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Mary Kate’s husband stopped buttering bread for one of his children to nod, smiling.
“That’s amazing.” Would that make it easier or harder to enlist their aid with Gabe? She didn’t know.
Joe Flanagan shrugged. “It’s what we do. What we were born for. Maybe Gabe most of all.” He leaned toward her, lowering his voice. “Gabe is strong as a horse. He’ll be back on the job in no time. I’m not saying anything against this program of yours, but Gabe doesn’t need it.”
“I see.” That seemed to answer the question of whether she could expect any help from Gabe’s family. His father, at least, was just as convinced as Gabe that Nolie was unnecessary.
Her head began to throb from the noise. She glanced at Gabe, wondering how he stood it all.
But Gabe was leaning back in his chair, gesturing with his fork at something one of his brothers had said. His angular face was the most relaxed she’d seen it. His hair, nearly blue-black where the overhead light reflected on it, tumbled onto his forehead a little.
As if he felt her gaze on him, he looked at her. His face was open to her for just an instant, and her heart seemed to turn over. Her breath caught, and the noise around them faded.
Whoa. She’d better be careful. Because if Gabriel Flanagan looked at her that way too many times, she’d could find herself agreeing with just about anything he said.
Chapter Two
By the time supper ended, Gabe was beginning to think he’d never get rid of Nolie Lang. Every member of his family seemed determined to talk to her. He could only hope they were all telling her the same thing he had—that he didn’t need her help. The woman should leave convinced she’d have to find another guinea pig for her experiment.
Judging by the way Nolie’s gaze kept darting toward the door, she was ready to be free of the Flanagans, too, for the moment, at least. Well, he wanted her to be free of them permanently.
He’d steered clear while Mom had showed her the wall full of fire-department photos and citations above the mantel, not wanting to be the subject of his mother’s praises in front of this woman.
But now Ryan joined them, chatting away as if he and Nolie were old friends. Gabe hoped he was reinforcing the family line—Gabe doesn’t need your help. Gabe is fine. Gabe will be back on the job in no time.
Ryan seemed to be turning on an inordinate amount of the Flanagan charm. Now, why was his little brother going to so much trouble? It certainly wasn’t as if Nolie were his type. Ryan might be initially attracted by the long blond hair, but everything else about Nolie would turn him off.
Plain. That was all he could think. She looked as if she hadn’t made the faintest effort—just run in from the barn and tossed on a white shirt and navy blazer. Even his tomboy sister Terry would have done a better job for an important interview.
So what interested Ryan so much? He sauntered closer to find out.
“That’s my father and his brothers when they first joined the department.”
Ryan had obviously taken over the explanations, while his mother smiled and nodded. Nolie couldn’t know it, but the Flanagan kids favored either Mom or Dad in personality as well as looks. Mary Kate, Terry and Ryan were as ebullient as Dad, while he and Seth had his mother’s reserve.
Ryan’s eyes sparked with mischief as Gabe joined them. “And here’s the brand-new citation for our latest hero, Gabriel Flanagan.”
Nolie studied the plaque with every indication of interest. Gabe averted his eyes from it and glared at his brother.
“Give it a rest, Ryan.”
“Hey, I will when you stop gold-bricking and get back on the job. I don’t want to have to uphold the family traditions single-handedly.”
“You’ve got Dad, Seth and Terry to do that.”
He could only hope they were also keeping Ryan in line. The kid had a tendency to take more risks than he needed to at times.
“They’re not the current hero.” Ryan, of course, knew exactly what buttons to push.
“Knock it off.” That came out with enough of a snarl in his voice that even his baby brother knew he meant it.
With another engaging grin for Nolie, Ryan moved away.
“We are proud of you,” his mother said softly. “You know that, don’t you?”
“Sure, Mom.” He dropped a quick kiss on her cheek. “I understand, but Nolie didn’t come to hear the whole Flanagan saga.”
“Actually it’s quite helpful in deciding what kind of dog will work best for you,” Nolie said. “I’m finding it all very interesting.”
