against her fiery red cheeks. All she could do was splash some cold water on her face and brush her hair. She looked longingly at her cosmetic bag. Nick always said, “You clean up good, Mom. You should fix yourself up more often.”

  Nealy leaned against the vanity and closed her eyes. What was it Jess always said, “A day late and a dollar short.” Now what does that have to do with anything?

  “He’s worth it, Nealy.”

  “Hunt?”

  “You finally met the right one. You know it, don’t you?”

  “The one what? You spook me, Hunt.”

  “ If you play your cards right, you could land the big guy. They don’t come any better than Hatch.”

  “Don’t go trying to fix me up with a surrogate duck, Hunt. Go back on your cloud or . . . or . . . you aren’t going to . . . you can’t . . . can you?”

  “Oh yeah. You only have a year to the Derby. After that, maybe you should think about . . . other things. Like finally maybe trying to be happy. He can make you happy, Nealy.”

  “This is obscene. You’re my husband and you’re dead and you’re trying to fix me up with some guy who hatches duck eggs between his legs. I don’t want your help. Go away. Stop spying on me. You are, you know.”

  His laugh was warm and intimate, the same way it had been back in Texas years earlier. Nealy shivered as she opened her eyes. Damn, she really needed to get more sleep. How could she possibly lean against the vanity and doze off. She shook her head to clear her thoughts and raced downstairs.

  “I like this kitchen. It’s warm and cozy. You can tell people live here. I moved out of the house, sold it, and moved into a condo after . . . afterward. It’s all stainless steel and chrome. I’m talking about my kitchen. Lately, any spare time I have I spend with Emmie in her kitchen. She’s a terrific cook.”

  Nealy envied Hatch his relationship with her daughter. “Yes, Emmie was always a good cook.” She walked over to the counter and poured herself a cup of coffee. Over her shoulder, she asked, “Did she ever tell Buddy about the baby?”

  “No. I want her to, but she’s adamantly against it at this time. I didn’t push it. She’s a very good mother.” He spread the pictures across the table. “Sit down, Nealy, and have a look at your beautiful granddaughter. These are yours to keep. I had this set made for you.”

  Nealy’s hands shook as she picked up first one picture and then another. Tears gathered in her eyes. “She looks just like Emmie did when she was her age. How chubby she is. Emmie looks wonderful. Nick looks tired,” she said accusingly.

  “Tired doesn’t quite cut it. He’s dead tired. More like exhausted. We make sure he eats right, exercises, and sleeps just enough to get by. It’s the way it is, Nealy. He knew the ground rules going in and agreed to everything. He’s holding up his end of the bargain. The law comes so naturally to him. He aces all of it with very little sweat. Your son has a phenomenal memory.”

  “What you’re saying without saying the words is I screwed over my son for my own selfish reasons. Is that the way you see it?” Nealy asked.

  “It doesn’t matter what I think, Nealy,” he said. “I’m sure you had your reasons for doing what you did.” He smiled at her. “He’s a fine young man, Nealy. One you can be proud of.”

  Nealy leaned across the table, determined to get all her questions answered. “You never liked me, did you?”

  There was a spark of some undefinable emotion in his eyes. “I didn’t know you well enough to like or dislike you. All I could go on was what Hunt said. I suppose along the way I formed some opinions. He told me you didn’t like me.”

  “That’s not exactly true. I was jealous. I told you that before. I suppose I still am. First you have my husband tied to you, and then my son and daughter run to you for safeguarding. You opened your arms wide to both of them. For that I’m grateful. I can’t comprehend your generosity. You live in a big, wide world. My own is narrow by comparison. All I’ve ever known are horses and the land. And racing. I like to think that I’m a good person, but stacked up against you, I failed in Hunt’s eyes. For a time you and I were the two most important people to him. In the end, you won and I lost. It’s that simple.”

