Leave It to Chance Read online

  Braden dropped his eyes to stare at the ground. He shouldn’t have asked. And it didn’t seem like his dad wanted him to come over to the house anymore anyway. It was a stupid belt buckle.

  The man shifted his feet and spoke again, “But I bet I can find another hammer.”

  Braden hesitated. “That’s okay. We’re probably not staying long once my mom knows where we are.”

  The man tilted his head. “Your mom doesn’t know you’re here?”

  Braden sighed. Grown-ups didn’t listen very well. “She knows I’m here. She just doesn’t know she’s here.”

  The man kind of chuckled and glanced over at the car where his grandma was hurrying around to the passenger door to help his mom out. “I think I’m missing something. Your mom doesn’t know she’s here?”

  “Grandma blindfolded her.” He shrugged. “Kind of to make it a surprise, I guess. But I don’t think she’s going to like it.” But he hoped she did.

  Years ago, Ross had been a kid who’d wanted to do man things too. That was why he finally let the boy carry the tool tray as they walked over to the green Honda. Mrs. Lassiter helped a grinning blindfolded woman out of the passenger seat.

  The cute dark-haired woman in jeans and a sweatshirt raised her hands to the white strip of cloth tied around her head with a laugh. “Can I take it off now?”

  Ross pulled his eyes from the excited woman and glanced at his barn, trying to figure out what the big surprise was. Abbey gave him a secretive smile, then said, “Okay, now.”

  The woman ripped the blindfold off, anticipation alight in the laughing brown eyes that darted as she turned in a circle to find her surprise. After a few moments, her mouth started to close, the expectancy waning. Her gaze held his for a moment, then passed on. Soon those eyes found his again and settled there, her puzzlement growing. “Mom?”

  Abbey chuckled and leaned to squeeze his arm. “No, it’s not him, Sierra.”

  Sierra looked away, wariness and uncertainty in her brown eyes. “What’s the surprise?”

  “Should be just a few more minutes, honey. In the meantime, this is Ross Morgan.” Abbey nodded toward him. “Ross, these are my grandkids, Braden and Emory. Trevor you’ve met.” She beamed with grandma pride.

  Ross returned the shy smiles they gave him.

  “And this is my daughter, Sierra. The one I told you about.”

  Sierra shot her mom an uneasy look. She turned a questioning gaze toward him and a wisp of a smile crossed her face. “Hello. I’m sure—”

  “Ross recently bought this place from his parents, Sierra, and he’s done all this landscaping himself. Isn’t it lovely?”

  Sierra looked around. “It is.”

  “There! Look, kids.” Abbey pointed up the road, shielding her eyes from the afternoon sun.

  Ross didn’t need to turn to know what was coming up his driveway. Abbey had called and arranged the surprise yesterday. The kids were jumping and screaming, but he kept his eyes on Sierra.

  Excitement brought her up on tiptoe to stare in the direction her mom pointed. Immediately the joy turned to puzzlement, and then hurt and shock drew deep lines in her forehead. She opened her mouth as if she wanted to speak but had no words. A whisper of anger swirled to the surface, and after a lingering glance at her mom she swiped a finger under her eyes, then brushed it against her shirt. Then did it again. She looked up the road, then at the children. Finally she noticed him watching.

  The vulnerability and worry touched something deep inside him, and he knew in that moment that whatever her mother had done, he wouldn’t be a part of it.

  Sierra turned away from the man’s intent stare. It was unnerving having a hunky stranger, who appeared to have stepped off an old Marlboro billboard, look at her so compassionately.

  Her mom had an arm around both Emory and Braden. Trevor hopped from foot to foot beside them, each pair of eyes focused on the red pickup and horse trailer slowly making its way up the driveway, a small ribbon of dust rising behind.

  Braden glanced back at her, a tuft of hair near his cowlick bobbing in his excitement. “It’s Chance.”

  Sierra nodded and tried to smile at him, her feelings roiling in a tangled knot inside. Her mother had disregarded each of Sierra’s concerns. Steamrolled them, actually. Were her feelings really so invisible, so unnecessary in her mom’s world?

  She sensed the man come up beside her. “You didn’t know, did you?” He had a kind voice. Deep with the warmth of caring.