She was probably picturing the publicity she’d get for her program with him as her prized exhibit. Well, he wasn’t going to join her dog-and-pony show, not if he could help it.
A clatter of dishes from the kitchen diverted his mother. She murmured an apology and scurried in that direction.
As soon as she’d gone, he squared off with Nolie. “I already told you. I don’t need a dog.”
Her level brows lifted. “I believe I heard you tell the chief that you’d cooperate.”
“What I told—” he began.
“Are you seeing all the family history?” This time the interruption came from a man new to the gathering, and he gritted his teeth before attempting introductions.
“Nolie Lang, this is my cousin, Brendan Flanagan. Come to scrounge some leftovers, no doubt.”
Brendan’s grin admitted the truth of that barb. “Only partly. I also wanted to meet Ms. Lang.”
“Nolie, please.” She extended her hand. “Are you another of the Flanagan firefighters?”
Brendan shook his head, probably used to explaining his story.
“I’m the one holdout—the only Flanagan who didn’t go into the family business. I’m the minister at Grace Church.”
Gabe couldn’t miss Nolie’s reaction to that. She snatched her hand back as if she’d touched hot metal, and her skin went pale under her tan.
Now what, exactly, was going on with the woman?
“Brendan keeps us in line,” Gabe said with deliberate casualness, watching her. “If all the Flanagans aren’t sitting in a row on Sunday morning, he wants to know why.”
“And I’m also the fire department chaplain, so they can’t get away from me at work, either,” Brendan added. “Which I guess means I didn’t completely reject the family business.”
He could tell by the way Brendan studied Nolie’s face that he’d noted her intense reaction, too.
“I see.” She gave a meaningless smile, and he sensed that only strong control kept her from bolting out the door. She fumbled in her pocket and pulled out a card. “Here’s my address,” she said, handing it to Gabe. “I’d like to meet at the farm tomorrow, if that’s possible for you.”
His jaw clenched. “I don’t think I can make it.”
Their gazes clashed, and he saw a determination in hers that matched his own. “I think you’d better find a way.”
The implication was clear. He’d show up, or she’d sic the chief on him.
“Fine.” He ground out the word. “What time?”
“About one o’clock would be good for me.”
She waited long enough for his curt nod, and then turned toward the door. “Please thank your parents for me. I really have to leave.”
She didn’t wait for a response, just bolted toward the exit with barely concealed relief.
Gabe let the door close behind her before he looked at his cousin, eyebrows lifting.
“Okay, let me in on the secret. Exactly what did you do to the woman to send her running?”
Brendan shrugged, his eyes troubled. “I don’t know. She seems to have a problem with ministers, doesn’t she?”
“Obviously. You don’t usually send strange women screaming for the exit.”
That didn’t bring the smile he expected from Brendan. “I’d like to talk with her further. Maybe when you’re working with her, you can mention that I’d enjoy getting to know her better.”
“I don’t intend to be working with her, remember?”
“So I’ve heard.” Brendan’s gaze probed beneath the surface. “You want to talk about that?”
No. He didn’t. He didn’t want to talk about any of it. “Thanks anyway, Brendan. Save the pastoral advice for somebody who needs it. I’m fine.”
Fine. He certainly didn’t want to talk to his cousin about the fact that he seemed to be going through the motions spiritually these days. Or that God had been silent just when he needed Him most.
And he also didn’t intend to discuss his vulnerabilities with Nolie Lang. Determination tensed every muscle. This little encounter hadn’t worked out as well as he’d hoped. Even the Flanagan crew hadn’t been able to convince her he didn’t need her services.
But the next day they’d be alone together, without his loving, interfering family around. They’d have it out.
He wasn’t going to be Nolie’s test case. Tomorrow he’d make sure she accepted that fact.
Gabe hadn’t shown up. One o’clock had come and gone, and he hadn’t even called. Nolie couldn’t say she was surprised.
She tried to concentrate on getting Danny Trent and his wheelchair through the obstacle course she’d set up in the renovated garage that was now her training center. She’d left the big doors open, and May sunshine warmed the concrete floor.