  Hatch reached for Nealy’s hand. His eyes bored into hers. “Nothing in life is simple, Nealy. We all make mistakes and I’ve made my share just as you have. We learn from those mistakes. If we don’t, we’re lost. Life is never easy. Giving is what makes my life whole. When Sela and my son died I didn’t think I could go on. That was the selfish part of me. I wanted to see my son grow into a fine young man. I wanted to grow old with Sela. I stuck my snoot in a bottle for a few months. Bode, Hank, and Medusa were there to pick up the pieces. They didn’t try to stop me because it was something I had to work through on my own. Sela told me that if anything ever happened to her she wanted me to pack her away, all the pictures, all the memories, and get on with my life. I’ve been trying to do that because it’s what she wanted. Some days are harder than others. Is that how it was with you when Hunt died?”

  “No. It wasn’t like that at all. We’d grown too far apart by then. I grieved, but life went on. I think I was in shock for a long time. He was way too young to die the way he did. Sela and your son were too young, too. I had the horses. It always comes back to the horses.” The warmth and the strength of his big hand surprised her. She made no move to withdraw her hand, content for some strange reason with the closeness.

  She didn’t want to ask the question, but she did anyway because she needed to know. “Do the kids ever talk about me?” Her voice was so sad-sounding to her ears she wanted to cry.

  “No. At least not to me. I won’t lie to you, Nealy.”

  Nealy forced a smile. “I’m grateful for that, Hatch. If you’re finished with your coffee, I’d like to show you the farm. Do you have the time?” She made a move to withdraw her hand, and Hatch squeezed it before he let it go.

  “I have two hours before I have to be at the airport. Do you have anything else you want to ask me about the kids or Gabby?”

  Nealy jammed her hands into the pockets of her jeans. “I don’t think I have a right to ask anything. Circumstances aren’t the best right now. Perhaps one day in the not-too-distant future things will change. I hope so. Oh, look, there’s Ruby and Metaxas. I want you to meet them.”

  “Hatch, you son of a gun! What the hell are you doing here! It’s been years! How are you, you big Indian?” Metaxas bellowed.

  Ruby and Nealy watched in amazement as the two men slapped and clapped one another on the back, pushed each other away so they could eyeball one another before they met again in a bone-crushing hug.

  “You two know each other?” Nealy asked in surprise.

  “Hell, we’re like two peas in a pod.” Metaxas laughed. “Do you know what this guy did? He ripped a city right from under my nose. He built an entire community for his people. I had the contract, and he did it for free. I knew then I wanted to meet this guy. Then he charged me fifty bucks for the tour when it was finished. He’s go
od people, Nealy.”

  “Yes. Yes, he is,” Nealy agreed. “Nick and Emmie are with him in Santa Fe as you know. I don’t know why I said that,” Nealy dithered.

  “Like I told you, Nealy, if they’re with Hatch, then they’re in good hands,” Metaxas said. “Come on, I want to show you my horse. Not another one like it in the world.”

  Hatch looked questioningly at Nealy, who smiled and nodded.

  “Now that’s a man!” Ruby giggled, as she playfully nudged Nealy on the shoulder. “Good-looking in a rugged way. Muscles up the kazoo. Rich, too. Can’t beat rich and good-looking. He’s got eyes for you, Nealy. I see something in you that’s different than it was before you went up for breakfast. What do you suppose that is?”

  Nealy giggled. “Your imagination. He brought pictures of Gabby. Ruby, she is so very beautiful. He said the kids are well, and Nick will be taking the bar next year. I felt so proud I wanted to bust. I played the game, though. He . . . ah . . . he never remarried.”

  “Fancy that.” Ruby smirked. She led Nealy over to the bench in the breezeway and sat down. “You should tell him the truth, Nealy.”

  “No. It’s better this way. He didn’t say, but I don’t think the kids know he’s here. He came on his own to give me pictures of Gabby. It was very considerate of him to come here like this. I guess he really is a nice man. I was always jealous of him. That’s the bottom line.”