  She shook her head but kept her eyes on the red truck.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Those two words undid her. She felt her chin tremble and pressed her lips together.

  The gravel crunched as he moved away.

  What now? Tell them not to unload the horse? How could she let her children have one more letdown, and this one from her?

  Kyle parked the pickup next to the barn and slammed his door shut with a wide smile. “Hey, Sierra! Ross.” He walked over and gave her mom a hug, “Sorry to keep you waiting. Chance here wasn’t too wild about climbing into the trailer.”

  Sierra gripped the blindfold in her hand tighter. “Chance” and “wild” weren’t words she wanted paired in the same sentence.

  Kyle bent down to greet the kids. “And you three must be the new owners of the horse tied up in that trailer.”

  Sierra’s heart sank at the delighted way the kids nodded their heads.

  Braden spread his legs and stuck his hands in his pockets. “We rode him already.”

  “Well, you’re going to get a lot of riding out here,” Kyle said, straightening.

  Braden grinned at Emory. It was as if the county fair had come to them with unlimited rides. Or rather one ride. Chance.

  And she was the reluctant ticket holder. Could she leave her kids lives to chance? And hope that nothing like what happened to Molly would occur? How much hope did she have left? Surely not enough.

  She moved quietly over to the group surrounding Kyle. Her eyes found Ross again, who was watching her with dark eyes set in a handsome face that hinted at thoughts stirring well below the surface. His gaze held hers for a spine-tingling moment before she looked away.

  Kyle clapped his hands. “Okay, let’s get that horse unloaded.”

  Sierra’s heart started pounding. Her mom followed Kyle and the kids toward the trailer. Sierra felt rooted to the spot, wanting to call them back.

  Ross walked up to her, blocking her view of them. “Do you want me to ask Kyle to take the horse back?”

  “Um. I don’t know.” He was offering her a way out! Her knight wore rugged man’s clothes. A dark wool jacket, black jeans, and work-worn boots. She shivered, but more from fear of Chance than having him near her, right? Elise would be grinning and elbowing her.

  He glanced behind him. “You don’t have much time.” Over his shoulder, Kyle was unlatching the rear doors of the trailer.

  Terror lurked behind those doors. “Yes! Please ask him.”

  He nodded and started toward Kyle.

  “Wait! No.” She reached for his arm.

  He turned, a half-grin on his face. “Conflicted?”

  “Very. Highly anxious, in case you hadn’t noticed.”

  A teasing laugh flickered through his eyes. “A gentleman would say he hadn’t.”

  She looked at the kids crowded behind Kyle. He said something to them, and they obediently backed up a few feet. “They’re so excited.”

  “Abbey said it’s their first horse.” Questions rode the statement.

  She gave him a polite smile. “Yes. I’m sure she did.”

  Kyle hollered over. “Hey, Ross, you want to give me a hand?”

  The man lowered his voice. “It wouldn’t be the end of the world if he took the horse away.”

  Sierra took a deep breath and attempted a smile. “Yes. Yes, it would.”

  The man hesitated, a kind smile lingering, then he walked toward Kyle. She followed more slowly. Why couldn’t Miss Libby have been int
o golden retrievers?

  Sierra stopped behind the kids. She felt her mom’s gaze, but couldn’t look at her.

  Braden grabbed her hand and started swinging it. “Can you believe it, Mom? Grandma rescued Chance.”

  “Mmm-hmm.” She knew her mom was listening intently.

  Abbey wrapped an arm around Sierra’s waist. “It’s for the best, honey.”

  “I don’t want to talk about it right now, Mom.”

  Her mom gave her a slight squeeze and let her hand drop.

  Centered in the middle of the opening above the twin doors was a large gray rump. Much larger than she’d anticipated.

  The hinges groaned when Kyle pulled the rear doors wide. He marched to the front of the trailer and disappeared through a side door. His muffled, “All clear,” was a signal Ross apparently understood since the man immediately unclipped the chain that draped behind the horse.

  Moments later the gray rump swayed as it backed up, then slowly settled one giant rear hoof, then the other, against the terra firma.

