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Lucy glanced around the room. Had she missed something here? Why was he so irritated?
“Visiting the ranch is out of the question, Ms....” He faltered for a moment. Clearly, he’d forgotten her name.
“Maxwell. Lucy Maxwell.”
“Ms. Maxwell, I can’t—won’t—leave my aunt.” Harris gathered up his papers and stood without sparing another glance in her direction.
Lucy folded her hands and willed herself not to panic.
The other boot had officially dropped.
* * *
“Jackson? Is Lucy gone?” Meredith asked from the doorway of the great room.
Jack turned from the tall window that overlooked the front lawn and circular drive. “If she drives a beat-up mustard-colored Honda, then yes, Aunt Meri, she’s gone.”
Lucy Maxwell. He shook his head. He’d never met anyone like her before. A sunflower. That was exactly what she reminded him of, with that cap of dark hair and round chocolate-brown eyes, along with a smattering of freckles on her golden face. A petite woman, she wore a pale yellow dress along with red hand-tooled cowboy boots. When she walked, the dress fluttered around her calves, capturing his attention, whether he liked it or not. And he did not. Con artists came in pretty packages too, he reminded himself. He’d been taken in once before, and even put a ring on her finger. Never again.
“When will you start at the ranch?” Meredith asked.
“Hmm?” He blinked and met her gaze.
“What are you thinking about?” His aunt smiled. “Lucy, perhaps?”
“What? No.” He gave his aunt his full attention. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”
“I asked when you will be heading to Big Heart Ranch.”
He paused for a moment at the question, planning his strategy. “I’m not leaving you to spend time observing a ranch.”
“Oh?” She smiled. “Then you’re approving the original donation amount?”
Jack crossed the room and put an arm around his aunt’s thin shoulders. “Aunt Meri, you know you’re my favorite aunt.”
She chuckled. “I’m your only aunt.”
He grinned. “True. And while you are as generous as you are kind, you can’t give away the foundation money to every shyster that comes along.”
Meredith gasped. Her sharp blue eyes blazed, taking him back to his childhood days of misbehaving and facing his aunt’s wrath. She had never hesitated to serve up well-deserved punishment for his crimes. Jack took a step back when she straightened to her full five-foot-nothing height.
“Lucy Maxwell is not a shyster!”
“What do you really know about the woman, Aunt Meri?”
“What I know is that the bulk of the foundation’s income is from mineral and oil rights. My husband inherited those rights from his great-great-grandfather, who was one-half Osage Indian. The foundation was set up to ensure that the funds were invested locally.” She pinned her gaze on her nephew. “Big Heart Ranch is as local as it gets, and they are an investment in this community’s future.”
He wasn’t going to point out that she hadn’t answered his question. Instead, he tried another tactic.
“You’ve proposed nearly doubling the donation to this ranch. Why?”
His aunt narrowed her eyes and exhaled sharply. “Have you been talking to your father?”
“What makes you say that?”
“He’s made it quite clear that he believes I’m not fit to manage the foundation. Oh, he thinks he’s being subtle, sending you out here as in-house counsel, but I know what he’s up to.”
“Aunt Meri, Dad’s concerned about your health, that’s all.”
She offered a harrumph at his words. “I’ll tell you what I told him, Jackson. Vertigo does not equal diminished mental capacity.”
“What about the chemo?”
“My treatments are completed and I’ve been given a clean bill of health by my physicians. The cancer is in remission. Shall we have my oncologist contact your father?”
“Aunt Meri, please don’t get upset. The bottom line is I’m here as the foundation’s attorney. Not to inspect a ranch in Timber.”
“I don’t see why you can’t do both. They have internet and telephones at the ranch, so you’ll be able to stay in touch. My assistant has all the numbers. Besides, while the ranch is on the outskirts of Timber, you’re still only twenty minutes away.”
“Twenty minutes is forever if you need me.”
She paused and gave him a hard, assessing glance. “What are you really doing in Oklahoma, Jackson? You’ve been in New York since forever. I have a hard time believing your father didn’t pressure you to come out here.”
“Not at all. Dad would never do that.”
“Oh, please. Your father could talk a peacock out of his feathers.”
He laughed. She was right, he’d give her that. Except the truth was more complicated. His father did want him to check on his aunt. It was a coincidence that Jack desperately needed a change of scenery.
“He told me the position was open, and you were vetting candidates. Perhaps it was... What’s that saying of yours? A God thing.”
Her expression said she didn’t believe him for a second. “You made it clear once you left for college that you prefer the big-city skyscrapers over the red clay of Oklahoma. You’ve been gone a long time. What happened to make you quit your job and take on the foundation position?”
“Let’s just say that I’m reevaluating my options.”
“In my day, a man like you would have been considered a catch. Why haven’t you settled down, Jackson?”
“Aunt Meri, I’m not much of a family man.”
“What does your fiancée say about that? Isn’t she still one of your options?”
“That’s over.”
She slowly shook her head and glanced past him, out the window. “I’m so sorry to hear that. What happened?”
“Let’s just say she was more interested in my wallet than me.”
“Ahh, so that’s why you’re being so hard on Lucy.”
“My personal life has nothing to do with Big Heart Ranch.”
“No?” She cocked her head.
Silence settled between them. “What’s going on?” his aunt finally said. “You’ve been unhappy for some time. I could tell from your phone calls.”