  Ruby sighed with happiness, her eyes on Metaxas and Hatch. “Oh, Nealy, I am so very happy, and I owe it all to you. I go to sleep with a smile on my face and wake up with a smile. I have never seen Metaxas so happy. You will never know what a wonderful thing you did by giving him that horse. Everything else in life suddenly paled for him. He goes to sleep with a smile and wakes up with one, too. We will be forever grateful. The best part of all is Shufly loves him. Yesterday when you went up to the house for something he was playing with Metaxas. He bent down, got a mouthful of grass, and when Metaxas called him pretty boy he blew it right at him and then snorted and pawed the ground like he’d just one-upped his owner. Metaxas laughed until his stomach was sore. They bonded, that’s for sure. The horse is a ham, Nealy.”

  “You’re telling me. Every time I want to take his picture he poses. He sees the camera and he wants you to get his best side, which is his right side. Then he does that snorting, pawing thing to show you he’s having a high old time. My blood just boils every time I hear someone refer to horses as big, dumb, and stupid.”

  “So, Nealy, tell me, what do you think of that big Indian?”

  “Don’t go there, Ruby. He just came here to bring the pictures and to tell me about the kids.”

  “He could have called to tell you that, and he could have sent the pictures by overnight mail. Flying here . . . Now that tells me this man is something special. Really special. You aren’t going to screw this up, are you, Nealy?”

  Nealy’s face bunched itself into a grimace. “There’s nothing to screw up. I need a dye job,” she said, running her fingers through her hair.

  “And you need to pluck your eyebrows. A nice French manicure would look good. I have some really sinful perfume that goes great with the smell of horse manure.”

  “Enough!” Nealy hissed. “He lives in Santa Fe, for God’s sake.”

  Ruby shifted her weight from one side to the other. “Would you just listen to the two of them. You’ll never need a PR person with Metaxas around. He thinks the sun rises and sets on you, woman. Listen.”

  “I’m telling you, Hatch, I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. This is a whole new world to me. This creature here who is busy chewing the buttons off my shirt is alive and breathing. He’s all mine. Mine. He can pitch a fit with the best of them, and he can be as gentle as a pussycat. He likes to play. It’s Nealy that got him to this point. She’s got magic in her hands and voice. You should hang around here for a few days and just watch. You’ll never be the same again. One of a kind. There will never be another one like . . .”

  “I can see that. He is beautiful,” Hatch said.

  “You dumb schmuck, I’m talking about Nealy, not this horse. She’s one of a kind. She’s riding this baby in the Derby. Honest to good God, Hatch, I feel like a father.”

  “Oh. Yeah, yeah, I guess she is one of a kind. I don’t mean this to sound sexist but isn’t she kind of . . . you know, old to be riding in a Derby full of male jockeys?”

  “Age is a number, Hatch. I know people who are seventy and are young, and by the same token I know people who are fifty who damn well dodder. It’s a mind-set. She’s training. Knowing what I know now, and that isn’t a whole hell of a lot, I wouldn’t trust this horse to anyone but her. When she’s on his back they are one. Make no mistake. She knows this horse, and he knows her. Here, give him a mint, and he’ll love you,” Metaxas said, slipping Hatch a peppermint.

  Hatch grinned as the horse lapped up the mint, then tossed his head in thanks.

  “Told you he was a ham. Hey, nice seeing you again. It’s been a long time. Since Sela’s funeral actually. I’m glad you’re out and about. Let’s make a pact not to let so much time go by before we meet again. Old friends need to stay close.”

  “It’s a deal.”

  “Listen, if we go to the Derby, how about sharing my box?”

  “I’d like that. I gotta get going. Nealy wants to show me the farm, and I’m eating into my time. Gotta get back home.”

  “Great seeing you again.”

  “You, too, Metaxas. I’m ready for the rest of the tour, Nealy,” Hatch said, striding over to the bench.

  “Then let’s do it!”

  “Nice meeting you, Ruby.”

  “Likewise,” Ruby called over her shoulder as she scampered across the breezeway to join her husband.

  They walked the farm until Hatch looked down at his watch. “Gotta go, Nealy. This was nice, real nice. I enjoyed myself.”

  “I did, too. Thanks for bringing the pictures. I was having a bum day when you got here. You made it better.”