  Sierra gritted her teeth to keep from ordering Kyle to push that dangerous hind end back into the trailer and haul it away. She didn’t care where. Canada might be far enough. Last week Braden had asked if he could buy a lizard. At the time she’d shuddered at the thought of a reptile in the house and had visions of the washing machine dragged from the wall as they hunted for the escaped creature. But an aquarium-full would be preferable to a thousand-pound beast of muscle and hooves.

  A quick glance sideways sent that idea smoking into the discard pile. She couldn’t do it. Not with Braden, Emory, and Trevor bouncing up and down, throwing glowing looks her way every few seconds.

  Then Braden ran up from behind Chance and petted him on the neck.

  “Braden!” His name screamed its way straight from her solar plexus. She rushed over and grabbed his jacket, jerking him away.

  Ross and Kyle stared at her. Kyle’s mouth sagged, while Ross seemed to assess her with a slow gaze.

  Her eyes sought out the barn behind them, anything to avoid the censure that had to be staring at her from the man. Her heart pounded, she could feel the pulse of it in the palm that still gripped the back of Braden’s sweatshirt. Braden shot a look up at her, the whites of his eyes stark against his face.

  Ross walked steadily toward her. “You okay?”

  She nodded, unwilling to look directly at him. She really wasn’t a crazy woman. Maybe if she explained. “Braden ran right behind him.” Ross’s calm appraisal of her didn’t waver, so she knelt down to focus on her son. “You are never to go behind that horse.” Her voice carried the weight of maternal protectiveness. Only she knew how close she was to completely falling apart. “Do you understand? Chance could kick you, honey. He’s not like Sparky was.” Old faithful Sparky who’d barked and chased sticks and never minded Braden using her as a pillow or a wrestling partner.

  Ross rested a hand on Braden’s head. He spoke to her son, but his eyes held hers with a quiet look. “Sometimes we’re afraid of what we don’t understand.” He glanced down at Braden. “How about we get to know your new horse?”

  Ross sensed Braden’s embarrassment in the way the boy hung his head and dug his sneaker in the dirt once they stopped at the front of the trailer where Chance waited. Kyle looked like he wanted to walk the horse to the corral, but he kept staring at Sierra as if he wasn’t certain how she would react.

  Keeping a steady arm around the boy’s shoulders, Ross bent so they were ear to ear, facing a large velvet Roman nose. Ross pointed with his left hand. “Chance deserves your respect and your full attention at all times.” He glanced sideways at the boy, whose eyes hadn’t lifted from the ground. “Like your mom said, you want to be cautious about running around behind him. He doesn’t have eyes back there, and if he gets startled he might kick.”

  Ross sensed movement at his side.

  Trevor and Emory had inched up next to him, and the little guy reached up to pet the gray nose. Better do some educating before any fingers got chomped.

  The girl spoke first, disappointment in her voice. “He didn’t seem so old when we rode him the other day.”

  Ross wiped a hand down the long nose that had dropped to sniff at the newcomers. “I hear he’s twenty-two years old, just getting into his golden years. But I don’t think he’s ready for a nursing home yet, do you?”

  Emory didn’t look convinced. “Maybe.”

  Ross caught Kyle’s eye and tried not to laugh. “He’s still got plenty of galloping left in him.” He’d stuck a baggie of apple slices in his pocket before leaving the house, and he pulled one out now and gave it to Chance. The thick lips with grandpa whiskers tickled his hand and grabbed the chunk of apple. Chance swung his head away and the deep, crunch, crunch of the strong molars seemed to intrigue the kids.

  “Can I give him one?” Braden gave him an eager smile.

  “In a minute. We need to go over horse safety first.”

  Trevor looked at him, his young face earnest. “What’s a nursing home?”

  Braden answered. “It’s where old people go.”

  A grin nudged Ross’s lips. Back to horse safety. “Horses need—”

  His cell phone rang. He checked the number and gritted his teeth, then flipped it open. “Prestige Landscape Design, Ross speaking.”

  The commanding voice of Alex Cranwell, who owned one of the largest commercial landscaping businesses in the state, boomed in his ear. “Where are you, Morgan?”

  The familiar irritation rose. He hated it when the man called him by his last name. “What’s going on, Alex?”