One might expect that the eight-year-old, with his multiple birth defects and his feuding parents, would be tough to work with, but he wasn’t. Danny’s indomitable spirit shone through no matter what struggle he faced.
At the moment he was adjusting to training with Lady, the German shepherd she’d chosen for him. Both took to their challenges eagerly, and her heart warmed with the joy of a successful pairing.
“Great job, Danny.”
Danny rewarded her with the smile that seemed too big for his small face. “Thanks.”
“Now tell Lady what a good girl she is and give her a treat.”
She watched as he struggled to make his hand cooperate in giving Lady the doggie nugget. It was hard not to jump in and help when he had difficulty, but Danny could do this himself. Every little triumph gave him energy for the next challenge.
The boy beamed when he succeeded. Lady licked his cheek, making him giggle.
“Can we do it again, Nolie? Please?”
“Sure, give it another try.”
He’d do it faster this time, with more confidence. Gabe ought to see this. Maybe Danny’s efforts would help him to understand what her program was all about.
She couldn’t say she’d done a very good job of dealing with the man. She’d like to blame it on being knocked off balance by the unexpected condition Henley had put on her grant, but that wasn’t all that had gone wrong.
She’d found Flanagan himself intimidating, although she’d certainly never let him know it. His fierce anger at what had happened to him was almost palpable. He couldn’t admit that. He was in complete denial about the entire situation.
As for that visit to his house—well, she’d been grateful to escape back to the solitude of her own little world. The Flanagan brood was a little overwhelming.
Unfortunately, escape was the right word. She’d basically run like a deer after that unexpected encounter with Gabe’s cousin. The minister.
The very word left a sour taste in her mouth. That was what Brother Joshua had called himself, although certainly no divinity school had ever claimed him. And she doubted that God had given any sort of blessing to the man.
None of that had mattered to the great-aunt who’d reluctantly taken her in after everyone else had abandoned her. To put it in the most charitable light, Aunt Mariah hadn’t known what to do with a thrown-away eight-year-old. So she’d turned to the leader of her bizarre sect for child-rearing advice.
I know I should get over this, Father. My relationship with You transcends anything in my past. It does. But every time I come into contact with organized religion, all those dark memories come back.
Well, she didn’t have to have anything more to do with Gabe’s cousin. And it looked as if she might not be able to have anything more to do with Gabe, either.
What were her options? She could confront him again. Or go to the fire chief for help. Or even contact the foundation, although she certainly didn’t want to admit failure to Samuel Henley at the first hurdle.
“We did it!” Danny crowed. “We did perfect, Nolie.”
“You sure did, honey.” She managed to hug him and ruffle the dog’s fur at the same time. “You’ll be ready for graduation before you know it.”
His face clouded. “I don’t want to—not if I have to go away from you.”
“Hey, it’s okay.” Her heart clenched. “I’ll always be your friend, you know that.”
But they would part. That was the nature of her work. She bonded with a child or an animal, worked intensely with them for months, and then saw them leave. That was success—they didn’t need her anymore.
She planted a kiss on Danny’s cheek. “Your mom’s here to pick you up. I’ll see you next time.”
She straightened, trying to keep the smile on her face. Danny’s mother wasn’t the only one here. Gabe lounged in the doorway, watching her.
Tension zinged along her nerves. She’d rather work with a dozen Dannys than one large, angry male, but she didn’t have a choice.
She waved goodbye to the child and tried to put a little steel in her spine as she walked toward Gabe, Lady trotting at her heels. She wouldn’t let the man intimidate her. She would show him the work she did here so convincingly that he’d have to admit its value.
And make him admit he needed it? Probably not, but she had to try.
“Good afternoon.” She wouldn’t say anything about his tardiness. Let him bring it up if he wanted.
He gave a curt nod. The jeans and white knit shirt he wore today contrasted with the dress shirt and slacks he’d had on at the foundation the day before. His shoulders seemed even broader, his frown more intimidating.
She wiped her palms on her own faded jeans. He was not going to succeed in cowing her.