  They were at the car. Hatch climbed in. “Maybe we could have dinner sometime.”

  “Sure, anytime you’re in town, just call.” Dinner. She felt flustered at the thought. Didn’t he see the gray in her hair, the wrinkles around her eyes and mouth? Not to mention the bushy eyebrows that Ruby said needed to be plucked. He was probably just being polite.

  “How about tomorrow?”

  “Tomorrow?” Her stomach rushed up to her throat.

  “Yeah, tomorrow. I can be here by six.”

  “Six. Well . . . okay.” A little more than twenty-four hours. Dye job, French manicure. Eyebrow waxing. Shopping. Smitty said you always needed new underwear for a first date.

  “Good. It’s a date then. Do you want dress up or casual ? I’m asking because I own a couple of suits and some white shirts.”

  Nealy burst out laughing. “Let’s do casual. We can go to the Jockey Club for dinner. I’m assuming you’ll want to stay over.”

  “Yep.”

  Nealy sucked in her breath. Damn, the sun was bright. Where did all those chittering birds come from all of a sudden?

  “See you tomorrow at six then. Have a safe trip. Thanks again, Hatch.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Nealy stood rooted to the driveway until Hatch’s car was out of sight. She had to tell someone.

  “Rubyyyyy!” she yelled at the top of her lungs as she sprinted for the barn.

  Metaxas and Ruby came to the doorway on the run. “My God, Nealy, what’s wrong?”

  “Wrong? Nothing’s wrong. I have a date! He’s coming back tomorrow. Six o’clock!”

  “No!” Ruby screeched. “That’s great! Oh, my God, I’m so excited! Did you hear that, Metaxas? Nealy has a date tomorrow! We were just talking about the possibility a few minutes ago. Life is certainly strange. I knew it! I knew I saw something in his eyes. That doesn’t give us much time. Just a little over twenty-four hours. Oh, Lord, there’s so much to do. Honey, you’re on your o
wn. Tell Dover he has to take over with Shufly until Thursday morning. Better make that Thursday afternoon. Yes, yes, Thursday afternoon sounds right. You can do this, honey. You’re good in emergencies. None better. Nealy has a date. This is so wonderful! Isn’t it wonderful, honey?”

  Metaxas stared wide-eyed at his wife and Nealy. “Wonderful. Women!” he muttered as he made his way back to the barn.

  “Okay, okay, this is what we’re going to do. We’re going up to the house to shower and then we’re going to town. I know just what to do and what to buy. Bring lots of money, Nealy.”

  “It’s a casual date, Ruby. Smitty said all I need is new underwear.”

  “That, too. Oh, I’m so excited. I can see you with him, Nealy. I really can.”

  “Yeah, well try this on for size. Can you see me carrying on a conversation with him? I’m no good in social situations. I get tongue-tied. I can’t hold my own off the farm. Talking to a man is different from talking to you or Metaxas and the horses.”

  “That’s why we’re going to do all this stuff today. Tomorrow we’re going to practice. Will you trust me?”

  Nealy sighed. “I’m not sure I like him, Ruby. How can I suddenly like him when I’ve hated him for so long?”

  “You never really hated him. You were jealous of him. How do you think he’ll be in bed?” Ruby whispered.

  Nealy giggled. “I’m only going to dinner with him.”

  “Then why are you going to buy new underwear?”

  “Because Smitty said that’s what you do when you have a date. It’s for me, so I feel good from the skin out. I’m not going to go to bed with him.”

  “We’ll see.” Ruby smiled.

  Smitty brought the golf cart to a stop, the mail piled on the seat next to her. The moment she saw Hatch’s car she flagged him down. “Mr. Littletree, do you have a minute?”

  “Sure. Is something wrong?”

  “No. I just want to tell you something. Normally I don’t stick my nose into other people’s business, especially Nealy’s business. There’s something you need to know. I don’t want you leaving here thinking bad things about Nealy. But I want what I tell you to be just between the two of us. Is it a deal?”