  “There’s a problem with the water feature design. Marie doesn’t like it. This job may not be a big deal to you, but being that it’s my house and not one of your regular little residential jobs, I need you over here pronto.”

  Ross looked up at the dark clouds swirling overhead. “I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  “I expect you to be on-site, Morgan, when your guys build the waterfall next week.” A long sigh. “Let me make it plain. You’ve got the makings of a first-rate commercial landscaper, but if I can’t count on you for a simple job like this, then I’m not sure you’re ready for the commercial side of things.”

  “I hear you, Alex.” Every call from the man ended the same way—always dangling the carrot and threatening to jerk it away. He clicked the phone off, wishing he hadn’t been home the day Alex Cranwell drove up with all his promises of commercial glory.

  “I gotta go, guys.” He looked over at Kyle. “Do you have time to talk to them about taking care of Chance?”

  Kyle pulled his sleeve up and checked his watch with a frown. “I’d like to, but I need to get back to the shop.”

  Ross clapped his hands, trying to sound upbeat. “How about you guys come back after school tomorrow?” A glance at Sierra showed her doubt.

  Braden kicked at a rock. “We’re supposed to go to my dad’s.”

  “But we probably won’t. He doesn’t like us coming over anymore.” Emory sounded matter-of-fact.

  Braden shot back. “He does too. He’s just busy, he told me.” But he saw confusion and doubt on the boy’s face.

  “Monday then,” Ross played referee. “I’ll feed him until you guys come back. Maybe your mom can swing by and check on him for you once or twice this weekend.”

  Sierra gave an uncertain nod. “Okay.”

  He started toward the barn. “Follow me, and I’ll give you a quick tour and show you where we’re storing his hay and grain. Your grandma had some delivered this morning.”

  He caught the look Sierra shot her mom.

  “And then we’ll feed him some more apple pieces before I have to go.” His cell phone rang again. He checked the number and let it go to voice mail. Alex Cranwell would have to wait a few more minutes.

  After Kyle and Ross left, it took Sierra and her mom a frantic few minutes to find the boys. Frantic for Sierra, that was. If Trevor had gotten into the field with that horse an
d been hurt…. But her mom found them.

  Trevor was marched back to the van, her mom’s hand firmly around his wrist. “They were throwing rocks into Ross’s koi pond.”

  Sierra sighed. “Boys, get in the car.”

  On the drive home, the backseat held the quiet of disappointed children.

  Braden asked in a sullen tone, “Why do we have to go home?”

  Sierra kept her eyes on the road ahead of them. “Ross and Kyle had to leave.”

  “So? We could have stayed. Grandma let us ride him before.”

  Sierra leaned her elbow against the top of the passenger door. “Please stop, Braden.”

  The words were grumbled, but clearly audible. “I wish we were at Dad’s.”

  Emory’s fingers gripped the seat in front of her, her voice anxious. “Mom, what if Dad goes to our old house to pick us up tomorrow?”

  “I left a message for him, honey. He knows where Grandma lives.”

  The car grew quiet, a ticking bomb of emotions.

  Her mom broke the tense silence between them in the front seat. “I was surprised you remembered Kyle Olsen. He’s changed a lot since grade school.”

  “I see him every time I get my oil changed.”

  “Oh, that’s right. He took over his dad’s auto shop on Franklin.”

  Sierra decided to take the peace offering of simple conversation. “In third grade he won a banana split in our Sunday school’s contest to memorize the books of the Bible. But he got sick and threw it up. I thought God was punishing him for beating me.”

  Her mom’s crow’s-feet showed. “God wouldn’t do that. He doesn’t care who won.”

  Sierra looked out the side window. “I know.”

  A few minutes later they turned into her mom’s driveway. The delicious aroma of chicken potpie greeted them when they trooped into the house.

  Her mom placed her keys on a hook and her purse on the counter. “Emory, wash your hands and set the table, please. Braden and Trevor, wash up and get ready for dinner.”

  Sierra pulled the plates down and set the stack on the table. Emory gathered the silverware. “Milk or water, Em?”

  Emory paused halfway to the table, gave a decided nod and said, “Milk.”