He met his aunt’s perceptive gaze. Was he unhappy? Or simply disenchanted and searching for something real in his life?
She frowned. “You always wanted to make a difference, Jackson. What changed?”
“Make a difference? Did I say that?” He scoffed. “If I did, then you’re correct. That was a long time ago. What’s changed is that I’m not an idealistic attorney anymore.”
“I think maybe deep inside you are.” She placed her hand on his arm. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to have you here, but as far as Lucy Maxwell and Big Heart Ranch are concerned, you couldn’t be more off base. I still contend that you can’t make a decision to cut off their funding without investigating the situation.”
“Off base? I did my research. That ranch is a money pit.”
She offered a sound of disgust. “That doesn’t mean they’re mismanaging the funds. I don’t believe for a minute that anything shady is going on at that ranch, and I challenge you to find one bit of evidence to support your claim.”
Meredith gripped her cane and walked to the wall of family portraits. Her hand trailed the ornate, gilded edges of the frames. A huge portrait of Jack’s grandfather hung next to a smaller one of her husband, followed by another of Jack’s father. She stopped at a painting of Jack with his twin brother, Daniel. They were nine years old, mirror images, with matching grins and dark curls. There, however, the similarities ended. Daniel was charming, outgoing and impulsive, while Jack was shy, hesitant and introverted.
A wave of sadness and guilt slammed into him as he stared at the painting. Twenty-five years had passed, yet nothing would ever be the same. Daniel was gone and it was his fault. He’d been minutes behind his brother that day and hadn’t been able to save him.
“I miss Daniel,” Meredith murmured with a soft sigh. He was surprised when she turned and wrapped her arms around him in a loving hug.
The scent of his aunt’s lavender perfume carried him back years. “I miss him, too, Aunt Meri,” he whispered.
His father’s words from when Jack left New York raced through his thoughts. When we lost your brother and your mother left, your aunt was there for both of us. This is an opportunity for you to be there for her. She won’t ask, but Meri needs help.
He swallowed hard as he stared at his brother’s smiling face. “I’ll go to the ranch, Aunt Meredith.”
Jack grimaced when he realized that the words had actually slipped from his lips. When his aunt’s face lit up, he knew that it was much too late to take them back.
“Oh, Jackson, I knew I could count on you to do the right thing. I’ll call Lucy immediately.”
The right thing.
For a moment, he’d let his guard down and sentiment had strong-armed him. Jack took a deep breath. He suspected his orderly life was about to be blown wide-open, and he placed the blame squarely at the feet of Little Lucy Sunshine, the director of Big Heart Ranch.
Chapter Two (#uf216b09b-e74e-5314-b1ac-4798159b588f)
“I need a favor.” Lucy stood in the doorway of the children’s therapist and child care director of the Big Heart Ranch office. It belonged to her sister, Emma.
“Good morning to you,” Emma said. She tidied the bookshelf in her already immaculate office and turned to Lucy. “What sort of favor?”
“Can you handle my calls for a couple of hours? I have to start a new volunteer.”
“Sure. Only because then I can remind you that you need to hire an assistant.”
“Not going to happen.”
Lucy glanced at a platter of chocolate muffins artfully arranged on a table. “You made muffins? Like you don’t have enough to do?” She nodded toward the portable cribs set up in the back of the huge room. Inside, her twelve-month-old twin nieces slumbered, thumbs in mouth and bottoms in the air.
Emma shrugged. “So tell me what happened at the Brisbane Foundation yesterday.”
Lucy grabbed a muffin and peeled back the paper. “Meredith said to tell you hello.”
“Was that before or after she handed you a sizable donation check?”
“Things didn’t exactly work out that way.”
“What do you mean?”
“Meredith has a new attorney who hasn’t approved the funding. I’m sure everything will be taken care of soon.”
Emma sank into a chair and nervously fingered her braid. “Lucy, we need to finalize our budget. I don’t understand what the holdup is. She sent us preliminary numbers weeks ago.”
Lucy met her sister’s worried gaze. “The attorney is doing things differently.”
“Is Travis aware?” Emma asked quietly.
“Yes. But you know Travis. All he cares about is the cows.”
Emma glanced at the calendar and cringed. “This puts everything on hold.”
“I know. Which brings me to the other news.” Lucy dusted off her hands. “Leo quit.”
“What? Why? He’s our best ranch hand.”
“He was offered more money at a ranch in Driscoll. I simply can’t match the offer.”
“So we’ll hire someone else.”
“I’m not going to hire anyone until the budget situation is resolved. In fact, I may have to lay off staff if we don’t get the Brisbane Foundation backing by the end of summer.” She met Emma’s gaze. “All expenditures outside of the day-to-day ranch maintenance are on hold.”
“What about the gala? I’ve already placed deposits for caterers, waitstaff and flowers. Not to mention the entertainment. Meredith always funds the gala.”
“The gala is low on my worry list. Let’s try to focus on what’s really important. The kids.”
Emma nodded.
“The Lord has been the financial backing for Big Heart Ranch since day one,” she said. “This is His ranch. These are His children. He will continue to provide more than we can ask or imagine. Right?”
“Right,” Emma said. “I couldn’t agree more.”
Lucy took a bite of the muffin and glanced toward the parking lot.
“Was there something else?”
“Yes.”
